San Francisco official introduces CAREN Act to stop ‘racially biased’ 911 calls (Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies Act)
A San Francisco city official is taking aim at so-called “Karens” — by introducing an ordinance making it illegal to make bogus “racially biased” calls to cops.
Supervisor Shamann Walton said he introduced the CAREN Act — or the Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies Act — during Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting in response to several high-profile 911 calls involving people of color.
“This is the CAREN we need,” Walton tweeted Tuesday, adding that “racist 911 calls” are unacceptable.
The ordinance would amend San Francisco Police Code to make it unlawful for anyone to “fabricate false racially-biased emergency reports,” the San Francisco Chronicle reports, citing a news release from Walton.
The legislation seeks to “protect the rights of communities of color” who are victimized by “fraudulent emergency calls,” Walton said in a statement.
The name of the ordinance is a clear reference to “Karen,” a slang term popularized on social media for entitled, or bigoted white women who unnecessarily call police on people of color.
Walton noted several local examples while announcing the ordinance, including a white couple who called police on a Filipino man stenciling “Black Lives Matter” in front of his San Francisco home in June, the Mercury News reports.
Police in Alameda have also appointed an outside investigator after someone called cops on a black man in late May who was dancing and exercising outside, Walton said.
Meanwhile, in New York, Amy Cooper, a 41-year-old white woman who called cops on a black man as he watched birds in Central Park in May, was charged Monday with falsely reporting an incident in the third degree.
The ordinance comes after similar proposed state legislation in June to end discriminatory police calls by classifying them as hate crimes, the Chronicle reports.
If passed, Walton’s ordinance would allow victims to seek civil remedy in court, his chief of staff told Forbes.
Making a false report to police is already a crime, but there’s no punishment for someone who calls cops due to a perceived threat based on someone’s race, religion or appearance, according to state Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Oakland).
“If you are afraid of a black family barbecuing in the community park, a man dancing and doing his normal exercise routine in the bike lane, or someone who asks you to comply with dog leash laws in a park, and your immediate response is to call the police, the real problem is with your own personal prejudice,” Bonta told the Chronicle.
Under Bonta’s proposed bill, anyone victimized by a discriminatory and fraudulent call to cops could sue the caller for up to $10,000, the Chronicle reports.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/08/san-francisco-official-introduces-caren-act-to-stop-racist-911-calls/
Photo Credit: AP
Woman fired after yelling ‘white lives are better’ at Black Lives Matter rally
A Tennessee woman caught on a viral video shouting racial and homophobic slurs at a Black Lives Matter rally has been fired from her job, according to reports.
Sonya Holt was seen yelling “White lives matter, white lives are better” during the protest in Elizabethton on Saturday, at one point yelling at a protester, “You’re a gay homosexual piece of crap who’s going to burn in hell,” WCYB-TV reported.
At another point, Holt is heard calling one protester “just a poor little black girl with a messed-up mind.”
After the video went viral on social media, Keith Family Vision Clinic in Johnson City said they were cutting ties with Holt, the outlet said.
The company confirmed that Holt had worked there, but told the Johnson City Press she was no longer employed as of Monday.
“The biggest thing to take away from this is just to realize that racism is in your community however much you think it might not be,” said Sierra Gilmer, who shot the video.
“There are a lot of people that reached out to me saying that they didn’t realize that this was happening in Elizabethton and they didn’t realize there were people there like that.”
Holt’s caught-on-video rant came during a rally at the Covered Park Bridge in Elizabethton organized by the New Panther Initiative, the paper said.
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Florida man goes berserk on old woman who asked him to wear a mask
A Florida man was caught on camera throwing a temper tantrum after an elderly woman asked him to wear a mask in a Ft. Myers Costco — amid a surge in coronavirus cases in the Sunshine State, video shows.
The clip, taken June 27 at the Costco Wholesale at the Gulf Coast Town Center on Florida’s west coast, shows a man wearing a red T-shirt with the words “Running the world since 1776” becoming apoplectic when a bystander started filming him after he refused to put on a mask.
“You’re harassing me,” the man says to the videographer.
“I am not harassing you,” the man filming replies.
“I feel threatened,” the man bellows, squaring his shoulders as he charges at the videographer.
“Back off. Threaten me again,” he warns with wide eyes.
“Back the f–k up, put your f–king phone down,” he goes on in a tone reminiscent of an Army drill sergeant.
“Sir, sir, please,” another bystander can be heard saying before the clip cuts off.
The person who posted the video asked to remain anonymous because of concerns for his safety.
He told The Post the man was harassing and yelling at an old woman who’d asked him to put on a mask, so he stepped in to defend her, citing the number of new coronavirus cases Florida had the previous day.
On Tuesday, Florida clocked 7,347 new coronavirus infections with a 16.27% positivity rate, bringing the statewide total to 213,794, WFLA reported.
A total of 380 new hospitalizations were recorded and 63 new deaths, the outlet said.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/07/florida-man-goes-berserk-on-woman-who-asked-him-to-wear-mask/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Florida Keys reports 11th case of mosquito-borne dengue fever
Forget the coronavirus, say hello to dengue fever.
An 11th case of the mosquito-borne illness has been confirmed in the Florida Keys, officials from the Florida Department of Health announced Tuesday.
All of the cases have been found in Key Largo, the northernmost key about 60 miles south of Miami, including eight cases that were found there during the last week of June, officials said.
The viral disease is contracted through the bite of a female Aedes aegypti mosquito, a species that’s considered invasive and also spreads illnesses like yellow fever, Zika and chikungunya.
Symptoms of dengue typically appear within two weeks of a bite and include fever, severe muscle aches and pains, and at times a rash, the health department said.
Health officials are in the process of “conducting epidemiological studies to determine the origin and extent of these infections” and believe all cases were acquired locally, according to Alison Kerr, a Florida Keys spokeswoman who spoke to the Miami Herald.
The most recent patient is receiving treatment and is expected to make a complete recovery, Kerr said.
Workers from the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District are targeting adult mosquitoes and larvae using helicopters and trucks, according to spokesperson Chad Huff.
That work includes door-to-door inspections of homes and businesses in the Key Largo area.
To help tamp down the spread, officials are asking locals to remove possible Aedes aegypti breeding grounds such as gutters, tarps, trash cans and pet bowls that contain standing water.
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/08/florida-keys-reports-11th-case-of-mosquito-borne-dengue-fever/
Photo Credit: nypost.com
Rickey Smiley’s daughter, 19, recovering after alleged road rage shooting in Houston
The 19-year-old daughter of comedian and syndicated radio host Rickey Smiley is currently recovering after being shot during an alleged road rage incident.
Smiley posted an emotional video Monday in which he said his daughter, Aaryn, was one of a group of people wounded in Houston over the July 4th weekend.
“I’m so mad right now, I don’t know what to do,” said Smiley, who hosts the “Rickey Smiley Show Morning Show” and is one of the stars of “DISH Nation.” “The reason I’m on Facebook Live is cause I just want you to see that it’s raw and it’s real. I want you to see what parents have to deal with when their children become victims of gun violence.”
Investigators told CNN affiliate KTRK that following an altercation at a separate location, a suspect pulled up to a car at a red light on Houston’s south side and opened fire.
Smiley’s daughter was in a different vehicle at the light, according to investigators, and was caught in crossfire.
Three other victims transported themselves to a hospital and all are expected to survive their injuries.
The radio host tweeted that his daughter had successfully made it out of surgery.
“My daughter made it out of her operation, ” he tweeted. “She’s doing great!!Thank you for your prayers!!!”
Aaryn Smiley, who turned 19 days before the shooting, posted a photo of a blood drenched seat in a vehicle on Instagram.
“This is the most terrifying thing that has ever happened to me,” the caption read. “I won’t be out of the hospital for a while nor will I be able to walk for a while due to nerve damage.”
She also shared an image that appeared to have been taken from a hospital bed.
“[T]he fact that the bullets that went thru my legs were armored riffled [sic] bullets made to go through anything (how they got through the car) but the one [that] would have hit me in the head was not that kind and ended up lodged in the car. God,” a note accompanying the picture read. “Words can’t describe how grateful i am to be alive right now.”
The teen also posted about being unable to see her parents while hospitalized because of the Covid-19 pandemic, writing that she was “terrified.”
The elder Smiley posted a photo of himself wearing a mask, writing, “I respect the rules.”
“Can’t see my daughter @ryn.smiley because of #covid19… it’s getting dark and I’m not leaving this park until I lay eyes on her,” he wrote. “#Houston (Thanks to the @HoustonPolice for being so awesome and kind to us.)”
Photo Credit: twitter
Man steals safe containing $20K, citizenship papers from home being fumigated in Ventura
A man was caught on home video last month stealing $20,000 and personal items from a home in Ventura that was being fumigated, police said Tuesday.
The incident occurred about 1 a.m. June 25 at a home along the 9500 block of Las Cruses Street.
The man allegedly broke into the home and stole a safe containing the cash, citizenship papers, jewelry and antiques, police said in a tweet.
Authorities also shared two images of the man, apparently from home surveillance video.
The man is seen wearing a heavy-duty mask to protect himself from the fumes inside the house.
Anyone with information about the incident can call the Ventura Police Department at 805-339-4416.
Photo Credit: ktla.com
Blackout Tuesday highlights black-owned businesses, spending power of African Americans
Tuesday is #BlackOutDay2020, when many Black Americans plan to showcase their combined economic might by refusing to spend any money on anything at all. Those who have to buy something are being encouraged to spend their money at a Black-owned business.
Social media personality and activist Calvin Martyr has spent the last two months promoting the campaign after raising the idea in a video that has been shared thousands of time on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Major companies like Procter & Gamble and Cisco Systems, organizations like the historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta and celebrities like rapper T.I. have expressed support for the initiative on social media.
What is BlackoutDay2020?
The objective of #BlackoutDay2020 is to force politicians and the business world to end institutionally racist policies and practices that have led to the deaths and marginalization of Black Americans.
Black Americans spent more than $1 trillion on consumer goods in 2018 alone, according to Nielsen.
Martyr has likened the initiative to the year-long Montgomery bus boycott of 1955, when Black Alabamans who were legally required to sit at the back of city buses refused to pay to ride them until they were allowed to sit wherever they wanted.
“The only way we’re going to get change is when they fear hurting us like we fear hurting them,” Martyr said in a May video introducing the idea.
Is it still relevant?
The #BlackOutDay2020 campaign started in early May following the February 23 vigilante killing of Ahmaud Arbery in Brunswick, Georgia, and the March 13 police shooting death of Breonna Taylor in Louisville. It was introduced about a month before the George Floyd tragedy that sparked a wave of civic, political, and economic action addressing anti-Black institutional racism.
Since then, city government officials in Minneapolis, New York and Los Angeles, among others, have introduced proposals to defund or restructure the police departments. President Trump has signed a controversial executive order on police reform measures. And major corporations have set aside billions of dollars for social justice causes in addition to changing some of their own systemically racist practices.
Still, on Friday, Martyr suggested many of the actions politicians and companies have taken in the wake of Floyd’s death don’t go far enough.
“I don’t care about BLM painted across streets, I don’t care about syrup, rice or bandaids,” Martyr wrote on his Facebook page Friday. “What I DO CARE ABOUT: #JUSTICE for BREONNA TAYLOR; #JUSTICE for VANESSA GUILLEN; #JUSTICE for Elijah McClain; Tearing down systemic strongholds built to maintain privilege for some and keep others in bondage (mass incarceration, poverty, redlining wage gaps, education, healthy food options etc) … Y’all can have all that other stuff.”
Photo Credit: The Blackout Coalition
Video of Schenectady officer kneeling on man’s neck sparks outrage
SCHENECTADY — City police have launched a probe into an incident that resulted in an officer kneeling on a man’s neck while being taken into custody on Monday morning.
Yugeshwar Gaindarpersaud said he was confronted by city police investigating a report that his neighbor’s tires had been slashed.
Gaindarpersaud, 31, said he told the officer to provide evidence, turned around and walked away.
That’s when he said the unidentified officer allegedly threw him to the ground before kneeling on his neck.
“His whole body weight was smashing my head into the concrete,” Gaindarpersaud said. “I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t move.”
After being placed into the patrol car, Gaindarpersaud said he blacked out.
“When I woke up, I was in Ellis Hospital,” said Gaindarpersaud, who displayed abrasions on his face, leg and arm to The Daily Gazette ahead of a protest held outside of police headquarters on Monday.
A 22-second video clip shot by his father, Jaindra Gaindarpersaud, and posted to social media reveals the officer kneeling on his neck while Jaindra pleaded with him to stop.
“You got the foot on his head,” Jaindra said. “You’ve got the foot on his head.”
The officer responded, “Go back inside now” and told Jaindra to “back up.”
“He stopped breathing and he was not moving,” Jaindra Gaindarpersaud said. “And when he pinned him to the ground, he was not moving anymore, so I said, ‘He’s going to die just like George Floyd.’”
Jaindra Gaindarpersaud said the brief clip is part of a longer segment he estimated was two or three minutes of an encounter that lasted at least 10 minutes.
City police confirmed officers responded to an ongoing neighbor dispute.
According to city police, Gaindarpersaud “pulled away from the officer and fled on foot into the backyard of his residence.”
“A brief foot chase and struggle ensued during which the officer lost his radio and asked a nearby witness to call police,” police said in a statement. “Additional responding officers arrived on scene and were able to assist the original officer and ultimately place the male into handcuffs.”
The incident is under investigation by the department’s Office of Professional Standards.
The department is committed to “fair, impartial, and transparent investigations,” said city police, who declined further comment.
“As soon as the investigation has concluded or more information can be released in regards to the incident, it will be made available.”
Schenectady NAACP said the incident is one of “grave concern” and is calling for a thorough investigation as well as a review of body camera footage.
“The Schenectady NAACP stands against the use of excessive force and tactics that cause extreme physical harm or death by the Schenectady Police Department and all law enforcement,” said Schenectady NAACP President Dr. Odo Butler. “We demand that all citizens be treated equally regardless of their race or ethnicity. We are in a critical time, and any inexcusable behavior by law enforcement must be addressed immediately.”
The video rocketed through social media on Monday, drawing instant comparison by activists to the death of Floyd, who was pinned to the ground by a Minneapolis police officer for nearly nine minutes before dying on May 25, an action that prompted international protests and a national reckoning on race and police accountability.
The Gaindarpersauds spoke outside of a protest at the city police station on Monday, marking the second time in three days activists have congregated downtown to advocate for police accountability and to denounce systemic racism.
Brandon “Bambino” Brown usually monitors demonstrations as part of the Outsiders, the protesters’ security force quietly watching for agitators and disruptive forces, and seldom speaks publicly.
But on Monday, Brown felt compelled to speak out, noting he lives just blocks from the Gaindarpersauds and was roused out of bed by police sirens.
“All of us as a community need to stand up and do something about this,” Brown said.
Schenectady has seen frequent protests since Floyd’s death last month, all of them led by All of Us, a local grassroots organization.
Barely a week ago, the owner of an embattled ice cream stand, David Elmendorf, was arrested after allegedly pointing a pellet gun at activists demonstrating against racist text messages and comments they say he made toward Black people.
All of Us co-founder Jamaica Miles pointed at the ongoing issues in the community. “We shouldn’t have to tell these stories again,” Miles said. “We shouldn’t have to listen to another story again from our community members about how police use brutality against the members of this community.”
Following a peaceful protest that turned violent in Albany on May 30, a demonstration in Schenectady the following day was peaceful after city Police Chief Eric Clifford took a knee and marched with protesters, an act that each side acknowledged averted tensions and paved the way for a dialogue.
Organizer Legacy Casanova doesn’t think Monday’s incident is a setback, but shows more needs to be done to bring about meaningful change.
“It’s a blatant slap in the face,” Casanova said. “They know they’re supposed to be out there protecting and to keep doing these antics is outrageous.”
REFORMS DEMANDED
Advocates for police reform won statewide victories last week with a series of measures, including the rollback of a state law used by localities to block release of police disciplinary records. There was also an executive order signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordering police departments in the state to reform operations with community input.
But for the past several weeks, local dialogue has been at a stalemate:
All of Us has presented city police with 13 demands, including diverting seized drug assets back into the community, automatic firing of police officers and corrections officers for racist texts, emails and social media posts, as well as the abolishment of ticket-writing incentive programs that they contend disproportionately ensnare minorities in the criminal justice system.
But Clifford on Friday said the department will not implement any changes until community conversations are held with a new leadership working group, which has yet to be identified.
The state and city banned chokeholds last month. The city’s executive order also included “knee-to-neck” holds, a technique the officer appeared to use on Monday.
All of Us additionally wants city police to ban “strangleholds” and hogties.
Schenectady NAACP called for the following reforms:
- “A ban on the use of knee holds as an acceptable practice for police officers.
- “The Use of Force Continuum ensuring that there are at least six levels of steps, with clear rules on escalation.
- “Recertification credentials may be denied for police officers if determined that their use of deadly force was unwarranted by federal guidelines.
- “A Citizen’s Review Board with independent investigative and subpoena powers to build public confidence.”
Following Floyd’s death on May 25, Clifford condemned the technique used by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who has been charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
“I haven’t seen one person watch that video and reach a different conclusion than I’ve reached,” Clifford said at the time.
City Councilwoman Marion Porterfield said she wanted to review the full clip before making a judgment on how or if the officer should be disciplined.
But she said placing a knee on a suspect’s neck should be banned.
“That’s just not an acceptable practice to restrain someone,” Porterfield said.
Jaindra Gaindarpersaud said, “These officers have to stop, or they have to get fired. We don’t need officers like them. We need officers to protect us — not to kill us, and they kill many people already and they’re still trying. This has to stop.”
Protesters on Monday marched to the back entrance of police headquarters and chanted, “Get your knees off our necks.”
Several demanded an audience with police brass.
During the protest a half-dozen officers stood and passively watched and did not engage the crowd, which numbered roughly 100.
Protesters will again gather at City Hall Monday, July 13.
Photo Credit: dailygazette.com/
Florida shooting that left 3 dead, including a 13-year-old girl, started over a dog dispute
(WPBF/CNN/Meredith) — Florida police say a shooting that left three people dead, including a 13-year-old girl, started with a court dispute over a dog.
Port St. Lucie police say the suspect and the victims were neighbors who were having a dispute about a dog that was deemed dangerous in court earlier Monday.
St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascera said after everyone came home from court, the suspect armed himself and went into the victims’ house.
“If you heard this call come over the radio, it would make the hair on your neck stand up — a little girl calls in saying ‘there’s someone shooting in our house, I think my parents are dead, I think my family is dead,’” Mascera said.
When police responded, they found an adult male dead and a 13-year-old girl critically injured. She later died at the hospital. Two others were able to escape the house but were taken to the hospital. The extent of their injuries is unclear.
Officers encountered the suspect inside the victims’ home. They exchanged gunfire with the suspect. One officer was injured, and the suspect was killed. It is unclear if the suspect killed himself or was killed by police.
The officer who was shot is expected to survive.
A neighbor said he heard the gunshots but thought they were fireworks because he never expected something like this to happen in their neighborhood.
“Nothing like this has ever happened in the last 20 years. It’s a great neighborhood. Something as crazy as this happening over somebody getting emotional over a dog, is unheard of,” Charles D’Agata said.
Assistant Port St. Lucie Police Chief Richard Del Toro agreed that the shooting was uncharacteristic for the neighborhood.
“It’s just shocking and it’s just tragic. It’s not characteristic for this neighborhood or the city but we are going to do everything we can to find out all the reasons why,” Del Toro said.
Port St. Lucie police are now leading the homicide investigation.
Port St. Lucie is located on Florida’s Atlantic coast, about 125 southeast of Orlando.
Photo Credit: kmov.com
Home Depot ‘Karen’ refuses to wear mask because of ‘white power’
An Illinois woman said she believes in “white power” while explaining why she wasn’t wearing a face mask at a Home Depot, video shows.
The woman, identified by cops as 54-year-old Teri A. Hill, allegedly got enraged when another shopper reminded her to keep her own mask on while complaining to an employee Friday that too many customers weren’t wearing face coverings at a store location in McHenry.
“You know what she did?” shocked fellow shopper Sydney Waters, 34, wrote on Facebook. “She posted up. Told me I wasn’t going to tell her what to f–king do. Then she took her mask all the way off, put it in her pocket and let me now she was going to spit & cough on me.”
Hill then said she didn’t need to comply with the store’s rules due to the color of her skin, video of the encounter posted onto Facebook by Waters shows.
“You’re disrespectful to everyone else in this store,” Waters told Hill. “The entitlement is disgusting.”
“Yes I am entitled,” Hill replied, video shows. “I’m white, I’m a woman.”
Waters, who is also white, then playfully welcomed Hill to “privilege” before asking her why she felt so special, video shows.
“What does you being white have to do with you being able to get your way?” Waters asked.
“Because I’m a white woman,” Hill replied, video shows. “That’s what happens, I believe in white power.”
A fight between the pair ensued and police later arrested Hill at the store on charges of battery and disorderly conduct, the Northwest Herald reports.
Both women had minor injuries in the dust-up, but neither sought medical care, police said.
Hill, of McHenry, was taken into custody after investigators spoke to witnesses at the store and took a look at Waters’ video, the newspaper reports.
Hill, who has been released from custody, could not be reached for comment Monday, according to the Northwest Herald.
Waters, of Johnsburg, was not charged in the fight. She also reportedly accused Hill of ripping off her mask as they wrestled on the ground.
“I’m not a spring chicken anymore – I have bruises everywhere,” Waters told the newspaper. “My shoulder is hurt. Nothing’s broken.”
via: https://nypost.com/2020/07/07/home-depot-karen-refuses-to-wear-mask-because-of-white-power/
Photo Credit: nypost.com