news
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Demetrius Blackwell Pleads Not Guilty in High-Profile Fatal Police Shooting
At his arraignment, Demetrius Blackwell told a Queens, N.Y., judge Thursday that he’s not guilty of the first-degree murder of New York City Police Officer Brian Moore. His attorney is considering an insanity defense, according to WABC News. A short time earlier that day, a grand jury delivered a 12-count indictment, which included attempted murder…
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Va. Mom Left Kids in Hot Car While Being Booked on Same Charge: Report
A Virginia mother who showed up at a county sheriff’s office to face a charge of leaving her children in the car while she shopped had two counts of the same charge added to her list when she reportedly again left her children in the car while dealing with the initial charge, the Associated Press…
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Rikers Guard Kicked Inmate to Death, Plotted With Others to Lie: Federal Prosecutors
A Rikers Island guard is facing charges of conspiring with two other guards to lie about kicking an inmate to death in 2012, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. Prosecutors also announced two arrests and a guilty plea. According to the report, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said that Brian Coll, a former guard…
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Texas Elementary School Teacher on McKinney Pool Party: ‘I’m Almost to the Point’ of Wanting Segregation
The McKinney, Texas pool-party debacle has certainly prompted plenty of controversial views from citizens. Now one Texas schoolteacher has apologized after posting a status to Facebook declaring that she almost wanted segregation back because of the incident, the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reports. According to the news site, Karen Fitzgibbons, a teacher at Bennett Elementary School, part…
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Chicago Zoo Fires Black Employee for Facebook Post About ‘Rude Ass White People’
Brookfield Zoo in Chicago fired a black employee who complained on Facebook about serving “rude ass white people,” the Chicago Tribune reports. Rochelle Robinson, 22, worked at the zoo’s concession stands. She told the New York Daily News that most of her customers were white people. Some of them would call her names, throw items…
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Rikers Island Inmate, 18, Hangs Himself in Cell
An 18-year-old inmate at New York City’s notorious penitentiary Rikers Island ended his life on Wednesday, the same day he was supposed to see a psychiatrist, internal jail documents note, according to the Associated Press. The young man, identified as Kenan Davis, was found lying on the floor, AP notes. He had been taken into…
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Family of Ga. Man Who Died in Police Custody Wants an Independent Prosecutor
The family of Matthew Ajibade is frustrated with getting few answers about his death in police custody at a Chatham County, Ga., jail. It’s now asking a judge to remove the county’s district attorney, Meg Heap, and appoint an independent prosecutor, Fox 6 WBRC reports. In the conflict-of-interest complaint, the family alleges that Heap’s relationships…
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Woman Involved in McKinney Pool Fight Put on Administrative Leave by Employer
A Texas woman accused of being part of an initial fight that prompted a harshly criticized police response at a McKinney, Texas, pool party last Friday has been placed on administrative leave by her employer, with the company stating that it does not condone “violence, discrimination or harassment.” “CoreLogic does not condone violence, discrimination or…
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Jesse Matthew Takes Plea in 2005 Va. Sexual Assault
In a Fairfax, Va., court, Jesse Matthew took a plea Wednesday in a decade-old sexual assault, the Washington Post reports. The charges included attempted capital murder, abduction with intent to defile and sexual assault. Matthew, 33, entered an Alford plea, which means that he does not admit guilt but acknowledges that the commonwealth has enough…
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Fla. High School Principal Loses Position After Defending Texas Pool-Party Cop
A North Miami, Fla., high school principal was removed from his position after he expressed support online for the Texas officer who was shown on video dragging a teenage girl to the ground by her hair and pulling his gun on other teenagers, Reuters reports. Alberto Iber, the principal of North Miami Senior High School,…