A postal worker rented a storage unit to hide mail because he felt ‘pressured’ to deliver it
A United States postal worker was caught with a public storage unit full of mail he never delivered.
Jason Delacruz pleaded guilty to charges of delay of mail by a postal employee in August 2019. He is set to be sentenced on February 12.
Delacruz, who worked as a mail carrier in Chesapeake, Virginia, said he felt “pressured” and couldn’t “make time” to complete his mail route, according to court documents. He told authorities that he rented a public storage unit for $49 per month for “the sole purpose of storing mail he could not deliver.”
The employee said he started hiding mail in November or December 2018 and he rented the storage unit in February 2019, according to court records. He said he put mail he was unable to deliver in the unit from that time up until he was discovered in May 2019.
Delacruz told authorities he intended to deliver the mail in the storage unit, but he fell behind and was never able to, according to court documents. He said he never destroyed any mail.
Delacruz’s attorney, Wilfredo Bonilla, Jr., told CNN Wednesday that he was unable to comment at this time.
Agents from the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General found almost 5,000 pieces of mail in the storage unit in Virginia Beach.
They discovered 97 pieces of first-class mail, which included letters from the Department of Motor Vehicles, the IRS, insurance companies, bank statements and other tax return documents.
Magazines and other publications made up 115 pieces of mail. There was also one undelivered package found in the unit. The bulk of the mail was advertisements, more than 4,700 ads at that.
The Postal Service delivered the first-class mail after it was found. The ads were discarded because they were old by then.
“The employee no longer works for the Postal Service,” USPS public relations manager Dave Partenheimer told CNN Tuesday. “He resigned in 2019 and he worked for 14 months prior to his resignation.”
Delacruz could face a fine or up to five years in prison, according to federal law.
via: https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/postal-worker-rented-storage-unit-004419552.html
Photo Credit: Scott Olson/currently.att.yahoo.com
Pennsylvania man accused of pouring hot sauce into 7-month-old’s mouth, choking her mother
JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WTAJ) — Charges have been filed against a Pennsylvania man for allegedly abusing a 7-month-old Monday morning.
Johnstown police say David Jones, 21, hit the child and dumped hot sauce in the infant’s mouth. Jones allegedly sat on the child and pushed down on her with a bassinet frame as well.
Police say the girl’s mother tried to stop him, but he grabbed her by the neck, choked her, and threw her against the wall.
The woman fled to a neighbor’s house to call 911.
Police said the girl had “a very clear red rectangular line on her stomach consistent with the foot of the bassinet,” according to The Tribune-Democrat.
The baby was taken to Conemaugh Memorial for evaluation.
Jones is facing charges of aggravated assault on persons under 6, strangulation, simple assault, and harassment. Police did not say what his relationship was to the child.
via: https://fox2now.com/2020/01/27/police-johnstown-man-hit-poured-hot-sauce-in-7-month-olds-mouth-tmw/
Photo Credit: fox2now.com
FL day care worker fired after mom finds ‘I’m out of diapers’ written across son’s stomach
SANIBEL, Fla. – A Florida day care has fired one of its employees after a mother says she was furious to find “Mom I’m out of diapers pls read my report” written in large letters across her toddler son’s stomach.
The executive director of the Children’s Education Center of the Islands, Cindy Carter DeCosta, said in a statement that they are “aware of the incident at the school and we are terribly sorry for the distress it has caused the family involved as well as all of our families.”
Heather Chisum, 23, posted on Facebook after finding the message scrawled with a marker across her son Milo’s torso Monday.
“Everyday when I pick Fin and Milo up from daycare they put a daily report paper in Milos lunch box. It says what mood he was in for the day, what times they changed his diapers, and if he needs diapers or wipes,” Chisum wrote.
She wrote that she may have missed a note about Milo’s diaper supply in a recent report, but said the staff at the Sanibel school said nothing about diapers when she picked Milo up.
“I’m a single mom with a full time job and two very young children. SUE ME FOR NOT READING THE REPORT EVERY SINGLE DAY,” she wrote. “‘Hey Heather, your son needs diapers maybe you missed the report’ would have done the trick.”
Chisum said she scrubbed the ink multiple times but couldn’t get it all off, forcing her to cancel beach plans because her son “has writing all over him.”
According to the News-Press, Chisum has pulled both of her children out of the school.
DeCosta called the incident a “breech of our professional ethic on the part of the teacher.”
Read the full statement below:
We are aware of the incident at the school and we are terribly sorry for the distress it has caused the family involved as well as all of our families. It was a breech of our professional ethics on the part of the teacher. The school has taken immediate action to remove the teacher from the school. We are reviewing protocols already in place to ensure that nothing like this occurs again. We are proud of our school, love our students and are eager to make our school a better place as we move forward.
We have met with the family involved, we understand and share their concerns and have ensured them that their children will always be welcome here.
Photo Credit: fox2now.com
MO man accused of exchanging vape pods with teens for sex
ST. CHARLES, Mo. – A St. Charles man is accused of giving vaping pods to young teenage girls in exchange for sexual favors.
Investigators in St. Charles believe there are more victims but there’s no word on how many that may be.
The crimes allegedly occurred at two locations along Kisker Road, inside Nieters’ truck, from January 1 through January 24.
In court documents, police accuse 20-year-old Seth Nieters of selling the vape pods to two 13-year-old girls and then convincing them to perform sex acts in lieu of paying him cash.
Nieters was charged with two counts of child sex trafficking. He was jailed on a $20,000 cash-only bond.
There are two middle schools in with girls that age in the area. Both are part of the Francis Howell School District.
The district released the following statement, Tuesday afternoon:
“The Francis Howell School District was informed this afternoon that an individual has been charged with second-degree sex trafficking, and at least some of the underage victims are Francis Howell students. The St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office reports that the suspect was not targeting FHSD students, but made successful contact with one student and then additional students through social media.”
“Francis Howell has strict policies and regulations prohibiting inappropriate conduct toward students and/or staff, provides continuing training and monitoring regarding such policies, and always takes prompt and appropriate action upon receiving reports of any violation of those policies.
“FHSD schools also provide student lessons on internet safety and digital citizenship, as well as the importance of responsible and appropriate behaviors at school and online. The safety of our students and staff is always a top priority of FHSD, and the district will cooperate fully with authorities during their investigation.”
via: https://fox2now.com/2020/01/28/st-charles-man-accused-of-exchanging-vape-pods-with-teens-for-sex/
Photo Credit: fox2now.com
College football coach suspended for calling Hitler ‘a great leader’
A college football coach in Michigan was suspended Monday for calling Adolf Hitler a “great leader” during an interview with the school’s student newspaper, a report said.
Morris Berger, the offensive coordinator at Grand Valley State University, spoke at length about the Nazi leader when asked which three historical figures, except for famous athletes, he would want to have dinner with.
“This is probably not going to get a good review, but I’m going to say Adolf Hitler,” Berger told the Grand Valley Lanthorn.
“It was obviously very sad and he had bad motives, but the way he was able to lead was second to none. How he rallied a group and a following, I want to know how he did that. Bad intentions of course, but you can’t deny he wasn’t a great leader,” he added in the interview.
The newspaper reported Monday that the school had suspended Berger after the story was published.
“The comments made by Offensive Coordinator Morris Berger, as reported in The Lanthorn student newspaper, do not reflect the values of Grand Valley State University,” the school told Fox News in a statement.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/01/27/college-football-coach-suspended-for-calling-hitler-a-great-leader/
Photo Credit: Grand Valley State Athletic Department
Man charged with drug possession busted for smoking joint in front of judge
This court hearing really went to pot.
A Tennessee man allegedly lit up and smoked a joint during his court appearance on a drug possession charge Monday.
Spencer Boston, 20, addressed the judge and argued for new marijuana legislation moments before putting on a blunt act in Wilson County court, the Tennessean reported.
As he lit the doobie, the smell of weed wafted through the air and the courtroom burst into laughter.
“One of the craziest things I’ve ever seen,” Wilson County Sheriff Robert Bryan told WTVF.
Through a cloud of smoke, and in a joint effort, deputies led Boston out of the courtroom, Bryan said.
He was booked on a second charge of simple drug possession and was hit with 10 days in jail for contempt of court.
The man’s bond was set at $3,000.
Photo Credit: Wilson County Sheriff’s Department
9-year-old Florida boy charged with attempted murder in stabbing of 5-year-old sister – telling her “die, die”
A 9-year-old Florida boy who allegedly stabbed his 5-year-old sister — telling her, “Die, die” — will be charged with attempted first-degree murder, according to new reports.
The Ocala boy, whose name was not released because of his age, was playing in his room with his sister Monday afternoon when their mom slipped outside to check the mail, WKMG-TV reported.
When the mother returned, she found her son stabbing his sister repeatedly with a kitchen knife, the outlet reported.
She grabbed the knife from her son, who fled into a maintenance shed, and then picked up her daughter and called 911, authorities said. The girl was reported alert and responsive after the attack.
The boy told authorities that the thought of killing his sister “had entered his head two days earlier” and wouldn’t go away, according to an arrest report obtained by FOX 35.
He told cops he grabbed a knife from the kitchen, entered the bedroom, grabbed his sister by the neck while she was bent over and began attacking her, the station reported.
“Die, die,” the boy told his sister during the unprovoked attack, according to the report.
The boy allegedly told investigators he stabbed his sister because “he wanted to be able to go outside.”
Investigators found probable cause to charge the boy, the arrest report said.
He is being held in secured detention ahead of a psychiatric evaluation ordered by a Marion County circuit judge Monday.
A public defender has been appointed to represent the boy, who is set to reappear in court Feb. 5.
Photo Credit: Ocala PD
Police scold TMZ after outlet was first to report death of Kobe Bryant
New York (CNN Business)At 2:24 p.m. ET, TMZ posted the story that stunned the world on Sunday: Basketball legend Kobe Bryant, at the age of 41, had died in a California helicopter crash.The tectonic news, which the celebrity-gossip website was first to report, swept the nation as other news organizations quickly confirmed the story.It also upset police who suggested the speed in which TMZ had reported the news — a little more than an hour after police said they received reports of a downed aircraft — outpaced that of officers who were seeking to notify the family members of victims.During a press conference, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva took a swipe at the website when explaining to reporters why he would not yet confirm the identities of those who were aboard the helicopter when it crashed.
“It would be extremely disrespectful to understand that your loved one … perished and you learn about it from TMZ,” Villanueva said. “That is just wholly inappropriate.”Los Angeles County Undersheriff Tim Murakami also jabbed TMZ in a tweet.”I am saddened that I was gathering facts as a media outlet reported … Kobe had passed,” Murakami wrote. “I understand getting the scoop but please allow us time to make personal notifications to their loved ones. It’s very cold to hear of the loss via media. Breaks my heart.”A representative for TMZ, which is owned by WarnerMedia, CNN’s parent company, did not respond on Sunday to requests for comment.Bryant’s death was the latest in a string of tragic celebrity-death scoops TMZ has landed since it launched in 2005. In 2009, the website first reported the death of Michael Jackson. In 2012, the outlet broke news that Whitney Houston had died in a bathtub. And in 2016, TMZ was first to inform the world about Prince’s death.”When it comes to high-profile people, they have an ‘in’ with the kinds of people who know this information,” Matthew Belloni, the editorial director of The Hollywood Reporter, told CNN in a phone interview on Sunday.Belloni added, “If TMZ reports that a celebrity has died in Los Angeles County, it is almost always correct. For whatever reason, and you can read into this, their accuracy rate in Los Angeles is very, very good.”TMZ has developed a large network of tipsters over the years. According to a 2016 profile in The New Yorker, the network includes entertainment lawyers, court officials, and others.The New Yorker reported in its 2016 story that the website sometimes compensates tipsters, something most newsrooms do not.But Harvey Levin, the founder of TMZ, has downplayed the tactics the website uses to land scoops. During a 2014 interview with Fox News, Levin was asked, “How does TMZ get this stuff?””It’s so funny to me that people ask that question,” Levin responded. “We’re a news operation. I mean, that’s what you’re supposed to do as a news operation is chase down stories. And it always kind of amuses me when people ask that question. Isn’t that what we’re supposed to be doing? I mean, that is the job.”
Despite TMZ’s track record of scoops, news organizations are still wary to cite the outlet until they’ve independently confirmed the news.Belloni told CNN that when he saw TMZ’s story on Bryant’s death, “I thought it was probably right.”That said, Belloni added, “We always verify and don’t take them at face value. But when I saw that it was TMZ reporting a death in Los Angeles County of a very prominent person, I thought it’s probably right.”Sharon Waxman, the founder and CEO of The Wrap, expressed a similar sentiment to The Washington Post for a 2016 article the newspaper published on TMZ’s history.”When they report something, it makes me think they’re probably right, but it might be premature or incomplete,” Waxman said. “Maybe someone had a heart attack, but, no, he didn’t die. That they had much of the story, but not all of the story.”
via: https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/26/media/tmz-death-report-kobe-bryant/index.html
Photo Credit: wgntv.com
Whole Foods looks like a ghost town after supplier shutters
Whole Foods? More like, um, only some of the food. Thank you, thank you, and for the love of God, please keep reading. Shoppers have reported that the Amazon-owned grocery giant has been woefully understocked of late, leaving huge gaps in the inventory at stores in D.C., New York, Richmond, and more. Check out the photos on Business Insider—it’s so out of stock you’d think there’s a pre-hurricane panic.
Business Insider visited a store in Richmond, Virginia and found empty shelves where all kinds of groceries should’ve been: prepared foods, dairy, produce, juices, and soup broths. I had a similar experience in Los Angeles in early January, where my nearby Whole Foods 365 was weirdly understocked; I was frustrated to find totally empty shelves in the coffee aisle. (But since I’m a Midwestern woman I just found some way to blame the inconvenience on myself.) Whole Foods says that its supplier of beans, grains, lentils, and rice has suddenly shuttered, and it might take the store months to find a new supplier. And due to unusual weather, its lettuce supply from California has been temporarily affected, too. But those two explanations don’t account for the many other understocked departments encountered by reporters and social media users alike.
Some Twitter users have pointed out that such shortages were never an issue until Amazon bought Whole Foods, aiming their frustrations at Jeff Bezos. And while I can’t confirm whether that allegation is entirely accurate, I’m very comfortable with blaming multi-bajillionaires whenever there’s a dearth of canned beans.
Article via The Takeout
Why Jodie Turner-Smith & Joshua Jackson Won’t Raise Kids in the U.S.: ‘White Supremacy Is Overt’
“The racial dynamics over here are fraught,” Jodie Turner-Smith says in a new interview
As Jodie Turner-Smith and Joshua Jackson prepare to welcome their first child together, the couple is contemplating putting down roots abroad.
In an interview with the Sunday Times published last weekend, the pregnant Queen & Slim star, 33, opened up about her relationship with the Affair actor and revealed they’re considering raising their baby elsewhere.
“The racial dynamics over here are fraught. White supremacy is overt. It’s the reason I don’t want to raise my kids here,” Turner-Smith told the publication. She added: “I don’t want my kids to grow up doing active shooter drills at school.”
As to where they’ll possibly go?
“England has gone off the rails,” the British actress said, “so I was thinking maybe Canada.” (Jackson, 41, was born in Vancouver, British Columbia.)
Last month, Turner-Smith and Jackson tied the knot after picking up a marriage license in August. Still, she wouldn’t confirm the matrimony to the publication.
“I haven’t said to anybody, ‘Yeah, we got married’, ” she said. “People are assuming whatever they want, but when people tell me ‘Congratulations’, I say ‘Thank you’. ”
The daughter of Jamaican parents, Turner-Smith was raised in Peterborough, England. She recalled being one of the only black children in her village school, aside from her siblings. After her parents divorced, her mother relocated to Gaithersburg, Maryland, with her, her brother and half-sister.
“So I was really excited when I came to America about meeting black people. But it was a huge culture shock, because I was rejected by the black community. They were like, ‘You talk like a white girl.’ People would call me an Oreo. All I wanted was acceptance,” she said.
When she moved to the U.S., Turner-Smith said she “would practice in the mirror, talking in a way that I thought was like black American: cutting you down with my words in five seconds if you came for me.”
Turner-Smith said she still experiences prejudice because of her skin color.
“There was this wave of people who were upset that I was possibly married to a white man,” she said. “In America interracial dating or marriage is not something that is as accepted. Certain people feel strongly against it, in both communities. I felt it from the black community. It is so complicated. I don’t want to give it too much energy. The horrific things that people were saying, it makes you. … I’m learning there are certain things I have to really keep for myself.”
Any criticism doesn’t impact the love she and Jackson share.
“We are obsessed with each other,” said Turner-Smith, who admitted she “went back and rewatched a lot of [Joshua’s] movies. I do it whenever we’re apart because I miss him so much. He loves that I am obsessed with him.”
Referencing her pregnancy, she added, “Joshua tells me every day, ‘The way you’re handling this is incredible.’ He’s more tired than I am.”
Earlier this month, the actors made their first major appearance as a married couple when they attended W Magazine‘s Best Performances pre-Golden Globes party at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
“Jackson was extra attentive to his wife Turner-Smith as he escorted her around the party,” a source later told PEOPLE.
Article via People