news
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SC Grand Jury Indicts Ex-Cop in Walter Scott Shooting Death
The former North Charleston, S.C., police officer who killed a fleeing Walter Scott was indicted by a grand jury Monday on a murder charge, the New York Times reports. Michael T. Slager, who was fired from the North Charleston Police Department after the April 4 shooting that rocked the nation after citizen video became public,…
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Watch: Calif. Officers Beat and Use Taser on Mentally Ill Man
Salinas, Calif., police officers were called in Friday evening to help Jose Velasco, who suffers from an unspecified mental illness, according to family. The 28-year-old was reportedly running into traffic, so his mother called the police requesting assistance, Raw Story reports. Video of the incident, however, shows officers beating Velasco with batons and using a…
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McKinney, Texas: Rage Is Our Rightful Response to Anti-Black Racism
If those were my sons, somebody would have to post my bail money. That was my first thought when I watched the now-viral video of white police officers—allegedly responding to disturbances at a private pool party in McKinney, Texas—throwing black teenage boys to the ground and handcuffing them. When, in the same video, I watched…
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Here’s Everything We Know About the Pool Party in Texas
A pool party in McKinney, Texas, Friday has shocked the nation after footage went viral showing a white police officer cursing, threatening and ultimately slamming into the ground and handcuffing a 15-year-old African-American bikini-clad girl. At one point the officer is seen pulling out and pointing his service weapon at a group of teens. The…
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NY Woman Fights Off Man Who Tries to Rape Her
A 25-year-old woman fought off a man who followed her into her New York City apartment early Saturday morning and tried to rape her, the New York Daily News reports. The man made it into the foyer of the woman’s apartment and tried to sexually assault her, but she resisted, authorities say. Video surveillance captured…
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UPenn Student’s Remains Found in NY River; His Death Ruled a Suicide
The body of Timothy Hamlett—the 20-year-old college junior who was reported missing in December—has been found in New York City’s Hudson River, the New York Daily News reports. Officials have ruled his death a suicide. Hamlett was a student-athlete at the University of Pennsylvania on the school’s track team. His parents reported him missing after…
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Watch: Teen Describes What Happened at Texas Pool Party
Tatiana Rhodes, who organized a Friday-night pool party that ended in several arrests, told WFAA in Dallas that a police officer seen throwing a 15-year-old girl to the ground had no reason to behave so aggressively. That McKinney, Texas, police officer has been suspended after he was filmed on cellphone video handcuffing, then drawing a…
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Family Files $25,000,000 Lawsuit After Unarmed Man Dies in Va. Police Custody
Family members of a 46-year-old man who died two years ago in the custody of police in South Boston, Va., have filed a $25 million federal lawsuit against the department, alleging that officers used a Taser on him “without proper ground, willfully, maliciously, and gratuitously,” according to the South Boston News & Record. Linwood Raymond…
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‘Ghetto Award’ Lands Texas Teachers in Hot Water
Teachers at a Sulphur Springs, Texas, middle school are under fire after handing out “Ghetto Awards” to an eighth-grade special education class, according to Fox 4 News. Jerrika Wilkins sparked controversy after posting a photo of the certificate on Facebook, explaining that it was part of the “8th Annual Ghetto Classroom Awards,” given to her…
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Is Ben Carson’s Presidential Campaign in Turmoil?
Ben Carson, a Tea Party favorite and so far the only black contender for the presidential race in 2016, brushed back rumors Saturday that his campaign is in disarray, according to CNN. The speculation comes amid reports of departures by several senior officials, which have thrown his campaign into turmoil, the report notes. The Washington…