Free Republic

The owner of a Metro PCS store says he has learned that 32 Metro PCS stores in South Florida were victimized by looters as Hurricane Irma was bearing down on the area. Sam Brejt tells CBS4’s Peter D’Oench in an exclusive interview that looters struck his store at 254 N.W. 36th St. sometime between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Sunday, September 10th. Brejt says the criminals drove their truck through the front glass door, causing $10,000 worth of damage just to the door itself.

A recent article in the Chicago Tribune detailed the experiences of a black woman who obtained a concealed carry permit in Chicago. The article is surprisingly positive about her experiences. An important point is that minority women make up a significant percentage of the growth in concealed carry permits nationwide. From chicagotribune.com: Robinzine, 51, is a gun owner with a concealed carry license. Since she received her permit in late spring, she carries her firearm wherever she goes. “It's like a part of me now,” Robinzine said with the smile.Data show Robinzine is part of a burgeoning group in...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I haven't seen a single article on Free Republic, or on any place I frequent, talking about the three nights (so far) of rioting in St. Louis after that verdict. St. Louis police is reporting on their twitter that just tonight, there has been significant damage done to businesses in the downtown area, chemicals thrown at police, arrests, injuries received by cops, and weapons and ANTIFA/BLM flags confiscated from violent criminals. See the link above for more information, as I don't know how to post pictures from twitter onto free republic, unfortunately.

Several businesses in and near downtown are closing early in response to the Jason Stockley verdict. The home office of Wells Fargo Advisors closed at 10 a.m. Friday. The 4,900 employees at the Market Street campus west of downtown were "strongly encouraged to take their laptops home" and continue working there," based on a statement from the company.

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray resigned from his position Wednesday afternoon after a fifth accusation of child abuse came to light, this time from his own family. "While the allegations against me are not true, it is important that my personal issues do not affect the ability of our city government to conduct the public's business. ... It is best for the city if I step aside. To the people of this special city and to my dedicated staff, I am sorry for this painful situation," Murray said in a statement. The Seattle Times reported on Tuesday that the latest accusations...

A small, Tennessee-based group is planning to rally on Monument Avenue on Saturday around the statue of Robert E. Lee. Authorities are planning to cordon off a “weapons-free assembly zone” around the statue of Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue in an effort to head off any potential violence at a rally to support preserving Confederate monuments planned for Saturday. “We do not want what happened in Charlottesville to happen in Richmond,” said Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham in a letter distributed to residents this week. While authorities acknowledge they’re preparing for the worst, so far they’ve downplayed the parallels...

At first glance, nothing differentiates Vernetta Robinzine from passers-by in the Beverly neighborhood on Chicago's Far South Side. On a recent evening, like most people on a workday, she donned business casual attire with a loose, bright blouse. But her daily wardrobe includes something unseen that gives her confidence. Robinzine, 51, is a gun owner with a concealed carry license. Since she received her permit in late spring, she carries her firearm wherever she goes. ADVERTISING "It's like a part of me now," Robinzine said with the smile. Data show Robinzine is part of a burgeoning group in Cook County:...

The race for New York City mayor kicked off in earnest Wednesday, as incumbent Mayor Bill de Blasio, fresh off his Democratic primary victory, traded barbs with Republican opponent Nicole Malliotakis at separate campaign events. De Blasio, who trounced a field of underdog primary rivals Tuesday by collecting 74 percent of the vote, addressed about two dozen supporters at his campaign headquarters in Brooklyn, where he called the upcoming general election a battle “between a progressive Democrat and a pro-Trump Republican.” Malliotakis, a state assemblywoman from Staten Island who voted for Donald Trump in the general election after endorsing Marco...

San Diego County’s hepatitis A outbreak shows no signs of slowing, according to the latest update released Tuesday by the county Health and Human Services Agency. The outbreak’s death total rose to 16 — one more than last week’s total. The number of confirmed cases reached 421, up 23 from last week. The number of hospitalizations also pushed higher, reaching 292 from 279 the week before.

Miami-area police have arrested more than 50 suspected looters during and after Hurricane Irma, including 26 people who allegedly broke into the same Walmart. . . . 'I think it's despicable that anyone would try to take advantage of the fact that we're in a vulnerable state,' Miami Commissioner Francis Suarez said

PORTLAND -- Violence broke out between opposing groups at an anti-white nationalist rally in Portland that left at least one police officer injured, CBS affiliate KOIN-TV reports. Police made several arrests in the city's downtown area as two groups faced off over different views on white nationalism. The Portland Police Department tweeted that marchers and residents should clear the area for their own safety, adding that officers reported protesters attacking photographers and that projectiles were thrown at officers. They said several arrests were made and at least one officer was injured.

Three Portland police supervisors announced Friday that the Portland Police Bureau would halt its more than two-decade practice of designating gang members on Oct. 15. Portland police next month will end their more than 20-year-old practice of designating people as gang members or gang associates in response to strong community concerns about the labels that have disproportionately affected minorities. The Police Bureau recognizes that the gang designations have led to "unintended consequences'' and served as lifelong barriers for those who have shunned the gang lifestyle and tried to get jobs, said Acting Tactical Operations Capt. Andy Shearer.

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has assured black faith leaders in St. Louis that the rights of peaceful protesters will be protected if unrest occurs after a judge rules in a former police officer's murder trial. But after the meeting Monday at an AME church in St. Louis, the Republican governor stressed that any protest veering into violence will not be tolerated.

rma Looting in Fort Lauderdale and Miami, BSO Deputy Shoots Teen Who Was Allegedly Burglarizing Weston Home In Miami, an NBC 6 reporter saw an organized group of at least a dozen looters at a store in Midtown loading up boxes of shoes and clothing into cars One teen was shot by a South Florida deputy and another is in custody after they burglarized a home during Hurricane Irma Sunday morning, while looters have been spotted in Miami-Dade and Broward, authorities said. The deputy-involved shooting happened around 3 a.m. at a home in the 2500 block of Monterey Court, Broward...

My heart is breaking for Chicago, and for all Americans, as one of our greatest cities crumbles before our (and the world’s) eyes. I don’t see any way out of the vicious circle of political corruption, irrevocable pensions obligations overwhelming tax revenue, vanishing public services, and a decline in civil order leading toward a third world level of crime.  As a result, the city consumes itself, strangling business and entrepreneurship, and killing off precious assets. Now, comes a story that captures it all in one heart-rending example. Sam Cholke of DNAChicago writes: BRONZEVILLE — Chicago’s top-rated bed and breakfast...

The House late Wednesday voted to block federal transportation and housing funding from cities and states that choose not to cooperate with federal officials on immigration. Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., brought up his language as an amendment to a minibus spending bill and proposed attaching it to part of the bill that deals with transportation and housing funding. It was the latest Republican attack on so-called sanctuary cities, which reject federal demands to cooperate when it comes to detaining and tracking illegal immigrants.

The Associated Press shirked their own style guide in a recently published article, using “undocumented citizens” in lieu of their usual “undocumented immigrants.” The article with the strange reference was published on September 5 and discusses Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s response to President Donald Trump’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. “The Chicago Sun-Times reports that school officials say about a third of the school’s students are undocumented citizens,” the AP wrote.

EXCLUSIVE: Huma Abedin and Anthony Weiner walk son Jordan to his first day of $40k-a-year kindergarten Huma Abedin and Anthony Weiner were seen together for the first time in almost one year as they took their son Jordan to Kindergarten on Friday The estranged couple held hands with their son as they walked to his private school in downtown Manhattan, where annual tuition is over $42,000 Weiner, who turned 53 on Monday, turned back towards home however halfway through the walk leaving Abedin to walk their son the rest of the way He agreed to register as a sex offender...

Mayor de Blasio claims he’s running the city so well that “you’d assume they’d be having parades out in the streets” — and insisted he’d be more popular if it weren’t for “the time in history.” “When I think about how crime’s gone down for four years, graduation rates up, test scores are up, more jobs than ever in our history — I think, ‘Wow, just that quick profile, any candidate anywhere would want it,’ ” he boasted to New York magazine. “You’d assume they’d be having parades out in the streets. But that’s not the time in history we’re living...

The New York Daily News, a tabloid that once boasted one of the highest daily circulations in the nation, has been sold to tronc, the Chicago-based former Tribune Publishing company, the companies said Monday night. The News, a nearly 100-year-old media company, is based in Manhattan and was owned by Mortimer B. Zuckerman. “Adding an iconic media property like The Daily News not only expands our tremendous portfolio of newspaper brands, it also allows us to grow our digital platform and broaden our services for advertisers and marketers,” Dearborn said.