OPD Stonewalled Investigation into 2000 Murder of Jerry Amaro

Oakland police concocted false and "ridiculous" stories in an apparent cover-up of the police beating of East Oakland resident Jerry Amaro, who died less than a month after his 2000 arrest, a federal judge has ruled.
Amaro died in April 2000 of pneumonia, which was caused by broken ribs and a punctured lung suffered when he was kicked by Oakland Police Officers while under their custody. Amaro, a father of two, was in police custody because undercover police officers tried to sell him drugs.
The FBI had opened up an investigation into the matter because there was sufficient evidence that OPD had attempted to cover up the beating.

"I do not believe all Police are bad, but the ones that are create havoc in the community."
-Anita Wills

Guilty plea details conspiracy against Katrina hurricane victims

New Orleans Police Lt. Michael Lohman admitted that he was involved in a major conspiracy to justify shooting six unarmed people who were looking for food on a bridge (not in a store mind you) in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

While television cameras and news broadcasters followed police stories about armed thugs roaming the city, it was found later, like the story unfolding today, that many people who were discovered wandering the streets were there to look for the things they needed to survive. It was a time, described by some of the storm's victims, of chaos and great tragedy. Will today's story begin to undo what one writer declares was exaggeration of the news in order to sell stories in a time when the real truth wasn't known?
-Digital Journal

Racism in Oakland Parking Tickets

Oakland parking officers were ordered to avoid enforcing neighborhood parking violations in two of the city's wealthier neighborhoods but told to continue enforcing the same violations in the rest of the city.
In essence, the cash-strapped city sought to generate revenue off of poor people instead of rich people.

"It's not fair," said Shirnell Smith, 44, a parking officer for 22 years who has lived in Oakland for 24 years. Smith and the union representing parking officers said the policy has resulted in tickets being issued disproportionately to poor, black and Latino people.

See video here

Oh no he didn't

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says Florida is "for the old people" and that no one wants to take a vacation in Iowa.

BART doles out $1.5 million to family of Oscar Grant

BART is paying out a $1.5 million settlement to Oscar Grant's baby mama, who had filed a $50 million lawsuit filed against the transit agency after Grant was fatally shot in the back by former BART Officer Johannes Mehserle while he was handcuffed and in police custody on New Year's Day 2009.

"No matter what anyone's opinion of the case may be, the sad fact remains: this incident has left Tatiana without a father."
-BART board President James Fang

US Crusaders Using Jesus Rifles

Secret 'Jesus' Messages on U.S. Military Weapons

"It allows the Mujahedeen, the Taliban, al Qaeda and the insurrectionists and jihadists to claim they're being shot by Jesus rifles."
-Mikey Weinstein, Military Religious Freedom Foundation

Killer cop gets away with murder

"This was a case of shoot first and ask questions later."

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed after Oakland police shot and killed 20-year-old Andrew Wahnee Moppin-Buckskin on New Year's Eve in 2007.
Officer Hector Jimenez's fatal shooting of Moppin-Buckskin was 'justifiable' according to U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken.
Jimenez was fired by the department in 2009 for the July 25, 2008 fatal shooting of Mack "Jody" Woodfox.

"A department investigation determined that Officer Jimenez acted within our policy."
-Assistant Chief Howard Jordan