17-Year-Old Girl Killed By Officers Was ‘in Possession’ of Replica Gun; Bodycam Video to Be Released
Fullerton Police said Thursday they plan to release bodycam video showing the incident that ended with a 17-year-old girl thought to be “in possession” of a replica handgun, being shot and killed by officers on a freeway in Anaheim last week.
Hannah Williams, of Anaheim, was pronounced dead at a hospital after being shot on the eastbound 91 Freeway near Kramer Boulevard on July 5, in an incident involving Fullerton Police Department officers, authorities said.
Police initially said the fake gun “designed to look identical to a Berretta 92 FS handgun” was found next to her.
The details of what happened leading up to the shooting remain unclear, and police have not clarified how the teenager was connected to the fake gun.
The Fullerton Police officer involved in the shooting was wearing a body camera that captured the incident, police said.
Bodycam footage and photos from the shooting will be released in the coming days, authorities said.
Police said information about what led up to the shooting will also be made available.
On Thursday, Williams’ family and their attorney spoke to members of the media to renew calls for information and demand the release of the bodycam footage, and the name of the officer involved.
“The narrative that has been released by law enforcement is completely void of details” civil rights attorney S. Lee Merritt said. “The law enforcement officer did not say that she even wielded a gun.”
Merritt alleged that police had not discovered a replica gun until they were given permission to search the car on Monday— three days after the shooting.
“We don’t believe that the weapon had played any role in that incident,” Merritt said.
The family believes that a child may have left the toy gun in the car since the family was sharing it over the holiday weekend
The attorney said the family knows of two witnesses who described seeing the teenager waving a phone around, and one witness, a bystander, who said he saw her waving a gun around. The family believes that witness could not have seen what was happening on the freeway.
“A 17-year-old girl is dead with no explanation,” Merritt said.
Williams, who family members say just got her driver’s permit, is believed to have taken the rental car out to practice driving at about 6: 30 p.m. when she accidentally ended up on the freeway and was involved in a car accident.
The teenager was described as an inexperienced driver who had never driven on a freeway before. Merritt said the earthquake that struck that day may have also contributed to a car crash.
The District Attorney’s Office provided little information on what happened on the road, only saying that an officer saw the car traveling at a high rate of speed and “at some point, the two vehicles made physical contact.”
Williams’ family did not know that their daughter had been shot when police officers showed up at their home asking about the teenager’s state of mind before leading the house, Merritt said.
The family found out several hours later that their daughter had been killed after she had an “argument” with officers, according to the attorney.
The teenager was in a happy and in a good mood the day she was shot because family members were visiting for the holiday weekend, and they were planning on a trip to Hollywood that night, Merritt said.
The family requested that the teenager’s body be turned over to them for an independent autopsy, but authorities had not released the body as of Thursday morning.
Merritt said the family believes Williams was shot three times, but won’t be able to confirm this until the autopsy is performed.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office and the Anaheim Police Department are investigating Williams’ actions leading up to the shooting and the officer’s actions “to determine if his use of deadly force was reasonable and justified,” Fullerton Police said, adding that the department is also investigating the incident.
“We don’t trust law enforcement officers to simply investigate themselves,” Merritt said, pushing for the release of her body within the next 24 hours.
At the news conference Thursday, standing with family members outside the District Attorney’s office in Orange County, the teenager’s older sister described her as a kind and loving person who loved helping people.
Williams was a lifeguard at Knott’s Berry Farm and wanted to save people, her sister said.
“She deserved everything in this world and all the stars in the sky,” 19-year-old Nyla Williams said.
Photo Credit: ktla.com
Couple Arrested For Driving Stolen Car Filled With Uranium, A Rattlesnake And Whiskey
Police officers in Guthrie, Oklahoma, who thought they were carrying out a routine stop of a car whose tag had expired came across a rather unusual stash.
Stephen Jennings was driving with Rachel Rivera in the passenger’s seat of a stolen Ford vehicle when they were stopped by officers at around 11 a.m. on June 25. Officers found there was another passenger in the car—a timber rattlesnake.
Bodycam footage shows one officer spotting the serpent in a storage box on the back seat and exclaiming: “That sucker is huge,” KFor reported.
Jennings admitted to police that he also had a pistol in the console and officers then found an open bottle of Kentucky Deluxe whiskey—but that was not all.
A search of the vehicle also unearthed a canister of radioactive powdered uranium.
With classic understatement, Guthrie Police Sgt. Anthony Gibbs said, “There’s quite a few unanswered questions. So now he’s got a rattlesnake, a stolen vehicle, firearm, and somebody under arrest,” he said.
Police are investigating what the purpose of the uranium was. The dangerous substance has not yet resulted in any charges. “When that happens of course, we call in a company that deals with that specifically and it’s taken safely into possession. The uranium is the wild card in that situation.”
Because Jennings had a valid lifetime hunting and fishing license, possession of the rattlesnake was not illegal.
“It happens to be rattlesnake season at the time, so he can be in possession of this rattlesnake,” Gibbs added.
What Jennings has been charged with, so far, is possession of a stolen vehicle, transporting an open container of liquor, operating a vehicle with a suspended license, and failure to carry security verification form.
His companion faces a charge of possession of a firearm after a former felony conviction.
The timber rattlesnake is one of America’s most dangerous snakes, and their venom contains neurotoxins which can cause muscle necrosis and internal bleeding, although they are afraid of humans, according to SnakesForPets.com.
In May, a woman in Georgia died after being bitten by a rattlesnake in a friend’s garden. Priscilla Meridith, 62, of Brunswick, suffered a heart attack and multiple organ failures following the attack, after she had a severe allergic reaction to the serpent’s venom, according to WJAX-TV.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Mississippi politician tells female reporter she can’t interview him unless she’s with a man
A Republican candidate for Mississippi governor told a female reporter that he couldn’t be interviewed by her unless she was accompanied by a male colleague — later claiming that he was following “the Billy Graham Rule.”
“We just wanted to keep things professional,” said GOP hopeful Robert Foster in a radio interview on Tuesday.
The female reporter, Larrison Campbell of Mississippi Today, had been asking to go on a “ride along” with Foster when his campaign director reportedly refused on his behalf.
“In two phone calls this week, Colton Robison, Foster’s campaign director, said a male colleague would need to accompany [Campbell] on an upcoming 15-hour campaign trip because they believed the optics of the candidate with a woman, even a working reporter, could be used in a smear campaign to insinuate an extramarital affair,” Campbell wrote in a column Tuesday.
“The only reason you think that people will think I’m having a (improper) relationship with your candidate is because I am a woman,” she reportedly told Robison, to which he said: “Can’t risk it.”
“Perception is everything,” Robison added, according to Campbell. “We are so close to the primary. If (trackers) were to get a picture and they put a mailer out, we wouldn’t have time to dispute it. And that’s why we have to be careful.”
Foster, a first-term state lawmaker, corroborated Campbell’s claims in a tweet late Tuesday — saying he was only trying to be respectful to his wife.
“Before our decision to run, my wife and I made a commitment to follow the ‘Billy Graham Rule,’ which is to avoid any situation that may evoke suspicion or compromise of our marriage,” Foster said. “I am sorry Ms. Campbell doesn’t share these views, but my decision was out of respect of my wife.”
Vice President Mike Pence used a similar excuse back in 2002 when he reportedly told The Hill that he refuses to eat alone with any woman other than his wife.
“In our case, it was a female reporter asking to ride along, and my campaign director is in and out and gone sometimes,” Foster explained in his radio interview Wednesday. “It’s just going to be a lot of opportunities for an awkward situation I didn’t want to put myself in.”
The gubernatorial candidate added, “There’s only one person that comes to mind more than anyone and that’s my wife. I’ve always had the same practice in business. I’m not alone with a female employee and put myself in a situation to have a ‘he said, she said moment.’”
Foster was receiving backlash Wednesday in response to his decision, and issued multiple statements in response.
“As I anticipated, the liberal left lost their minds over the fact I choose not to be alone with another woman,” he tweeted. “They can’t believe, that even in 2019, someone still values their relationship with their wife and upholds their Christian Faith.”
Hours later, he added: “I will not be intimidated into a corner of silence by a group of radical Socialists and Communists whose goal in life is to dismantle America. In fact, I’m looking forward to fighting their radical, left-wing agenda.”
Photo Credit: AP
Crazed DMV customer opens fire over slow-moving crowd
A crazed woman was so angry about the slow line at a Kansas City DMV licensing office that she opened fire in the parking lot — injuring no one, but sparking panic during the broad-daylight blow-up, according to new reports.
The woman, whose name was not released, visited the Parkville License Office around 11:25 a.m. Tuesday and quickly became irritated by the large crowd — including mothers with babies and senior citizens with walkers, witness Patricia Zick told the Kansas City Star.
She was very belligerent and used foul language, according to Zick.
“Something was wrong, I don’t know what it is — drugs, mental or whatever — but she just insisted on getting taken care of immediately,” Zick told the paper. “The president’s security was in danger, she said.”
The woman insisted that office workers call their boss, who was not there at the time, according to the report. One of the workers said she’d call the police — to which the woman responded that she had better not.
The banter between the woman and the employees lasted about 10 minutes — until she announced that she’d take care of it and walked out, Zick told the paper.
Then she started digging in her purse, retrieved a gun and blasted in the air, the witness said.
“That’s when we all ran,” Zick told the outlet, noting that she tried all the door handles of local businesses before she finally escaped into a dentist’s office.
“We all ran into the building and they were scooting us out the back door,” Zick added. “We didn’t know if she was coming back in or she had more ammunition or she had been on the phone calling a friend to come back up or what was going on.”
The woman had fired the rounds into a mulch bed outside the office, Major Erik Holland of the Platte County Sheriff’s Office told the outlet.
“We’re still early on in the investigation, but it is to my understanding that she didn’t make it into the DMV,” Holland said. “People saw the gun before she got in. The doors were locked and she fired the shots before she got into the DMV.”
Three police cars sped around the corner into the parking lot — before the officers “jumped out and jumped a woman who was trying to get into her car,” witness Kathy Coulter told the outlet.
“They took her down and handcuffed her right away,” Coulter added.
Witnesses told FOX 4 KC that two men, one of them possibly an undercover cop, wrestled the gun away from the woman.
“I think it could’ve been a warning,” Zick told the station. “It could’ve been the beginning. I don’t know, you can’t judge.”
Zick was taken to the hospital as a precaution, and no one was hurt, according to the reports.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/07/10/crazed-dmv-customer-opens-fire-over-slow-moving-crowd/
Photo Credit: Platte County Sheriff’s Office
Seminary student who left newborn to die in trash can gets 5 years in prison
A cruel seminary student who left her daughter to die in a trash can at a Texas dormitory will spend five years in prison for her child’s “horrific and inhumane” death, prosecutors said.
Natalie Annell Weaver, 21, of Springfield, Missouri, pleaded guilty Wednesday to manslaughter and abuse of corpse charges in the April 2018 birth of her daughter on the campus of the Southwestern Assemblies of God University in Waxahachie, where police responded for a welfare check after a student reportedly went into labor, KTVT reports.
Cops then found dried and wet blood in several places inside the dormitory before finding the body of a female newborn inside a plastic bag in a trash can, Waxahachie police said.
Weaver initially denied giving birth, but investigators said evidence at the scene showed that she had just delivered the girl in a dormitory bathroom at the 2,000-student private Christian university and seminary.
Weaver also did not seek any medical assistance for the newborn, who was born with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, police said.
“This was a horrific and inhumane crime,” Ellis County District Attorney Patrick Wilson said in a statement. “It’s both shocking and mind-boggling. And it didn’t have to happen.”
In exchange for her plea, Weaver, who was indicted in October, was sentenced to five years in state prison on the manslaughter count and 400 days for abusing a corpse. Both sentences will run concurrently, the Dallas Morning News reports.
Instead of leaving her child to die, Weaver could have dropped her newborn off at a designated safe haven, such as a hospital or fire station, including some options “just minutes away,” Wilson said.
“She could have avoided prosecution and, more importantly, her baby girl would probably still be alive,” Wilson’s statement continued. “The gift of life is too important to throw away.”
Photo Credit: Waxahachie Police Department
Cop fired after $500 goes missing from homicide victim’s wallet
An Atlanta police officer has been axed for allegedly mishandling $500 in cash from a homicide victim’s wallet, authorities said.
Officer Keisha Richburg’s body cam footage released by the Atlanta Police Department shows the alleged incident unfolding on June 19th at the scene of a shooting in Marietta Road near the Inman Rail Yard.
The footage shows EMT Kevin Geter tucking the money inside of the wallet of the 29-year-old victim, Jamel Harris, then handing it off to Richburg.
When she handles the wallet in her squad car, the cash cannot be seen in the slot that Geter had allegedly placed the money inside, the video shows.
When “Officer Richburg transfers the victim’s wallet from her right hand to her left hand; it is readily apparent the money is no longer tucked inside the wallet,” a police report on the incident reads.
Geter confirmed to internal affairs investigators that he gave Richburg the wallet with cash inside, according to 11Alive.
“I’m about 90% sure it was money…cause it was – it was kinda like a – you know, like money would be folded in half. Um, and I can’t imagine it being anything else,” he said.
Later, the video shows Richburg handing off the empty wallet to a homicide-unit sergeant at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Harris, who suffered from a gunshot wound to the head later died from his injuries at the hospital. An-Nur Green, 43, was arrested for fatally shooting Harris over of an argument, police said.
“Officer integrity goes to the heart of what we do here every single day,” Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields said in a statement. “It’s extremely disappointing to see the victim of a fatal shooting be victimized twice by the actions of one of our officers.”
An Atlanta Police department spokesperson told The Post that Richburg did not properly account for the money according to the department’s policies and procedures. An administrative investigation was not able to determine what happened to the cash.
Shields fired Richburg on Monday.
A regional director for the International Brotherhood of Police Officers told NBC Newsthat the department hasn’t “proven that she had the money or took the money.”
Richburg is disputing the department’s claim and attempting to appeal her termination.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/07/11/cop-fired-after-500-goes-missing-from-homicide-victims-wallet/
Photo Credit: Atlanta Police Department
Video shows girl licking tongue depressor, putting it back in a jar at Florida doctor’s office – now receiving death threats
ACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A video posted to Facebook Tuesday appears to show a girl licking a tongue depressor before placing it back in a jar with the others at a Jacksonville, Florida area doctor’s office.
The video was originally recorded on Snapchat by the girl’s mother, according to WFOX. The mother said it was supposed to stay among friends, but someone shared it publicly on Facebook. She said she’s now receiving death threats and regrets the incident, saying she “wasn’t thinking.”
The clip begins with a hand touching the inside of the canister holding the tongue depressors, twirling its fingers against multiple depressors.
Another hand is then seen removing one depressor from the container. Then a girl is shown licking the entirety of the depressor before reinserting it into the container.
A banner on the video reportedly read “Don’t tell me how to live my life.”
Meanwhile, a piece of paper above the canister reads “Please do not touch medical supplies! Thank you.”
Another portion of the video shows three other children in the office with the caption, “When you are running late af this is how I’m gonna let my kids act,” WFOX reports.
The local news station decided not to identify the doctor’s office, but officials said they have thrown away the tongue depressors and re-sanitized the facility. The office are performing an internal investigation and have requested that law enforcement get involved as well.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
Birthday cake decorator mistakes ‘Moana’ for ‘marijuana’
MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. – A Georgia mother’s order for her daughter’s birthday cake went badly awry when the decorator apparently confused the name of a Disney character, Moana, with marijuana.
Her daughter, Kensli Davis, posted on Facebook saying her mom had ordered the cake from a local Dairy Queen.
“So my mama called and ordered me a cake telling them how much I loved Moana,” Davis wrote. “Well needless to say these people thought she said marijuana.”
Instead of Moana, her mother received a cake with a large cannabis leaf (and a green “My Little Pony” horse smoking what appears to be a joint, its eyes bloodshot).
Davis said her mother got a kick out of the mix-up, adding that none of the employees immediately realized what happened.
“I think they thought that she said ‘marijuana’ because we are from south Georgia and kind of have an accent. So, ‘Moana,’ marijuana?” Davis told WMAZ.
She told the local news station that she admired the artistic icing job, and thinks it was an honest mistake since her family has ordered cakes there for years. Davis added that the woman who made the cake did apologize and offer to decorate a new one after finding out what happened.
“That ice cream cake was still good though,” Davis wrote on Facebook.
via: https://pix11.com/2019/07/10/birthday-cake-decorator-mistakes-moana-for-marijuana/
Photo Credit: fox2now.com
10-year-old girl groped on No. 2 train
SOUTH SLOPE, Brooklyn — Police are searching for a man that groped a 10-year-old girl on the subway in Brooklyn, authorities said Wednesday.
The young girl was aboard the No. 2 train at the Prospect Avenue subway station when the unidentified man allegedly grabbed the girl’s buttocks.
The victim exited the train at 135 Street, and the man remained on the train, according to police.
The man is described to be between 20 and 30 years old and was last seen wearing a t-shirt, blue jeans and white sneakers.
Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting http://www.nypdcrimestoppers.com, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
via: https://pix11.com/2019/07/10/10-year-old-girl-groped-on-no-2-train-police/
Photo Credit: pix11.com
POLICE USE DMX PHOTO TO DRAW SUSPECT SKETCH FOR ATTEMPTED MURDER CASE
Columbia, S.C. police use a photo of DMX to help them get to the bottom of an attempted murder case from last month.
According to a July 8 report from South Carolina’s The State newspaper, the Columbia Police Department used an image of the Ruff Ryders rapper while helping an artist draw a composite sketch of the attempted murder suspect.
Apparently, on June 19, the suspect shot and wounded a 27-year-old man during an altercation. When police talked to an eyewitness, the person said the suspect looked like the Grammy-nominated rapper. “The witness said to us, ‘The guy looks a lot like DMX,'” said South Carolina Law Enforcement Division spokesperson Thom Berry.
For the record, DMX is not the suspect in the case. “I guarantee you he’s not,” Columbia Police Department Deputy Chief Melron Kelly told the newspaper.
Columbia police then called on a veteran and well-respected sketch artist to draw out the suspect. He used a dated photo of DMX (from the Ruff Ryders’ website) and created a composite sketch of the suspect in the attempted murder case. The main differences between the DMX picture and the suspect’s composite sketch are that the suspect has a full head of hair, a full beard and his left ear pokes out, whereas DMX is bald-headed and has a light beard.
“We always let the witness dictate the process and how everything unfolds,” Berry said of the sketch-drawing process. “We make sure the witness sees everything we do and is comfortable with whatever rendering that we make.”
via: https://www.xxlmag.com/news/2019/07/dmx-police-suspect-sketch-photo/
Photo Credit: gossiponthis.com