From FBI Release 

On television and the silver screen, serial killers are usually white males and dysfunctional loners who really want to get caught. Or, they’re super-intelligent monsters who frustrate law enforcement at every turn.

According to a new publication from our National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime—entitled Serial Murder: Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives for Investigators—serial killers are much different in real life.

The report contains the collective insights of a group of experts from the law enforcement, academic, and mental health professions who took part in a symposium on serial murder. The symposium’s focus was actually two-fold: to bridge the gap between fact and fiction and to build up our collective body of knowledge to generate a more effective investigative response.

Here’s why that is so important: Serial killings are rare, probably less than one percent of all murders. They do, however, receive a lot of attention in the news and on screen—and much of the information out there is wrong. Yet, the public, the media, and even sometimes law enforcement professionals who have limited experience with serial murder, often believe what they read and hear. And this misinformation can hinder investigations.

According to the experts, there is no common thread tying serial killers together—no single cause, no single motive, no single profile. But there are some common “best practices” that they recommend for investigations:

For example:

* Strong leadership throughout the chain of command that can withstand the external pressure sometimes brought to bear on serial murder cases by politicians, the victims’ families, and the media;
* Task forces that bring together agencies from the different jurisdictions to effectively combine expertise, resources, and information;
* An automated case management system like the FBI’s Rapid Start that organizes and collates lead information so investigators don’t get overwhelmed;
* A team of crime analysts who can help investigators develop timelines of murders and backgrounds on suspects, highlight similar case elements, etc. (note: if your agency doesn’t have such a team, ask for help from a neighboring jurisdiction or from our National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime);
* Consistent forensic services, which in the best case scenario means that the same crime scene team goes to each scene and the same crime lab processes all the evidence (but if that’s not possible, then enhanced communication between the teams and the labs is a must to ensure consistency); and
* A strong media plan that successfully straddles the line between giving out relevant information to the media and not compromising the investigation—while helping to raise public awareness about the killings.

As for serial killer myths, our group of experts had this to say about a few of them:

1) Serial killers are not all dysfunctional loners: some have had wives and kids and full-time jobs and have been very active in their community or church or both.

2) Serial killers are not all white males: the racial diversification of serial killers generally mirrors the overall U.S. population.

3) Serial killers do not want to get caught: over time, as they kill without being discovered, they get careless during their crimes.

So much for the stereotypes!

Read Full Report…

From PoliceMag.com, by Richard Valdemar 

Gang members had been planning an attack on the police and the public for months. The Rodney King verdict was just an excuse.

Los Angeles’ dynamics radically changed for the worse, on the evening of Wednesday April 29, 1992. It began when major rioting broke out following the acquittal of four LAPD police officers accused of beating Rodney King. But the trouble had been brewing in L.A. for many years.

Most of the media would attribute the causes of the riots to the same old politically correct BS: lack of jobs, racial profiling, and years of police abuse. However, during that time I was a sergeant working the LASD Special Investigations Bureau (SPI) and I was privileged to read and review all the police intelligence reports of that period. So I have a very different opinion.

For several months prior to the riots, intelligence reports rolled across my desk about activity in the Jordan Downs, Imperial Courts, and Nickerson Gardens Housing Projects. Drug dealers were financing meetings of gang members from rival gangs, and these meetings were being arbitrated by OGs (veteran gang members) or the Fruit of Islam, Black Muslim security units.

Full Story… 

From Al Jazeera

One person has died and at least 30 others have been injured by a series of small bombs planted in the southern Pakistan city of Karachi.

The six devices went off within an hour of each other on Monday evening in different locations of the port city in Sindh province.

A provincial police officer said bomb disposal teams had been sent to determine the nature of the devices.

Full Story…

From Al Jazeera

At least 20 people, mostly police officers, have been killed in a suspected suicide attack in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.

The attack on Sunday was near a police station several hundred metres from a rally marking one year since a deadly raid on the Lal Masjid (Red Mosque).

“The whole event at the mosque went smoothly but then the suicide bomber targeted the security,” Rehman Malik, the interior ministry chief, told reporters at the scene.

Full Story… 

The FBI is seeking information about Nicholas T. Sheley, a fugitive from Rock Falls, Illinois. Sheley is wanted for a home invasion in Sterling, Illinois, and on federal charges for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. He is also suspected in eight homicides, including:

* the murder of an elderly man in Whiteside County, Illinois
* the murder of two individuals in Festus, Missouri
* the murder of an individual in Galesburg, Illinois
* the murder of three adults and one child in Rock Falls, Illinois

All eight victims appear to have been killed by blunt force trauma to the head.

“Nicholas T. Sheley is suspected of violently taking eight lives in the span of a few days. The FBI will bring to bear all of its investigative resources to assist the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office and Illinois State Police in bringing Sheley to justice,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Grant, FBI Chicago Division.

“We ask that citizens remain alert and report any suspicious activity that may lead to Sheley’s location and arrest. With the vigilance of the public, we can end Sheley’s violent killing spree,” said Sheriff Roger Schipper, Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office.

“Sheley should be considered violent and extremely dangerous, and we are working diligently with our partners, the FBI and the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office, to apprehend him,” said Director Larry G. Trent, Illinois State Police.

Nicholas T. Sheley is described as a white male, 28 years of age, 5’11”, approximately 165 pounds, with green eyes and brown hair. He has tattoos on his arms, chest, and shoulders. He has a criminal history of armed violence and resisting arrest. Sheley should be considered armed and dangerous.

A reward of up to $25,000 is being offered for any information leading directly to the arrest of Nicholas T. Sheley. Sheley’s picture is featured on digital billboards across the country. Individuals with information should take no action themselves, but instead immediately contact the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office call center at 1-866-219-8333 (toll-free) or the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (toll-free). Tips can also be submitted online. For any possible sighting outside the United States, contact the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

For more information, visit www.fbi.gov.

From USA Today, by Thomas Frank

Screeners at the nation’s airport checkpoints are going to start wearing police-style badges — but real officers aren’t too happy about it.

Some sworn officers fear airline passengers will mistake screeners for law-enforcement officials with arrest powers.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is starting to equip its 48,000 screeners with 3-inch-by-2-inch, silver-colored, copper and zinc badges that will be worn on new royal-blue police-style shirts.

Full Story… 

ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT OF PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

Washington, Jun 10 - Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio
In the United States House of Representatives
Monday, June 9th, 2008
A Resolution

INDEX

Article I
Creating a Secret Propaganda Campaign to Manufacture a False Case for War Against Iraq.

Article II
Falsely, Systematically, and with Criminal Intent Conflating the Attacks of September 11, 2001, With Misrepresentation of Iraq as a Security Threat as Part of Fraudulent Justification for a War of Aggression.

Article III
Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction, to Manufacture a False Case for War.

Article IV
Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Posed an Imminent Threat to the United States.

Article V
Illegally Misspending Funds to Secretly Begin a War of Aggression.

Article VI
Invading Iraq in Violation of the Requirements of H. J. Res114.

Article VII
Invading Iraq Absent a Declaration of War.

Article VIII
Invading Iraq, A Sovereign Nation, in Violation of the UN Charter.

Article IX
Failing to Provide Troops With Body Armor and Vehicle Armor.

Article X
Falsifying Accounts of US Troop Deaths and Injuries for Political Purposes.

Article XI
Establishment of Permanent U.S. Military Bases in Iraq.

Article XII
Initiating a War Against Iraq for Control of That Nation’s Natural Resources.

Article XIIII
Creating a Secret Task Force to Develop Energy and Military Policies With Respect to Iraq and Other Countries.

Article XIV
Misprision of a Felony, Misuse and Exposure of Classified Information And Obstruction of Justice in the Matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, Clandestine Agent of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Article XV
Providing Immunity from Prosecution for Criminal Contractors in Iraq.

Article XVI
Reckless Misspending and Waste of U.S. Tax Dollars in Connection With Iraq and US Contractors.

Article XVII
Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives.

Article XVIII
Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy.

Article XIX
Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to “Black Sites” Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture.

Article XX
Imprisoning Children.

Article XXI
Misleading Congress and the American People About Threats from Iran, and Supporting Terrorist Organizations Within Iran, With the Goal of Overthrowing the Iranian Government.

Article XXII
Creating Secret Laws.

Article XXIII
Violation of the Posse Comitatus Act.

Article XXIV
Spying on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment.

Article XXV
Directing Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens.

Article XXVI
Announcing the Intent to Violate Laws with Signing Statements.

Article XXVII
Failing to Comply with Congressional Subpoenas and Instructing Former Employees Not to Comply.

Article XXVIII
Tampering with Free and Fair Elections, Corruption of the Administration of Justice.

Article XXIX
Conspiracy to Violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Article XXX
Misleading Congress and the American People in an Attempt to Destroy Medicare.

Article XXXI
Katrina: Failure to Plan for the Predicted Disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Failure to Respond to a Civil Emergency.

Article XXXII
Misleading Congress and the American People, Systematically Undermining Efforts to Address Global Climate Change.

Article XXXIII
Repeatedly Ignored and Failed to Respond to High Level Intelligence Warnings of Planned Terrorist Attacks in the US, Prior to 911.

Article XXXIV
Obstruction of the Investigation into the Attacks of September 11, 2001.

Article XXXV
Endangering the Health of 911 First Responders.

Full Content…

From DefenseNews.com, by Antonie Boessenkool (via Blackwater Newswletter)

Honeywell International is facing a lawsuit by the United States claiming that the company knew Zylon Shield, which Honeywell made and sold as the as the key ballistic material in bullet-proof vests, degraded in hot and humid conditions but didn’t tell the maker of the vests, Armor Holdings, or the United States.

However, a Justice Department spokesman said the vests weren’t used for the military, but for law enforcement only, mostly police and sheriffs’ departments.

The Justice Department said it is suing Honeywell under the False Claims Act, alleging Honeywell had scientific data showing that Zylon Shield quickly degraded over time, especially in hot and humid conditions, and that Honeywell knew that made vests made with Zylon unfit to use.

Full Story… 

From FBI Release

According to the FBI’s Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report released today, the nation experienced a 1.4 percent decrease in the number of violent crimes and a 2.1 percent decline in the number of property crimes for 2007 compared with data from 2006. The report is based on information that the FBI gathered from 12,032 law enforcement agencies that submitted six to 12 comparable months of data to the FBI for both 2006 and 2007.

Violent Crime

• All four of the violent crime offense categories declined nationwide in 2007 compared with data from 2006. Forcible rape decreased 4.3 percent, and murder and non-negligent manslaughter declined 2.7 percent. Robbery and aggravated assault offenses each decreased 1.2 percent.
• By population group, cities with populations of 250,000 to 499,999 saw the greatest decline in violent crime (3.9 percent).
• Violent crime in non-metropolitan counties increased 1.8 percent, but in metropolitan counties decreased 1.7 percent.
• Murder and non-negligent manslaughter decreased 9.8 percent in cities with one million or more inhabitants. However, in cities with populations of 50,000 to 99,999, murder and non-negligent manslaughter increased 3.7 percent.
• Forcible rape declined in all population groupings. Cities with one million or more inhabitants experienced the greatest decline, at 8.0 percent.
• Cities with populations from 250,000 to 499,999 had the greatest decrease in robbery (3.0 percent). The nation’s largest cities, one million or more in population, also experienced a 2.9 percent decrease in robbery.
• Aggravated assault decreased most (4.3 percent) in cities with 250,000 to 499,999 inhabitants. However, reports of this offense increased three percent in cities with 10,000 to 24,999 persons. Aggravated assault also increased 3.0 percent in non-metropolitan counties.
• Three of the nation’s four regions experienced drops in violent crime in 2007. However, in the South, violent crime increased 0.7 percent in 2007 when compared with data from 2006.

Property Crime

• Property crime decreased in all city groupings. Cities with 250,000 to 499,999 inhabitants had the greatest decrease in property crimes with a decline of 4.2 percent. Non-metropolitan counties saw a 1.7 percent decrease in property crime, and metropolitan counties had a 1.6 percent decline.
• Burglary offenses ranged from a decrease of 3.3 percent in cities with 500,000 to 999,999 persons to an increase of 4.0 percent in cities with one million or more inhabitants.
• Larceny-theft experienced a decline in all population groups with the exception of cities with 500,000 to 999,999 inhabitants, where these offenses were up less than one-tenth of one percent.
• Motor vehicle theft experienced declines in all population groupings.
• Three of the nation’s four regions had decreases in property crimes in 2007 when compared with data from 2006. In the South, property crimes were up 1.1 percent.

Arson

• Arson offenses, tracked separately from other property crimes, decreased 7.0 percent nationwide and declined in each of the population groupings.

The complete Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report is available exclusively at www.fbi.gov/ucr/ucr.htm.

From NYTimes.com, by Richard G. Jones, photo: Robert Stolarik 

POTTSTOWN, Pa., April 12 — A bagpipe wailed. A siren droned. Police motorcycles revved. And within moments a procession was under way to carry Barry Lee Bush — the F.B.I. agent who was killed last week while staking out bank robbers in central New Jersey — to his final rest.

Under somber skies, hundreds of officials from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, police departments as far away as Michigan and state and federal governments gathered at the Hill School here to remember Mr. Bush’s life, mourn his death and offer his family the universal embrace of law enforcement. Among the 3,000 mourners were Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales; the F.B.I. director, Robert S. Mueller III; and Gov. Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey.

In a eulogy, Mr. Mueller called Mr. Bush, the 51st agent to be killed on duty, one of the agency’s finest and “a model of everything the badge should represent.”

Full Story…