July 22, 2016


News and Views


Another mass killing:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/munich-shooting-police-shots-fired-shopping-center/

Police: At least 9 dead in Munich mall shooting
CBS/AP
July 22, 2016, 12:52 PM

Image -- An image capture taken from video footage shows special forces police officers walking along a street outside the Olympia shopping mall following a shooting rampage in Munich, Germany, on July 22, 2016. REUTERS/REUTERS TV
Play VIDEO -- Witness describes scene as shooter left mall in Munich
View Gallery -- A gunman is seen outside a McDonald's in Munich, Germany, on July 22, 2016, in this image taken from video posted to Twitter.
Play VIDEO -- Munich shooting rampage witness
Play VIDEO -- Witness to Munich attack describes shooting
Play VIDEO -- Terror analysis after shooting rampage in Munich


MUNICH -- Munich police warned people to stay inside and avoid public places Friday as they hunted for the shooter or shooters who opened fire at a shopping mall, killing at least eight people and wounding others in a rampage they described as suspected terrorism.

A source told CBS News that one gunman killed himself in the aftermath of the rampage at a McDonald's at the Olympia Einkaufszentrum mall.

Munich police spokesman Marcus Martins said a ninth body has been found at the scene and police are "intensively examining" it to see if it may be one of the attackers. Martin says "according to my knowledge, we're looking for three suspects" in the attack.

Witnesses reported seeing three men with firearms near the mall.

Police called the mall shooting "suspected terrorism" in a statement but did not elaborate on who might have been behind it. In Washington, the White House condemned what it called an "apparent terrorist attack."

Germany's elite GSG9 anti-terror police, as well as federal police, were called in to help.

A U.S. law enforcement source told CBS News that it appeared that 10 people were wounded but the situation was fluid, CBS News senior investigative producer Pat Milton reports.

In Washington, President Obama reacted to the shooting in remarks to his policing task force.

"Germany's one of our closest allies, so we are going to pledge all the support that they may need in dealing with these circumstances," Mr. Obama said.

In Norway, the shooting happened on the same day that the country paid an emotional tribute to the 77 people killed in a bombing-and-shooting rampage by a far-right terrorist five years ago.

Munich sent a smartphone alert telling people to stay indoors and German rail company Deutsche Bahn stopped train traffic to Munich's main station.

The attack started at a fast food restaurant shortly before 6 p.m. local time, police spokesman Thomas Baumann told German news agency dpa.

An image capture taken from video footage shows special forces police officers walking along a street outside the Olympia shopping mall following a shooting rampage in Munich, Germany, on July 22, 2016.

Video obtained by The Associated Press from German news agency NonstopNews showed two bodies with sheets draped over them not far from a McDonald's across from the mall.

Germany's Interior Ministry said Munich police had set up a hotline for concerned citizens. Facebook launched its "safety check" feature for users to let their friends know whether they're OK. Residents of Munich opened their doors to people seeking shelter using the Twitter hashtag #opendoor.

On Twitter, police asked people to refrain from speculating on the attack. Germany's interior minister cut short his holiday in the United States to go back to Berlin late Friday to meet with security officials.

Bayrischer Rundfunk reported that shops in the center of Munich had closed with customers inside though police said reports of shots fired at a location downtown had been a false alarm.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's was being regularly briefed on the attack, said her chief of staff, Peter Altmaier.

"All that we know and can say right now is that it was a cruel and inhumane attack," he said on German public channel ARD. "We can't rule out that there are terrorist links. We can't confirm them, but we are investigating along those lines too."

Altmaier said numerous attacks had been prevented in Germany in recent years "but, and this is important, there can never be absolute security."

Police responded in large numbers to the mall in the northern part of Munich, not far from the city's Olympic Stadium in the Moosach district of the Bavarian capital.

It was also not far from where Palestinian attackers opened fire in the Olympic Village in 1972, killing 11 Israeli athletes. Five guerrillas and a police officer were also killed. The GSG9 anti-terrorism unit was created after that attack, though the city saw a worse one in 1980, when 13 people were killed and more than 200 injured at the city's annual Oktoberfest in a bombing blamed on a student with ties to a neo-Nazi group.

It was the second attack in Germany in less than a week. On Monday, a 17-year-old Afghan wounded four people in an ax-and-knife attack on a regional train near the Bavarian city of Wuerzburg, and another woman outside as he fled. All survived, although one man from the train remains in life-threatening condition. The attacker was shot and killed by police.

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, claimed responsibility for the train attack, but authorities have said the teen likely acted alone.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/toxic-algae-bloom-swarms-utah-lake-sickens-100/

Toxic algae smothers Utah Lake, sickens 100
AP July 22, 2016, 4:58 PM

Photograph -- Utah Lake, covered in dangerous algae, is closed to the public. KAYLA FOWLER/KUTV
Play VIDEO -- Protesters demand answers over Florida toxic algae bloom


SPANISH FORK, Utah -- A huge toxic algae bloom in Utah has closed one of the largest freshwater lakes west of the Mississippi River, sickening more than 100 people and leaving farmers scrambling for clean water during some of the hottest days of the year.

The bacteria commonly known as blue-green algae has spread rapidly to cover almost all of 150-square-mile Utah Lake, turning the water bright, anti-freeze green with a pea soup texture and leaving scummy foam along the shore.

"It smells like something is rotting," said Jason Garrett, water quality director for the Utah County Health Department. "We don't have an idea of how long this event will last."

Toxic algae is a problem around the country. An enormous outbreak in Florida is now fouling beaches on the Atlantic coast, and a 2014 outbreak at Lake Erie left more than 400,000 people in the Toledo area without tap water for two days.

Utah Lake doesn't provide drinking water, but its closure is causing big problems for people who use the lake for swimming, fishing and other activities and for farmers with thirsty crops.

Utah Poison Control says it has fielded hundreds of calls related to the bloom, including some 130 involving people who have reported vomiting, diarrhea, headache and rashes.

The contamination has now spread to the Jordan River, which supplies irrigation to dozens of farmers around Salt Lake City, about 45 miles north of the lake. The problem has occurred amid days of triple-digit temperatures as growers prepare for farmers markets and try to nurture crops such as corn and fruit trees at key points in their development.

"We've spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on this crop, maxed out every dollar we have," said Luke Petersen, who farms about 100 acres of tomatoes, summer squash and other produce in Riverton. "We're real worried about it."

Meanwhile, the Bonneville School of Sailing has had to cancel more than a dozen groups since the lake was closed.

"This will be a real hit," said co-owner Todd Frye. He loves the mountain-rimmed lake and has worked to change the decades-old perception that it's murky and polluted. New efforts to clean out bottom-feeding carp are improving the water quality, but he worries the algae bloom will be a blow to its image.

The lake is largely fed by treated wastewater as well as agricultural runoff, said Erica Gaddis, assistant director for the Utah Division of Water Quality.

Longstanding drought conditions have made the water especially low and stagnant. Combine that with hot summer weather and Utah Lake became a perfect petri dish for the cyanobacteria.

There are chemical and biological treatments for the problem, but using them on such a large bloom would be unprecedented and possibly harmful, Gaddis said.

For now, authorities are waiting for the bloom to run its course and clear, hopefully aided by a drop in temperatures or a storm that could stir up the water and reduce stagnation.

One bit of good news is that early test results indicate levels of dangerous toxins produced by the bacteria may not be as high as feared, though the state is still waiting for more data.

To stave off new blooms in coming years, the state is looking to reduce the levels of toxic algae-feeding phosphorous and nitrogen in wastewater that's pumped into the lake. That could be difficult, however, because cities served by those plants include some of the fastest-growing in the country.

"We've been loading the Utah Lake in one form or another for 150 years, and it's catching up with us," Gaddis said.



A number of Jacksonville area waterfront properties have been in the news for this very same algae within the last couple of weeks. I don’t tend to see our various lakes and ponds across the nation to be connected, but there is also running water, usually without appearing on a map. A small creek can carry the algae, I’m sure, from one lake to the next. There are also the many water birds like ducks, geese, herons, etc. who travel from one body of water to another for food and habitat, and I had heard before that some animal parasites cling to their feet and feathers. The low water due to a long streak of high temperatures is also a problem. I do hope this won’t be another sign of global warming that will be a repetitive problem. I hate to see waterways stinking and clouded with such life forms. The day when people will be able to swim in such waters or even eat fish from them safely may be on its’ way out. On the East coast from NC to FL we have also Red Tide, which can kill fish and sicken humans also.



http://www.mystatesman.com/news/news/local/violent-arrest-of-teacher-caught-on-video-officers/nr3W6/

Violent arrest of teacher caught on video; officers face investigation
LOCAL By Tony Plohetski - American-Statesman Staff, KVUE News
Updated: 7:29 p.m. Thursday, July 21, 2016 | Posted: 3:52 p.m. Thursday, July 21, 2016

RAW VIDEO: Click to see police video of Breaion King’s arrest
Photograph -- +Violent arrest of teacher caught on video; officers face investigation photo RODOLFO GONZALEZ, Caption: Breaion King is overcome with emotion as she describes being pulled from her car by an Austin police officer during a ... Read More
Photograph -- Violent arrest of teacher caught on video; officers face investigation photo RODOLFO GONZALEZ, Breaion King speaks with the Statesman and KVUE-TV about a traffic stop that turned into violent arrest when she was twice ... Read More
Photograph -- +Violent arrest of teacher caught on video; officers face investigation photo SCREEN CAPTURE FROM APD VIDEO: Officer Bryan Richter flings Breaion King to the ground during her arrest resulting from a 2015 traffic stop. Neither officer has previous suspensions with the department.
Image -- +Violent arrest of teacher caught on video; officers face investigation photo SCREEN CAPTURE FROM APD VIDEO, After twice being thrown to the ground by an Austin police officer, Breaion King was cuffed and pushed the hood of ... Read More
REACTION: Police union critical of officer conduct
Related:
Dashcam: Violent arrest of Austin school teacher Breaion King
Austin police officer discusses racism with Breaion King after her arrest
Police union is critical of officer conduct in King arrest


Officials are investigating an Austin police officer’s violent arrest of an African-American elementary school teacher who was twice thrown to the ground during a traffic stop for speeding and comments by a second officer who told her police are sometimes wary of blacks because of their “violent tendencies.”

Video from the previously unreported June 2015 incident was obtained by the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV this week. The video shows the traffic stop escalating rapidly in the seven seconds from when officer Bryan Richter, who is white, first gives a command to 26-year-old Breaion King to close her car door to when he forcibly removes her from the driver’s seat, pulls her across a vacant parking space and hurls her to the asphalt.

Richter wrote in his report of the incident that he acted quickly because King demonstrated an “uncooperative attitude” and was “reaching for the front passenger side of the vehicle.” He didn’t know whether she had a weapon, he wrote. He said King resisted by pulling away from him and wrapping her hands and arms around the steering wheel.

Police charged King with resisting arrest, but the Travis County attorney dismissed the case after reviewing the police dashcam video.

As King was being driven to jail, a separate police video recorded a conversation between King and officer Patrick Spradlin in which he said whites may be concerned about interacting with blacks because they can appear “intimidating.”

The Austin Police Department issued the lowest level of discipline to Richter — counseling and additional training — after Richter’s supervisors looked into his use of force, but his conduct was never formally investigated by internal affairs. Spradlin was not punished for his comments because the department only learned about them after the Statesman began inquiring.

In an interview this week, Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo said the department has opened an administrative review into how Richter’s supervisors evaluated his actions and a separate criminal investigation. Officials are also investigating Spradlin’s comments. But Acevedo said that, under state civil service law, he cannot take disciplinary action beyond a written reprimand against the officers for this incident because it happened more than six months ago.

“After reviewing both videos, I and our leadership team were highly disturbed and disappointed in both the way Ms. King was approached and handled and in the mindset that we saw on display in those videos,” Acevedo said. “But there is another piece, which has caused concerns as to our review process and the systems we have in place.”

He said he regrets that he didn’t know about the situation sooner and that he is taking renewed steps to help citizens learn how to respond when they feel mistreated by officers.

“We need to help our community overcome the fear or reluctance, which I understand, to file a complaint,” he said. “This is critical if we are to weed out bad officers and bad behavior.”

A year later, public scrutiny

The 2015 case had received no outside scrutiny until prosecutors flagged it in recent weeks.

Travis County Attorney David Escamilla said he ordered a resisting arrest charge against King immediately dropped — King paid a $165 fine and court costs for speeding — once he reviewed the videos earlier this year and sent it to felony prosecutors to review Richter’s actions.

Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg said her office viewed the video about two weeks ago and asked the Austin police Special Investigations Unit, which looks into cases of possible officer misconduct, to assist them. Lehmberg said the case likely will be presented to a grand jury.

The emergence of the video comes at an intensely strained time nationally between police and many in the minority community that has played out over the past two years, marked by protests after high-profile controversial police use of lethal force and the recent killings of police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge, La.

Texas officials are still grappling with the aftermath of the Sandra Bland case last year, which made national headlines after she was wrestled to the ground by a state trooper during a traffic stop. Part of the arrest was caught on dashcam video; Bland later committed suicide in a county jail. The officer was fired.

And in Austin, many are still reeling from the February shooting of David Joseph, a naked, unarmed 17-year-old shot and killed by former Officer Geoffrey Freeman after police said Joseph charged at the officer. Freeman was fired, but a grand jury declined to indict him.

In an interview this week, King said she is contemplating a lawsuit against the officer and the Austin Police Department and has hired attorneys Broadus Spivey and Erica Grigg to represent her.

“When I looked at this video, I was heartbroken because I thought, ‘That would never happen to me because I’m white,’ ” Grigg said.

‘It happened really fast’

King’s account, police reports and dash camera videos help provide a narrative from the incident on the afternoon of June 15, 2015.

King, who grew up in Austin and is finishing a master’s degree at Texas State University, said she was driving on a lunch break. Richter said he clocked her Nissan Versa speeding at 50 mph in a 35 mph zone traveling eastbound on Riverside Drive.

King got out of her car in a Wendy’s parking lot, and Richter is seen approaching her in the dashcam video. What’s being said is not entirely clear on the video, but Richter wrote in his report that King told him she was going inside for lunch and that he suspected she was trying to elude him because she didn’t appear to have a wallet. He asked her return to her car.

King sat in the driver’s seat but kept the door of her car open and her legs and feet outside the car. Richter is heard instructing her to sit fully in the car so that he could close the door.

“I did this so that if she decided to exit the vehicle again, it would give me some sort of reaction time to her doing so, versus her being half way out of the vehicle with the door open giving her an easy escape,” he wrote.

“At this point I was worried her uncooperative attitude would only escalate once I returned to my vehicle (to write the ticket),” Richter said in his report.

At that point, the video shows Richter reaching inside and grabbing King, who told police she weighs 112 pounds, as she begins to scream. The car’s horn is blaring during the struggle, and then, King is heard asking Richter, who had been shouting, “Stop resisting!” to allow her to get out on her own.

The struggle then continued, and Richter is seen throwing King to the ground. He yells for her to put her hands behind her back. King said in an interview that she struggled to do so as the two continued tussling.

The officer is then seen throwing her to the ground again.

King said that she did not think Richter gave her an opportunity to respond to his commands.

“It happened really fast,” said King, who suffered minor scrapes and bruises and saw a doctor the following day. “I wasn’t given enough time.”

In subsequent videos, King is seen distraught and handcuffed in the back of a police car, yelling at other officers to keep Richter away from her and her property. Spradlin’s comments came as he and King neared the jail and engaged in a conversation about race and police.

“Why are so many people afraid of black people,” Spradlin asks King.

She replies, “That’s what I want to figure out because I’m not a bad black person.”

“I can give you a really good idea why it might be that way,” the officer tells her. “Violent tendencies.”

When she asks if he thinks racism still exists, he says, “Let me ask you this. Do you believe it goes both ways?”

“Ninety-nine percent of the time, when you hear about stuff like that, it is the black community that is being violent. That’s why a lot of the white people are afraid, and I don’t blame them. There are some guys I look at, and I know it is my job to deal with them, and I know it might go ugly, but that’s the way it goes.

“But yeah, some of them, because of their appearance and whatnot, some of them are very intimidating,” he says.

Austin police policy requires officers to use the minimum amount of force necessary in dealing with suspects. Departmental policy also requires police to maintain an impartial attitude, saying officers “will not express or otherwise manifest any prejudice concerning race, religion, national origin, age, political affiliation, sex or other personal characteristics in the performance of their duties.”

More than a year later, King said she remains distraught about what happened and that it has forever changed how she views police.

“I’ve become fearful to live my life,” she said. “I would rather stay home. I’ve become afraid of the people who are supposed to protect me and take care of me.”

Acevedo responds to King’s arrest:
In response to the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV’s report on Breaion King’s violent arrest last year, Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo apologized Thursday to the elementary school teacher, used some of his strongest language yet to condemn excessive use of police force and prejudice within the department, and said he met with local activists Wednesday to discuss the incident.

Here are some highlights from his statements Thursday:

In an apology directed to King, his relatives, friends and supporters: “I’m sorry that in the day you were stopped for going 15 mph, you were… treated in a manner that is not consistent with the expectations of this police chief, of most of the officers of this department, and most importantly, of all of us as human beings.”

“There’s a way to do this job, and that day we did not approach it anywhere near where we should have approached it.”

In reference to a patrol officer’s statements on race recorded on video after King’s arrest: “I’m so heartened to know that (police union) are taken aback by that statement.”
Responding whether he believed the patrol officer’s statements were racist: “Yes. I can’t denounce what he had to say any stronger.”
“We need to be aware of these kinds of incidents. Most of the time we are but it makes you wonder are there other things we’re not aware of.”

On meeting with local activists Wednesday after learning about King’s arrest: “As disheartened as I am as your police chief to stand here, apologizing to the community … We had some really heartfelt conversations… I think we’re going to see some great things moving forward.”
“If anyone ever gets retaliated against by my police officers for complaining, not only will they be looking for a job but they’ll be charged.”
“I’ve asked my own people to look at these videos and ask, ‘am I approaching a 15mph speeding ticket like that? Is that the way I want my loved one treated?’”
“The lessons of APD is we still have work to do. We can never rest on our laurels.”



Excerpts -- “After reviewing both videos, I and our leadership team were highly disturbed and disappointed in both the way Ms. King was approached and handled and in the mindset that we saw on display in those videos,” Acevedo said. “But there is another piece, which has caused concerns as to our review process and the systems we have in place.” He said he regrets that he didn’t know about the situation sooner and that he is taking renewed steps to help citizens learn how to respond when they feel mistreated by officers. “We need to help our community overcome the fear or reluctance, which I understand, to file a complaint,” he said. “This is critical if we are to weed out bad officers and bad behavior.” …. Officials are investigating an Austin police officer’s violent arrest of an African-American elementary school teacher who was twice thrown to the ground during a traffic stop for speeding and comments by a second officer who told her police are sometimes wary of blacks because of their “violent tendencies.” …. Video from the previously unreported June 2015 incident was obtained by the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV this week. The video shows the traffic stop escalating rapidly in the seven seconds from when officer Bryan Richter, who is white, first gives a command to 26-year-old Breaion King to close her car door to when he forcibly removes her from the driver’s seat, pulls her across a vacant parking space and hurls her to the asphalt. Richter wrote in his report of the incident that he acted quickly because King demonstrated an “uncooperative attitude” and was “reaching for the front passenger side of the vehicle.” He didn’t know whether she had a weapon, he wrote. He said King resisted by pulling away from him and wrapping her hands and arms around the steering wheel. Police charged King with resisting arrest, but the Travis County attorney dismissed the case after reviewing the police dashcam video.”



Watch all the videos. They each have important information. Spradlin expresses the often heard white viewpoint that Black people “may appear intimidating” and have “violent tendencies.” Officer Bryan Richter’s report explains, from his side of the story, why he so suddenly became violent. He thought she was reaching to the passenger side possible to get a weapon, and that she was behaving in an “uncooperative” manner. He described his behavior as “acting quickly.” She did, in fact, ask him “could he please hurry up?” as soon as the incident began, presumably because she was on her lunch break and had to get back to work. After the encounter became more of a true tussle she did say that she wanted to talk to a black officer, and in some context used the word “bullshit.”

Nonetheless, to throw her down on the pavement twice when she was only going 15mph over the limit was unnecessarily rough, and white people simply aren’t treated that way. As Chief Acevedo stated, her crime was a small one, and the officer’s response shouldn’t have become so physical at all. So many of these encounters show overkill, which only proves to the ethnic communities further that police can’t be trusted. They seem to think they’re in a war.

In fact, he didn’t need to manhandle her at all, in my view. Most of the time when I’ve been stopped they just ask for my information and either scold me a little or issue a ticket. The whole thing showed an exaggeration of the actual threat level to the officer, which is a factor in other cases I’ve seen in the news in which the officer is being very self-protective; and at one point on one of the videos he did call her “bitch.”

True, he didn’t shoot her, but he is still in hot water with the Police Chief, who has had to ask the young woman’s forgiveness, eat humble pie in front of the nation, and is facing a probable lawsuit. Acevedo stated that he regrets the fact that the incident only recently came to his eyes when a review board questioned the officer report. The article didn’t say whether an outside complaint was the origin of the prosecutor’s review. How could something like this, with acknowledged violence, end up with just a slap on the wrist: “The Austin Police Department issued the lowest level of discipline to Richter — counseling and additional training — after Richter’s supervisors looked into his use of force, but his conduct was never formally investigated by internal affairs.”

Apparently the issue never went far enough up the ladder to bring an awareness of it to the Chief. His comment is telling: “I’ve asked my own people to look at these videos and ask, ‘am I approaching a 15mph speeding ticket like that? Is that the way I want my loved one treated?’ The lessons of APD is we still have work to do. We can never rest on our laurels.” Police officials are becoming much more concerned, I believe, now that BLM and Ferguson have brought national attention to the very same problems appearing everywhere, not just in the South. Southern racists just tend to be more overt about it.

See also the comments from the police union in the article below. They are improving in their attitude and desire to work on the problems, also. Often in the months after Ferguson, they were standing before the nation and saying how the public is so unfair to the police. Union vice president Anthony Nelson says, “We understand the public’s reaction to Officer Richter’s response to resistance. Officer Spradlin’s comments were wrong and not reflective of the values and beliefs of the men and women who serve this community. “We recognize how incidents such as these can divide our city and cause mistrust. We have met with community stakeholders and begun a dialogue. We hope that the conversation will lead to substantive changes that will help bridge that divide.”



http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local/police-union-is-critical-of-officer-conduct-in-kin/nr3XQ/

Police union is critical of officer conduct in King arrest
4:00 p.m. Thursday, July 21, 2016 | Filed in: Local

The Austin Police Association on Wednesday released a statement after learning about investigations involving two of its members and an incident last year involving 26-year-old African-American teacher Breaion King.

Union vice president Anthony Nelson said in a statement, “We understand the public’s reaction to Officer Richter’s response to resistance. Officer Spradlin’s comments were wrong and not reflective of the values and beliefs of the men and women who serve this community.

“We recognize how incidents such as these can divide our city and cause mistrust. We have met with community stakeholders and begun a dialogue. We hope that the conversation will lead to substantive changes that will help bridge that divide.”



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/brazil-police-arrest-isis-inspired-group-allegedly-plotting-olympics-attack/

Brazil arrests 10 in alleged Olympics terror plot
CBS/AP
July 21, 2016, 11:29 AM

Photograph -- Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces stand guard outside the Olympic Village in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 21, 2016. REUTERS/STOYAN NENOV
Play VIDEO -- Uptick in cybercrime ahead of Rio Olympic Games
Play VIDEO -- Russia's doping scheme may lead to Olympic ban
Related: Complete Olympics coverage on CBSSports.com


RIO DE JANEIRO -- Brazilian police arrested 10 people who allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, on social media and discussed possible attacks during the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, officials said Thursday.

Justice Minister Alexandre de Moraes said in the capital, Brasilia, that 10 suspects had been detained and two more were being sought. All are Brazilian, and one is a minor. The gender of the people was not given.

Police acted because the group discussed using weapons and guerrilla tactics to potentially launch an attack during the Olympics, which begin Aug. 5, Moraes said.

However "they were complete amateurs and ill-prepared" to actually launch an attack, Moraes said. "A few days ago they said they should start practicing martial arts, for example."

Still, Moraes said even disorganized groups should be taken seriously.

The arrests were made in 10 different states, including Sao Paulo and Parana in the southern part of the country, and it was not clear whether the suspects knew each other beyond their online contacts. Moraes said there were no specific targets for an attack.

Moraes said they had all been "baptized" as ISIS sympathizers online and none had actually traveled to Syria or Iraq, the group's stronghold, or received any training. Several were allegedly trying to secure financing from the group.

The justice minister said one of the suspects communicated with a store in Paraguay via email in an alleged attempt to by an AK-47 assault rifle, apparently the most concrete action taken toward a possible attack. That email communication was intercepted by police.

Brazilians are allowed to possess small firearms but must have a license and training to do so. Only members of the military may possess assault weapons like the AK-47, although those and other firearms are common place especially in slums controlled by drug gangs.

Moraes said authorities seized computers, cellphones and other equipment, but no weapons.

Last week the top military aide for Brazil's interim government said concerns over terrorism had "reached a higher level" after the attack in Nice, France.

Officials did not raise the country's terror alert level Thursday following the raids.

Security has emerged as the top concern during the Olympics, including violence possibly spilling over from Rio's hundreds of slums. Authorities have said they will be prepared and that some 85,000 police and soldiers will be patrolling during the competitions.

Rio expects more than 10,000 athletes and half a million tourists. But the city that is already plagued by violent crime is battling a crime wave ahead of the games, reported CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy.

Human body parts recently washed up on Copacabana Beach next to the Olympic beach volleyball arena. Gunmen stormed a hospital to free a suspected drug trafficker and ended up killing a patient, and some Olympic athletes have been mugged on the street. But during the games, the Brazilian government said 47,000 police officers and 38,000 soldiers will be on patrol in Rio -- twice the size of the security force at the 2012 London Olympics.

Rio's state security secretary said the city's security apparatus -- including command centers -- was successful during the 2014 World Cup held in Rio and the pope's visit in 2013. Despite budget cuts, he said there is enough money to secure the games, but the security of the city before and after the Olympics will be worse. That is true in some of the poorest favelas, where the police are not always friendly.



Excerpt -- “Brazilian police arrested 10 people who allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, on social media and discussed possible attacks during the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, officials said Thursday. Justice Minister Alexandre de Moraes said in the capital, Brasilia, that 10 suspects had been detained and two more were being sought. All are Brazilian, and one is a minor. The gender of the people was not given. …. Still, Moraes said even disorganized groups should be taken seriously. The arrests were made in 10 different states, including Sao Paulo and Parana in the southern part of the country, and it was not clear whether the suspects knew each other beyond their online contacts. Moraes said there were no specific targets for an attack. Moraes said they had all been "baptized" as ISIS sympathizers online and none had actually traveled to Syria or Iraq, the group's stronghold, or received any training. Several were allegedly trying to secure financing from the group. The justice minister said one of the suspects communicated with a store in Paraguay via email in an alleged attempt to by an AK-47 assault rifle, apparently the most concrete action taken toward a possible attack. That email communication was intercepted by police. …. Security has emerged as the top concern during the Olympics, including violence possibly spilling over from Rio's hundreds of slums. Authorities have said they will be prepared and that some 85,000 police and soldiers will be patrolling during the competitions.”


I do hope that no such terrorist activities happen during the games. The Olympics is one of those events during which people from many countries come together in good will, and as such is important to world peace. The surveillance that uncovered this plot was effective, and apparently nobody was shot. Several times in the US our CIA has uncovered plots and stopped them before the event occurred. Good for the police.



WHEN POLICE MAKE BOOBOOS WITH A GUN ….


http://www.cbsnews.com/news/charles-kinsey-miami-police-shooting-unarmed-autism-worker-florida-to-investigate/

Fla. to probe police shooting of unarmed mental health worker
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS NEWS
July 21, 2016, 12:40 PM


NORTH MIAMI, Fla. -- Police in North Miami have turned over the investigation into the shooting Monday of an autistic man's unarmed caregiver to state officials.

Speaking briefly at press conference on Thursday, North Miami Police Chief Gary Eugene said the investigation into the shooting of Charles Kinsey has been turned over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the state attorney's office.

"You have questions, the community has questions, we as a city and a police department have questions, and I have questions," Eugene said, referring to the shooting.

Cellphone videos showed the moments before and after Kinsey was shot while lying on the ground in North Miami. Kinsey, his hands in the air, could be heard pleading with police to not use their guns, and with his adult autistic patient to pay attention to the officers.

Kinsey was unarmed, as was the young man in his twenties, who sat cross-legged while holding a white toy truck. Officers at the scene were responding to a 5 p.m. report of a suicidal man with a gun, according to Eugene.

"Our officers responded to the scene with that threat in mind," Eugene said.

But as the patient sat in the road with his toy, Kinsey tried to clear up the situation. Shouting from this back that he was an autism therapist, trying to get his patient out of the street.

Moments later an officer opened fire, striking Kinsey in the leg.

A second video shows the aftermath, as officers with long guns searched both men. Kinsey's lawyer told CBS News that he remained on the ground for 20 minutes before receiving treatment for his gunshot wound.

The officer who shot Kinsey has been placed on paid administrative leave.

Eugene declined at the press conference Thursday to name the officer, and left after a few minutes, but Congresswoman Frederica Wilson spoke after Eugene left.

"The video is like a nightmare. I can't believe it," Wilson said.

"What else could we have told him? What could have saved him from being shot? From what I saw, he was lying on the ground, with his hands up, freezing, being rational, and he was still shot," Wilson said. "Something is not right with that picture."



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/charles-kinsey-shooting-union-officer-shot-unarmed-caregiver-by-mistake/

Police union head: Officer shot unarmed caregiver by mistake
By CRIMESIDER STAFF CBS/AP
July 21, 2016, 7:48 PM

Play VIDEO -- Unarmed Florida man shot by police tells his story


NORTH MIAMI, Fla. -- A police union head says a North Miami officer made a mistake when he shot an unarmed mental health caregiver who was holding his hands in the air Monday. The officer, he said, had been aiming instead at the caregiver's autistic client who he thought was trying to harm the man.

Charles Kinsey, 47, said he was trying to coax the 27-year-old autistic man back to a nearby mental health facility that he had wandered from. Police ordered Kinsey and the client, who was sitting in the street playing with a toy truck, to lie on the ground.

The moments before the shooting were recorded on cellphone video and show Kinsey lying on the ground with his arms raised, talking to his patient and police throughout the standoff with officers, who appeared to have them surrounded.

Kinsey says he was telling the officers he was unarmed and that his patient was holding a toy when an officer fired three times, striking Kinsey in the leg. After the shooting, Kinsey said he asked an officer why he was shot and the officer said "'I don't know.'"

Police said officers responded after getting a 911 call about a man with a gun threatening to kill himself, and the officers arrived "with that threat in mind" - but no gun was recovered.

Dade County Police Benevolent Association president John Rivera said Thursday that the officer involved, a decorated member of the SWAT team, did not hear what Kinsey was saying, reports CBS Miami. Rivera said the officer thought that the autistic man was attempting to harm Kinsey.

"This is not a case of a rogue cop," Rivera told reporters. "This is not a case of police abuse. This is a case where a police officer was trying to save Mr. Kinsey's life and, unfortunately, his shot went astray."

Though Kinsey is heard speaking in the cellphone recording, Rivera said the officers were further away than the person who recorded the incident.

Witnesses told The Associated Press on Thursday that at least four North Miami officers aimed rifles at Kinsey and the autistic man. Two can be seen in the video, peering from behind utility poles about 75 feet away. The other two, witnesses said, were on the opposite side of Kinsey, off camera, standing behind a car in an apartment parking lot, about 150 away.

North Miami Police are releasing few details, citing an ongoing investigation, and the officer who fired the shots hasn't been identified. Police say he is a 30-year-old Hispanic male who has been with the department for four years.

The officer, however, released a statement Thursday.

"I took this job to save lives and help people," the officer said. "I did what I had to do in a split second to accomplish that and hate to hear others paint me as something I am not."

The officer has been placed on administrative leave, which is standard.

At a news conference Thursday, North Miami Police Chief Gary Eugene said the investigation had been turned over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the local state attorney. He called it a "very sensitive matter" and promised a transparent investigation, but he refused to identify the officer or answer reporters' questions.

"I realize there are many questions about what happened on Monday night. You have questions, the community has questions, we as a city, we as a member of this police department and I also have questions," he said. "I assure you we will get all the answers."



Reading this description of what happened, it seems to me that the officers were all too far away from the men to be able to ascertain what the true situation was or hear what the caretaker was saying. They also couldn’t see what the autistic man was holding and had been told that a suicidal man was out on the streets with a gun. That predisposed them to “fear for their lives,” and one officer apparently panicked and shot wildly.

The officers sent to the scene appear not to have been under supervision. There should have been someone there to investigate the situation and give the order to shoot if there was any need to at all. In this case there was not. This is sad, but other than indicating a need for better police procedure, it doesn’t appear to me to be a hate crime. Of course, I don’t believe that police should be so quick on the trigger just because the patient was mentally challenged. One of the complaints is that officers do a very poor job of dealing with drug or mentally ill individuals. He was not ranting or moving around at all. He was sitting down passively.



http://www.cbsnews.com/news/noah-winchester-rape-charge-california-cop-officer-on-duty-5-women/

Fmr. Calif. cop accused of raping 5 women on duty
By CRIMESIDER STAFF AP
July 21, 2016, 6:03 PM

Photograph -- Police Cruiser, CBS SAN FRANCISCO


SAN FRANCISCO -- A former northern California police officer was charged Thursday with raping five women while on duty.

Police arrested Noah Winchester, 31, near his Stockton home Thursday morning after the local district attorney charged him with 22 counts of kidnapping, rape and related charges.

San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe charged Winchester with raping the women between July 2013 and October 2015 while he served with the San Mateo Police Department and as an officer for the Los Rios Community College District in Sacramento.

Winchester quit the police department in February after he was put on leave in October when the criminal investigation was launched. San Mateo is about 20 miles south of San Francisco.

Winchester, who is jailed on $3.1 million bail, is scheduled for an arraignment Monday. It's unclear if he's represented by an attorney.

The Los Rios Community College said Winchester worked for its police department from January 2009 until January 2015, when he accepted a position with the San Mateo police department.

Winchester is accused of raping two women while on duty as a campus police officer and three women while in uniform with San Mateo.

San Mateo police officials didn't immediately return a phone call. In May, Chief Susan Manheimer issued a statement in response to news reports of the investigation.

"The thought of someone committing criminal acts while wearing an SMPD uniform is deeply troubling and repulsive to this department and its members," Manheimer said. "If these allegations are proven true, these acts will tarnish the community partnerships that our officers have worked so hard and long to build and preserve."



This story fully illustrates why I believe that enough police officers are psychologically borderline or worse, that given the extreme importance of their societal function, they all should be screened thoroughly before hiring. This policeman has been charged with 22 counts of rape, kidnapping, and “other charges.” Some people who are drawn to police work because it is exciting, often violent, and carries a sort of social status that the average citizen doesn’t have. I wonder what brought all that crime out into the light of day, and why it didn’t happen sooner.



WHEN OLD ISSUES BECOME NEW

This reminds me of the 1960s and 70s. Lots of fun while protesting the Rightwing interests in general, but not without potential danger. There was even a member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, a flag burning, lesbians kissing in protest of a rightwing religious group, the most current war cry, “Blue Lives Murder” and a human wall. “We want to wall off the hate of Trump,” said Tim Chavez, of Columbus.

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/07/20/cleveland-police-protests-flag/
Cleveland Police: Protester Lights Himself On Fire While Trying To Burn American Flag
July 20, 2016 8:30 PM


CLEVELAND (CBSNewYork/AP) — Police arrested 17 people Wednesday after a melee broke out during a flag-burning in the streets outside the Republican National Convention.

It was the most turbulent protest since the four-day convention began on Monday. The chaos briefly prevented delegates and members of the media from getting into the Quicken Loans Arena for the night’s proceedings.

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Alex Silverman @AlexSilverman
Media now allowed a little closer but not out of perimeter. See police in riot gear, horses.
4:50 PM - 20 Jul 2016
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The melee brought to 22 the number of people arrested during the convention, far fewer than some law enforcement authorities had feared.

“Right now, I think so far, so good,” Police Chief Calvin Williams said Wednesday night. “We’re still out there, we’re still vigilant, to make sure we finish this day and the last day tomorrow on a positive note.”


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CBS News ✔ @CBSNews
NOW: Protests are heating up in downtown Cleveland close to #RNCinCLE http://cbsnews.com/live
4:29 PM - 20 Jul 2016
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Among those arrested was Gregory “Joey” Johnson, whose torching of the flag at a GOP convention three decades ago led to the landmark 1989 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said flag-burning is speech protected by the First Amendment.

Moments after the flag was set on fire, officers charged in to put it out with an extinguishing spray that some in the crowd thought was pepper spray because of similarities in the design of the canisters and the eye irritation caused by the fire-suppression substance.


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Firefighters extinguished and took the flag that protesters attempted to destroy
4:37 PM - 20 Jul 2016
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“You’re on fire! You’re on fire, stupid!” a Cleveland officer shouted at a protester while firing the extinguishing spray.

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Cleveland Police ✔ @CLEpolice
Protestor lit flag on fire, then lit himself on fire, catching others on fire. Flames extinguished by firefighters. No serious injuries.
7:19 PM - 20 Jul 2016
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“Burn that rag! Burn that rag!” supporters of the group yelled.

Police also said two officers were assaulted and suffered minor injuries.

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Two officers assaulted. Minor injuries.
4:45 PM - 20 Jul 2016
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Officers, some wearing riot helmets, yelled at the crowd to move back as the flag-burning group locked arms. Williams was one of several officers in the middle of the crowd, trying to keep order.

Police used their horses to create a path to a van for people being detained.

Carl Dix, a representative of Revolutionary Communist Party, said the group organized the burning of the American flag as a “political statement about the crimes of the American empire. There’s nothing great about America.”

The skirmish erupted just outside an entrance to the arena and near a row of popular restaurants where cable news networks had set up for the week.

Some in the crowd jeered the officers, yelling, “Blue lives murder!”

About 10 more minutes passed before the crowd was under control.

One man who was in handcuffs stood in the street with his shirt pulled above his shoulders. A woman in a torn shirt also was led away in handcuffs.

Earlier, blocks away from the arena, a right-wing religious group lifted a banner reading “Jesus is angry with you sinners,” while kissing lesbians mocked their message, helping turn Cleveland’s Public Square into part-carnival, part-debate floor.

The expansive square was a free-flowing mix of ideas and beliefs along with colorful characters pounding on bongos and wailing on a sousaphone.

The day’s demonstrations started with a few dozen people holding banners printed with a red-brick design and forming a human wall to mock Donald Trump’s plan to seal off the Mexican border.

“We want to wall off the hate of Trump,” said Tim Chavez, of Columbus.

A half-dozen Trump supporters defended the GOP nominee from attacks by immigration activists.

Police officers used bicycles and their bodies to separate those with opposing views.

Jesse Gonzalez, of Lakewood, a Cleveland suburb, carried a rifle on Public Square while wearing a camouflage-style “Make America Great Again” hat.

“I’m out here to illustrate that not all gun owners, if any or very few, are irresponsible or uneducated,” he said.

The city’s police chief said he spent three hours Tuesday evening riding with bicycle officers on patrol and that he waded into one confrontation because he’s “still a police officer.”

Williams said he plans to show up wherever there are “issues” during the convention.

As of Tuesday evening, police said five people had been arrested since the start of the convention.

That includes one person accused of trying to steal a state trooper’s gas mask and three people charged with climbing flagpoles at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and hanging an anti-Trump banner.

(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)




http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/2016/07/18/biotek-expands-its-base-winooski/87244506/

BioTek expands its base in Winooski
Joel Banner Baird, Free Press Staff Writer
5:16 p.m. EDT July 18, 2016

Photograph -- Employees at BioTek fill the ground floor of an expansion to the business' headquarters in Winooski on Monday. Photographed on Monday, July 18, 2016. Photographed on Monday, July 18, 2016. (Photo: JOEL BANNER BAIRD/FREE PRESS)

See also: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/money/2015/07/17/brits-encourage-vermont-biz-cross-atlantic/30316531/


WINOOSKI - Global markets boost BioTek Instruments, but the testing-gear business intends to keep its research and manufacturing in Vermont, CEO Briar Alpert said Monday.

Alpert offered concrete proof: A new, 22,000 square-foot expansion of its headquarters in Winooski, built to accommodate BioTek’s 10-percent annual sales growth rate.

“We’re not going anywhere,” he affirmed. “We export our product, not our jobs.”

BioTek builds elaborate testing equipment that allows researchers to speed analysis of microscopic cellular functions — a business that has boomed with advancing technologies in health care, pharmaceuticals and agriculture.

A celebration of the $4 million building featured a barbecue for the company’s 280 local employees and a round of speeches from Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.; Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt.; Gov. Peter Shumlin and Lt. Gov. Phil Scott.

South Burlington-based Neagley and Chase were the primary contractors.

BioTek will likely outgrow the building in about seven years — at which time the company will expand again, Alpert said.

He has done the math. The family-owned company has racked up aggregate total sales of about $1 billion since its founding, 48 years ago, Alpert said. It’s on track in seven years to reach $2 billion.

Steady growth, cautious investments and a loyal, local workforce combined to make it happen, he continued.


BioTek has also thrived because it is flexible — "it is not slave to that quarterly-returns mentality," Alpert said: "I've made decisions that would have gotten me fired if I worked for a public corporation."

This story was first published online Monday, July 18, 2016.

Contact Joel Banner Baird at 802-660-1843 or joelbaird@freepressmedia.com.

Do you have a breaking news tip? Call us at 802-660-6500 or send us a post on Facebook or Twitter using ‪#‎BFPTips.


EARLIER:

BURLINGTON FREE PRESS
Brits encourage Vermont biz to cross Atlantic



This is the kind of business we need in the USA. Workers when I was young had local jobs, which put food on the tables. A company that voluntarily keeps the operations at home should be given an award by some civic organization, the Chamber of Commerce or the Better Business Bureau perhaps. We need to keep honor and virtue in our businesses. That way we wouldn’t have to bulldog them for doing unethical things, like dumping waste in the local river or firing workers who ask for a raise. If the business were to decide to “cross the Atlantic,” would that mean that jobs would be lost in Vermont? I would hope it wouldn’t have to.




From Facebook: VOTE PEARSON --
July 8 at 11:14am ·

Bob Marley sang these words taken from Haile Selassie's 1963 speech to the UN. Music often helps me through these dark days...
Until the philosophy which hold one race superior
And another
Inferior
Is finally
And permanently
Discredited
And abandoned
Everywhere is war
Me say war.
That until there no longer
First class and second class citizens of any nation
Until the colour of a man's skin
Is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes
Me say war.
That until the basic human rights
Are equally guaranteed to all,
Without regard to race
This is a war.
That until that day
The dream of lasting peace,
World citizenship
Rule of international morality
Will remain in but a fleeting illusion to be pursued,
But never attained
Now everywhere is war - war



I do love poetry. Poetry is almost always touching even when the writer is not really a “great writer.” That’s because it comes from the place deep inside our mind where our soul is stored.