Who Watches The Watchers

The Architect of Obamacare is Now Cashing in By Using Obamacare to Sue Insurers

"After nearly three years at the Department of Health and Human Services, longtime insurance regulator and plaintiff’s attorney Jay Angoff is returning to DC-based Mehri & Skalet, PLLC as a partner, where he will lead the firm’s insurance and healthcare practice. Is it relevant that the man who helped craft Obamacare’s regulations on insurers will now make lots of money by suing insurers based on those regulations? Think about the incentives at play here: If you are a lawyer working for the government, and you shape the laws in such a way as to make lawsuits easier, you are then making yourself more valuable to a potential future employer." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe Architect of Obamacare is Now Cashing in By Using Obamacare to Sue Insurers

Lawsuit Accuses Fired Utah Trooper of Falsifying D.U.I. Arrests

"Corporal Steed was named trooper of the year by her superiors in 2007, her career seemingly heading toward the inevitable promotions. Ms. Steed made a career of pulling over drivers who she claimed were driving drunk or under the influence. There was only one problem. Some of the drivers Ms. Steed arrested had not been drinking, or at least not enough to be reasonably impaired, according to the lawsuit, brought by a group of Utah lawyers on behalf of two plaintiffs. In several cases, those who were arrested did not drink alcohol, said Robert Sykes, one of the lawyers who filed the complaint." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLawsuit Accuses Fired Utah Trooper of Falsifying D.U.I. Arrests

Camden, NJ Agrees to Pay $3.5M to Victims of Police Corruption

"The City of Camden has agreed to pay $3.5 million in damages to 88 people whose convictions were overturned because of widespread corruption in the Camden Police Department. The settlement stems from a series of lawsuits filed against Camden Police in federal district court and state superior court over the last two years, after five officers were charged with a number of federal civil rights violations from conduct involving evidence planting, fabrication of reports and evidence, and perjury." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCamden, NJ Agrees to Pay $3.5M to Victims of Police Corruption

Term limits for Congressional ethics investigators removed

"Congress has voted to keep intact an independent office that polices the behavior of House members. Lawmakers approved the Office of Congressional Ethics as part of a package of rules that will govern the new Congress, which convened Thursday. The terms of four of the six members of the office's board were set to expire this week — raising concerns among congressional watchdogs that the office would lose its investigative powers. The new rules drop term limits for board members, allowing top congressional leaders to reappoint current members." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTerm limits for Congressional ethics investigators removed

Policing in Prince George’s County, Maryland

"Other Maryland students were roughed up and badly injured by the police after the basketball game. At least three were knocked unconscious; two of them required medical care. Nine students (in addition to Mr. McKenna) received a total of $1.6 million in settlements from the county stemming from police violence. In the absence of video evidence in those cases, the officers who used Maryland students as punching bags faced no disciplinary consequences." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingPolicing in Prince George’s County, Maryland

One nation under drugs, with slavery and sickness for all

"More than 15,000 Americans now die annually after overdosing on prescription painkillers called opioids, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—more than from heroin, cocaine and all other illegal drugs combined. Rising opioid abuse means that drug overdoses are now the single largest cause of accidental death in America. They surpassed traffic accidents in 2009, the most recent CDC data available. And all of this is occurring under the 'watchful' eye of the FDA." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingOne nation under drugs, with slavery and sickness for all

Couple files civil lawsuit against former cop who stole their medication

"Former Vernal police Officer Ben M. Murray allegedly looked up information about them, including medical history and other private data, in the state’s prescription drug database. He was able to learn when they filled prescriptions, for what drugs and in what quantities. Murray, wearing his police uniform and driving his police vehicle, then visited their home at least 30 times between January and July 2011 to conduct what he called a 'pill check.' Murray discussed their medical conditions and other personal business and required them to produce their medications so he could count the pills. During that process, he would distract them and pocket pills." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCouple files civil lawsuit against former cop who stole their medication

Former Dallas cop sentenced to nearly 4 years in prison for Crime Stoppers scam

"Theodora Ross, the former Dallas police senior corporal who ran the department's Crime Stoppers program, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison today for stealing at least $175,000 from the program. Beginning in 2005 and through early 2010, Ross would give bogus tip information to an accomplice, Malva Delley, who collected cash rewards from the bank. Delley would collect the proceeds of the bogus tips and would then 'divide the cash, per Ross’s instructions, and deliver Ross’s share of the illegally obtained money by either directly depositing cash into Ross’s Bank of America bank account or by giving cash directly to Ross.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFormer Dallas cop sentenced to nearly 4 years in prison for Crime Stoppers scam

Grandmother Struck and Killed by Drunk Driving NY Officer

"A former NYPD detective — whose BAC was more than three times the legal limit when he plowed into a Bronx grandmother with a cop car — was convicted of manslaughter yesterday. Former Detective Kevin Spellman, however, beat the rap on the most serious charges against him (aggravated vehicular homicide and first-degree vehicular manslaughter) in the death of 66-year-old Drane Nikac. Following the accident, Spellman refused a breathalyzer test, and his BAC wasn’t tested until five hours after he slammed into the Bronx grandmother while driving erratically in his NYPD-owned Chevy Impala." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGrandmother Struck and Killed by Drunk Driving NY Officer

Milwaukee Police Officer Richard Schoen punches woman, fired and then re-hired

"A Milwaukee police officer fired for punching a female suspect will get his job back. Officer Richard Schoen was let go after this dashcam video surfaced of him punching a handcuffed woman he arrested in May. The Milwaukee police chief said it was clear Schoen had lost control and was using excessive force. Schoen appealed, saying he punched the woman because he was afraid she would bite or spit on him. Monday, the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission overturned the firing. Schoen said he's learned his lesson." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMilwaukee Police Officer Richard Schoen punches woman, fired and then re-hired