3 Black St. Louis Puppeticians Sentenced to Prison for Taking Federal Bribes

From [HERE] and [HERE] Three former St. Louis aldermen have been sentenced for their roles in a federal bribery scheme.

Former Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed and former aldermen Jeffrey Boyd and John Collins-Muhammad were all handed prison sentences Tuesday afternoon at the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse. Each had pleaded guilty in August to federal theft and bribery charges, but they were each asking the judge not to sentence them to any jail time.

Collins-Muhammad was sentenced to 45 months in federal prison, with three years of supervised release afterward. He must also pay back $19,500 in bribes he accepted from an undercover FBI informant.

Boyd was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison, one month less than the maximum recommended under advisory guidelines, plus three years probation. The judge assessed a fine of $23,000.

Reed was sentenced to 45 months in prison plus three years probation and was fined $18,500.

The sentencings came a week after photos were released that showed all three aldermen taking thousands of dollars in bribes from an undercover FBI informant.

In a sentencing memo, the U.S. Attorney’s office shared that the three violated the public trust, and they should be justly punished. The sentences will be handed down by Judge Stephen Clark at the Eagleton Courthouse in downtown St. Louis.

The U.S. Attorney’s office said that according to sentencing guidelines, Reed and Collins-Muhammad should each face 37 to 46 months in prison for their roles in the pay-to-play schemes, while Boyd should receive 30 to 37 months behind bars.

Images released by federal prosecutors show all three city leaders receiving cash payments or other gifts.

Reed, Collins-Muhammad, and Boyd all resigned their positions on the Board of Aldermen and pleaded guilty to federal bribery-related charges in August.

Boyd also pleaded guilty to insurance fraud in a separate case.

Reed, Collins-Muhammad, and Boyd all said that they took thousands of dollars in exchange for political favors.

The sentencing memo from the U.S. Attorney’s office reads, “This case presents a picture of greed, pure and simple.” “These defendants sold their elected offices in exchange for cash bribes, campaign donations, and other things of value with total disregard for the best interests of their constituents – the real victims in this case.”

It goes on to read, “Our public officials should be held accountable for their criminal conduct by appropriate prison sentences; the victim citizens deserve it, and fairness and justice require it.”

To be Clear Racist Suspect Alabama AG States: ​“There's No Moratorium on Capital Punishment [means Murders of Mostly Black Inmates by Authorities-Death Row is 50% Black, although AL is Only 18% Black]

From [HERE] During a December 5, 2022 press conference, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall (pictured) discussed the state’s review of its lethal injection process, rejecting the media’s characterization of it as a “moratorium” on executions and urging that the review be carried out quickly. Governor Kay Ivey announced a “top-to-bottom review” of the state’s execution protocol on November 21, 2022, after two executions in a two-month period had to be called off when executioner were unable to set intravenous lines. 

“I stand before you today to be very clear that, so far as I and my office are concerned, there is no moratorium nor will there be on capital punishment in Alabama,” Marshall said. He called for a swift review, saying, “there is a timeliness for this to occur.” “In the last few weeks, I’ve seen some pronouncements that somehow or another we have a so-called moratorium on executions in Alabama,” Marshall said. “And I will tell you that that characterization came as a great surprise to me. Because there’s only two parties involved in setting an execution in Alabama. That’s me as attorney general and our Alabama Supreme Court.” 

Ivey’s November 21 press release did not use the term “moratorium,” but explicitly requested “that the attorney general not seek additional execution dates for any other death row inmates until the top-to-bottom review is complete.” Later that day, Marshall withdrew two pending motions, which had sought to set an execution date for James Barber and a new execution date for Alan Miller, whose initial September execution was aborted. On November 30, the state agreed not to make further attempts to execute Miller by lethal injection, but may still seek to execute him by nitrogen hypoxia.

Marshall did not directly respond to questions about whether he would refrain from seeking additional execution dates while the investigation was under way. “What you simply heard was the governor ask for a delay to be able to investigate what could be done better within the execution protocol. And so we look forward to having any conversation with her about that,” he said.

Never 2 Old to Be Niggerized in a Police State: White Denver SWAT Cops Looking for Stolen Car “Found Nothing to Connect Ms Johnson (age 77) to Criminal Activity but Left her Home Damaged, in Disarray"

HEY, WHATS GOING ON IN DENVER, A CITY DOMINATED BY WHITE LIBERAL POLITICS?? FUCK THE POLICE AND FUCK RACISM WHITE SUPREMACY.

From [HERE] and [HERE] A Denver SWAT team, wearing body armor and wielding automatic weapons, carried out a “terrifying hours-long search” at an elderly woman’s home on January 4, bodycam footage released by the ACLU of Colorado shows. The footage shows officers arriving in an armored vehicle and ordering 77-year-old Ruby Johnson, a retired postal worker and grandmother, out of her home. Chuckles are heard in the video as Johnson – who was wearing a bathrobe and bonnet, according to court documents – comes out and tells officers she is home alone. The footage then shows police searching Johnson’s house.

The ACLU said that police “found nothing to connect Ms Johnson or her home to any criminal activity whatsoever, but they left her home damaged, in disarray and caused Ms Johnson physical and emotional harm that persists to this day” and that Johnson “no longer feels safe in her own home." Local news outlets reported that Denver Police were searching for a stolen truck that they were told had “two drones, six firearms, $4,000 cash, and an old iPhone 11 inside.” A detective submitted a search warrant “relying on the ‘Find My’ app” that suggested the phone may have been in Johnson’s home, according to reports.

The ACLU said in a press release on Wednesday, November 30, that they filed a lawsuit against Denver Police Detective Gary Staab, accusing him of “unjustifiably violating the privacy and security of Ms Johnson’s home by hastily seeking, obtaining, and executing a search warrant without proper investigation, adequate facts, and legal justification, in violation of the Colorado Constitution.” Local TV station KDVR published a statement from Denver police spokesman Jay Casillas that said: “The Department of Public Safety and Denver Police Department (DPD) sincerely apologize to Ms Johnson for any negative impacts this situation may have had on her. SWAT was involved in the execution of the warrant due to allegations that six guns had been stolen and may have been located in Ms Johnson’s home.” Chief Ron Thomas ordered an internal investigation and DPD said they hoped to resolve the matter “without further litigation,” KDVR reported.

Medical Examiner Ruled Bickings’ Death Accidental but White Cops Just Watched the Black Man Drown. $3M Suit Filed Against Tempe, but Cops Have No Duty to Protect Anyone per 'the Public Duty Doctrine'

From [HERE] The family of a Black man who jumped into a lake and drowned to avoid answering questions from police plans to file a $3 million wrongful death lawsuit against the city.

The notice of claim, which was filed on Dec. 8, accused the Tempe Fire Department (TFD), the City of Tempe, the Tempe Police Department (TPD), and Tempe Town Lake of negligence that the family said resulted in the May 28 death of 34-year-old Sean Bickings, KNXV reported.

A report for the medical examiner’s office ruled Bickings’ death was an accidental drowning, with methamphetamine intoxication listed as a contributory cause, according to KSAZ.

According to the Tempe city government, police responded to a reported disturbance involving Sean Bickings, 34, and his wife. According to police, when they arrived, they spoke to Bickings and his companion, who cooperated fully and denied that any physical argument had taken place. Neither were being detained for any offense.

While police ran the couple’s names through a database to check for outstanding warrants, for some reason Bickings “decided to slowly climb over a 4-foot metal fence and enter the water” in Tempe Town Lake, according to a statement from the city. Police informed him that swimming wasn’t allowed in the lake — but Bickings wasn’t swimming — he was drowning.

As Bickings begged for help, he drifted away as police watched from safety. He would eventually go under and never resurface. Tempe Fire’s Dive and Rescue team would later find his body.

City Manager Andrew Ching and Police Chief Jeff Glover referred to Bickings’ death as a tragedy in the city’s statement. But it was more than that. It was a fatal reminder that police have no legal duty to protect life.

As FOX29 reports, in a transcript of conversations released by Tempe Police, an officer, only identified as ‘Officer 1,’ was noted as telling Bickings that he won’t be going into the lake.

“I’m drowning,” Bickings, noted as ‘victim’ in the transcript, said.

“Come back over to the pylon,” an officer, noted as ‘Officer 2′ in the transcript, said.

“I can’t. I can’t (inaudible),” said Bickings.

“OK, I’m not jumping in after you,” said Officer 1.

Instead of jumping in after Bickings, the officer threatened to detain his wife for being frantic.

“If you don’t calm down, I’m going to put you in my car,” the officer stated.

“I’m just distraught because he’s drowning right in front of him and you won’t help,” she said.

For several more minutes, Bickings’ wife begged the officers for help until he finally stayed under, never resurfacing.

According to the city’s statement, Tempe has asked the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and Scottsdale Police to examine the Tempe Police response to the drowning.

The three Tempe police officers who responded to the call and witnessed the drowning have been placed on non-disciplinary paid administrative leave pending the investigations, as is customary in critical incidents.

According to the Supreme Court police have no legal duty to protected any victim from violence by other private parties unless the victim was in police custody. [MORE] and [MORE] This means that police cannot be sued for any federal constitutional claim for a failure to protect citizens. Unless a state negligence law exists allowing such a lawsuit, victims cannot hold police liable for a failure to protect from harm from private parties.

The only legal question for victims such as the ones in Ulvalde is whether the students were in the “custody” of the government during the “massacre.” In other mass shootings such as Parkland where a failure to protect children was claimed, the court ruled that students were not in “custody” and dismissed all claims against the police for a failure to protect students. Other victims such as the alleged victims in the Buffalo Supermarket were not in custody and therefore they would have no claims for a failure to protect. Said legal precedent applies regardless of circumstances such as whether police were present or aware of dangers - the Supreme Court has held that police have no legal duty to protect.

The case of Warren v. District of Columbia, 444 A.2d 1 (1981), in which police were present and should have been aware of danger to the victims, clearly articulates the public duty doctrine. The facts were as follows:

In the early morning hours of March 16, 1975, appellants Carolyn Warren, Joan Taliaferro, and Miriam Douglas were asleep in their rooming house at 1112 Lamont Street, N.W. Warren and Taliaferro shared a room on the third floor of the house; Douglas shared a room on the second floor with her four-year-old daughter. The women were awakened by the sound of the back door being broken down by two men later identified as Marvin Kent and James Morse. The men entered Douglas' second floor room, where Kent forced Douglas to sodomize him and Morse raped her. Warren and Taliaferro heard Douglas' screams from the floor below. Warren telephoned the police, told the officer on duty that the house was being burglarized, and requested immediate assistance. The department employee told her to remain quiet and assured her that police assistance would be dispatched promptly. Warren's call was received at Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters at 6:23 a. m., and was recorded as a burglary in progress. At 6:26 a. m., a call was dispatched to officers on the street as a "Code 2" assignment, although calls of a crime in progress should be given priority and designated as "Code 1." Four police cruisers responded to the broadcast; three to the Lamont Street address and one to another address to investigate a possible suspect.

Meanwhile, Warren and Taliaferro crawled from their window onto an adjoining roof and waited for the police to arrive. While there, they saw one policeman drive through the alley behind their house and proceed to the front of the residence without stopping, leaning out the window, or getting out of the car to check the back entrance of the house. A second officer apparently knocked on the door in front of the residence, but left when he received no answer. The three officers departed the scene at 6:33 a. m., five minutes after they arrived.

Warren and Taliaferro crawled back inside their room. They again heard Douglas' continuing screams; again called the police; told the officer that the intruders had entered the home, and requested immediate assistance. Once again, a police officer assured them that help was on the way. This second call was received at 6:42 a. m. and recorded merely as "investigate the trouble" — it was never dispatched to any police officers.

Believing the police might be in the house, Warren and Taliaferro called down to Douglas, thereby alerting Kent to their presence. Kent and Morse then forced all three women, at knifepoint, to accompany them to Kent's apartment. For the next fourteen hours the women were held captive, raped, robbed, beaten, forced to commit sexual acts upon each other, and made to submit to the sexual demands of Kent and Morse.

Denying all claims of liability against the government and the police for a failure to protect the victims the court explained,

“the District of Columbia appears to follow the well established rule that official police personnel and the government employing them are not generally liable to victims of criminal acts for failure to provide adequate police protection.

This uniformly accepted rule rests upon the fundamental principle that a government and its agents are under no general duty to provide public services, such as police protection, to any particular individual citizen.

A publicly maintained police force constitutes a basic governmental service provided to benefit the community at large by promoting public peace, safety and good order. The extent and quality of police protection afforded to the community necessarily depends upon the availability of public resources and upon legislative or administrative determinations concerning allocation of those resources. Riss v. City of New York, supra. The public, through its representative officials, recruits, trains, maintains and disciplines its police force and determines the manner in which personnel are deployed. At any given time, publicly furnished police protection may accrue to the personal benefit of individual citizens, but at all times the needs and interests of the community at large predominate. Private resources and needs have little direct effect upon the nature of police services provided to the public. Accordingly, courts have without exception concluded that when a municipality or other governmental entity undertakes to furnish police services, it assumes a duty only to the public at large and not to individual members of the community.”

The Supreme Court has also ruled that police are not liable under the Due Process clause for a failure to protect even where the police are have adopted a department policy of non-action. In Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005), the Court explained that police have broad discretion to arrest people whenever they want to; even when a court’s restraining order has explicitly ordered the arrest of a violator (as it did in that case) the police have discretion as to whether they will or not arrest.

'What Police showed us has been put together to control the narrative, we need the unfiltered truth.' St Paul Conceals Full Video of Cop Shooting Black Man to Death, Offer Remix, Claim He Had Gun

From [HERE] Edited officer and squad vehicle video released Thursday shows Howard Peter Johnson's final moments in the encounter where he was shot and killed by a St. Paul police sergeant, the footage showing him apparently pointing a gun in the officer's direction and firing.

The BCA said it would not release officer body camera, squad car or surveillance footage until the case is "closed and fully adjudicated." Family members were told that could take up to three months.

The edited video from Sgt. Cody Blanshan's body-worn camera shows a muzzle flash from the handgun held by Johnson, 24, when Blanshan fires, striking Johnson. The release of the footage came three days after the shooting amid calls from Johnson's family for transparency by investigators.

Johnson died at Regions Hospital of a gunshot wound. Blanshan, a 10-year veteran of the St. Paul force, was not wounded during the Monday evening confrontation near Earl Street and Hudson Road. Officers had responded to a domestic assault call and Blanshan encountered Johnson armed with a handgun.

At a news conference following the release of the video, Police Chief Axel Henry declined to discuss specifics, saying, "The sanctity of the independent investigation is something we must honor and respect to ensure the public remains confident with the entire process."

"I think the video speaks for itself," he said. "But I certainly haven't done a forensic exam of any of it, and I don't want to make judgments about a case that I'm not personally involved with."

The department-provided clip, running two minutes and 45 seconds, shows footage from Blanshan's body camera as he sits in the front seat of the squad car shortly after 6 p.m.

" He's right there … he's walking eastbound ... got the gun in his right hand, he's pointing it at a car, he's trying to carjack right now," Blanshan radios as he accelerates the squad. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA), which is investigating the shooting, says that at this point the sergeant struck Johnson with the vehicle, knocking him to the ground.

Blanshan flings open his door yelling, "Don't do it!" before at least 10 gunshots can be heard on the video, and Johnson, who had been standing, drops to the ground with what appears to be a gun at his side.

Although the clip is brief, dark and blurry, the video shows what appears to be a gun in Johnson's right hand pointed over his left shoulder as he turns away, along with a muzzle flash before he falls to the ground.

Dash camera footage from another squad car at the scene provided a different perspective, although it was farther away. Henry said Blanshan's squad car was not equipped with a dash camera and that video from his partner's squad may be released.

Blanshan remains on standard administrative leave.

Kenneth Manning, Johnson's stepfather, said the release of Thursday's video did not meet the family's call for transparency.

"We would like to see all the video, including the video from the [sergeant's] car that did the shooting, and if there wasn't a camera on that car, then we need to know why that car was allowed to be involved in the situation in the [first] place," Manning said. "We need to see all the footage available clean and unedited. What they showed us has been put together to control the narrative, but what we need is the unfiltered truth."

A BCA spokesperson said they are still reviewing footage to learn who fired first.

The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office filed a warrant for Johnson's arrest on Sept. 23 after he failed to show up for a court hearing on a felony domestic assault charge from March. That charge alleged Johnson hit his girlfriend in the face while she was driving in St. Paul. The criminal complaint noted that up to the time of the alleged assault, Johnson had seven other convictions related to domestic violence in the previous 10 years.

Family members defended Johnson in a news conference Wednesday and demanded that the city release video from the shooting. 

His mother, Monique Johnson, said Wednesday: "I want the video footage from the businesses that were there, from the cop's cams, from the dashboard footage, I want it all. I'm entitled to that. That is my child. I deserve to know what happened to him."

Howard Johnson was the father of twin sons.

Personnel records released this week by the Police Department reveal that Blanshan, 38, joined the department in 2013 working in the Eastern and Central districts and was promoted to sergeant last year.

Miami Beach Settles Case with Black Man for Only $130k: Cops Elbowed Him 5 Times in the Face and Dragged HimAcross Stret While Handcuffed

From [HERE] A Miami Beach police officer elbowed a Black tourist in the face multiple times during a 2019 arrest, seemingly knocking him unconscious and triggering a lawsuit the city has now settled for $130,000, according to documents and video footage obtained by the Miami Herald.

Cody Wade, a 29-year-old North Carolina man, sued the city and two officers in federal court over an incident that began with security at Mango’s Tropical Cafe on Ocean Drive asking police to escort Wade away from the nightclub due to “disorderly behavior,” and ended with police tackling and handcuffing him after he ran across the street minutes later. While Wade was on the ground, Officer Alfredo Garcia delivered about five consecutive blows to the side of Wade’s face, body-worn camera footage shows. Garcia and Officer Agustin Rodriguez then dragged Wade to the sidewalk, where he lay apparently unconscious until paramedics arrived. Wade was unconscious for approximately 12 minutes, according to documents filed in court by his attorneys. Photographs in the court record show a large bruise on his right cheek after the incident.

Garcia and Officer Agustin Rodriguez then dragged Wade to the sidewalk, where he lay apparently unconscious until paramedics arrived. Wade was unconscious for approximately 12 minutes, according to documents filed in court by his attorneys. Photographs in the court record show a large bruise on his right cheek after the incident.

A doctor serving as an expert witness in the case said Wade suffered a traumatic brain injury and later experienced “severe” post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the arrest. “In our view, this case did not call for the manner and extent of force used on our client,” Jordan Redavid, an attorney for Wade, said in a statement. “We are satisfied that the settlement amounts to some semblance of justice.” Wade could not be reached directly for comment. He lives in Charlotte, according to a police report, and was visiting South Florida by himself in 2019 for a vacation and to see an aunt in Miramar.

The Miami Beach City Commission approved the settlement in September. The lawsuit was dismissed last month. WHAT THE FOOTAGE SHOWS Before officers arrested Wade on June 28, 2019, body camera footage shows they spoke to him outside Mango’s and repeatedly told him to leave the area and not return to the club, or else face arrest. Wade, who later acknowledged he was drunk at the time, argued with the officers for several minutes before they told him he was free to go. In a police recording taken moments later, Wade is seen running east across Ocean Drive, away from Mango’s and toward the officers, who were walking in his direction. The officers take him to the ground and put him in handcuffs, accusing him of resisting arrest as Garcia delivers the elbow blows to his face.

A police report says the officers had seen Wade trying to re-enter Mango’s after their initial encounter. The report accuses Wade of running to try to evade the officers as they sought to arrest him for trespassing. Wade’s lawsuit says he was “leaving the area of the establishment” but doesn’t say why he was running. After handcuffing Wade, footage shows the officers dragging his unconscious body to the sidewalk. Wade is slumped over for several minutes as the officers urge him to sit up. Paramedics arrived about 10 minutes later and took Wade to Mount Sinai Hospital for evaluation before police brought him to jail for booking.

Court records show paramedics administered Narcan to Wade in the ambulance, suspecting he may have experienced an opiate overdose. Wade denied taking drugs that night, according to a deposition filed in court. Wade was charged with a felony count of violently resisting an officer and misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and trespassing after a warning, but prosecutors dropped the felony charge one month later and declined to pursue the other charges in October 2019, according to court records. A Miami Beach police spokesman did not respond to an inquiry about whether an internal affairs investigation was conducted on the officers’ use of force. In court documents, Miami Beach police argued the use of force was justified, calling Garcia’s elbows to Wade’s face “reactionary blows” that were delivered as Wade was allegedly resisting arrest. “The elbow strikes delivered by Officer Garcia proved to be effective in subduing Plaintiff’s resistance,” attorneys for the officers said in a court filing. PART OF A PATTERN? Wade’s lawsuit says he was “viciously brutalized” — reflecting “a dangerous environment of police brutality” within the Miami Beach Police Department. “It is a longstanding [practice] to permit officers to use excessive force against individuals when such use is unnecessary and unjustified,” the lawsuit says. That argument didn’t pass muster in federal court: U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. dismissed a part of the suit alleging systemic problems in the police department, saying the complaint failed to identify a specific faulty policy or establish a widespread pattern of abuse. Still, the incident is one of several in recent years to prompt criticism of use-of-force tactics by Miami Beach police, particularly in their treatment of Black people. Last year, five Miami Beach officers were arrested for using excessive force on a Black man in handcuffs and for pummeling a Black bystander who was recording the incident. A $119,000 settlement of a lawsuit by the bystander, Khalid Vaughn of New York, was approved at the same September commission meeting at which Wade’s settlement was addressed. In another lawsuit that was expanded earlier this week, New York woman Mariyah Maple claims a group of Miami Beach officers “conspired” to arrest her last year after she was pepper-sprayed under a city law that has been criticized as targeting Black visitors who make video recordings of police. “Miami Beach is a remarkable place, which is why so many people visit it each year, and also why policing it surely has its challenges,” said Redavid, the attorney for Wade. “But that’s not a license to use excessive force — especially where a subject has not harmed anyone, is unarmed, and presents no legitimate or imminent risk of harm to person or property.”

Fellow Officer tells Jury that Killer-White-Cop Never Mentioned "Gun" before He Fatally Shot Black Woman Playing Video Games w/Her 8 Yr Old Nephew During Warrantless Entry Into Her House

From [HERE] The police partner of a former Fort Worth, Texas, officer on trial for murder in the 2019 death of Atatiana Jefferson testified Tuesday that Aaron Dean never said he saw someone with a firearm the night he shot and killed Jefferson in her home.

Officer Carol Darch and Dean had been responding to a call at Jefferson’s home when Dean, who is white, fatally shot Jefferson, a 28-year-old Black woman who was playing video games with her 8-year-old nephew.

During questioning from the prosecution, Darch testified that Dean never said the word “gun” or that he saw someone with a firearm before he shot her or after they went inside and searched the home.

Darch said Dean took the lead as they approached the house and moved toward Jefferson’s backyard. She said the two of them thought they might be at the scene of a burglary and did not announce themselves.

Dean and Darch went to the home after a concerned [white] neighbor noticed a door had been left ajar and called a nonemergency police line. Jefferson, according to court documents, was playing video games and caring for her 8-year-old nephew, Zion Carr. According to police and body camera footage, Dean failed to identify himself before firing his weapon and striking Jefferson.

Zion, who is now 11, testified Monday that the screen doors were open after he and his aunt burned hamburgers they had planned to eat for dinner. The two then continued to play video games into the night.

Zion said his aunt pulled out her gun and kept it at her side after hearing noises outside, both of them unaware police had been called to the home.

Darch said when she turned around she did not see Jefferson's gun and could only see Jefferson’s face in the window with “eyes as big as saucers.”

Darch said that when they went into the room where Jefferson had been shot, she saw Zion crying and wrapped him in a blanket and took him outside.

“I heard the baby and that became my sole focus,” she said.

Darch cried as she spoke about being concerned for the boy’s well-being and asked the judge to pause her testimony.

Dean’s lawyers have said Dean acted reasonably while responding to what he believed might have been a burglary in progress. LOL.

James Smith, the neighbor who called police that night, also testified Tuesday and said he had received a call from his family members around 2 a.m. expressing concern for his neighbors because they had seen a front door and a side door open at Jefferson’s house.

Smith said he called the nonemergency line and not 911 because he was not sure what was happening.

"It did not appear to be an emergency,” he said.

Smith said it was “devastating” to learn Jefferson had been shot by police and that he lives with the consequences of his phone call and Jefferson’s death “every day, every day.” He said he feels “somewhat” responsible for it.

Dean, who resigned from the Fort Worth Police Department before his arrest, was indicted by a Texas grand jury in December 2019 on a murder charge.

Jefferson graduated from Xavier University with a degree in chemistry. She returned home after college to help family with health issues and was planning to attend medical school.

White Prosector Gets His Grand Jury to Decline Filing Charges Against Tennessee Cops Who Broke Into Black Man's Home and Violently Beat Him to Enforce Stop Sign Infraction and Obedience to Authority

From [HERE] and [MORE] A grand jury has declined to indict police officers after an investigation by Tennessee’s state police agency into the violent arrest of a Black man for alleged traffic violations, a district attorney said Wednesday.

Members of a grand jury in Fayette County reviewed evidence Monday related to the July arrest of Brandon Calloway, but the panel “elected to take no action regarding the actions of the officers,” said Mark E. Davidson, the rural county's top prosecutor.

Calloway was stopped because he was a young Black man driving a nice car. He has said he would not have been stopped in the 2020 Chevrolet Camaro he was driving if he was white.

Calloway was arrested by Oakland police and charged with not stopping at a stop sign and fleeing from police.

Calloway eventually led the officers to his house, where he defiantly walked away while insisting that he did not run the stop sign.

After he went inside his house, officers kicked the door in and deployed tasers against him in an attempt to subdue him. When this failed to work, they then hit him repeatedly with batons.

He was then arrested and charged with evading arrest, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and speeding.

Attorney Andre Wharton, who is representing Calloway, said his client had to get multiple stitches in the wake of the beating, and that he now has limited visibility as a result of multiple blows to the face.

"Brandon was assaulted in a brutal fashion," he told WREG. "I describe it as animalistic. The pictures are horrific. He’s fortunate to be here to stand up and express through his presence here he wants to see some accountability."

Shelby County Commissioner and NAACP President Van Truner similarly said there was no justification for the level of force police used in making the arrest.

“Take our young black men into custody like you take other folks into custody, without one scratch, without harm and let them have their day in court,” he said.

According to a police affidavit, Calloway drove through a stop sign about 7:30 p.m. on July 16. He was then clocked driving 32 mph in a 20 mph zone before an officer attempted a traffic stop. Calloway continued driving until he reached a house, where he pulled into the driveway and ran inside, the affidavit said.

The affidavit says that later Calloway and others were outside speaking with the first officer when a second officer arrived. The officers said they needed to detain Calloway, and he ran back inside the house. The officers kicked down the front door and followed Calloway upstairs, where he ran into a room and locked the door. Officers then kicked down that door, used a stun gun on him and began to hit him with a baton, the affidavit said.

The confrontation happened in Oakland (STAY AWAY), a small town about 30 miles east of Memphis. Calloway, who runs a notary public business, said the beating left him with stitches in his head, speech problems and memory loss.

His lawyer, Andre C Wharton, said Wednesday that they are “extremely disappointed in this outcome.” Wharton said he hopes the U.S. Department of Justice will “fully review this matter for possible institution of criminal prosecution.”

“Meanwhile, we will not rest, nor sit still, but will continue to stand with Brandon in our quest for justice,” Wharton said.

Black Judge Sentences White Newport News Cop to 6 Years in Prison for Murdering White Man in His Home

From [HERE] A former Newport News police officer was sentenced to six years in prison on Friday in the killing of a man in his home nearly three years ago.

Circuit Court Judge Margaret Poles Spencer handed down the sentence on former Sgt. Albin Trevor Pearson in the shooting death of 43-year-old Henry K. “Hank” Berry III on Dec. 27, 2019. She gave Pearson five years to serve for voluntary manslaughter and a year for going into Berry’s home unlawfully. Spencer is Black.

Friday’s hearing featured emotional testimony from the fathers of both men.

Pearson shot Berry during a struggle over a Taser after four officers chased him into his Oyster Point apartment without a warrant to try to arrest him on a misdemeanor charge of abusing the city’s 911 system.

Berry had made a series of calls to the police that afternoon about the well-being of his 9-year-old son who he thought had a black eye. But Pearson and another officer told him the boy was fine, and Pearson decided Berry should be arrested for his continued calls. [MORE]

When Berry tried to close his door on the officers, they pushed their way in, with the group ending up on the floor in close quarters. Another officer deployed a Taser in a standoff, with Pearson shooting Berry once in the back during the ensuing chaos.

Body-worn cameras from Pearson and three other officers on the scene captured the incident as it unfolded, with the footage used as evidence at Pearson’s jury trial in September.

Berry’s father, Henry K. Berry Jr., 83, called the slaying “such an unnecessary crime.”

“My son thought his son was in trouble, and he was trying to protect him and did everything he could,” he said, breaking down in tears on the witness stand. “He lost his life for a telephone call.”

A graduate of Hampton Roads Academy, Hank Berry ran a tree-cutting business since he was 19. He was also very creative, his father said, developing several patents — including one allowing trucks to more easily trim trees on a highway without stopping.

Hank and his son did everything together, from skiing to BMX biking to going to church, his father testified. ”His whole life was his son,” the father said.

White Liberal Judge Upholds the Police Right to Remain Violent with Blacks: Only 3 Years in Prison for Cop who Kneeled on George Floyd’s Back in Front of Millions During Public Lynching

From [HERE] The former Minneapolis police officer who kneeled on George Floyd’s back while another officer kneeled on the Black man’s neck was sentenced Friday to 3 1/2 years in prison.

J. Alexander Kueng pleaded guilty in October to a state count of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. In exchange, a charge of aiding and abetting murder was dropped. Kueng is already serving a federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights, and the state and federal sentences will be served at the same time.

Kueng appeared at the hearing via video from a federal prison in Ohio. When given the chance to address the court, he declined.

With credit for time served and different parole guidelines in the state and federal systems, Kueng will likely serve a total of about 2 1/2 years behind bars.

Floyd’s family members had the right to make victim impact statements, but none did. Family attorney Ben Crump, who has taken on some of the nation’s most high-profile police killings of Black people, said in a statement before the hearing that Kueng’s sentencing “delivers yet another piece of justice for the Floyd family. "

“While the family faces yet another holiday season without George, we hope that moments like these continue to bring them a measure of peace, knowing that George’s death was not in vain,” he said.

Floyd died on May 25, 2020, after former Officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes as Floyd repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe and eventually went limp. The killing, which was recorded on video by a bystander, sparked worldwide protests as part of a broader reckoning over racial injustice.

Kueng kneeled on Floyd’s back during the restraint. Then-Officer Thomas Lane held Floyd’s legs and Tou Thao, also an officer at the time, kept bystanders from intervening. All of the officers were fired and faced state and federal charges.

As part of his plea agreement, Kueng admitted that he held Floyd’s torso, that he knew from his experience and training that restraining a handcuffed person in a prone position created a substantial risk, and that the restraint of Floyd was unreasonable under the circumstances. [MORE]

No Accountability for Poisoning Black People's Water: A White Liberal Appointed Judge Dismisses Criminal Charges Against Racist Suspect Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder in Flint Water Case

From [HERE] A Michigan judge dismissed criminal charges against former Gov. Rick Snyder related to his handling of the Flint water crisis.

Genesee County Circuit Court Judge F. Kay Behm said she was dismissing the case against Mr. Snyder because the charges against him weren’t properly brought. Behm is a white judge appointed to the court by Governor Granholm, a white liberal puppetician, in April 2009

Michigan prosecutors charged the former Republican governor in January 2021 with two counts of willful neglect of duty, a misdemeanor. 

The water crisis in Flint began in 2014, when officials appointed by the state switched the water source for the city of nearly 100,000 as a cost-saving measure and failed to treat the water properly, causing old pipes to leak lead into the tap water. 

In June, the Michigan Supreme Court canceled a lower court’s indictments of former officials and remanded the matter back to the court. Justices cited concerns about the prosecution’s use of a “one-man grand jury” statute, which bypasses the usual grand jury process and can allow a judge to act alone. 

The Supreme Court said state laws authorize the use of one-man grand juries to investigate, subpoena witnesses and issue arrest warrants, but not to issue indictments.

Prosecutors said Judge Behm’s decision this week wasn’t surprising and they plan on appealing. 

“As we have reiterated time and again, rulings up to this point have been on process alone — not on the merits of the case,” the prosecution team said in a statement. “We are confident that the evidence clearly supports the criminal charges against Rick Snyder, and we will not stop until we have exhausted all possible legal options to secure justice for the people of Flint.”

Mr. Snyder’s attorney didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. 

The Flint water crisis severely affected the community and daily life and had a disproportionate impact on some of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. Tests later showed many children in the city had elevated levels of lead in their blood. The water switch was also blamed for an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease that killed 12 people in 2014 and 2015. 

In October, a Michigan judge dismissed indictments against several other former state officials related to their handling of the Flint water crisis. Genesee County Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth Kelly also said the indictments were invalid.

Maryland gets its first Black governor. What does that mean for the Black community aka "The Powerless Class"? [Not a Goddam Thing, but Congrats to the Democratic Party and Their Newest Rolebot!]

BALTIMORE MD 2022. PHOTO COURTESY OF GOOGLE MAPS.

[MORE]

Barking and Clapping Like Seals, the Black Electorant Voted for Warnock Although He Offered No Black Message or Agenda

[MORE]

According to FUNKTIONARY:

Two-party System – Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-dumb—working together systematically to keep you down, confused, and passively subservient to a system that is relegated to solving life’s problems and conflicts through the iron rule of political power. The real two-party system is the tail-gate and the after-party. Don’t vote—Act! Delete the Elite! Secret Ballots beget secret “government.” In order to bring in a new dawn of civilization, an advancing one, we must educate ourselves on the liberating power of symbioacracy and its four noble pillars: individuality, spirituality, noble law and knowledge—which restructure the dynamics of human relationships through the Golden Rule of serving others without being subservient to anyone while beneting all. We can invoke and activate (unleash) this dormant aspect of the Kingdom of heaven on Earth as soon as enough people have seen enough and realize that political power happens only through coercion and deception. Political structure and process has been a failing experiment for aeons. It’s not to late to join the afterparty of Reality and begin to see what the promises of infinity hold for everyone—including you and me. (See: Big Brother, Golden Rule, Contract, Kingdom of Heaven, Political Power, Authoritarianism, Iron Rule, The Representative System, Politics, VoteScam, Creativity, ChoicePoint, Republican, Tyrannolaw, Voting, Campaign Elections, VOTE, Electionomics, VOTERS, Freedom, Plutocracy & Electoral College)

The Electorant – the willfully ignorant electorate—the suckers (voters and “taxpayers”) who delegate and abdicate their power to elected and appointed officials (employees) and the system through which voters’ will is subverted through statutes, laws and policies not approved or even known in the election process. The ‘electorant’ are always ranting and raving about their sordid and assorted conditions when they are responsible for them by being ignorant of the nature of delegated power and its effect, i.e., arbitrary power wielded with impunity and State-sanctioned immunity. The electorant have no recourse but to fuss and talk about change—utterly clueless. All power of the State resides in those who hold the purse strings. Control of the “money” is in the hands of those who further use it to corrupt others in order for one to retain power (dynastic banking cartel families) and the other to remain in power (politician). It is a symbiotic racket and one that continues unabated. (See: Voters, GEO-Dollars, “Monetized Debt,” Federal Reserve System, Willful Ignorance, Political Money, Gangbanking, Elections, MONEY, S&M Banking, Taxpayers, Second Tax, Dumbing-Down, Colonized Mind & Citizens of the United States)

Russian Leader Blames Crisis on the Proliferation of Auto-Coon Entertainers and Showcase Blacks [Psy-ops Characters created and sponsored by Elite Racists to Control, Dominate Blacks in the US]

From [HERE] In a sign of the times for Vladimir Putin’s twisted Russian regime, a regional governor has been backed by the State Duma after saying the “descendants of African-American slaves” are to blame for the country’s growing crisis.

Vadim Shumkov, governor of the Kurgan region, said Russian society was collapsing—as exemplified by the rising rate of suicide and depression among young people—and it can all be traced back to the popularity of Black American stars in the music industry.

In a bizarre rant posted on his official Telegram channel, Shumkov described a gaping hole of emptiness at the center of Russian culture, which he argued was not the result of poverty, war, or rampant corruption, but “an underestimation of the importance of native national culture.”

“Many of our children… are already growing up without knowing or remembering their kindred tribe,” he lamented, claiming that they are instead “singing songs written by the descendants of African-American slaves, often playing the ape and imitating the habits and language, brimming with, frankly, second-rate quasi-cultural vulgarity. Clinging to this secondariness, being proud of it.”

“Hence the growth of overt spiritual emptiness, depression, suicides. The lack of meaning in life,” he wrote.

Though Shumkov did not mention Russia’s war against Ukraine as a possible reason for the bleak mood in the country, he went on to hint at a growing rift between ordinary Russians that he blamed on outside forces, claiming that a “neglect of native culture” has led to a biblical Cain and Abel situation, with brothers pitted against brothers by “foreign ‘well-wishers’” who see them as “expendable.”

While Shumkov’s remarks were simultaneously mocked and criticized on social media, the Russian State Duma found nothing offensive in his argument.

Alexander Sholokhov, the deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Culture, told local media there was nothing inflammatory in his comments because he’d used the term “African-American.” [MORE]

The Black Unemployment Rate is 80% Higher Than the Rate for Whites

From [HERE] The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Employment Situation Summary for November. The unemployment rate nationwide was 3.7%, the same as in October. The economy added 263,000 jobs which was more than expected. One trend was the same as it has been since the BLS started to release the data. The black unemployment rate was much higher than that for whites. In November, the number was 79% higher.

The jobless rate varied considerably by group. Unemployment among Whites was 3.2%. Among men, the figure was 3.4%. It was 3.2% among women. Among Hispanics, the figure was 3.9%. And, among Asians, it was 2.7%. The jobless rate for black Americans was near historic lows, as it has been among all groups measured.

The reasons black Americans have higher jobless rates than whites fall into several categories. The Economic Policy Institute reports that among the primary reasons are “racism” and single adult households where one person tries to care for children and hold a full-time job simultaneously.

The American Progressive reports that the spread between black and white jobless rates goes back to 1972 when the BLS started to gather monthly employment data. It gives incarceration, the rate of which is higher among blacks than whites, as another reason. “Mass incarceration plays a significant role in the lower labor force participation rate for African American men.” Educational attainment is another reason. Whites tend to graduate from high school and college at a higher rate than black people.

None of these reasons can be taken alone, according to many experts. They represent a web of problems black Americans face as they try to enter the workforce. One thing almost all experts agree on is that these problems will not go away.

Cities Dominated by White, Liberal Politics such as Atlanta, NYC and New Orleans Have the Highest Income Inequality btw Blacks and Whites in the Nation

From [HERE] and [HERE] Atlanta has the highest income inequality among large U.S. cities, according to recent data from the United States Census Bureau. Driving much of Atlanta’s income inequality, experts say, is the city’s entrenched racial disparities which took root generations ago.

Even as the city continues to prosper, many Black Atlantans in particular have been left out of its economic success story of the past several years, they add. The persistent economic struggles have been exacerbated by general inflation, especially rising food and gas prices, which are hitting lower-income residents hard.

“When a very large percentage is vulnerable to that kind of economic pressure it says that we have a lot of work to do,” said Kyle Waide, president and CEO of The Atlanta Community Food Bank, which is experiencing soaring demand for services.

The city’s dubious ranking is based on a measure of income inequality, known as the Gini coefficient, used by economists and organizations across the globe. The latest Census data spans a five-year period from 2016 to 2020.

The Gini coefficient measures how equally income is distributed among a population and is expressed in a decimal format ranging from zero to one.

A score of zero represents complete income equality within a community, meaning that every person has equal income. The higher the decimal score, the greater the inequality. A coefficient of one represents the most extreme concentration of wealth at the top: one person holds all of the wealth.

Atlanta has the largest gap between the poor and wealthy among cities with more than 100,000 residents with a Gini coefficient of 0.5786, according to Census data.

By comparison, New Orleans is ranked No. 2 with a coefficient of 0.5655; New York City occupies the No. 7 spot with a coefficient of 0.5470; and Tampa comes in at No. 8 with a score of 0.5426. On the other extreme, Phoenix has a Gini coefficient score of .4710 and more equality, ranking it No. 119 on the list.

Census data going back more than a decade shows Atlanta’s high inequality has persisted through the years. Atlanta has led the nation in this dubious ranking for at least a decade.

Atlanta continues to benefit from strong economic growth, as does Georgia. The metro area has 17 of the state’s 19 Fortune 500 companies, according to the list published earlier this year. And the state continues to rank among the most attractive in the country to do business.

But many Black residents are not seeing the benefits of this success, said Janelle Williams, co-founder of the Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative. The median household income for a Black family in Atlanta is $28,000, while the median income for white families is roughly $84,000. Overall, Black residents account for half of the city’s population.

Within Atlanta, the wealth gap often can be seen in stark geographic terms. Buckhead, in the north, is majority-white and among the city’s wealthiest areas. Thomasville Heights, in southeast Atlanta, is majority Black and among the city’s poorest neighborhoods, according to Census data.

Experts point to several factors in Atlanta’s past and present that have contributed to the wealth gap, including pervasive redlining, mass incarceration, gentrification and the lack of healthcare access within Atlanta — most recently highlighted by the closure of Atlanta Medical Center this month.

“Several of those facts have not translated into new realities for Black people in this city born south of I-20,” Williams said.

Georgia Gwinnett College economics professor Jason Delaney says that the Gini index is a well-tested and widely-used metric among economists. But he notes there are some limitations.

It does not account for different cost of living standards, nor does it account for the geographic distribution of wealth, he said.

In Atlanta’s case, many middle class neighborhoods in Cobb, DeKalb and Stone Mountain are left out of the calculation.

“City boundaries are incredibly political,” Delaney said.

The Census defines metropolitan and micropolitan areas as those which are economically and socially intertwined with the population center (in this case Atlanta). Looking at this broader definition, the picture is rosier for the Atlanta metro area.

The Atlanta metro area ranks as No. 227 for income inequality, with a Gini co-efficient of 0.4708, significantly better than the New York metro area (No. 39) and the Houston metro (No. 117).

But while comparisons between cities are imperfect, so is the definition of the Atlanta metro area, which includes 29 counties stretching to Georgia’s western and northern borders.

Williams and Tene Traylor, Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative’s other co-founder, say a mix of race-neutral and race-explicit strategies, such as providing capital to Black-owned businesses, are needed to address Atlanta’s wealth gap.

“What happened in this city happened with intent. So we want to be intentional about how we address harm and black people being locked out,” Williams said. “We do it with deep love for our city.”

Black Mayors in the 4 Biggest Cities but Blacks Remain Powerless [from Organized Mass Agitation to Electing Sambos from the MoTeaSuh Tribe, Voting Hasn't Solved Black People’s Problems]

BLACK POLITICS IS DEAD.

From [HERE] When Karen Bass is sworn in next month as the new mayor of Los Angeles, the nation’s four largest cities will be led by blacks simultaneously for the first time.

Ms. Bass, a former head of the Congressional Black Caucus, joins Eric Adams, who became New York’s second black mayor in January; Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who took office in 2019; and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who was first elected in 2015 and is now serving in his second term. Like most black voters, all four are Democrats, but liberals are celebrating more than another partisan victory.

A widely held view on the left is that racial and ethnic political clout is essential to a minority group’s economic advancement. “When you have the top four cities at the table, with the administration, I think that the conversation is definitely going to land where it needs to be,” said Phyllis Dickerson, CEO of the African American Mayors Association, in an interview with CNN. Frank Scott, the mayor of Little Rock, Ark., and president of AAMA, was similarly optimistic in his comments to Politico. “Anytime we get a new mayor, it’s exciting,” he said. “But to have another mayor, a black woman, who’s going to lead one of our nation’s major cities? That’s a big deal.” 

Historically, however, more black political clout hasn’t been a big deal, if the measure is black upward mobility. Black leaders increased their focus on electing more black officials following passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Since 1970, the number of black elected officials has grown from fewer than 1,500 to more than 10,000. Carl Stokes was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1967, the same year Richard Hatcher was elected in Gary, Ind. In 1973, Tom Bradley won in Los Angeles and Coleman Young won in Detroit. “From 1967 to 1993 blacks were elected mayor in eighty-seven cities with a population above 50,000,” the political historian Michael Barone wrote in “The New Americans.” [MORE]

Despite ‘Clear Pattern of Fraudulent Signatures’ Local Official Abandons plan to knock Strawboss Lightfoot off Mayoral Ballot - not enough time to Investigate

From [HERE] Downtown Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) on Friday abandoned plans to try and knock Mayor Lori Lightfoot off the ballot — even after uncovering what he said was a “pattern of fraud” that suggested she may not have the 12,500 valid signatures required by law.

After a “cursory review” of all of the roughly 40,000 signatures that Lightfoot filed on Monday and getting “well into a secondary” review to see if those signatures match the signatures of those voters on file, Hopkins said he “got it down to about 17,500 signatures” when he “ran out of time.” 

“Had we had a couple more weeks, there is a clear pattern of fraud. We might have been able to get her under 12,500. But the only way to do that is an individual line-by-line signature comparison. And then to have voters step forward, sign affidavits and say, `That’s not my signature.’ We just don’t have time to do that. So we’re not gonna file a challenge,” Hopkins said Friday.

Hopkins described the “pattern of fraud” in Lightfoot’s nominating petitions as “classic round-tabling” made famous in Chicago.

“You get four to five people sitting at a table passing clipboards around so that fraudulent signatures do not match the one on the line above and below. … It’s three or four, or possibly five lines away, and you have to look for that pattern. … It starts to become apparent that it’s the same small group of circulators signing voters’ names and just guessing what the signatures might look like,” Hopkins said. [MORE]