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☆ O.J. Simpson Trial Served as a Landmark Moment for Domestic Violence Awareness
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Shaila Dewan | Julie Bosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In December 1994, investigators from the Los Angeles County prosecutor’s office drilled open a safe deposit box that had belonged to Nicole Brown Simpson. In it, they found Polaroids of her with a battered face and letters from O.J. Simpson apologizing for abusing her. “The message in the box was clear,” wrote Marcia Clark, the lead prosecutor in the bombshell trial of Mr. Simpson for Ms. Brown Simpson’s murder, in a book about the case. “It was kind of like America was learning about domestic violence all at once,” said Stephanie Love-Patterson, a consultant for Connections for Abused Women and Their Children, an organization in Chicago that provides support for victims of domestic violence.

Persons: Nicole Brown Simpson, Simpson, ”, Marcia Clark, Brown, ‘, Stephanie Love, Patterson Organizations: Los Locations: Los Angeles County, O.J, America, Chicago

☆ Her Son Vanished After a 1980 Run-In With Police. She Wants Answers.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Shaila Dewan | Madeleine Hordinski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

She crossed the railroad tracks and scrambled down the banks of the Licking River, calling out the name of her teenage son, Randy, who went to the county fair one night and never came home. Mrs. Cotton, two inches shy of 5 feet tall and unable to swim, would return covered in mud and scratches. Randy Sellers was missing for weeks, then years, then decades. He vanished in 1980, the year before the disappearance of 6-year-old Adam Walsh in Florida would change the way America looked at missing children. Adam’s father, John Walsh, became a household name and a beacon for parents like Mrs. Cotton, who felt alone and ignored by the authorities.

Persons: Wanda Cotton, Randy, Cotton, Randy Sellers, Adam Walsh, Adam’s, John Walsh Locations: Licking, Kenton County, Ky, Florida, America

☆ Alabama Hails Nitrogen Gas Execution, a New Attempt to Address an Old Challenge
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For as long as America has had the death penalty, there have been questions about how best to carry it out. The execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith in Alabama on Thursday, the first American execution in which death was caused by suffocation with nitrogen gas, gave no indication of settling the legal, moral and technical questions that have long bedeviled states as they mete out the ultimate punishment. Most recently, problems with the purchasing, administration and effects of lethal injection drugs have sent states scrambling for alternatives ranging from the old — firing squads, electric chairs and gas chambers — to the untested, like Alabama’s use of a mask to force Mr. Smith to inhale nitrogen instead of air. But after Mr. Smith’s death, the Alabama attorney general, Steve Marshall, hailed the execution as a “historic” breakthrough. He criticized opponents of the death penalty for pressuring “anyone assisting states in the process.”“They don’t care that Alabama’s new method is humane and effective, because they know it is also easy to carry out,” he said in a statement.

Persons: Kenneth Eugene Smith, Mr, Smith, Smith’s, Steve Marshall, “, ” Locations: America, Alabama

The law is more burdensome than “red flag” laws in other states, which do not require taking people into custody and evaluating them. When the Sheriff’s Office received the Army report in mid-September, Sgt. Aaron Skolfield went to do a welfare check but did not find Mr. Card. Instead, Sergeant Skolfield worked with Ryan Card, who said he and his father had come up with a way to secure Mr. Card’s weapons. But Robert Card, it said, still “had access to his firearms prior to the shootings.”John Ismay and Dave Philipps contributed reporting.

Persons: Aaron Skolfield, Sergeant Skolfield, Ryan Card, Ryan, Robert Card, “, ” John Ismay, Dave Philipps, Kirsten Noyes Organizations: Sheriff’s, Army Locations: Sagadahoc

☆ Maine, a Rare Democratic-Controlled State With Loose Gun Laws
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Michael Corkery | Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Maine, a largely blue state where Democrats control both chambers of the State Legislature and the governorship, has a long history of resisting gun control measures. The shootings in Lewiston on Wednesday that left 18 people dead are already fueling renewed calls from gun control groups to expand firearms restrictions in Maine. In regions where hunting is a big part of the culture, “if you are going to talk about restricting gun rights,’’ Mr. Brewer said, “you are going to have a hard time.”The authorities have not made public any information about what type of firearm was used in the Lewiston shootings on Wednesday, nor anything about how the weapon was obtained. Everytown for Gun Safety, a group that advocates for tighter restrictions on guns, ranks Maine 25th in the nation in the strictness of its gun laws, with more permissive laws than nearby Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut.

Persons: Mark Brewer, ’, Mr, Brewer Organizations: Maine Senate, State Legislature, University of Maine, Safety, Maine Locations: Lewiston, Maine’s, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, New Hampshire

☆ Police Posed With Cavalcante After His Capture
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Shaila Dewan | More About Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the immediate aftermath of the manhunt for Danelo Cavalcante, a peculiar scene unfolded — some two dozen law enforcement agents in tactical gear clustered around the fugitive. Then everyone posed for a photo. Others said it was unnecessary or unfair to use Mr. Cavalcante, who appeared to remain expressionless, as an involuntary prop. In 2021, a photo of white police officers and their dogs in Mississippi posing with a captured Black bank robbery suspect drew widespread criticism. In 2015, a Chicago officer was fired after a photo surfaced in which he and another officer, both of whom were white, posed with long guns, flanking a Black suspect wearing antlers.

Persons: Danelo Cavalcante, memorializing, Cavalcante, George Bivens, I’m Organizations: Pennsylvania State Police Locations: Mississippi, Chicago

☆ Police officers posed for a photo with the fugitive after his capture.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Shaila Dewan | More About Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the immediate aftermath of the manhunt for Danelo Cavalcante, a peculiar scene unfolded — some two dozen law enforcement agents in tactical gear clustered around the fugitive. Others said it was unnecessary or unfair to use Mr. Cavalcante, who appeared to remain expressionless, as an involuntary prop. I’m not bothered at all by the fact that they took a photograph with him in custody.”Similar questions have surfaced before. In 2021, a photo of white police officers and their dogs in Mississippi posing with a captured Black bank robbery suspect drew widespread criticism. In 2015, a Chicago officer was fired after a photo surfaced in which he and another officer, both of whom were white, posed with long guns, flanking a Black suspect wearing antlers.

Persons: Danelo Cavalcante, memorializing, Cavalcante, George Bivens, I’m Organizations: Pennsylvania State Police Locations: Mississippi, Chicago

Before Danelo Cavalcante crab-walked his way up and out of the Chester County Prison, launching a sprawling manhunt in the wooded suburbs outside Philadelphia, a man named Igor Bolte escaped from the same jail. The first time was in July 2019, when Mr. Bolte, who was serving a sentence for aggravated assault, walked out of a work-release center at the jail, “scaled a security fence and fled, on foot,” according to an affidavit. He was found early the next morning about a mile and a half from the jail. With Mr. Cavalcante eluding authorities for more than a week now, scrutiny has turned to the jailbreaks at Chester County Prison. The key failing in last week’s escape was that an officer in the tower, charged with watching over the inmates in the exercise yard, did not appear to notice Mr. Cavalcante, said Howard Holland, the acting warden overseeing the jail, in a news conference on Wednesday.

Persons: Igor Bolte, Bolte, “, ” —, Cavalcante, Howard Holland Organizations: Mr Locations: Chester, Philadelphia

☆ Trump has tapped Georgia's 'bondsman to the stars,' whose clientele includes Atlanta celebs like Gucci Mane, T.I., and Rick Ross
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Donald Trump plans to post bail through local bail bondsman Charles Shaw of Foster Bail Bonds. Shaw has become somewhat of a local fixture in the bail bonds world. "Shaw is something of a bondsman to the stars in Atlanta," New York Times reporter Shaila Dewan wrote. AdvertisementAdvertisementBefore that, Shaw worked with Altanata law enforcement and soon became a private investigator, according to Barikos. According to the Times, Shaw is also covering the bonds of Mark Meadows, David Shafer, and Rudy Giuliani — co-defendants in the election interference case.

Persons: Donald Trump, bondsman Charles Shaw, Foster, Shaw, Gucci Mane, Rick Ross, Charles Shaw, Bonds, Susan Barikos, Barikos, she's, Morrow, John Lampl, Claud, Tex, McIver, Shaila Dewan, He's, Mark Meadows, David Shafer, Rudy Giuliani — Organizations: Service, Atlanta's, New York Times, Georgia Association of Professional, Times Locations: Wall, Silicon, Georgia, Lawrenceville, Morrow , Georgia, Atlanta

☆ Think the Police Should Wear Body Cameras? That Will Cost Taxpayers Extra.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Shaila Dewan | More About Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Unions have the right to bargain whenever there is a change in wages, hours or working conditions. Those rulings have given unions a say in policies like when the devices must be activated and how often supervisors are allowed to review footage. Perhaps most controversially, many unions have won the right for officers involved in a serious incident to review body camera video before giving a statement to investigators. In Worcester, officers may view the footage only after writing their initial report, but before giving additional statements. More and more, unions have used their bargaining right to demand more pay.

Persons: —, William Aitchison, Aitchison Locations: Worcester, Portland ,

Fani T. Willis, the district attorney of Fulton County, Ga., said on Monday that she hoped her criminal racketeering case against former President Donald J. Trump and his allies could go to trial in the next six months. But racketeering cases are not built for speed. One defendant, Mark Meadows, Mr. Trump’s former chief of staff, has already filed a motion to move the case to federal court. Mr. Trump himself has a long history of using delay tactics in his various legal entanglements, and he, too, is likely to file pretrial motions seeking to get the case thrown out or moved to federal court. The judge in the case may also determine that six months is not enough time for defense lawyers to prepare for a trial involving so many defendants and 41 total charges, including a racketeering count that took prosecutors nearly 60 pages to describe.

Persons: Willis, Donald J, Trump, Mark Meadows, Trump’s Locations: Fulton County ,, Georgia, Florida , New York, Washington

☆ Consent Decrees Force Changes to Policing. But Do Reforms Last?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Shaila Dewan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“It’s kind of like the old saying, when everything’s a priority, nothing’s a priority,” said Jason Johnson, who was a deputy police chief in Baltimore overseeing compliance with the city’s consent decree. Even so, believers point out that consent decrees may be far cheaper than unconstitutional policing. “What we’re talking about is broad institutional reform,” said David Douglass, the deputy monitor of the New Orleans consent decree and founder of a nonprofit group called Effective Law Enforcement for All, which helps communities develop voluntary reforms. In Baltimore, Michael Harrison, who was brought in as commissioner because of his success in implementing New Orleans’s police overhaul, just resigned, but the consent decree remains. Experience running a department with a consent decree has become a plum line on a chief’s résumé.

Persons: ”, Jason Johnson, Mr, Johnson, Floyd, David Douglass, Michael Harrison, Brian O’Hara Organizations: Justice Department Locations: Baltimore, Louisville, Minneapolis, Orleans, New, Newark

Oh my God.” “While watching the George Floyd trial, I noticed the differences and the importance of footage.” “This corner —” “When Stephon was murdered, we only had the officers’ footage. They handcuffed him after he was dead.” “Excessive force.” “Excessive force and lethal force after the fact of death. Anything that does not deal directly with the murder of George Floyd is irrelevant in my opinion.” “He’s 6 to 6 and a half feet tall. George Floyd is already dead.” “That’s right. I feel like it’s a bittersweet thing that’s happening watching the George Floyd trial.

Persons: ”, George Floyd, Stephon, ” “ Bro, ” “, “, Tiffany, Lora, Lora Dene King, Rodney Glen King, King, they’re, ” “ It’s, George Holliday, George Floyd’s, she’s, Wanda Johnson, I’m, Oscar Grant, ” “ Grant, Oscar, bro, Y’all, — ” “ —, let’s, God, Jesus Christ, Sequette Clark, Stephon Clark, ” “ Clark, Floyd, Chauvin wouldn’t, didn’t, “ Poppa’s, They’re, he’s, Rodney Kings, George Floyd — ”, We’re, don’t Organizations: “ Police Locations: Lora Dene, ”, Los Angeles, America

Derek Chauvin was found guilty of two counts of murder on Tuesday in the death of George Floyd, whose final breaths last May under the knee of Mr. Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, were captured on video, setting off months of protests against the police abuse of Black people. After deliberating for about 10 hours over two days following an emotional trial that lasted three weeks, the jury found Mr. Chauvin, who is white, guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for the killing of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, on a street corner last year on Memorial Day. Mr. Chauvin faces up to 40 years in prison when he is sentenced in the coming weeks but is likely to receive far less time. The presumptive sentence for second-degree murder is 12.5 years, according to Minnesota’s sentencing guidelines, although the state has asked for a higher sentence. The verdict was read in court and broadcast live to the nation on television, as the streets around the heavily fortified courthouse in downtown Minneapolis, ringed by razor wire and guarded by National Guard soldiers, filled with people awaiting the verdict.

Persons: Derek Chauvin, George Floyd, Chauvin, Floyd Organizations: National Guard Locations: Minneapolis

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