Bus driver turns into hairdresser for students: ‘You treat them like your own kids’
ALPINE, Utah — Each morning, 11-year-old Isabella Pieri gets ready on her own. Her father leaves for work early, and her mother died after years of battling a rare illness, according to KSL.
Over the years, Isabella’s father has taught her to take care of herself, but there is one area that’s difficult for most dads: hair.
“I originally just gave her a crew cut because I didn’t know how, and it was all tangled and I couldn’t get it out for anything,” Philip Pieri said.
After the crew cut, Isabella took matters into her own hands.
For a long time it was a quick brush, pony tail and then off to school. But a few months ago, something happened.
Better yet — someone happened: Isabella’s bus driver, Tracy Dean.
“You can’t be shy, you’ve got to talk to them. You treat them like your own kids, you know,” Tracy says.
One morning as kids were getting off the bus, Isabella noticed Tracy fixing a classmate’s braid and got the courage to ask if she would braid her hair too.
Now, Tracy styles each girl’s hair almost every morning.
“Seven years ago, I found out I had breast cancer, and that’s one of the things that went though my head — who is going to take care of my little ones? Not that my husband couldn’t do it, but you know, that’s what mom’s do. They do their kids’ hair.”
“It makes me feel like she’s a mom pretty much to me,” Isabella said. “And it makes me excited for the next day to see what she does.”
As we thanked Tracy for this special act of kindness, it was hard not to get emotional because what she’s doing is making a difference.
Isabella’s dad is noticing.
“Tracy didn’t have to step up, but she stepped up to help out, I was amazed.”
And Isabella’s teachers are noticing.
“I just noticed her head was a little higher that morning,” her teacher, Mrs. Freeze said, “and she had a little more of a step.”
Houston Teen Who Applied to 20 of the Best Colleges Gets Full Ride to All of Them
Michael Brown stared at the acceptance letter in front of him: It said yes.
So did the next one. And the one after that.
The 17-year-old from Houston applied to 20 of the best universities in the US. He was admitted to every single one with a full ride and $260,000 in additional scholarship offers.
“It’s something I’m proud of because I see my hard work paying off, determination paying off, sacrifices paying off,” the student told CNN.
Of those 20, he listed his top eight choices as: Harvard, Princeton, Northwestern, Yale, University of Pennsylvania, Stanford, Georgetown and Vanderbilt.
Currently a senior at Mirabeau B. Lamar High School, Micheal has been heavily involved in his school’s debate team, mock trial and student government for years. He has also volunteered for political campaigns, citing his interest to “the moment I saw Barack Obama get elected.”
He is set on majoring in political science, but is also considering a second degree in economics.
The first letter
When he received his first acceptance in December, he chose to do it at a friend’s house to relieve the pressure of being around his whole family.
“My family had high expectations and maybe didn’t realize how competitive the process is,” he said.
But he still invited his biggest supporter to come along — his mom.
Berthinia Rutledge-Brown filmed as Micheal stood in shock by the computer while his friends excitedly rallied around him.
Stanford, of course, said yes.
“After sixth grade, Mike was in control of his education,” recalled the proud mom. “He was focused, he knew what he wanted and he made his own decisions.”
A mother’s dedication
Rutledge-Brown lost three babies before becoming pregnant with Micheal. Once she finally had a son, she poured all of her energy into giving him the very best that she possibly could.
He only received one B during his entire academic career, which she said was very difficult for the goal-getter.
On March 28, Micheal opened the last four admissions decisions that would mark his 20-school streak.
His mom, who works two jobs as a licensed chemical dependency counselor, took the afternoon off to be with him.
They are both still in shock about the college and scholarship offers.
Urging others to dream big
But he didn’t want to talk about his own accomplishments alone.
“For me, it’s important to highlight that I’m not the only student of color who is achieving,” the teenager noted.
He has met countless friends through organizations like QuestBridge, Emerge Fellowship and Breakthrough Collaborative, which match students from low-income communities with higher education opportunities.
In fact, Micheal has at least one friend at every single Ivy League school thanks to these initiatives. He stressed the importance of using his platform to show other kids that they can dream big, too.
“I want people to be informed and get access to these same programs,” he said.
The high achiever will spend the next 30 days touring additional schools before he makes his final choice on May 1.
And he’s not taking a break until the fall.
This summer, he’ll spend two weeks traveling around cities that have historically fought for racial justice as part of Rustic Pathways’ “Race in America” program.
Fake Cop Fatally Shoots Real Officer (Kentucky suspect shot dead after manhunt)
An off-duty police officer in Kentucky was pulled over and shot dead by a suspect impersonating an officer, police say. Phillip Meacham, a 38-year-old Hopkinsville officer, was fatally shot in the small Kentucky city Thursday afternoon when his private vehicle was pulled over, ABC 11 reports. Police say the suspect, 35-year-old local man James Kenneth Decoursey, fled the scene on foot before stealing a white Chevrolet pickup truck. A manhunt was launched and Kentucky State Police troopers announced early Friday that the suspect had a “brief encounter” with police in which he “was shot and died from his injuries” about 30 miles away in Clarksville, Tenn., reports the AP.
Hopkinsville Police Chief Clayton Sumner says the department is familiar with Decoursey, though police haven’t commented on why the suspect was impersonating an officer. Meacham, the married father of two school-age children, served in the Christian County Sheriff’s Office for 12 years before joining the Hopkinsville force last year, the New York Daily News reports. The Lexington Herald-Leader reports that state lawmakers held a moment of silence for Meacham Thursday night and Gov. Matt Bevin paid tribute to the fallen officer. “Tonight a police officer in Hopkinsville, KY was killed in the line of duty,” the governor tweeted. “There is no greater sacrifice than that of a person willing to lay down their life for another.”
Surveillance video shows woman pull up to car dealership, shoot owner in back of the head
WEST ALLIS, Wis. – Melissa Sandrone is accused of shooting the owner of a Wisconsin car dealership, and witnesses say she then smiled and drove away, according to WITI.
The attack and Sandrone’s arrest were caught on camera.
The owner of M&M Motors was filling a tire with air when police say Sandrone pulled up in her Jeep, got out and shot him behind the vehicle. Witnesses say she turned with a smile on her face and drove away.
Surveillance video captured the tense moments:
“A person with a handgun shot my brother and was in my lot staring at us. Very quick. Send an ambulance,” the 911 caller said. “Somebody got shot in the parking lot,” the 911 caller said. “There’s a guy in the shop here. He’s bleeding. Shot in the back of the head.”
Inside the dealership, people jumped into action. Customers can be seen in the video running to safety as help was called. The store owner was shot in the back and neck but was awake.
“You are so lucky dude,” the 911 caller said. “‘Do you know the lady who shot you?’ No, he doesn’t.”
Police say Sandrone also fired shots at the worker who followed. Prosecutors say Sandrone may have developed a vendetta for the man she shot, believing he was responsible for a motorcycle crash she was in 14 years ago, but the owner said he did not recognize the woman who shot him.
Dashcam video shows police stopping Sandrone a short time later. They ordered her out of the vehicle and made the arrest.
Police discovered numerous weapons in her Jeep – including an assault rifle, a machete, an ax, a shovel and a plastic tarp.
Sandrone’s competency tests are expected to be back for a hearing scheduled for April 10th. She is charged with two counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon.
M&M Motors officials had no comment on the case.
Mom ‘overwhelmed’ by son’s autism tried to decapitate him with long tooth bow saw – back and forth across neck multiple times
ASPEN HILL, Md. – A Maryland mother accused of trying to kill her son with a bow saw told hospital staff she was “overwhelmed” by the boy’s autism and feared he would be a burden on society according to WJLA.
Kristina Petrie, 46, has been charged with attempted first-degree murder and child abuse in the March 12 incident.
According to charging documents obtained by WJLA, Petrie’s 11-year-old son came home from school that Monday and saw his younger brother in tears and his mother crying one minute, then laughing the next.
After the boy went to his room to play video games, his mother allegedly followed him up. With a bow saw in hand, she asked him why he wasn’t doing homework instead.
The boy tried to run, but his mother gave chase, according to the document, pinning him down and pulling the long-toothed saw back and forth across the boy’s neck “multiple times” while crying and screaming. The 11-year-old somehow managed to rip the bow saw out of his mother’s hand and run to safety, the document says.
A neighbor came over, and the boy’s father, Andrew Petrie, came home and took his wife to the hospital.
While at Montgomery General, Kristina Petrie told a hospital employee that “she felt overwhelmed and that she was not doing enough to help her children with their autism,” and that she “did not want her children to grow up to be a burden to society,” according to police.
When asked why she was at the hospital, Petrie responded that she “tried to kill her kids again,” and admitted she was going to cut off her son’s head with the saw when he got home from school that day, according to the court documents.
Investigators photographed the boy’s injuries three days after the incident, and police described “several thin lines with the skin broken and some scabbing,” along with cuts to his left shoulder and left hand. He also had red marks on his upper back.
An attorney for Petrie told WJLA her client had “absolutely no intent” to hurt her child, adding that she happy in her marriage of 15 years and loved her children and husband. The defense lawyer, Sharon Diamant, alluded to information that she wasn’t prepared to released but would help explain Petrie’s “behavior.”
Petrie is due back in court on April 20.
Long Island judge found with ‘soiled female’ underwear charged with burglarizing neighbor’s home
EAST ISLIP, N.Y. — A Suffolk County District Court judge has been arrested for burglarizing his neighbor’s East Islip home and allegedly stealing her underwear, police say.
Robert Cicale, 49, entered a home on Donna Place at approximately 9 a.m. Thursday and after realizing there was a resident inside the home, he fled.
The 23-year-old female resident called police after she saw a man inside their home, said police.
Authorities located him a short time later on Rosemary Place.
Officers say the judge was in possession of “soiled female undergarments.” It is unknown whether the underwear was taken during this burglary or an earlier one.
Detectives charged Cicale, of 14 Donna Place, East Islip, with second degree burglary.
Cicale will be held overnight and is scheduled to be arraigned on March 30 at First District Court in Central Islip.
via: http://pix11.com/2018/03/29/long-island-judge-accused-of-raiding-underwear-drawer-at-neighbors-home/
Man Accused of Soliciting Sex With 4-Year-Old Arrested in Anaheim
A man who allegedly tried to solicit sex with a 4-year-old has been arrested in Anaheim, authorities said Wednesday.
Nicolas Castillo, 29, was arrested near his fiancé’s home, where there is a daycare center next door, Santa Ana police said.
An informant told officials Castillo was looking to have sex with any 4-year-old, leading to a months-long investigation, Cpl. Anthony Bertagna told KTLA.
Undercover detectives were able to communicate with Castillo, who had told a woman he thought was a child’s mother that he was willing to pay $700 for “two sessions” or $500 if the 4-year-old was allowed to spend the night with him. The woman, however, was actually a police officer. Castillo worked as a security guard in Dana Point, possibly near a school Bertagna said.
The officer said authorities obtained computers during a search of Castillo’s parents’ Yorba Linda home, which is across the street from Bryant Ranch Elementary School.
Police were working on the case with the Orange County District Attorney’s human trafficking task force.
In a statement, Allied Universal, where Castillo worked, said officials were “shocked and concerned” to hear about the allegations.
“He is no longer employed by our company,” the statement read. “We will provide our full cooperation to law enforcement on the investigation.”
No further details were immediately available.
via: http://ktla.com/2018/03/28/man-accused-of-soliciting-sex-with-4-year-old-arrested-in-anaheim-police/
Mom blends her placenta into smoothie and feeds it to family
A mom of four turned her placenta into a smoothie and fed it to her husband and their 3-year-old son for the health benefits.
Jay Woodall, 33, has four children, Logan, 9, Demitrius, 6, River, 3 and Storm, nine months, with husband Jon, 34.
Woodall always dreamed of repurposing her placenta but missed her opportunity with the first two, but found a solution by the time she had her two most recent children.
She paid $42 for her raw placenta to be turned into smoothies, and everything leftover was dehydrated and turned into pills – costing a further $210.
Woodall said: “It’s a mixed reaction, a few people think it’s a bit gross — not very appetizing.”
“There are some people that think about it and are interested and ask questions about it, I’ve had some people that listen to what I say and do it themselves as well.”
“People are grossed out, some people are interested.”
“I don’t care, everyone is entitled to their opinion and it’s my body. I’m the one that looks into stuff and I make up my own mind about whatever I do.”
“I’m up for trying things out if it’s going to benefit my health and my body, or my children’s bodies.”
“It’s not really much different from eating certain meats. A lot of animals do it, especially mammals, we’re the only ones who don’t eat the after birth.”
Woodall, a self-confessed hippy from England, even had her umbilical chord dehydrated and turned into a keepsake.
Woodall continued: “It just tasted like a berry smoothie. It had coconut water and berries in it so tasted really nice.”
“I had a boost of energy, better deeper sleep, and my mood was boosted – I felt really good.”
“Milk production was good too, I had to take less because I was producing too much milk.”
“The recovery after birth was quicker as well.”
“It didn’t really taste of anything because I had it with coconut water and berries.”
“But I did have a little taste of it on its own before and it just tastes a bit like liver, an irony, metallic taste. It’s not horrible, it’s not a disgusting taste at all.”
Woodall even fed the placenta smoothie to her husband and son, Demitrius.
Woodall said: “I think everyone had it. My husband had some just out of pure curiosity and my son tried some and said it was yummy. But again it had berries and stuff in it.”
“With my mom, I gave her half of my placenta pills when I gave birth to Storm because she was suffering from a few hormonal issues.”
“It was a similar response, they said it tasted nice and their energy levels increased. Mom said it made her feel very alert and very connected.”
“It’s a highly beneficial thing to do, I know mothers that have suffered from postnatal depression and I think it would help that, in my opinion.”
“She said it made her feel loads better and gave her a lot of energy. And I thought hormonally it made me feel a lot better too.”
“I’m quite an emotional person anyway, and it felt like my hormones were nicely balanced after I had it.”
“When you think how much some people spend on vitamins, it sounds like a lot but if it lasts you a whole year then it’s good value for money.”
“After I had the placenta smoothie, with both girls, I was able to go out that same day after giving birth.”
“A really calming feeling came over me. I had a boost of energy and just felt really good about myself. It was really lovely to experience feeling that.”
“It’s one of those things that you can be skeptical about it, but in my eyes, there’s nothing negative that could happen from it.”
“I was a bit more connected and bonded to my baby, I was able to have a very deep sleep after having it, so it just outweighs the negatives.”
via: https://nypost.com/2018/03/29/mom-blends-her-placenta-into-smoothie-and-feeds-it-to-family/
Groupon apologizes after racial slur was used to describe boots – Color: N****r Brown
NEW YORK — Harlem Minister C. J. James was outraged and took to social media after spotting a posting for boots on the online discount site Groupon, that contained a racial slur.
James called PIX11 News about the find.
“This cannot be real not in 2018,” James said.
The boots were being sold with the color option ‘n****r brown.’
“I think the words is offensive,” James told PIX11. “I think the word should not be used in our vocabulary.”
“There’s no excuse,” explained Trae Bodge, a shopping expert and branding strategist.
“I’d be expecting a very heartfelt apology from Groupon and they need to do some serious damage control as does any brand that lets anything like this go through,” Bodge said.
PIX11 learned the boots were being sold by a third party vendor based in China through the Groupon site.
Groupon sent PIX11 a statement Wednesday afternoon saying, “we are appalled that this language was displayed on our site. This product description was provided by a third-party seller via our self-service platform. Regardless, this is completely unacceptable and violates our policies — to say nothing of our values. When made aware of the issue, we immediately removed the deal — as well as the third-party seller — from our marketplace. Language like this has no place on Groupon, and we’re further strengthening our self-service controls to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”
via: http://pix11.com/2018/03/28/groupon-apologizes-after-racial-slur-was-used-to-describe-boots/
Woman accused of faking pregnancy to hitch an ambulance ride home, slapped with $800 fine – Cops: “Should have just called an Uber.”
GREENSBURG, Pa. — Police say a Pennsylvania woman faked a pregnancy to hitch a ride back to her hometown.
Authorities say the 25-year-old called emergency services March 20, claiming she was having a complication with her pregnancy.
The ambulance drove the woman and her male companion from Latrobe to her hometown of Greensburg, where she was placed in a hospital room for examination.
Police say the woman walked out of the emergency room before she could be examined.
The woman gave her name and address to first responders, and police traced her to an apartment where she was hiding in the attic.
Police have charged with woman with theft of services, which carries an $800 fine.
Greensburg Police Capt. Robert Stafford says it would’ve been cheaper if the woman just called an Uber.
via: https://nypost.com/2018/03/29/woman-accused-of-faking-pregnancy-to-hitch-an-ambulance-ride-home/