Mom drowned baby in tub because she ‘did not want to hear her son cry
PHOENIX – Police have released new disturbing details in the death of a four-week-old Arizona baby after his 19-year-old mother was charged with first-degree murder.
According to the police report obtained by KPHO, while investigators were interviewing the mother, Jenna Folwell, her cell phone was searched with a warrant.
Detectives found searches for “ways to die instantly”, “missing babies cases”, “how long it takes babies to drown” and “reasons parents kill their babies” in her cellphone’s search history.
Chandler police say there were over 100 different searches on these types of topics.
Folwell had called police Wednesday afternoon while at Brooks Crossing Park near Alma School and Warner roads claiming that her baby had been kidnapped.
While police talked to Folwell, a search was conducted at her house where she lives with her father. Police said they found a black duffel bag with the dead baby inside.
Police asked Folwell about the searches found on her phone and she admitted to getting into the bathtub with her baby and then letting go of him. She said she chose this way because she “did not want to hear her son cry.”
Folwell told police her son was in the tub for about a minute, then she regretted her decision and got him out of the bathtub and attempted CPR. She said she then put her son in the duffel bag and drove to the park to report the kidnapping.
Police say the baby was found still wet inside the duffel bag between two blankets.
Folwell is being charged with first-degree murder.
The father of the baby, whose name has not been released, spoke out at Folwell’s initial court appearance.
“Rainer was a perfect baby and had such a happy and peaceful demeanor,” he said. “I will never get to have any firsts with my son. … She took away my life with Rainer the moment she took his life.”
The dad also said Folwell could have reached out to him and his family.
“We would have taken sole custody,” he said.
He also asked that she be held without bail.
“I want her to have a life without parole,” he said. “She can live every day knowing what she did to the poor innocent child.”
The judge set a $1 million cash-only bond for Folwell.
Texas man arrested for plan to murder, rape, and eat girl
According to a probable cause affidavit, Alexander Nathan Barter, 21, was arrested after allegedly communicating with an undercover officer, KTRE reported.
The affidavit revealed that Barter posted on the dark web asking for anyone interesting in allowing him to commit necrophilia and cannibalism to contact him.
An undercover special agent with the Texas Department of Public Safety spotted the post and responded. KTRE said the agent offered up his “young daughter.”
According to the affidavit, Barter replied, “Nice! I’m in East Texas. How old is your daughter? Can we kill her?”
Several more emails were exchanged in which Barter allegedly created a plan to meet up with the “father and daughter.” According to the agent, Barter said he would take the girl to a hotel to kill, assault, and eat her.
“I’m not going to change my mind about this,” Barter wrote, according to the affidavit. “I really want to do this.”
KTRE reported that Barter was arrested outside his residence when he went to meet the undercover agent and his “daughter.” He had a plastic trash bag and knife with him, the affidavit said. He also admitted to being in contact with the undercover agent and making the statements attributed to him in the affidavit.
Barter was charged with criminal solicitation, criminal attempt capital murder, conspiracy to commit capital murder, and criminal attempt sexual performance of a child.
ShelbyCountyToday.com posted a statement from district attorney Stephen Shires:
“The dark web, and the individuals that operate there, pose an increasing threat to the safety of our children. Technology has eliminated the barrier of distance for these sorta of activities.”
“Hopefully, this will serve as a continued reminder that parents should always be vigilant and aware of what their children are doing on the internet. I hope it also gives folks some comfort to know that there are also good guys at work-highly trained, highly capable individuals protecting us.”
via: https://pix11.com/2018/10/26/texas-man-arrested-for-plan-to-murder-rape-and-eat-girl/
Casey Anthony Is Dating a Man 7 Years After Murder Acquittal ‘Who Can Overlook Her Past’
Casey Anthony is dating someone new, a source close to her tells PEOPLE.
The Florida woman, who was famously acquitted of murder in 2011 in the death of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, mostly lives a low-key, uneventful life in the South Florida home of one of the private investigators who worked on her case. She had previously gone on a “a handful of dates” with different guys, according to the source.
But one particular guy has caught her attention, the source says: a man in his early 30s who works a professional job. They have been seeing each other for about three months. “She’s had trouble finding guys who are interested in her,” the insider says. “But he’s a really special guy who can overlook her past.”
Anthony’s controversial past includes the 2008 disappearance of Caylee, who was missing for 31 days before Anthony reported her missing at the insistence of her mother. After a worldwide search for the missing toddler, the girl’s remains were found in a wooded lot less than one-third of a mile from the Anthony family home.
Anthony’s 2011 trial was a media circus, with at least 40 million people watching at least some of the testimony, according to Nielsen Research. She was acquitted of murder and manslaughter charges on July 5, 2011 — but convicted of four counts of lying to police.
After her controversial acquittal, she was described by a Florida Department of Corrections spokeswoman as “one of the most hated women in America” — a moniker that stuck.
The source tells PEOPLE that Anthony’s new boyfriend is aware of her past, but is still interested in her. “He is giving her a clean slate,” says the source. “She’s now in her 30s. She’s a different person than she was when she was an emotionally-stunted 21-year-old. He sees what she could be.”
This boyfriend seems to be another step in Anthony’s quest to move on. In a 2017 interview with the Associated Press, she said she was unlikely to have more children. “If I am blessed enough to have another child — if I’d be dumb enough to bring another kid into this world knowing that there’d be a potential that some little snot-nosed kid would then say something mean to my kid — I don’t think I could live with that,” she said.
But 18 months later, Anthony has softened her stance.
“For a long time she was like ‘no way,’” the source told PEOPLE last month. “But time has changed that and she’s now open to it in a way she hasn’t been before.”
Anthony works as a researcher for her private investigator. She keeps a small circle of friends, and is occasionally spotted at restaurants or clubs in Palm Beach County, Florida. She is not in contact with her family.
She continues to distance herself from her infamous past. In 2012, Anthony and her mother, Cindy, began wearing matching necklaces that contained Caylee’s ashes in small vials. PEOPLE confirmed earlier this year that Anthony no longer wears hers.
The source declined to identify Anthony’s boyfriend, but PEOPLE has viewed photographs of Anthony with him. The couple goes to movies and restaurants, keeping a low profile. “He doesn’t want to live a public life,” says the source. “For now, he’s happy being anonymous.”
2 middle school girls planned to kill classmates and drink their blood
BARTOW, Fla. — Authorities in central Florida say two middle school girls brought knives to school in a foiled plot to kill classmates, cut them up and drink their blood.
Arrest affidavits released Wednesday by the Bartow Police Department say the two girls, ages 11 and 12, were armed with knives Tuesday at Bartow Middle School before they were caught. No one was hurt.
Investigators say the girls planned to stake out a bathroom and wait for smaller students to enter.
The affidavit says the students planned to cut their victims’ throats, cut up their bodies, eat the flesh and drink their victims’ blood.
Authorities say the students then planned to kill themselves.
Police say the plot was foiled when administrators searched for them after they didn’t show up for class.
Freshman dies after ‘initiation’ party where students bobbed for apples in urine
Students bobbed for apples in a mixture of booze and urine as part of a drink-fuelled initiation ceremony where a British student died, an inquest heard.
First-year economics student Ed Farmer, 20, died after being found slumped in a corridor not breathing at the end of a student society’s night out in Newcastle in 2016.
Although he was rushed to the hospital, he died the next day with his parents at his bedside.
During the initiation, freshmen had their heads shaved by older students and drank vodka from a pig’s head after visiting bars in the city center.
The inquest previously heard that 100 treble vodkas were consumed by the 40-strong group in just seven minutes at one of the stops on the undergraduate bar crawl.
CCTV footage shown to the inquest showed Ed being carried by two friends in a Metro station at one point in the evening because he was too drunk to walk.
He was later discovered not breathing at around 4 a.m. by the chairman of the Agricultural Society, James Carr, and driven to the hospital.
The court was told that if Ed had been taken to hospital sooner, he may have been saved.
Newcastle University had banned boozy initiations, leading to one student suggesting that others should deny knowledge of the ceremony in which Ed died.
Jonathan Hedley told the inquest he sent a WhatsApp message to other students as a “joke” telling them to pretend to not know anything about the event.
He said the message – which was sent before he realized how serious the situation was – read: “The three D’s boys, deny, deny, deny”.
The secret ceremony began with an invitation being sent to first-years for the bar crawl telling them to bring $39, lubrication, swimming goggles, a Kinder egg candy and a train ticket.
Society chairman James Carr admitted that the first-years drank more on the night with the second- and third-years “egging them on.”
Man points gun at girlfriend’s face when baby shower runs late
HARKER HEIGHTS, Texas — A Central Texas man has been arrested after police say he pointed a loaded gun at his pregnant girlfriend when her baby shower at their home went longer than planned.
Bell County Jail records show 42-year-old Raymond Allen Strange of Harker Heights was jailed Tuesday on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Online records listed no attorney for Strange, whose bond was $100,000.
Police in Harker Heights, 60 miles (97 kilometers) north of Austin, responded to a report of a man with a gun threatening a woman.
Police say Strange was upset that the shower was supposed to end at 7 p.m. Sunday but was still going on when he arrived at 7:30 p.m.
Police say the girlfriend apologized to Strange before he told everyone to leave and pointed a gun at her face.
via: https://pix11.com/2018/10/23/man-points-gun-at-girlfriends-face-when-baby-shower-runs-late-police/
Parents upset after drag queen speaks to students on career day
THORNTON, Colo. – The principal of a Colorado middle school is apologizing for not warning parents before a drag queen spoke to their children during career day Friday.
Some Rocky Top Middle School parents told KDVR they are furious that she was invited to speak, alongside a police officer and an architect.
“I was pretty appalled. I was pretty surprised. It was a shock because no one was notified,” parent Jen Payer said.
Ms. Jessica is a gay man, who was invited by one of her fans, a Rocky Top student, to come to career day. All of the guests talked about their jobs and their connection to literacy.
“This person is an adult entertainer and is talking to 12-year-old students about something that’s adult [in] nature,” parent Heather Rogers said.
KDVR reached out to the Rocky Top principal, Chelsea Behanna, who said this event reflected the diversity of the community.
In a letter send home to parents on Monday, she wrote, “Jessica read a chapter from Horrible Harry and she used the text to illustrate the damage bullies can do, the need to always put kindness and acceptance at the forefront, and the shortsightedness of judging a book by its cover.”
Ms. Jessica told KDVR she used career day to show kids it’s okay to be different.
“I had a couple kids that were like, ‘I’m gay in school and I get bullied every week and I don’t know what to do and just talking to you helped me realize that I can still be me and still be happy,’” Jessica said. “I got messages being like, ‘thank you so much for coming to my class. I was having a really horrible week and you made my day.’”
But some parents said they should have been notified so they could make the decision to have their child attend the career day or not.
When asked if she would allow her daughter to attend, Payer said, “No. Not for that day.”
Principal Behanna said in a letter to parents:
“I take responsibility for not notifying families ahead of time and apologize for any stress this has caused you and your child. Moving forward, a prominent step in planning for next year will be to share the guest list for all families prior to the event. Should you feel like any of the sessions are not appropriate for your child, you’ll be welcome to notify us and we’ll make alternate arrangements for your child during that time.”
Meanwhile Jessica says the negative feedback from some parents won’t stop her from speaking to kids, no matter the age.
“I want to go to more elementary schools, because of this experience at Rocky Top, I’ve already reached out to a couple people about how to develop a Ted Talk,” Jessica said.
Jessica uses the stage name “Jessica L’Whor.” She told KDVR she introduced herself as Ms. Jessica during career day because she did not think her last name was appropriate for a school setting.
This is the letter that Principal Behanna sent out to parents:
October 22nd, 2018
Good Afternoon Grizzly Families,
Last Friday, Rocky Top hosted our 2nd Annual Rocky Top READS! event, and it was a great success because of so many people! We put out a call to our families and community members and received an overwhelming response. As a result, we welcomed more than 100 guest readers throughout the day on Friday!
Our volunteer guest readers spent 20 minutes in different classrooms talking about their career and its connection to literacy, reading to the students and then answering questions. In addition to highlighting the connection between literacy and a successful career, this event reflected the diversity of our community. We had a broad range of careers represented— emergency responders, elected officials, clergy, research assistants, tradespeople, journalists, professional athletes and even a drag queen!
All families in our Grizzly community are receiving this letter because a handful of people have expressed concern over the presence of a drag queen in our middle school. Jessica, the drag queen, began her guest session with an explanation of her career–as did all other guests. She explained that she is a performer who, though a man, portrays a woman for her performances. She detailed her background in the performing arts throughout middle and high school, talked about her dream of being a teacher, then explained how she earned a business degree from Colorado State University. Jessica then read a great chapter from Horrible Harry in Room 2B by Suzy Kline. She used the text to illustrate the damage bullies can do, the need to always put kindness and acceptance at the forefront, and the shortsightedness of judging a book by its cover. Students were completely engaged and asked lots of great questions.
I take responsibility for not notifying families ahead of time and apologize for any stress this has caused you and your child. This year we used the same process as last year, sharing the schedule of speakers with staff so they could prepare students and plan for questions, but realize we cannot make it the students’ responsibility to share that information at home. Moving forward, a prominent step in planning for next year will be to share the guest list for all families prior to the event. Should you feel like any of the sessions are not appropriate for your child, you’ll be welcome to notify us and we’ll make alternate arrangements for your child during that time.
We’re thankful for the many volunteers who made this year’s Rocky Top READS! event a success. The focus of the event was a celebration of literacy and was reflected in the incredibly positive experiences of staff, students and guests throughout the day.
Thank you for your continued support of Rocky Top,
Chelsea
Chelsea Behanna
Principal
via: https://pix11.com/2018/10/22/parents-upset-after-drag-queen-speaks-to-students-on-career-day/
Colorado mom warns of ‘choking game’ after losing 11-year-old son
ELIZABETH, Colo. – A Colorado mother who lost her son is warning other parents about the so-called “choking game.”
Tia Bodkins said the last thing she said to her 11-year-old son Carson was, “I love you very much I’m very proud of you,” before he went upstairs to pack for a family trip. Ten minutes later, he was not breathing. Bodkins said she performed CPR, paramedics administered treatment and the team at Children’s Hospital worked tirelessly to revive Carson, but his brain had gone without oxygen for too long.
Bodkins said her son had been playing ‘the choking game,’ which involves cutting off oxygen to the brain to achieve a feeling of being high. Those who play the game may have frequent headaches and bloodshot eyes, according to KDVR.
Bodkins told KDVR she wanted to come forward to warn parents about the importance of monitoring their child’s online activity – she thinks Carson may have found out about the “game” on the internet. She emphasizes that properly doing so means doing more than just activating safety settings.
“We have internet blocks, internet protections for all of the boys. But I had let him look at YouTube so he could learn skateboarding tricks, I assumed that’s what he was looking at,” Bodkins said.
She added that parents must check the online history as well. Stepfather Jason Davis said it’s vital to do what it takes to protect children, even if they don’t understand and it makes them feel resentful.
“As parents, the responsibility lies on us to go in and make sure [kids] are protected, and sometimes that might be an invasion of their privacy,” he said.
Carson was a very popular student who excelled at Legacy Academy in Elizabeth. His desk is marked with loving notes and a flower from grieving students. His locker adorned with final farewell messages.
Principal Kurt Naber told KDVR the school is providing counseling and support for students and teachers.
“It is heartbreaking to lose a student so young and it really hits home as the parent of a fifth-grader myself,” Naber said.
Naber added that information is key when it comes to arming parents against online dangers.
“This is probably more widespread than most parents and most schools would assume,” he said.
Carson loved sports and skateboarding, and those who knew him described him as a boy who made everyone laugh and smile. Bodkins said the entire family is trying to stay strong as they cope with the immeasurable pain of their loss.
“We’re living minute-by-minute. We’re all very sad. We miss him very much,” she said.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for a skatepark or playground donation in Carson’s name.
For more information about the signs of The Choking Game and ways to keep your child safe visit the following websites:
G.A.S.P Games Adolescents Shouldn’t Play
Child Mind Institute
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network
Culture of Safety
via: https://pix11.com/2018/10/22/colorado-mom-warns-of-choking-game-after-losing-11-year-old-son/
Viral Video Shows Police Officer Hitting 14-Year-Old Girl Being Arrested in Florida
A viral video of a police officer hitting a 14-year-old girl during an arrest has caused outrage in a Florida community.
The video — posted to Instagram on Friday — shows a girl being held down by two officers, one man and one woman. The male officer hits the girl in the side twice as he holds her shorts.
“Why you hitting her?” someone in the video yells. “She can’t do that, her hands underneath her, the f*** you hitting her for?”
The police department in Coral Springs, about 30 miles northwest of Fort Lauderdale, said in a statement on Facebook on Friday that the video does not show the entire incident that led to the arrest.
Police said the incident took place Thursday when officers were called to Coral Square Mall about unruly teens who had been harassing people and causing a disturbance. When officers met with mall security, a mother told officers one of the teens shoved her 5-year-old child to the ground. Mall security also told officers one of the teens hit another teen. Officers issued a trespassing warning to the unruly teens and barred them from the mall.
The teens then returned to the mall, police said, where a boy was taken into custody without incident, but the girl in the video began cursing and attempted to rile up the other teens. Officers tried to take the girl into custody, but police said she began to fight and resist arrest. It was at this time, police said, that they took the girl to the ground because of “her stature and aggressive behavior” and tried to get her to release her fists.
“As seen in the video she resisted arrest, and in order to have her to comply she was struck in the side to release her clenched fists – she was then handcuffed,” the Coral Springs Police Department said in its Facebook statement.
As officers were trying to put her in the patrol car, police said she “violently kicked” one of the officers.
“The Coral Springs Police Department believes in transparency,” the department’s statement read. “It is important for people to have all of the facts before rushing to judgment of an officer’s actions when faced with calls for service involving violent suspects — regardless of their age or gender.”
The girl’s mother, Jessica Dennis, told CNN affiliate WSVN-TV it was difficult for her to watch the video.
“She clearly wasn’t aggressive. Everyone could see she was laying there,” Dennis said. “So I just want justice to be served.”
Dennis told WSVN she hired attorney Meeghan Moldof, who said the officer used excessive force.
“It’s clear from the video that my client was on the ground,” Moldof told WSVN. “Her hands are under her belly, the officer’s knees are on her back, and he’s just gut-shotting her, like one after another.”
Middle-aged teacher called 11-year-old student her ‘boyfriend’: records
In a shocking case of twisted misconduct, a 41-year-old Bronx public-school teacher doted romantically on a fifth-grader — calling the 11-year-old her “boyfriend,” records show.
“As long as without sex, I think its(sic) legal,” teacher Yi Chen Cheng told a friend on Facebook, investigators found.
A Department of Education teacher for 16 years, Cheng taught music at PS 1 Courtlandt, a pre-K to 5th grade school in Mott Haven.
According to investigative reports and disciplinary records, Cheng sent the fifth-grader messages adorned with heart emojis, told him often, “I love you,” and expressed jealousy of his girlfriends.
With a phone she bought for him, they exchanged 563 texts and engaged in video chats at odd hours, chatting about kid stuff like basketball, going to the mall, and dating.
Cheng is one of two teachers recently fired after disturbing Facebook messages and texts came to light, reports by the city’s Special Commissioner of Investigation reveal.
In the other case, Dennis Colon, 46, a teacher at Mott Haven Village Preparatory HS in the Bronx, texted a student while driving in June 2017: “I f–king WISH you were my girlllllllllll,” the SCI reports.
Colon quickly texted other sheepish remarks, including, “Ugh should I have shut the f- -k up???” Moments later he texted: “Just got into an accident,” and sent a photo of his wrecked mini-van. “Waiting for a f–king Uber right now.”
The girl turned in screenshots. Records over three months showed 680 texts from Colon to her phone, and 350 from her to him. Confronted with his vulgar words, Colon claimed he was “drunk” at the time, quickly realized “it was a mistake,” and apologized. The DOE fired him.
In Cheng’s case, the boy told probers that his teacher never engaged in sexual behavior with him. The NYPD and Bronx District Attorney’s Office did not file criminal charges.
But a disciplinary hearing officer, Timothy Taylor, terminated Cheng, calling her conduct “particularly shocking.”
Records show her estranged husband, who shared a Facebook password, was stunned to discover a trove of notes between Cheng and the pre-teen boy.
“Don’t use me as a bargaining chip for your gf [girlfriend],” Cheng allegedly wrote in June 2017. “This is the second time that you are telling everyone what I told you. Do you think it’s a joke. Or you think I am a joke? You hurt me again. And this is what you should tell everyone from now, including your gf: I don’t love you, I don’t. Goodnight.”
The student replied, “Woow first I ain’t tell anybody about u. …”
Cheng then added, “I feel you are using me to get her jealous. And that hurts because you care about her feelings more than my feeling. And don’t you know how much I love you through everything?”
Cheng, who has a 5-year-old son, sent a photo of the student to a Facebook friend, calling him her “boyfriend,” reports state.
She confided she “fell for someone that [she] shouldn’t fall for. [M]aybe because we are meant to be … we know what each other wants without even saying a word … we don’t even fight. … I feel connected to him.”
Cheng, who did not testify or return a message from The Post, now works for the Piano School of NYC in Manhattan. She gives piano lessons in the homes of students under age 10 with a parent present, a spokeswoman said.
via: https://nypost.com/2018/10/20/middle-aged-teacher-called-11-year-old-student-her-boyfriend-records/