Former doctor guilty of raping heavily sedated patient will serve no prison time
HOUSTON — A former doctor found guilty of raping a heavily sedated patient will not serve prison time, according to the Houston Chronicle.
On Friday, Shafeeq Sheikh was sentenced to 10 months of probation and must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
The judge, Senior District Judge Terry L. Flenniken, was required by law to follow the sentencing recommended by jurors, according to the paper.
In 2013, a woman checked into Ben Taub Hospital after complaining of wheezing and shortness of breath. The woman, who was not one of Sheikh’s patients, was sedated and kept overnight at the hospital.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Sheikh initially entered the woman’s room “after he noticed her breast implants.”
Police said Sheikh entered the victim’s room several times and sexually assaulted her. In court, Sheikh admitted to sexual contact but claimed it was consensual.
The victim reportedly tried to press a nurse’s button to get help but it was unplugged.
Sheikh’s medical license was revoked in 2015, according to KIAH. A rape kit and hospital security cameras led to his arrest and conviction.
Georgia Police Use Taser on 87-Year-Old Woman Using Knife to Cut Dandelions
An 87-year-old grandmother using a knife to cut dandelions in the woods near her rural Georgia home last week was taken down by a police Taser and arrested, according a police report.
Martha Al-Bishara was arrested for criminal trespass and obstruction of a police officer, according to the report. Chatsworth Police said Al-Bishara did not drop a steak knife despite several commands and a demonstration by officers. At one point, she walked toward officers with the knife, police said.
Police had gone to a wooded area near a Boys and Girls Club last Friday after an employee called 911 to report that an elderly woman was walking around with a knife in the community, around 80 miles north of Atlanta.
“There’s a lady walking on the bike trails, she has a knife and she won’t leave,” the caller told a dispatcher. “She told me she doesn’t speak English, and she’s walking up the trail with a knife towards me.”
“It looks like she’s walking around looking for something, vegetation to cut down or something. She has a bag too,” the caller said.
The Boys and Girls Club employee told the dispatcher that the woman did not seem to be a threat. “But she came at you with a knife, though, right?” the dispatcher asked. “No, she just brought the knife onto the property in her hand, she didn’t try and attack anybody or anything,” the caller said.
Police arrive, order woman to drop knife
Two Chatsworth officers along with Police Chief Josh Etheridge arrived at the scene, and repeatedly asked Al-Bishara, to drop the knife, according to the police report. “Her demeanor was calm, even when we had our guns out,” an officer noted in the police report.
Officers began making hand gestures to indicate dropping a knife, but the woman still did not comply, the report states.
Etheridge told CNN affiliate WTVC that he took a knife from his pocket, showed it to Al-Bishara, and “threw my knife down on the ground, trying to make her understand what we wanted her to do.”
At that point, Al-Bishara began to walk toward the group and did not react when one of the officers turned on his Taser, according to the police report.
“The female did not react to the Taser being on, or the white light coming from the end of the Taser,” the reporting officer noted.
When Al-Bishara was approximately five yards away, still holding the knife in her hand, the officer fired his Taser and struck her in the chest, according to police. Officers then helped her to her feet, and placed her in handcuffs.
Officers tased Al-Bishara just across the street from her house while she was on property belonging to the Boys and Girls Club, according to WTVC.
Another woman who then arrived on the scene identified herself as Al-Bishara’s daughter-in-law. She said that the older woman typically wanders into the woods looking for dandelions and collects them using a knife, according to the police report.
The daughter-in-law also said Al-Bishara has dementia and speaks Arabic.
Etheridge told WTVC police used the least possible force, and he believes his officers’ actions were justified.
The Taser pointed at Etheridge and unholstered firearm should have been indication of what wanted Al-Bishara to do, according to the police chief.
“Most people, that’s kind of the universal command for ‘stop,’ ” Etheridge said.
‘My grandma did not look violent’
Al-Bishara, a Syrian native, usually puts the dandelions in a salad she often makes for her husband, according to WTVC. Family members said the recipe is common in her culture, the station reported.
But the dandelions were not blooming in her yard and they couldn’t find any in the store, her granddaugther, Martha Douhne, told the station.
So, Al-Bishara crossed the street, headed for the vacant lot, where she had picked dandelions before, according to WTVC.
Douhne said her grandmother didn’t understand what police wanted her to do, and police shouldn’t have used a Taser on her.
“Obviously, my grandma did not look violent,” Douhne told WTVC. “With the three, four officers that were here, I think they could have controlled her in other ways.”
Al-Bishara’s court appearance is scheduled for September 19.
via: https://ktla.com/2018/08/17/georgia-police-use-taser-on-87-year-old-woman-cutting-dandelions/
Teen suffocated nephew after he asked to play video games
A Colorado teen girl faces murder charges after she allegedly suffocated her nephew then hid his body inside a closet, according to authorities.
Jennie Bunsom, 16, was identified as the suspect in the death of 7-year-old Jordan Vong, who was reported missing Aug. 6 before his body was found at his Denver home, according to the Denver Post.
Bunsom allegedly killed the boy, who asked her to play video games with him, wrapped his body in a blanket and stuffed it in her bedroom closet.
Police obtained a warrant the next day to enter the family’s home and discovered the boy’s body hidden, according to officials.
“[Bunsom] didn’t tell any of her family what she had done to Jordan because she was afraid,” a probable cause statement obtained by the Denver Post said. “Nor did she tell any of her family where she had hid Jordan.”
The teen girl appeared in court Tuesday morning where it was ruled that she will face first-degree murder charges as an adult.
via: https://nypost.com/2018/08/14/teen-suffocated-nephew-after-he-asked-to-play-video-games-da/
Woman denied job for ‘ghetto’ name, but company blames hacker
A Missouri woman said she’s hurt and distraught after being denied a job because her name was considered too “ghetto” — but company officials insist a hacker sent the racist message.
Hermeisha Robinson, of Bellefontaine Neighbors, shared her experience with Mantality Health in Chesterfield in a Facebook post on Monday, saying she was discriminated against due to her name — even though she had what it takes to fill the job post.
“I have a public service announcement,” Robinson wrote in an all-caps post. “I am very upset because today I received an email about this job that I applied for as a customer service representative at Mantality Health … I know I’m well qualified for the position as they seen on my resume!”
Robinson’s post continued: “They discriminated against me because of my name which they considered it to be ‘ghetto’ for their company! My feelings are very hurt and they even got me second guessing my name trying to figure out if my name is really that ‘ghetto.’”
Robinson asked friends to share her post, saying the “discrimination has to stop,” but company officials contend the message isn’t authentic, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Kevin Meuret, the CEO of the clinic that treats men with low testosterone, told the newspaper on Tuesday that someone from outside Missouri hacked into its email system, most likely a disgruntled former employee.
“Thank you for your interest in careers at Mantality Health,” read the response to Robinson. “Unfortunately we do not consider candidates that have suggestive ‘ghetto’ names. We wish you the best in your career search.”
Meuret said about 20 potential employees got emails from the hacker. Reports have since been filed with police in both Chesterfield and St. Louis County, he said.
“I’m a father of three daughters, and that young lady getting that [response] is horrible,” Meuret told the newspaper. “That young lady opened something that must have felt like a freight train, and that’s unacceptable.”
Meuret promised to “pursue this even if it becomes a federal matter,” he told the Post-Dispatch.
In a statement to The Post, Meuret said the password for an independent job board site used by the company was compromised Monday.
“We are currently working with law enforcement to identify the perpetrator and consider appropriate legal action,” the statement read. “We share the anger and frustration of those who received these bogus emails.”
Robinson, meanwhile, told The Post Wednesday that she’s still reeling from the pure hatred exposed in the hacked message.
“The first thing that went through my mind is how could someone just outright say something so mean like that,” Robinson said. “I wasn’t expecting that from a job. I didn’t name myself, I didn’t give myself this name. How can people be so mean, and so horrible?”
It was the first time Robinson applied to the company and she had not been contacted by anyone investigating the matter as of Wednesday, she said.
“It just makes me not want to do anything,” she said of the entire ordeal. “I don’t want to do anything anymore: go outside, say my name to people, anything.”
Robinson’s job hunt is still ongoing. She wouldn’t accept a job at the testosterone clinic even if one were offered to her at this point, she said.
“I wouldn’t feel safe,” she told The Post. “If some hacker got my email to reach me, they have my Social Security number, my birthday, they have everything. It just wouldn’t be a good working environment.”
Robinson’s cousin, Miltina Burnett, posted a screenshot of a message she received Monday from company officials indicating that a former employee hacked into the company’s system.
But regardless of the authenticity of the messages, the damage for Robinson has been very real, she said.
Hospital employee fired for calling doughnut shop worker the N-word in video
A Mississippi Baptist Medical Center employee has been fired after video of him calling a doughnut shop worker a racial slur multiple times went viral.
Kyle Thomas worked in the radiology department at the medical center in Flowood, Miss.
On Saturday, he visited the local Donut Palace in his full scrubs and he got into an altercation with shop employee Keaundrea Wardlaw.
According to Wardlaw, Thomas was upset about the service and the two began to argue.
In the video Wardlaw recorded, Thomas is heard telling Wardlaw, a black woman, to “shut her f–king mouth,” and then proceeds to call her the N-word multiple times.
Wardlaw responds by calling Thomas a “b—h“ and later follows Thomas out to his car, where she records his license plate number.
The video has since gone viral, pulling in thousands of negative reactions demanding Thomas be let go from his job.
In a now-deleted Facebook post, Thomas tried to defend his actions, writing, “I am so sorry, there is nothing I can say that will change what I said. I drove back up there and tried to apologize and she had gone. I regret every word that I said there is no excuse to ever say these horrible things. I only hope that by me sharing a public apology in this incident you could show me some grace. I was upset about another issue and it spilled over into this and I can’t apologize enough,” Yahoo Lifestyle reported.
Wardlaw confirmed to WJTV that Thomas came back to apologize to her boss for causing a scene, but did not apologize to her. According to WJTV, Wardlaw said she would have accepted an apology from Thomas.
However, Twitter users did not believe the apology.
Ayoka Pond, a spokesperson for the hospital, said in a statement to Fox News that Thomas’ actions do not represent the hospital and confirmed that he had been fired.
“We are aware of the confrontation captured on video involving one of our off-duty employees at a local donut shop. We take this situation very seriously. This employee’s language and behavior does not represent our organization’s values and his employment has been terminated.
“We want our patients, employees, physicians and our community to know that we find the language used in the video to be completely unacceptable and inconsistent with what we expect from employees or anyone associated with our organization. We are committed to a work environment that is inclusive and where everyone is respected and valued.”
The Donut Shop also released a statement announcing its zero-tolerance policy for racist behavior.
“I am extremely disappointed and disgusted at what took place this past Saturday. It was shocking and painful to watch this footage and imagine what Ms. Wardlaw must have felt at the time. Regardless of the grievances people have or anything that may have happened prior to this incident, no one deserves to be treated this way. We have zero tolerance for this type of behavior, and we will support Ms. Wardlaw in whatever action she chooses to take as a result,” the Donut Shop wrote on Facebook.
Wardlaw claims she did not want the man to be fired but felt Thomas should be held accountable for using the N-word, she told WJTV.
Cop fired for allegedly filming office sex with police body camera
A former Arizona cop was fired earlier this year for allegedly using a department body camera to film himself having sex and storing pornography on an office computer, the Arizona Republic reported, citing court records.
Officer Anthony Doran became the subject of an administrative probe by the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office in March, the report said. The contents of that investigation became public this month after a Superior, Arizona, resident filed a civil complaint alleging that Doran had been among several officers who beat and falsely arrested him during a 2016 search of his home.
According to the report, Doran had stored a video on a flash drive of him having sex with a woman in his office. The report said the woman was not a police employee.
The flash drive was discovered by an office secretary connected to Doran’s computer, which allegedly contained a folder titled “fun times.” A deputy subsequently discovered 36 gigabytes worth of photos on the folder, including pornography and a naked girl around the age of 5, the report said.
Doran told the Republic that he had stored both the video and the pornography on a flash drive that “had nothing to do with work,” and denied being on duty when he filmed himself. Doran said the naked girl was his daughter and was not photographed in a sexual manner, the paper said. Superior’s town manager fired Doran following the investigation.
Superior is a small mining town, with a population of about 3,000, located about 65 miles east of Phoenix. The civil complaint that was filed this month accused Superior of hiring officers with checkered histories in order to cut costs, naming Doran among several officers who allegedly beat and falsely arrested a resident on trumped-up charges.
“The town hires substandard officers with extensive misconduct records to save money,” the complaint alleged. “Once the town hires these substandard, ‘second-chance’ officers, it fails to appropriately train/retrain them.”
According to the Arizona Republic, most of Superior’s nine police officers were at one point fired or disciplined by other police departments. Doran was previously terminated in 2013 from the Pima County Sheriff’s Office for sexual misconduct, records showed.
Superior Mayor Mila Besich-Lira said the town is pursuing reforms “so we don’t continue this poor behavior.”
via: https://nypost.com/2018/08/15/cop-fired-for-allegedly-filming-office-sex-with-police-body-camera/
Photo Credit: Pinal County Sheriff’s Office
Trailer Filled With Nearly $100,000 Worth of Ramen Noodles Stolen From Georgia Gas Station
A trailer filled with nearly $100,000 worth of ramen noodles was recently stolen from a gas station 30 miles south of Atlanta, authorities said.
The 53-foot trailer was parked at a Chevron in Fayetteville, Georgia, when someone hauled it away, including a load of $98,000 worth of noodles, according to Atlanta television station WAGA.
Officials believe someone stole the trailer between July 25 and Aug. 1.
Deputies with the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office are looking for the culprit in five car break-ins, a stolen motorcycle, and the nabbed noodle trailer.
Sheriff Barry Babb said the owner of the trailer had permission to park the noodle trailer at the gas station and it was “secured” when it was stolen.
No other information was provided.
via: https://ktla.com/2018/08/15/trailer-filled-with-98000-worth-of-ramen-noodles-stolen-in-georgia/
Mother explains how she forgot infant son in hot car, leading to his death
EMPORIA, Va. — The mother of a 6-month-old boy who died after he was left in a hot car for hours said she forgot her baby was in the car while she was at work, according to WTVR.
Blondia Curry, 30, said she was taking her children to stay with various family members on Aug. 10 before work when she got a call.
“My youngest daughter’s father calls and he said his mother wasn’t going to be able to watch [one of her daughters]. That’s what I believe threw me off,” the mother of four said.
Curry said she arranged for one relative to watch her three oldest children.
After she dropped them off, she said, she drove to her job at Domino’s on Market Drive in Emporia, forgetting to drop off her baby at another relative’s home.
“My friend called me on the way to work and asked me about my oldest daughter, checking on her, and I just forgot all about dropping the baby off,” Curry said.
Police believe the baby — identified as Dameer — was left in his mother’s car from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., five hours in all.
Curry discovered the child in distress when she went outside during a work break.
Witnesses then police and EMS attempted to revive the child, but it was too late.
Dameer was pronounced dead at the hospital.
“I’ve been stressed out with my 10-year-old daughter [who was recently diagnosed with diabetes]. I could have lost her. Just been a lot on me,” Curry said.
Police said Curry was cooperating with their investigation and they are awaiting autopsy results from the medical examiner’s office.
“I do everything for my kids. I work hard for them,” said Curry, who worked this summer at Domino’s and Greensville High School. “That’s how much I love my kids. They didn’t ask to be here, you know? I did anything I could for my kid.”
Man who followed teen into Phoenix restroom is beaten to death by girl’s father
Phoenix, AZ (KNXV) — A man who tried to enter a teenage girl’s bathroom stall was confronted and killed by the girl’s father, officials say.
According to Phoenix police, around 11:30 p.m. on August 2, 40-year-old Melvin Harris went to the QuikTrip near Dunlap and 19th avenues to pick up his teenage daughter and her friends.
A man, who would later become the victim, approached Harris’ car in the parking lot and asked for money. Harris gave him some money, and the man went into the QuikTrip.
Harris was later informed that a man tried to enter the bathroom stall his daughter was using. The teen told an employee, who in turn alerted an on-duty security guard.
The man exited the store and was pointed out to Harris, who realized it was the same man he had given money to earlier. Harris went into the store and told the security guard that, “he needed to take care of the situation, or [Harris] would do it himself.” The guard reportedly told Harris he would handle it.
According to witnesses, Harris later approached the man and punched him in the face. Witnesses also reportedly told police that Harris stood over him, hitting him in the face several more times. He also allegedly kicked and stomped on him.
Harris then left the area. Police identified and located Harris at his home nearby.
He reportedly told police that the man punched him first, hitting him in the neck. He denied striking the man when he was down.
The victim was taken to the hospital with a broken nose and brain injuries. He later died.
Harris has been charged with second-degree murder.
Animal shelter workers: We were forced to freeze kittens to death
Indiana cops are investigating a disturbing case of animal abuse, in which shelter workers allegedly euthanized kittens by freezing them alive.
Several ex-employees have come forward and claimed to have witnessed the cruel and inhumane procedure being performed at the Spencer County Animal Shelter on at least two different occasions.
One former worker named Bridgett Woodson spoke to local media outlets about the horrific things she saw during her three and a half months working at the shelter. She told reporters that she was asked to participate in the kitty killings twice — with the most recent case coming on July 31.
“The first time I was given an option to either just put it in a bag and put it in the freezer with no sedation, nothing — because I’m not a vet, I don’t have the license to be able to do that,” Woodson explained, speaking to WEHT.
“The second time I was not given the option, and I was just told to go ahead and put it in the freezer,” she said. “I mean, this cat was still up and moving and I had told her, and I still got the same response.”
Woodson reportedly refused “both times” to put the cats in the freezer and eventually took it upon herself to call the vet. She was allegedly ordered to carry out the killings by a Spencer County Animal Control Officer, the Courier & Press reports.
“I had to do something,” Woodson told the newspaper, noting how she quit her job and eventually got cops to investigate.
“I’m super concerned about the animals,” she said. “If this is deemed as acceptable and no one is held accountable, what else will start to slip through the cracks.”
Spencer County Sheriff’s Office Detective Chris King, who is handling the case, told WEHT that a number of witnesses have come forward since Woodson first accused the shelter of animal abuse. They claimed to have seen at least two freezer killings — one of which included the deaths of four kittens at once.
County officials expect the investigation to be taken over by the Indiana State Police due to conflict-of-interest reasons.
The animal control officer allegedly involved in the kitty deaths, identified by WEHT as Christina Payne, refused to answer requests for comment over the weekend. Woodson has been sharing text messages they exchanged about the alleged abuse with local media outlets.
“Hey. I took the cat to the vet and had it put down,” the ex-employee wrote in one text to Payne, according to the Courier.
“You can take the cost out of my pay check if that’s a problem,” she said. “I will not be putting live animals in the freezer if there’s another option available, please don’t ask me to do that again.”
In response, Payne wrote: “That’s fine but so you know, the freezer option is no less humane. It’s fine though Bridge. I’m here for my employees. Always.”
The American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines for the Euthanasia of Animals considers the “slow chilling or freezing of unanesthetized animals” an unacceptable and inhumane method of euthanasia. It’s unclear when the investigation will be complete, but state police officials told the Courier that they expect to have an update in the coming days.
via: https://nypost.com/2018/08/13/animal-shelter-workers-we-were-forced-to-freeze-kittens-to-death/