The Freedom Watch

Police Chief Arrested After Soliciting Cop Posing Online As 14-Year-Old

"A Pennsylvania police chief—who gained widespread attention after losing his arm in a summer fireworks accident—was arrested after soliciting sex from a teenage girl during an online sting. Forty-year-old Chief Mike Diebold is being charged with two felonies: unlawful contact with a minor and criminal attempt to involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, WPXI, an NBC-affiliate in Pittsburgh reported. Diebold reportedly sent inappropriate photos through an online messaging app while soliciting sexual contact, under the name 'KuteCop4You'. Little did he know, he was in contact with a fellow police officer - albeit undercover."

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Jury rules cops were justified in SWAT raid over family’s loose-leaf tea

"No one disputes that the Hartes are innocent of any criminal wrongdoing. No one disputes that the officers conducted a raid on their home after mistaking tea for marijuana. And no one disputes that the officers improperly used the results of notoriously unreliable field tests as probable cause for the mistaken raid, instead of sending the tea to a lab for more rigorous testing. No one disputes any of these things. Yet the system failed to compensate the Hartes for what happened to them, and the system failed to hold any of the law enforcement officers accountable for their mistakes."

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After three mistrials, judge dismisses case against Cliven Bundy and sons

"A federal judge ruled Monday that the federal government may not retry Cliven Bundy and his sons after rebuking prosecutors for withholding evidence during their felony trial stemming from an armed standoff four years ago. She said the attorneys were in violation of the Brady rule, which requires prosecutors to disclose evidence that could be favorable to a defendant, and told them it wasn’t possible to proceed with the case. On Monday, she dismissed the case 'with prejudice,' meaning the government cannot retry the defendants."

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Conservatives Were Wrong about Ending Stop-and-Frisk

"I and others argued that crime would rise. Instead, it fell. We were wrong. Major crime in New York City has continued to decline almost across the board in the four years of the de Blasio administration, to the lowest rates since New York City began keeping extensive records on crime in the early 1960s. Crime is literally off the charts — the low end of the charts. To compare today’s crime rate to even that of ten years ago is to observe a breathtaking decline."

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How an Illegal Shipping Container Reshaped the World Economy

"Today, very few know what regulatory and lobbying problems the containers had to face before becoming a standard in the transportation of goods. An innovation full of controversy 60 years ago, and considered illegal by many, with a regulator deciding on its viability, seems nowadays as something natural that we cannot imagine life without."

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Thousands of Americans’ Electronics Illegally Searched at Border

"Over 30,000 people had their electronic devices searched without probable cause or a warrant by Customs and Border Protection in 2017. This is a 50% increase from 2016. Most of the searches took place at airports when travelers were leaving the country. Imagine the helplessness of having your phone taken by an Agent, and searched without your consent. No suspicion of any crime. No probable cause. Just some thug using brute force to violate your privacy. In these settings, travelers are powerless. You just want to get home or continue to your destination, but the American police state shakes you down. Hundreds of traveler complaints about such oppression have now surfaced thanks to a Freedom of Information Request."

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Renewal of FISA Section 702 with ‘abouts’ collection slated for Thursday

"The powers in question allow the government to target foreigners overseas, collecting their communications. But Americans’ communications — even those in the U.S. — can be snared if they are part of conversations that the targets are having. The bill allows 'abouts' collection, which is when the government scoops up communications that mention a target, even if he or she isn’t the sender or receiver."

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Pakistan ditches dollar for yuan in trade with China after Trump tweet

"A day after the U.S. leader slammed Islamabad for harboring terrorists in a New Year's Day tweet, Pakistan's central bank announced that it will be replacing the dollar with the yuan for bilateral trade and investment with Beijing. With a steady stream of Chinese capital under its belt, Pakistan may no longer be receptive to American threats, the most recent of which involves Washington cutting off security assistance."

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An Ex-Cop Talks About Police Shootings

"The graphic video from the killing of Daniel Shiver was released after the jury decided to acquit ex-Mesa police officer Philip Brailsford of second-degree murder and reckless manslaughter. The Mesa police department and Mesa police union both supported Brailsford, but it’s important to receive feedback from police sources who don’t have a vested interest in the case."

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