Bandit Gang Writ Large

No compensation for innocent man who lost spleen in SWAT raid

"The raiding cops brought the wrong-sized battering ram, making it difficult for them to get inside quickly. One of the officers shot Ferreira within seconds, despite the fact that he was unarmed. They had no layout of the house. They weren’t aware of the fact that Ferriera was a guest on the night of the raid, which is at least suggestive of little or no surveillance. The city, of course, appealed the finding against it, and Ferreira appealed the jury’s finding that the officer who shot him wasn’t liable for his injuries. Late last month U.S. district court judge Thomas McAvoy issued his decision. Ferreira is out of luck. McAvoy first upheld the finding of no liability for the officer. He then found that the City of Binghamton isn’t liable, either."

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India Demonetization Loses Credibility; 99% of Banned Notes Returned

"Indians have deposited nearly all the currency bills voided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, denting the central bank’s profit and dealing a blow to his drive to unearth unaccounted wealth. The cash ban prompted the central bank to print new currency, reducing its profit and cutting annual dividend payout to the government by half."

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A.T.F. Spent Millions Unchecked From Cigarette Smuggling Slush Fund

"Thousands of pages of newly unsealed records reveal a widespread scheme — a highly unorthodox merger of an undercover law enforcement operation and a legitimate business. What began as a way to catch black-market cigarette dealers quickly transformed into a nearly untraceable A.T.F. slush fund that agents from around the country could tap."

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DEA Agents Sold Opioids, Stole Cash, and Falsely Identified Drug Suspects

"DEA operatives face federal corruption and conspiracy charges after allegedly engaging in all sorts of shady behavior, from selling drugs themselves to lying under oath, falsifying records, falsely identifying drug suspects, accepting bribes, and stealing cash and other property from the people they arrested. In at least one instance, their behavior led to someone being wrongly imprisoned for more than two years."

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What Country Is This? Forced Blood Draws, Cavity Searches and Colonoscopies

"Forced cavity searches, forced colonoscopies, forced blood draws, forced breath-alcohol tests, forced DNA extractions, forced eye scans, forced inclusion in biometric databases: these are just a few ways in which Americans are being forced to accept that we have no control over our bodies, our lives and our property, especially when it comes to interactions with the government."

Continue ReadingWhat Country Is This? Forced Blood Draws, Cavity Searches and Colonoscopies

Cop violently arrests nurse for refusing to draw blood from unconscious crash victim

"Detective Jeff Payne is suspended from blood-draw duties but remains in his role as a detective in the investigations unit. The patient was a truck driver who arrived at the hospital comatose after being badly burned in a crash with a vehicle driven by someone fleeing police, the Deseret News reported."

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IRS Now Has a Tool to Spy On Bitcoin Users

"The Internal Revenue Service has purchased specialist software to track those using bitcoin, according to a contract obtained by The Daily Beast. The document highlights how law enforcement isn’t only concerned with criminals accumulating bitcoin from selling drugs or hacking targets, but also those who use the currency to hide wealth or avoid paying taxes. The IRS has claimed that only 802 people declared bitcoin losses or profits in 2015; clearly fewer than the actual number of people trading the cryptocurrency—especially as more investors dip into the world of cryptocurrencies, and the value of bitcoin punches past the $4,000 mark."

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Donor sues GOP for fraud, racketeering after failed Obamacare repeal

"A retired attorney in Virginia Beach is so incensed that Republicans couldn’t repeal the Affordable Care Act that he’s suing to get political donations back, accusing the GOP of fraud and racketeering. Bob Heghmann, 70, filed a lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court, saying the national and Virginia Republican parties and some GOP leaders raised millions of dollars in campaign funds while knowing they weren’t going to be able to overturn the law also known as Obamacare." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDonor sues GOP for fraud, racketeering after failed Obamacare repeal

John Whitehead: Anything Goes When You’re a Cop in America

"Not only are cops protected from most charges of wrongdoing—whether it’s shooting unarmed citizens (including children and old people), raping and abusing young women, falsifying police reports, trafficking drugs, or soliciting sex with minors—but even on the rare occasions when they are fired for misconduct, it’s only a matter of time before they get re-hired again." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingJohn Whitehead: Anything Goes When You’re a Cop in America