Free Republic

SAN DIEGO – Four people were injured in a gunbattle today involving an attempt to smuggle illegal immigrants from Mexico at the busiest border crossing in the U.S., authorities said. More than 70 people traveling in three vans involved in the incident were in federal custody, said U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman Angelica DeCima. Details remained sketchy, but van drivers tried to storm past inspectors at the San Ysidro port of entry and make their way into the U.S. without stopping, DeCima said. “It was human smuggling, definitely,” said Lauren Mack, a spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs...

San Francisco's yearlong campaign to crack down on illegal billboards and collect large fines is running up against lawsuits brought by advertising companies challenging the validity of city sign restrictions. According to city Planning Department officials, a three-person enforcement team has located more than 250 illegal billboards and sought fines against the company owners and landlords totaling about $1.5 million. Only $50,500 of that has been collected, however, . . .

Some lawmakers say stops would unfairly target illegal immigrants The state agency that imposed new rules barring illegal immigrants from obtaining driver's licenses is requesting authority to set up statewide driver's license checkpoints, part of what several lawmakers suspect is a plan to crack down on illegal immigrants. A number of state legislators argue the Department of Public Safety Commission overstepped its authority Aug. 25 by issuing new rules requiring applicants to prove they are here legally before they can obtain or renew a Texas driver's license. Their suspicions deepened when, two weeks later, the commission's chairman asked Texas Attorney...

Police say pot smokers who light up during the Democratic National Convention can expected to get busted under state laws..... Mason Tvert, leader of the group that sponsored the ordinance that discourages marijuana busts said, "During the DNC, police should be spending their time ensuring the security and safety of those in this city," Tvert said. "There is no reason why they should spend any of their time worrying about adults simply using a drug that is safer than alcohol. We're concerned during the Democratic National Convention that they are going to use the law to cite people or detain...

----snip Villanueva was reportedly shooting dice with friends in Henri Bourassa Park in the ethnically-diverse borough when police attempted to make a routine arrest. Montreal police say about 20 youths then surrounded them -- several of them reportedly rushing at police. ----snip Villanueva's death triggered an angry and violent response Sunday night. Vehicles were set on fire and there was widespread looting and violence targeting police and emergency service workers. One police officer was shot in the leg, while another officer and an ambulance technician received minor injuries. The technician was struck in the head with a bottle, said CTV...

A rookie cop - the son of a highly respected New York City detective - has been stripped of his badge and gun after being caught on video viciously attacking a bicyclist who was part of a Times Square demonstration. ' The startling YouTube video shows Officer Patrick Pogan, 22, apparently setting his sights on - and then tackling - a bicyclist as he pedaled along Seventh Avenue as part of last Friday's controversial Critical Mass ride. Christopher Long, 29, was among a throng of riders as he whizzed toward the corner of West 46th Street at 9:30 p.m. and...

Bicyclists were twice as likely as drivers to be at fault in the nearly 2,000 collisions that killed or severely injured Bay Area bike riders in the past decade, an analysis by The Chronicle shows. Bicycle and safety advocates say the deaths two weeks ago of two cyclists hit by a Santa Clara sheriff's deputy's cruiser should serve as a call to improve relations between cars and bikes on the roadways.The advocates say large numbers of cyclists fail to follow the rules of the road, running stop signs and red lights, and drivers are becoming more aggressive. "There is a...

Deputies use Valentine's Day ploy to round up scofflaws By HEATHER RAWLYK, Staff Writer Published February 15, 2008 They thought they were getting a heartfelt gift from an unknown admirer, but instead more than a dozen men and women were served with outstanding warrants on Valentine's Day from county Sheriff's Department deputies disguised as florists. On Wednesday, Sgt. Tonya Pfaltzgraff of the county Sheriff's Department called about 50 men and women wanted on various charges under the guise of "Maria," a representative from the fictitious company "Flowers By Ron." Sgt. Pfaltzgraff told each person she reached that a gift was...

The Oslo Police District is snowed under by the sheer number of criminal cases in the capital, and only 21 percent of reported offenses were handled last year. Investigators claim they don't have the time, staffing or resources to cope with their workload. More than 10,000 cases remained in the legal queue in Oslo when 2007 came to a close. "This is unfortunate for the credibility of and confidence in the police," said Oslo district chief public prosecutor Morten Yggeseth. He added that this trend has significance for the country’s security. Oslo Police District Union leader Jan Olav Frantsvold said...

DES MOINES, Iowa - Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson is endorsing a tough immigration measure being pushed by Iowa Congressman Steve King. Under King's measure, businesses would not get a tax deduction for wages paid to an illegal immigrant. King says Thompson's endorsement means he understands that Internal Revenue Service regulations can be as important as Homeland Security procedures in enforcing immigration laws. King, who represents western Iowa's 5th District, has been a vocal critic of the nation's immigration policies. The issue is an important one in the contest for the Republican presidential nomination, and King's call for tougher laws...

The USCCB Committee on Migration sent a delegation to the U.S./Mexico border region to study the plight of unaccompanied minors and human trafficking victims. The ever-growing problems with these populations are some of the gravest and many times most overlooked symptoms of the broken and out-dated immigration system currently employed by the United States. The delegation met with a broad cross-section of agencies and individuals involved with or knowledgeable of these populations to gain critical insights and to understand their needs. The delegation also met with Church officials, government officials, community-based organization, and other with important perspectives. Programs established to...

Sean Scallon August 28, 2007 In 1964, just before the New Hampshire primary, an average Joe named Paul Grindle didn’t particularly care for the choice of candidates running for the Republican nomination for President. So he decided to run his own candidate for president. With the help of a few friends and using the most sophisticated marketing techniques at the time, Grindle created a boomlet for Henry Cabot Lodge, former Massachusetts U.S. Senator, 1960 GOP Vice-Presidential candidate and then the U.S. ambassador to South Vietnam. Lodge wasn’t running for anything, his name wasn’t even on the New Hampshire ballot. Grindle...

Officers will impound unlicensed drivers' cars under some conditions only, pending a legal assessment of a ruling in an Oregon case. The Los Angeles Police Department has imposed a moratorium on impounding the vehicles of unlicensed drivers amid concerns that the practice may be unconstitutional, officials said Tuesday. The decision touches on what has long been a hot-button issue, because many unlicensed drivers who have their cars towed are illegal immigrants who cannot get driver's licenses. Immigrant rights groups and some legislators for years LAPD officials said they decided to stop impounding until the city attorney's office provides a final...

Call it the DUI hall of shame. On Thursday, Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully's office posted a listing of the county's most-wanted drunken drivers on its Web site. Prosecutors are asking for the public's help in catching them. The effort is part of a larger project by Scully's office to clamp down on habitual drunken drivers and make area roads safer. The Recidivist DUI Program was established in February with a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety. Its "Red Team" consists of a prosecutor and two criminal investigators. They target those who have at least one prior...

Lefties launch 'Move over' campaign By: Dave Downey - Commentary Sunday, June 17, 2007 Look out, all you left-lane campers. Soon, you could be approached from behind by an impatient commuter with the words "move over" and a giant arrow pointed in the direction of the No. 2 lane pasted across his or her windshield. Those drivers who routinely get irritated when you create those mile-long backups now have a polite way of communicating with you. For $29, they can buy their very own "move over" windshield decals through the Web site leftlanedrivers.org. The site was set up earlier this...

PARKING Crews find more eligible cars in those communities, city says Minority neighborhoods on the West and South sides are getting kicked harder by city booting crews than other parts of the city, according to a Chicago Sun-Times analysis of city data. But the city says no neighborhood is safe from the dreaded booting vans, it's just that they happen to find more boot-listed cars in minority communities. The neighborhood with the most cars booted per person in 2006 was the Near West Side, where 1,699 vehicles got the clamp, or 3 for every 100 residents. Though it includes gentrifying...

You know all those scofflaw legislators whose driving records this newspaper ran this week? That was just the tip of the iceberg, or so the cops say. “Almost nobody cites a self-identified rep or senator,” one state trooper faxed me. “They’ll get the ticket fixed anyway and the court clerk-magistrate will hate you for putting him in a position where he has to fix it.” The key to getting no tickets is simple. The legislator just gets himself one of those infamous legislative plates, with “House” or “Senate” prominently displayed, along with a very low number. Such tags can certainly...

Catching parking scofflaws in San Francisco has become easier with the help of high-tech cameras that scan license plates in search of cars saddled with unpaid citations. A city parking crew operating the new system can almost instantaneously find cars with at least five outstanding tickets. A two-person team roams city streets with two small cameras mounted atop their unmarked vehicle. The cameras can scan 250 or more plates an hour. And when a match is made, the crew attaches a yellow metal boot to the front wheel, removing it only after the tickets are paid. The city's Department of...

DANVERS — The brown SUV rolled to a stop in a Holten Street parking lot as two 17-year-old high school students in the back seat emptied their pockets of everything except their cell phones and a $20 bill. They wouldn't need much more to buy a pack of cigarettes in Danvers. The girl, wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and a pair of jeans, stepped into the pouring rain, approached a sales clerk at the Mobil gas station and returned moments later with a pack of Marlboro Reds. The two teens work undercover for the North Shore Tobacco Control Program, the...

On Monday, May 1, large numbers of people nationwide are expected to protest in support of amnesty for illegal immigrants, with some aiming to “close” American cities. Upwards of 3 million people might protest in Los Angeles alone, according to union organizer Jorge Rodriguez who said, “We want full amnesty, full legalization for anybody who is here (illegally).” Organizers of the May Day work stoppage and protest expect that America’s big cities will come to a stop on Monday as Latinos walk off their jobs and skip school. Teachers’ unions in urban areas have advocated that children should not be...