The U.S. Justice Department has charged former Florissant, Missouri, police officer Julian Alcala with 20 counts of deprivation of rights and one count of destroying records in a federal investigation. Prosecutors said that during traffic stops Alcala would take women's phones, telling them it was to confirm their insurance coverage or vehicle registration. But he actually searched the phones for nude images, which he would then photograph on his own phone. In a separate case in the same court, the feds have charged former Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper David McKnight with nine counts of deprivation of rights and one count of destroying records. Prosecutors said McKnight would do the exact same thing: take phones from women he stopped, search for nude images, and photograph them with his phone.
An Oklahoma City police officer has been placed on paid leave pending investigation of an incident in which he slammed 70-year-old Lich Vu to the ground, reportedly causing a fractured neck, a brain bleed, and memory loss. Video shows the officer telling Vu that he was being issued a ticket for an improper U-turn. Vu, who appears not to understand English very well, refuses to sign the ticket. The officer says he'll take Vu to jail if he doesn't sign the ticket. Vu gets out of the car and the two continue to argue. At one point, Vu appears to tell the officer to "shut up" and taps the officer's chest with the back of his fingers, which prompts the officer to slam him to the ground.
Effective January 1, 2025, New York will ban hotels with 50 or more rooms from providing guests with bottles of shampoo and conditioner. Hotels that violate the law will be fined $250 for the first violation and $500 for each additional violation. Supporters of the law say it will reduce plastic pollution.
Marcella Cadle, a high school agricultural science teacher in Lebanon, Missouri, has been charged with two counts of possession of child pornography, three counts of furnishing pornographic material to a minor, and one count of fourth-degree assault. According to police, a student said Cadle texted him that he "looked good that day and she liked the way he dressed." They texted for several days before Cadle requested a selfie, which the student sent. Police said Cadle then sent the student several inappropriate photos and a video of herself.
A court in Liverpool sentenced Andrew Talbot, a former officer with the Greater Manchester Police, to 19 years in prison after finding him guilty of multiple charges, including misconduct in public office and supplying Class A drugs. Prosecutors said Talbot stole 4 kilograms (8.8 pounds) of cocaine from the evidence room, valued at £400,000 ($508,770), then used the police database to find local drug dealers so he could sell it. He was discovered when he accidentally dropped a bag of cocaine outside his daughter's school.
A grand jury in Hamilton County, Tennessee has indicted school bus driver Brandy Renee Smith for reckless driving, four counts of child abuse, and nine counts of reckless endangerment. When students on Smith's bus were being too loud, she reportedly slammed the brakes while driving, causing some to hit their heads. At least three students were taken to the hospital and diagnosed with minor concussions.
In England, Lincolnshire Police Superintendent Fran Harrod says officers won't arrest drivers who don't pay for gasoline because they might not be "having a great day." She advised gas station owners to instead pursue civil action against the thieves, which would get them their money back "within a matter of weeks." Harrod was responding to Kavita Pilani, the owner of a station who said she has had 50 drive-off thefts in six months that are killing her business.
Former U.S. Capitol Police officer Thomas Smith was sentenced to 21 months in prison after pleading guilty to deprivation of rights under color of law. In June 2020, Smith was patrolling the homes of members of Congress in the Georgetown area, when according to court documents, he started pursuing two motorcycles at a high rate of speed without running his lights. Prosecutors said Smith swerved his patrol car into one of the motorcycles, knocking the driver into the air and onto the asphalt. According to the indictment, Smith then left the injured driver unconscious on the ground, did not file a report on the incident, and falsified police records to cover up his actions.
Former Easton, Maryland, police Sgt. Jason Dyott was sentenced to four years in prison, with all but six months suspended, and three years of probation after being convicted of two counts of official misconduct. The court found that in 2022, Dyott had sex with two teenage girls in his patrol car while on duty.
In Texas, former Missouri City police officer Blademir Viveros has been charged with two counts of manslaughter and one count of aggravated assault. Prosecutors said Viveros was responding to a robbery call but did not have his emergency lights on when he T-boned a vehicle driven by Angela Stewart. Stewart and her teenage son, who was a passenger in her vehicle, died at the scene.
Edmonton Police Service Constable Hunter Robinz has pleaded guilty to one count of breach of trust. Robinz repeatedly made sexual advances to female crime victims he met through his work, sending them sexual messages and even showing up at the home of at least one of the women.
Former Wilmington, Delaware, police officer Samuel Waters has been sentenced to probation after being found guilty of assault, official misconduct, and evidence tampering. Security video showed Waters enter a convenience store and confront Dwayne Brown, who had just made a purchase. Within seconds, Waters smashed Brown's head into a plexiglass wall several times. Prosecutors said nothing in the video justified that level of force. They also said Waters' description of the incident in his report differed from video evidence. Brown was initially charged with harassment and resisting arrest, but those charges were later dropped.
Michael Kenyon has sued the Phoenix Police Department after officers held him on hot asphalt for several minutes in July 2024, on a day that temperatures reached 114 degrees. Kenyon received third-degree burns on his legs, chest, arms, and face, and he had to be hospitalized for more than a month. Police had initially arrested him on a charge of theft but later determined he was not a suspect in that case. Hours after a local TV station asked about the lawsuit, officials charged Kenyon in connection with a March 2024 domestic incident involving his brother. His lawyer says the timing of those charges is "certainly suspicious."
Former, Memphis, Tennessee, police officer Arica Hutchison was sentenced to six months in prison plus two years supervised release after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft from a program receiving federal funds. The program in question was Crime Stoppers, which rewards people who provide information leading to an arrest in a crime. According to court documents, Hutchison entered false information into department databases and listed an accomplice as a tipster, after which she fraudulently obtained $18,500 from the program for the fake tips. Hutchison must also pay $22,000 in restitution, get a mental health assessment and counseling, take a financial literacy class, and undergo substance abuse and alcohol treatment.
When campaigning for office earlier this year, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer promised the Labour Party would not raise taxes on "working people." But he was cagey about exactly who the "working people" are. Now, Starmer says those who own assets such as property or shares in companies don't fit his definition of "working people." A spokesperson later clarified that people who own small amounts of stock could be working people and Starmer was referring to people who primarily earn their income from assets.
In Washington, former Leona Libby Middle School teacher Rosalinda Torres has been charged with unlawful imprisonment for locking a 14-year-old student in her classroom and forcing him to pray with her for more than an hour. Torres reportedly told the boy's mother that he had been disrespectful to her. According to court documents, the student stayed after class to apologize, but she locked the door and said he could not leave until they prayed. When the student said he was not religious, she called him "Satanas," which means Satan in Spanish.
In the United Kingdom, the Labour Party government has proposed changes to the Employment Rights Bill that would make employers liable if their employees are offended by customers or the public. Pub owners say this will turn them into "banter cops," trying to stop customers from telling jokes or making off-color remarks that may offend their staff. Academics say that universities and other venues will become less likely to book controversial speakers and artists for fear of being sued for remarks those people or members of the audience might make.
Liam West-Campau has filed a lawsuit against Wayne County, Michigan; Sheriff Raphael Washington; Chief of Jails Robert Dunlap; and several unnamed jail staffers. West-Campau claims he was held in jail for six days after his court-ordered release because jail staff did not know where he had been placed. Spokespeople for the sheriff's department and the county said they had not yet been served. But the Detroit Free Press reports that problems at the jail are common, including inmates being held after they are supposed to be released.
When Kelly Titchenell of Greene County, Pennsylvania, called 911 to report that her mother was unresponsive and turning yellow, dispatcher Leon Price at first agreed to send an ambulance but then repeatedly said he needed her mother's consent, even though she could not speak. He never sent an ambulance, and Titchenell's mother died the next day from internal bleeding.
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
A Georgia grand jury indicted Hall County Solicitor General Stephanie Woodard on 24 felony counts amid allegations that she spent nearly $4,200 of taxpayer money on herself and family members, which included using the funds to have her dog cremated. Woodard remained in office nearly two more months before resigning.
Myanmar's military government has arrested at least 62 people for selling rice above the maximum mandated price. One of the people arrested—supermarket executive Hiroshi Kasamatsu—was sentenced to a year in prison.
Saying the link between height and success is significant, Vietnam National University, Hanoi's School of Management and Business said it would not allow female students under 1.58 meters tall (5'2″) and male students under 1.65 meters (5'5″) to enroll. Following a public outcry, the school removed height requirements for all degree programs except management and security.
Memphis, Tennessee, lost $773,000 in a phishing scam, but city officials did not disclose the loss until a local media outlet asked about it two years later. Officials say they received and paid an invoice from someone claiming to be a regular vendor, and by the time they discovered the error, the time period to reclaim the money had expired.
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
An Italian court ordered journalist Giulia Cortese to pay Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni 5,000 euros ($5,500) after she posted a fake photo of Meloni with late Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on social media. The court also handed Cortese a suspended fine of 1,200 euros ($1,312) for another post it deemed "body shaming," in which she told Meloni, "you're only 1.2 metres [4 feet] tall."
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
An audit found that Warren Tyler Agner, who oversaw business development programs at Utah State University Eastern, did not show up to work for two years but still received $157,470 in salary and benefits. The audit also found that administrators knew about his absences but did nothing: Agner was friends with his supervisor, as well as the two administrators further up the chain of command. He even lived with his supervisor's supervisor, though neither disclosed this to the school.
When David O'Connor went to renew his Tennessee driver's license, officials not only refused to renew it but canceled his existing driver's license, citing a state law prohibiting licenses for noncitizens. O'Connor was born in Canada, where his parents—both U.S. citizens—were living temporarily, but he has been a U.S. citizen since birth: His Navy discharge papers say so, and he receives Social Security benefits. But since he was born in Canada, officials assumed he was Canadian and refused to believe otherwise; their only recommendation was that he apply for U.S. citizenship.
Center, Colorado, Police Chief Aaron Fresquez and his twin brother Sgt. Adam Fresquez have been charged with theft; Aaron Fresquez has also been charged with official misconduct. Prosecutors say that while on duty, the two used department resources to run a side business training police dogs for other agencies.
In England, an employee with the Liverpool City Council ordered Caroline Ashley to remove the Halloween decorations from her front yard. According to the city worker, a neighbor complained that the decorations, which included what appeared to be two bodies in body bags hanging from a tree, were too realistic and upsetting. "It's the quickest the council has come out for anything," Ashley said. "I put them up, and then he was round the following day." Ashley removed the items, saying she didn't want to offend any of her neighbors.
When a local Burger King in Cobb County, Georgia, got his order wrong, Sheriff Craig Owens Sr. knew what to do: He called for backup and three on-duty deputies arrived. "Hey, do me a favor. I need to get, all I need is the owner name of whoever owns this damn facility or the manager," he said to one of them. "I wanted…a Whopper, no mayo, cut in half, right?" He added, "I don't need no damn money back no more. I just need to find out who owns this place so I can do an official complaint." It isn't clear why Owens couldn't get that information himself. The deputies went to the restaurant and found the employees had locked themselves inside because they have had issues with angry customers before. The deputies got the information the sheriff wanted and gave it to him. Owens told a local TV station that it was a private business matter, he never identified himself as the sheriff, and the deputies didn't do anything for him they wouldn't do for any other person involved in a business dispute.
A cheerleading coach at Evans Middle School in Lubbock, Texas, has been placed on administrative leave while the school system investigates an incident that left 13 cheerleaders with first- and second-degree burns on their hands. The coach made them perform "bear crawls" and "crab walks" on a hot outdoor track as punishment for performing a cheer that they said the coach found "disrespectful." One parent said the temperature was well over 100 degrees when the incident happened.
A Scottish law took effect in September setting up 200-meter "safe access" zones around abortion clinics. The law was sold as a way to protect women seeking abortion from being harassed. But now the government has sent letters to residents of those zones telling them they face up to six months in prison if they do "anything" including "religious preaching" and "silent vigils" that "would cause harassment, alarm, or distress" to staff and patients. They letter said they could face penalties even if what they do is done on private property or even inside their home.
When Tennessee state troopers arrested Keith Van Soosten for DUI and reckless driving, he acknowledged he'd been drinking but said it was not enough to be impaired. It took two months to get the results of his blood test back, but it showed his blood alcohol level was .067, sober enough to drive in Tennessee. Trooper William Yates-Matoy arrested Van Soosten when he refused to submit to a field sobriety test; Yates-Matoy can later be heard on body camera footage telling another trooper, "as soon as they tell me no, I go into attack mode." Since December, Van Soosten is the second person arrested or assessed by Yates-Matoy for DUI whose blood test showed he was not legally impaired. Nashville TV station WSMV reports that many Tennessee law enforcement agencies do not use breathalyzers, claiming blood tests are more accurate, but it can take months to get the results back.
Officials in Sacramento County, California, have unveiled a plan to help families of black and Native American children. And only the families of black and Native American children. To qualify, the families need to have a child of the approved race who is under 6 years of age, live in certain zip codes, and have a household income of no more than 200 percent of the poverty level—$62,400 for a family of four. These families will receive $725 per month for a year with no strings attached. Officials say the program is limited to black and Native American applicants because they are more likely to be referred to Child Protective Services and to have their children removed from the home.
The California Coastal Commission voted 6–4 to block an Air Force proposal to let SpaceX launch up to 50 rockets per year from Vandenberg Air Force Base. Commission members have long resisted the Air Force's efforts to increase the number of launches from the base, citing what they say are the impact on wildlife and the environment. But at its latest meeting, some members also pointed to Elon Musk's politics as a reason to reject the request. "Elon Musk is hopping about the country, spewing and tweeting political falsehoods and attacking FEMA while claiming his desire to help the hurricane victims with free Starlink access to the internet," said Commissioner Gretchen Newsom.
Former principal Natasha Halfkenny and former assistant principal Coreen Miranda, of Boston Public Schools' Tobin School, have each paid a $4,000 fine for violating the state's conflict of interest law. The two went to see the musical Hamilton using tickets that had been donated to the school and were intended to be given to students who could not afford tickets to the show. But Halfkenny and Miranda each brought their sons, who do not attend Boston Public Schools.
Police officials in the Netherlands acknowledge they have accommodated officers in the National Police Force who have moral objections to guarding Jewish events or buildings, including the National Holocaust Museum. "There is no hard and fast policy," said Mireille Beentjes, a police spokeswoman. "The line is that police staff are allowed to have moral objections. We take moral objections into account when we make the rotas. But if there is an urgent job to do they go on duty whether they want to or not."
Not content with banning single-use plastic bags, California lawmakers have now banned all plastic shopping bags at grocery stores. A previous law allowed Californians the option of buying thicker plastic bags, touted as being recyclable, to carry their groceries. But officials said those were just being tossed in the trash. Shoppers will now have to bring their own bags or use paper bags provided by stores.
Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament and an ally of President Vladimir Putin, said lawmakers will take up a ban on "propaganda of conscious refusal to bear children." Volodin said the bill will impose fines of up to $4,300 for individuals and more than $53,000 for legal organizations convicted of advocating for voluntary childlessness.
In Oklahoma, U.S. District Judge Bernard Jones granted TV station KFOR a temporary restraining order to prevent the State Department of Education from barring KFOR journalists from the room in which State Board of Education meetings and news conferences are held. For several months, state Superintendent Ryan Walters and his spokesman, Dan Isett, have banned those reporters from the room during state school board meetings and from Walters' press conferences after the meetings. Jones said it appeared Walters is punishing the station for its editorial stance. Michael Beason, an attorney for the state Department of Education, at first said KFOR was being denied entry to the room for security and space concerns. But he later accused the station of "deliberately outright false reporting."
Andrew Gwynne, Britain's minister of public health, said the government is considering "tightening up the hours of operation" of bars and pubs. Gwynne said limiting pub hours could reduce both excess drinking and antisocial behavior. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has already announced the government is looking at banning smoking in pub gardens. Both men said the National Health Service budget is being eaten up by preventive diseases, and these rules are aimed at improving public health.
The British government now requires chicken owners, even those who keep one or two as pets, to register their birds. But it had to shut an online animal registration portal it set up because so many people were trying to sign up. According to British media, many people were signing up roasted chickens in their refrigerators. Officials said the registration is aimed at stopping the spread of bird flu and also includes parrots, finches, and other birds if they are ever taken outside the home. With the website down, owners have been told to register their birds by email.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed into law a bill requiring all one-pound propane gas cylinders sold in the state to be reusable or refillable starting in 2028. Campers use the portable fuel canisters for cooking, and supporters say the law will reduce litter in state parks and improve the safety of the park workers who must clean up discarded cans.
Nadine Jean Baptiste, a supervisor at the Rhode Island Department of Human Services, and her daughter, Octavia Jean Baptiste, are facing federal charges of aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, illegal acquisition or use of SNAP benefits, and conspiracy. Prosecutors said Nadine Jean Baptiste used her position to steal the personal information of people who receive SNAP benefits on preloaded EBT cards, which both she and her daughter used to make more than $191,000 in grocery purchases for themselves.
Jamey Noel, former Clark County, Indiana, sheriff and Republican Party chairman, has pleaded guilty to 27 felony counts, including theft, obstruction of justice, tax evasion, money laundering, corrupt business influence, and official misconduct. The charges stem from allegations that he used millions of dollars of taxpayer money for personal use, including vacations, high-end clothing, child support, and more. Noel agreed to pay $3.1 million in total restitution to four different agencies. The plea deal also calls for him to serve 12 years in prison and three years probation.
Saahir Irby, who works at the U.S. Postal Service's Philadelphia Processing and Distribution Center, has been charged with mail theft for taking government checks. Officials said Irby was seen on surveillance video taking mail from bins while on the job, totaling 112 checks during a single work shift. The distribution center processes both outbound U.S. Treasury checks as well as U.S. Treasury checks marked "return to sender."
A student at Missouri's Liberty Middle School was suspended for three days, and his mother was advised to search his room, after he posted a photo online of Dr. Pepper cans he had laid in the shape of a rifle. "We have enough information to believe the video has caused fear to at least one student and understandably so," said Mountainview-Birch Tree School District Superintendent Lana Tharp. "The safety and well-being of our students is our top priority and we responded swiftly to address the concerns."
Six employees of the New York City Department of Education used federal funds to take their children and grandchildren on trips, including to Disney World. The money came from a program aimed at giving homeless children incentives to increase their grades and attendance. The educators listed homeless students going on the trips and forged parents' guardians' signatures, but they took their own children and grandchildren instead, according to a report by the Special Commissioner for Investigation for the school system. The department says none of the employees are currently with the school system, but it isn't clear how many of them were punished. None were referred for possible criminal charges.
A policeman in Quetta, Pakistan, shot and killed a man being held in a local police station on charges of blasphemy. The victim, Syed Khan, reportedly made derogatory remarks about Muhammad. The name of the police officer was not reported.
Sheryl Davis, the head of San Francisco's Human Rights Commission, has been placed on leave after a local media outlet revealed her undisclosed relationship with James Spingola, the head of Collective Impact, a nonprofit that has received $1.5 million in contracts from her agency. Davis, who approved the contracts, is herself the former executive director of Collective Impact. According to The San Francisco Standard, Davis and Spingola are both registered to vote at the same address and jointly own a car. The two are refusing to answer questions about the exact nature of their relationship.
Canadian parents and students have complained to the Toronto District School Board after students at several middle schools were required to take part in an anti-Israel protest. The permission slip sent home to parents said students would observe a protest by Indigenous peoples over their water rights, but it quickly evolved into an anti-Israel rally, and video from the event and eyewitness accounts indicate that students were given face masks and told to join in. Several students, including one recent immigrant from India, were also told to put on blue shirts to mark them as "colonizers" and "settlers."
The Scottish government says it may ban alcoholic beverage companies from placing their logos on merchandise and glassware. The proposal would ban brewery or alcoholic brand logos on T-shirts, pint glasses, and pub umbrellas, among other objects. Officials say it is aimed at reducing alcohol abuse.
Darien Harris spent 12 years in prison for murder but was freed in December 2023 after it was discovered an eyewitness against him was legally blind. Court records show the witness denied under oath that he had vision problems, but he had advanced glaucoma and had been declared legally blind nine years earlier. A second eyewitness denied Harris was the shooter.
Kansas state law requires counties to destroy their ballots after elections. But Johnson County held off when Sheriff Calvin Hayden claimed to have a warrant authorizing him to seize the ballots as part of a five-year investigation into election fraud. When the elections office never received that warrant, it destroyed the ballots, leading Hayden to accuse it of destroying evidence. Hayden later admitted that no judge had signed his warrant; when it was pointed out that a judge must sign a warrant for it to be valid, Hayden replied, "I didn't say it was valid." In July, Hayden announced that he had suspended his investigation.
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
New York City sheriffs raided and closed several stores and bars for violating COVID-19 shutdown orders. A group of sheriffs then created a "man cave" at a city storage facility stocked with alcohol and tobacco products seized from shuttered businesses. They reportedly even blocked off the security cameras so they could drink and smoke there. Officials say 12 sheriffs were suspended for 30 days without pay but would not release any names.
Two Pennsylvania men who run a business helping dairy farmers manage their cows' pregnancies spent almost 30 days in jail for contempt of court. The State Board of Veterinary Medicine claimed the men failed to respond to a subpoena for records relating to their use of ultrasound to perform pregnancy checks on cows; the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association has filed multiple complaints claiming that the use of ultrasound means the men are engaging in the unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine.
Police in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, arrested Jeff Adams for driving under the influence (DUI) in 2023. Adams asked for but was not given a Breathalyzer test at the scene. Lab tests later showed Adams was not intoxicated, but that took four months. Meanwhile, he was suspended as an Uber driver, and while he did not lose his day job as a teacher, he fears the arrest hurt his reputation. A local TV station found that police departments throughout the region have arrested sober people for DUIs; many drivers ask for but do not get Breathalyzer tests because departments don't use them, and it can take up to eight months to get alcohol tests back.
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
In 2022, San Francisco fireman Robert Muhammad threatened fellow firefighter Gabriel Shin for refusing to reveal who was talking about Muhammad's personal business at work. He used a work computer to find Shin's home address, then took a hydrant wrench to Shin's house and repeatedly hit him with it, leaving Shin with broken arms and a concussion. Shin sued the department, but Muhammad was allowed to remain on the job, and Shin said supervisors have asked him to drop the lawsuit and not cooperate with the criminal investigation.
Ceci Flores searches for the bodies of people who have disappeared and are presumed to have been kidnapped and murdered, often looking where drug cartels are known to dump people. Mexican officials have repeatedly criticized her efforts: Her success at finding bodies undercuts the government's claims to be searching and its efforts to downplay the scope of violence in the country. After one recent find, prosecutors claimed Flores had found dog bones before admitting they were human remains.
Some Utah sheriffs say that rules proposed by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration for volunteer search and rescue teams would impose heavy burdens on volunteers and on the agencies that use them. According to the sheriffs, the rules would require at least 690 additional hours of training for some crews, much of it for scenarios—such as active shooters, structural fires, drug overdoses, and exposure to hazardous materials—that backcountry crews aren't going to encounter.
The Riverside County, California, sheriff's office said it is investigating the arrest of Adele Shirey. Video shows that when a deputy knocked on Shirey's door, he was met by a minor who closed the door on him. The deputy opened the door, entered the home, and refused Shirey's requests to leave. Shirey told him that unless he had a warrant, she would speak to him on the porch. He then points off camera and claims he has a right to be in the house because "They opened the door and ran from me." "Now that I'm inside your house, I own your house right now," he said. The deputy dragged Shirey onto the porch, handcuffed her, and arrested her for resisting arrest and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
A Missouri judge has ordered officials in the city of Edgar Springs to immediately empty its bank account of all but $10,000 and pay Rebecca Varney $47,886 of a $79,716 judgment against the city. The judge also ordered that city officials must also put a tax increase on the November ballot and set aside all general revenue above $2,500 per month—the amount needed to pay the city attorney and fund the police department—until it has paid the rest of the judgment. The judge found that city officials had tried to intimidate Varney by banning her from city hall after she began asking questions about city finances, and that council members violated state open meeting laws by holding several closed meetings that should have been open to the public.
