Free Republic

EUCLID, Ohio -- Don't try to hang a blanket in a window in this Ohio town. The City Council has banned the use of blankets, garbage bags, newspaper or other unsightly items in place of curtains. Shades, miniblinds and other conventional window coverings in houses and apartments must work and be hung properly, according to the law approved 8-1 Monday. Sheets sewn to look like drapes also will be acceptable. Violators will receive warnings and could face up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Residents who just moved in will be given some wiggle room and landlords...

Drug Warriors Push Eye-Eating Fungus USA -- Why are members of Congress advocating the use of a dangerous crop-killer in Columbia? On April 16, the New York Times ran a full-page ad from contact lens producer Bausch and Lomb, announcing the recall of its “ReNu with MoistureLoc” rewetting solution, and warning the 30 million American wearers of soft contact lenses about Fusarium keratitis. This infection, first detected in Asia, has rapidly spread across the United States. It is caused by a mold-like fungus that can penetrate the cornea of soft contact lens wearers, causing redness and pain that can lead...

NEWS RELEASE Second Amendment Foundation 12500 NE Tenth Place  • Bellevue, WA   98005(425) 454-7012  • FAX (425) 451-3959  • www.saf.org SAF FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST NEW ORLEANS POLICE CHIEF’S PLAN TO GRAB GUNS For Immediate Release:   6/5/2006 BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is calling upon U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to investigate New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley over his announcement last week that police in his city would once again confiscate privately-owned firearms in the event of another catastrophic storm like Hurricane Katrina. During a live interview with a New Orleans radio station, Riley acknowledged that citizens...

As WorldNetDaily reported, the controversy began Friday when the agents visited the Great News Network in Denton, Texas, and threatened to arrest staffer Tim Crawford for hiding evidence in a counterfeiting investigation. The agents took 8,300 tracts and left their business cards and a receipt. The Christian group argues, however, that "million-dollar" bills can't be counterfeited because they don't exist, and the tracts – which include a "not legal tender" disclaimer on the front – present the Christian salvation message on the opposite side. The gospel tracts are produced by evangelist Ray Comfort, who told WND yesterday his Living Waters...

Thursday, June 1, 2006, at 11P Through narrative and accompanying visuals, the series, Final Report, will be the story-behind-the-story. The Final Report: Waco Tragedy, examines and answers the questions central to understanding the events that lead to the deaths of 4 ATF agents and80 members of the Branch Davidians including their leader, David Koresh, in a raid and subsequent grisly fire in April, 1993.

PITTSBURGH -- Leave the tractors at home! Police in Beaver County told students to stop taking tractors to their Freedom Area High School on the last day of classes. The ride has become something of an annual tradition according to students, with parents lining the route and waving in the past. But police in New Sewickley said they will issue citations to anyone who tries it this year. The chief said using tractors as transportation is illegal and unsafe.

Police arrest 67 at checkpoints Wednesday, May 31, 2006 By NADIA M. TAYLOR Staff Reporter Officers issued more than 1,800 tickets and arrested 67 people over the Memorial Day weekend at several driver's license checkpoints throughout the city, police said. Most of the 1,834 tickets issued were for not having a driver's license or proof of insurance, according to interim Mobile police Chief Lester Hargrove. Fifty-four people were arrested on outstanding misdemeanor warrants, and 13 people were arrested on felony warrants, Hargrove said. Most charges stemmed from traffic violations or drug offenses, police said. One man, Carl Mitchell Washington, 22,...

A Chicago Police officer roughed up a parking ticket supervisor last week, the supervisor alleged, arresting her and throwing her into a police wagon when she refused to void a ticket on an officer's car. The alleged victim, Jackie Fegan of the city's Traffic Management Authority, plans to sue the city, her lawyer said. She wept Friday as she described the incident, in which four officers allegedly took part. "They were hurting me. They wouldn't stop," Fegan said. "It's unreal. One minute I'm working, and the next minute I'm being hauled off and hurt and thrown into a paddy wagon."

ISSAQUAH - The Issaquah man who claims he shot a black bear in self-defense near his home Monday night is now under investigation by the Department of Fish and Wildlife for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for hunting a bear out of season. King County Sheriff's deputies, officers with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms served a search warrant Wednesday at Aaron Enright's home in the rural High Point neighborhood near Issaquah. They seized the 10-gauge shotgun he used to shoot the bear, a .22-caliber rifle...

DMV agents look inside; Belman driver refuses to allow access, citing clients' privacy. Date published: 5/22/2006 Department of Motor Vehicles staff brought a search tactic reportedly used at Northern Virginian proms a little farther south Saturday night. As limousines pulled up to Colonial Forge High School's junior-senior prom, DMV agents asked to search the vehicles. Most drivers agreed to the searches, except for one. Prom-goers began arriving at the Fredericksburg Expo & Conference Center around 8 p.m. Once limousine drivers dropped off passengers, DMV enforcement agents asked to see chauffeur licenses and to search vehicles for alcohol and drugs. Most...

BALTIMORE - The Virginia couple arrested Saturday for trespassing after getting lost trying to find Interstate 95 have retained an attorney and plan to sue the city. “In view of what’s happened, it’s a given,” said Dale Anstine, an attorney in York, Pa., who is representing the family. “I personally know these people; they are good kids. I think the conduct of this police officer is beyond outrageous.” Llara Brook, 20, and her boyfriend, Josh Kelly, 22, traveled from Chantilly, Va., to Baltimore to see an Orioles game Saturday. The couple stopped in the 800 block of Bridgeview Drive in...

Traders Sports, one of the biggest gun dealers in the state, hopes a hearing in U.S. District Court next week will keep them in business. Traders has been under scrutiny for several years by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), which is trying to shut down the gun dealer. The ATF decided to revoke Traders gun permit on June 1. After an audit in 2003, the ATF claims that Traders can’t account for 1,767 weapons, and that guns sold at Traders turn up in crimes at an alarming rate. ATF spokeswoman Marti McKee said she couldn’t comment on...

Wyoming sues feds over gun rights By TOM MORTON Star-Tribune staff writer Wednesday, May 10, 2006 Wyoming is suing the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court, centers on whether its the federal government or the state that has the final authority to restore gun rights to those guilty of misdemeanor domestic violence offenses. Under federal law, people convicted of any misdemeanor crime of domestic violence used to be prohibited from possessing a firearm. In 1986, that changed: Those convicted could own a gun if their records were expunged. A new...

America's war on drugs is actually a Raid on Taxpayers. The war costs an estimated $70 billion a year to prosecute, and the drugs keep pouring in. But while the War on Drugs may have failed its official mission, it is a great success as a job-creation program. Thousands of drug agents, police, detectives, prosecutors, judges, anti-drug activists, prison guards and their support staffs can thank the program for their daily bread and health benefits. The American people are clearly not ready to decriminalize cocaine, heroine or other hard drugs, but they're well on their way to easing up on...

REDMOND - The Redmond Police Department is facing a $1 million lawsuit after a woman says an officer used his Taser on her during a medical emergency. Video from the police car camera shows that something was wrong with Leila Fuchs last July when police pulled her out of her car. For nearly 10 minutes when officers first pulled up, they say she remained unresponsive. "She's just gotten into this collision at Redmond Way and 145th -- small accident," said defense attorney James Egan. But he says it's the decisions an officer made when Fuchs wouldn't unlock her door that...

Illegal Immigration Counter Protesters Detained The topic of discussion on the Bryan Suits radio show on 570 KVI earlier this evening was a call by a Seattle area citizen, Eric, who called to say that while thousands of illegal immigrants marched a couple of feet away, 5 United States citizens, he being one of the 5, who should be covered by all of the constitutional amendments, including the 1st and 2nd, were detained by the Seattle Police Department for over 2 hours because... well hard to say really. The reason for Caller Eric's call into the show was, surprise, surprise,...

An infuriated Denver woman has filed a complaint with the Transportation Security Administration after a security screener forced her 83-year-old mother to get out of her wheelchair and walk to a pre-flight screening area, despite doctor's orders not to stand and an orthopedic card saying she had a metal plate in her hip. The incident at Denver International Airport occurred eight days ago when Sally Moon, her sister and a Frontier Airlines employee were transporting Bernice "Bea" Bogart to a special security screening area. Moon's sister, who did not have concourse clearance and the Frontier employee were left behind as...

FBI agents waited until Jack Anderson was dead before trying to tamper with his files. They had good reason to be wary; the muckraking journalist had gotten the best of government bureaucracies many times during his career. Now it's up to Anderson's family to carry on his fight against government arrogance and secrecy. His wife and children have support from librarians, historians and journalists. A dose of public outrage would be helpful, too, and very appropriate. Anderson collected about 200 boxes of documents while breaking news about Watergate, CIA assassination plots and other Washington scandals. Anderson spent the past 15...

A woman accused of heckling Chinese President Hu Jintao during a White House appearance this week was charged Friday in federal court with a misdemeanor of willfully intimidating, coercing threatening and harassing a foreign official. ADVERTISEMENT Wang Wenyi, 47, had obtained temporary press credentials as a reporter for a Falun Gong newspaper and positioned herself on a camera stand. According to Secret Service translations provided in court documents, she shouted in Chinese: "Stop oppressing the Falun Gong," as well as "Your Time is running out," and "Anything you have done will come back to you in this lifetime." She also...

(April 19, 2006)--An informal memorial service may be held Wednesday at the site of the Branch Davidian compound to mark the 13th anniversary of the fire that killed almost 80 Davidians and ended the 51-day standoff with federal agents, but survivors don’t plan to attend this year, according to the Mt. Carmel Survivors Newsletter.