MOORESTOWN, N.J. (CBS) ― More charges have been filed against a Burlington County, N.J. police officer who was recently charged with sexually assaulting three girls.Authorities announced Moorsetown Officer Robert Melia Jr., 38, has been charged with four counts of animal cruelty after allegedly engaging in sex acts with cows between June and December of 2006, reported CBS station KYW-TV in Philadelphia.Melia and his former girlfriend, Heather Lewis, were previously charged with three counts of aggravated sexual assault and one count of criminal sexual contact with three girls in his home from 2003 until 2006.Melia is being held on $510,000 bail.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
All I Can Say Is WTF!?
PATNA, India - Indian police want a museum to display the head of a woman decapitated after she was accused of practicing witchcraft, hoping it will be a lesson for those who persecute innocent women.
A villager in the country's eastern Jharkhand state attacked the woman and chopped off her head at the weekend, apparently because he suspected her of being to blame for deaths in the family, police said. He then walked into the nearest police station holding the severed head.
"I think displaying this head in a museum will create a sensation in society and could be helpful in preventing people from taking to such heinous crimes," Sunit Kumar, a senior police officer, said from Jharkhand on Wednesday.
In rural India, villagers often accuse women of being witches and blame them for natural disasters or for an illness, death or theft.
Hundreds of them are killed every year and police say incidents often take a long time to come to light.
A villager in the country's eastern Jharkhand state attacked the woman and chopped off her head at the weekend, apparently because he suspected her of being to blame for deaths in the family, police said. He then walked into the nearest police station holding the severed head.
"I think displaying this head in a museum will create a sensation in society and could be helpful in preventing people from taking to such heinous crimes," Sunit Kumar, a senior police officer, said from Jharkhand on Wednesday.
In rural India, villagers often accuse women of being witches and blame them for natural disasters or for an illness, death or theft.
Hundreds of them are killed every year and police say incidents often take a long time to come to light.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Up . . . Up . . .. and Away . . . . .
A Roman Catholic priest who floated off under hundreds of helium party balloons was missing Monday off the southern coast of Brazil.
Rescuers in helicopters and small fishing boats were searching off the coast of Santa Catarina state, where pieces of balloons were found.
The Rev. Adelir Antonio de Carli lifted off from the port city of Paranagua on Sunday afternoon, wearing a helmet, thermal suit and a parachute.
Rescuers in helicopters and small fishing boats were searching off the coast of Santa Catarina state, where pieces of balloons were found.
The Rev. Adelir Antonio de Carli lifted off from the port city of Paranagua on Sunday afternoon, wearing a helmet, thermal suit and a parachute.
Monday, April 21, 2008
He Must Have Been Under The Influence
DOTHAN, Ala. - A Dothan man attempting to report to his probation officer and pay some fines was re-arrested when he emptied his pockets for a metal detector at the Houston County Courthouse and laid out more than the usual coins and keys.
Two baggies full of marijuana came out, too, authorities said.
Malcom Williams, 51, tried to escape when the drugs appeared Thursday, but he was caught after a minor struggle and a failed attempt to Taser him, sheriff's officers said.
"He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful with change, U.S. currency, keys, and the marijuana was evident in his hand," Houston County Sheriff's Capt. Antonio Gonzalez said Friday. "Every now and then you have somebody who forgets what he had in his pockets."
Sheriff's Investigator Rick Clemmons said deputies had to shackle Williams instead of handcuffing him because his arm was in a sling with a cast on it.
Williams was being held in the Houston County Jail without bond for violating his probation. He pleaded guilty to felony third-degree escape in April 2007, according to court records.
It was not immediately clear if Williams had a lawyer Friday.
Two baggies full of marijuana came out, too, authorities said.
Malcom Williams, 51, tried to escape when the drugs appeared Thursday, but he was caught after a minor struggle and a failed attempt to Taser him, sheriff's officers said.
"He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful with change, U.S. currency, keys, and the marijuana was evident in his hand," Houston County Sheriff's Capt. Antonio Gonzalez said Friday. "Every now and then you have somebody who forgets what he had in his pockets."
Sheriff's Investigator Rick Clemmons said deputies had to shackle Williams instead of handcuffing him because his arm was in a sling with a cast on it.
Williams was being held in the Houston County Jail without bond for violating his probation. He pleaded guilty to felony third-degree escape in April 2007, according to court records.
It was not immediately clear if Williams had a lawyer Friday.
Kids Are Getting Meaner . . . . .
LEXINGTON, Ky. — An eighth-grader in Kentucky is accused of putting peanut butter cookie crumbs in the lunchbox of a classmate with a severe peanut allergy.
The allergic student did not eat the cookies Thursday at Morton Middle School in Lexington.
Fayette County schools spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall says the accused student was arrested on a felony wanton endangerment charge. The student will face charges in the juvenile court system.
Deffendall says it was well known that the other student suffered allergies. There was no known history of problems between the two 13-year-olds.
For those allergic to peanuts, trace amounts of peanut oil can cause severe reactions and even death.
The allergic student did not eat the cookies Thursday at Morton Middle School in Lexington.
Fayette County schools spokeswoman Lisa Deffendall says the accused student was arrested on a felony wanton endangerment charge. The student will face charges in the juvenile court system.
Deffendall says it was well known that the other student suffered allergies. There was no known history of problems between the two 13-year-olds.
For those allergic to peanuts, trace amounts of peanut oil can cause severe reactions and even death.
Owie Part II
Good Friday in the Philippines town of San Pedro Cutud has meant, for over 20 years, that two dozen men will line up to be nailed to a wooden cross for a few minutes each to mark their penitence for sins of the previous year (although this year, the government issued an advisory recommending getting tetanus shots and using only sterile nails). Ruben Enaje, 47, was first in line once again (the 22nd time in 23 years that he has been crucified) and, once again, screamed in agony for five minutes at the 6-inch nails driven into both palms and both feet while he lay on the cross. Before the crucifixions, dozens of other men punished themselves by whipping their backs bloody, using bamboo rods. [Agence France-Presse, 3-21-08, 3-19-08]
Owie
News of the Weird cited a police report last May that an unidentified man in Guelph, Ontario, had committed at least three incidents of approaching women and asking to be kicked in the groin. After seven such incidents, Jarrett Loft, 28, pleaded guilty in March 2008 to one count and was sentenced to 60 days in jail. Loft offered no explanation for his behavior, other than that he was "curious." One victim, saying that she feared what Loft might do if she refused, repeatedly kicked him between the legs, after which he thanked her and rode off on his bicycle. [Guelph Mercury, 3-29-08]
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Valuable Conclusions
I have come to the conclusion that the AMA needs to investigate the circumstances of the last few days in my life. I mean, I must have been the target of some evil conspiracy against my body to have a ruptured cyst, the flu, and a migraine all at the same time. I think I might have been exposed to some mutant form of some deadly poison right?
Oh, The Irony Just Reaks
A 39-year-old man who had been cited 32 times for driving without a seat belt (and who finally rigged a fake belt in his car to create the illusion that he was belted in) was killed in a low-impact car crash that would not have been fatal to a belted driver (Okata, New Zealand; coroner's inquest, February). [Fairfax News (Stuff.co.nz), 2-23-08]
More Standards Than Hooters
China's societal self-improvement in preparation for the 2008 Olympics continues. The Beijing Tourism Bureau ordered hotels to re-translate English signs, hoping to avoid such notorious past gaffes as "Racist Park," which is now "Park of Ethnic Minorities," and a cafe's attempt to salute Western visitors with "Welcome, big nose friends." And the Beijing Olympics Committee has been training hostesses for months to stand in military-like precision, straight enough to hold a sheet of paper between their knees, and to smile continuously, showing "six to eight teeth" (even if placing a chopstick in the mouth sideways is necessary for practice). There are height and weight requirements for the hostesses, and each must have an upper- to lower-body ratio of no more than 11-to-13, to eliminate, according to local newspapers, "big bottoms." [Daily Telegraph (London), 3-20-08] [Daily Telegraph (London), 1-11-08]
Judge Orders US Attorney To Take Care Of Sex Offender's Pets
Chief U.S. District Judge James Rosenbaum surprised a courtroom full of federal agents, prosecutors and public defenders Tuesday when he sentenced a man who collected child pornography to less than half the recommended time behind bars.
He also ordered Assistant U.S. Attorney William Otteson to find someone to take care of the St. Paul man's pet cat, "Mike."
Rosenbaum has no love for child pornographers. Last May, he sentenced a 53-year-old Burnsville man to 750 years in prison for taking lascivious photographs of two young relatives and three of their friends and posting them to the Internet.
But he gave Frederick Kennedy-Hippchen, 63, just four years for collecting similar pictures.
Cynthia Brown, a computer expert with the FBI, testified at a hearing Tuesday that Kennedy-Hippchen was downloading child porn when agents arrived to search his St. Paul apartment in January 2006.
Brown said he had installed the Lime Wire file-sharing program to find media files based on specific search terms.
Otteson said investigators found more than 600 images on his computer. The fact that Kennedy-Hippchen used Lime Wire indicated that he was sharing the images with others, he argued.
Kennedy-Hippchen admitted downloading the images but denied sharing them. "I never thought that anything was going out," he told Rosenbaum.
Rosenbaum noted that Kennedy-Hippchen had disabled Lime Wire's chat function and disabled its automatic start-up setting. Those facts, together with the fact that he had a slow dial-up connection to the Internet, made him "a stunningly unattractive partner for file sharing," he concluded.
Kennedy-Hippchen's attorney, Timothy Anderson, argued for probation. He said his client's reprehensible conduct should not obliterate a lifetime of volunteering and good works.
Kennedy-Hippchen earned a master's degree in theology and a master's in divinity equivalency, Anderson noted. He has worked in chemical dependency counseling and recently completed paralegal course work.
Charles Rader, a forensic psychologist who said he nearly always testifies for the government in such cases, said the defendant retreated from social contacts after a bitter divorce, which may have contributed to viewing child pornography.
"There was no previous history," he said. "I'm reasonably comfortable he will not re-offend."
Rosenbaum agreed. "There is no evidence that this defendant is likely to further offend," he said.
But prison sentences also serve a deterrence function, Rosenbaum said. He determined that the federal sentencing guidelines call for Kennedy-Hippchen to serve 97 to 121 months in prison (though the law caps the term at 10 years). Then he rejected the term as excessive.
"I think the guideline is well beyond what is needed," he said, for a man who merely looked at prohibited pictures but did nothing to produce them. He sentenced him to 48 months in prison followed by supervised release for life.
Rosenbaum ordered Kennedy-Hippchen taken into custody, saying he was deeply concerned that he would harm himself.
But Kennedy-Hippchen pleaded for a chance to turn himself in later, saying he needed time to find someone to take his cat and tropical fish. Tracy Perzel, an assistant U.S. Attorney awaiting another hearing, daubed a tear from her eyes.
Rosenbaum asked Otteson if he could assure the court that the government could take care of the pets. After checking with FBI agents, Otteson said he could not, as he knew of nothing authorizing the FBI to do that.
"Oh yes you can," Rosenbaum boomed. "You can take that on an emergency basis to the 8th Circuit [Court of Appeals] if you like," he said. "Somebody's got to take care of the animals!"
He also ordered Assistant U.S. Attorney William Otteson to find someone to take care of the St. Paul man's pet cat, "Mike."
Rosenbaum has no love for child pornographers. Last May, he sentenced a 53-year-old Burnsville man to 750 years in prison for taking lascivious photographs of two young relatives and three of their friends and posting them to the Internet.
But he gave Frederick Kennedy-Hippchen, 63, just four years for collecting similar pictures.
Cynthia Brown, a computer expert with the FBI, testified at a hearing Tuesday that Kennedy-Hippchen was downloading child porn when agents arrived to search his St. Paul apartment in January 2006.
Brown said he had installed the Lime Wire file-sharing program to find media files based on specific search terms.
Otteson said investigators found more than 600 images on his computer. The fact that Kennedy-Hippchen used Lime Wire indicated that he was sharing the images with others, he argued.
Kennedy-Hippchen admitted downloading the images but denied sharing them. "I never thought that anything was going out," he told Rosenbaum.
Rosenbaum noted that Kennedy-Hippchen had disabled Lime Wire's chat function and disabled its automatic start-up setting. Those facts, together with the fact that he had a slow dial-up connection to the Internet, made him "a stunningly unattractive partner for file sharing," he concluded.
Kennedy-Hippchen's attorney, Timothy Anderson, argued for probation. He said his client's reprehensible conduct should not obliterate a lifetime of volunteering and good works.
Kennedy-Hippchen earned a master's degree in theology and a master's in divinity equivalency, Anderson noted. He has worked in chemical dependency counseling and recently completed paralegal course work.
Charles Rader, a forensic psychologist who said he nearly always testifies for the government in such cases, said the defendant retreated from social contacts after a bitter divorce, which may have contributed to viewing child pornography.
"There was no previous history," he said. "I'm reasonably comfortable he will not re-offend."
Rosenbaum agreed. "There is no evidence that this defendant is likely to further offend," he said.
But prison sentences also serve a deterrence function, Rosenbaum said. He determined that the federal sentencing guidelines call for Kennedy-Hippchen to serve 97 to 121 months in prison (though the law caps the term at 10 years). Then he rejected the term as excessive.
"I think the guideline is well beyond what is needed," he said, for a man who merely looked at prohibited pictures but did nothing to produce them. He sentenced him to 48 months in prison followed by supervised release for life.
Rosenbaum ordered Kennedy-Hippchen taken into custody, saying he was deeply concerned that he would harm himself.
But Kennedy-Hippchen pleaded for a chance to turn himself in later, saying he needed time to find someone to take his cat and tropical fish. Tracy Perzel, an assistant U.S. Attorney awaiting another hearing, daubed a tear from her eyes.
Rosenbaum asked Otteson if he could assure the court that the government could take care of the pets. After checking with FBI agents, Otteson said he could not, as he knew of nothing authorizing the FBI to do that.
"Oh yes you can," Rosenbaum boomed. "You can take that on an emergency basis to the 8th Circuit [Court of Appeals] if you like," he said. "Somebody's got to take care of the animals!"
Friday, April 11, 2008
Cat Dung Coffee For $100 a Shot!
LONDON, England (CNN) -- A London department store has started selling coffee for $100 a shot.
If the price sounds unappealing, shoppers also have to overcome the unusual method of cultivation, which sees the coffee beans harvested from the feces of an Indonesian jungle cat.
Even so, the Peter Jones store says the luxury blend -- called Caffé Raro -- is one of the world's rarest and most premium coffees.
Made by the Italian company De Longhi, Caffé Raro combines Jamaican Blue Mountain and Kupi Luwak, two extremely rare coffees.
The beans of Kupi Luwak are harvested after being ingested by civet cats, and only about 260 kilos (about 573 pounds) of the coffee is produced each year.
Don't Miss
Is cat dung coffee worth $100 a shot?
"The cats select the best beans to chew. It's rather like a natural filtering process," said Carie Barkhuzen, a spokeswoman for the upmarket store in London's upmarket Sloane Square.
The coffee, which went on sale Thursday, is available at $100 for a shot at the Peter Jones Espresso Bar, or shoppers can buy 100g (3.5-ounce) packs of the coffee beans to take away for the same price. Watch some willing to try the coffee, others not »
"It's not exactly flying off the shelves -- it's very expensive, after all -- but customers are buying it," Barkhuzen said.
The proceeds from the coffee sales will go to charity.
If the price sounds unappealing, shoppers also have to overcome the unusual method of cultivation, which sees the coffee beans harvested from the feces of an Indonesian jungle cat.
Even so, the Peter Jones store says the luxury blend -- called Caffé Raro -- is one of the world's rarest and most premium coffees.
Made by the Italian company De Longhi, Caffé Raro combines Jamaican Blue Mountain and Kupi Luwak, two extremely rare coffees.
The beans of Kupi Luwak are harvested after being ingested by civet cats, and only about 260 kilos (about 573 pounds) of the coffee is produced each year.
Don't Miss
Is cat dung coffee worth $100 a shot?
"The cats select the best beans to chew. It's rather like a natural filtering process," said Carie Barkhuzen, a spokeswoman for the upmarket store in London's upmarket Sloane Square.
The coffee, which went on sale Thursday, is available at $100 for a shot at the Peter Jones Espresso Bar, or shoppers can buy 100g (3.5-ounce) packs of the coffee beans to take away for the same price. Watch some willing to try the coffee, others not »
"It's not exactly flying off the shelves -- it's very expensive, after all -- but customers are buying it," Barkhuzen said.
The proceeds from the coffee sales will go to charity.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
This Is A True Story
All names have been eliminated to protect the innocent (and annoying).
This happened to a friend of mine at a CVS checkout surrounded by little old ladies. She had brought her little brother along for the trip, and was checking out with her rubbing alcohol and batteries.
Friends little brother: I am so excited to learn how to make meth!
Friend: Ignore him, he is crazy. We are not making meth.
All little old ladies stare.
This happened to a friend of mine at a CVS checkout surrounded by little old ladies. She had brought her little brother along for the trip, and was checking out with her rubbing alcohol and batteries.
Friends little brother: I am so excited to learn how to make meth!
Friend: Ignore him, he is crazy. We are not making meth.
All little old ladies stare.
Doin' The Doggie Cha Cha
Click on the link to view some video . . .
It’s one thing to be the person who thought up the idea of “dancing” “freestyle” with a dog, but then you have to irritate at least several dogs trying it out (and holding dogs’ paws, like in “regular” dog-dancing, is not allowed!), and then you’re way overboard if you formed Paws2Dance, an “academy” that trains dance-contest “teams” (with emphasis on the human’s outfits and matching dog collars). (Yr Editor reported in 1999 [NOTW 577, 2-26-1999] that something called the World Canine Freestyle Organization had an 8,000-person mailing list.) [NOTWD ombudsman “Buddy”: Chuck, you surely don’t mean that they have competitions, like Dancing with the Stars?] [Ed.: Keep at it, Buddy; you’ll get the hang of this].
It’s one thing to be the person who thought up the idea of “dancing” “freestyle” with a dog, but then you have to irritate at least several dogs trying it out (and holding dogs’ paws, like in “regular” dog-dancing, is not allowed!), and then you’re way overboard if you formed Paws2Dance, an “academy” that trains dance-contest “teams” (with emphasis on the human’s outfits and matching dog collars). (Yr Editor reported in 1999 [NOTW 577, 2-26-1999] that something called the World Canine Freestyle Organization had an 8,000-person mailing list.) [NOTWD ombudsman “Buddy”: Chuck, you surely don’t mean that they have competitions, like Dancing with the Stars?] [Ed.: Keep at it, Buddy; you’ll get the hang of this].
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Pee-Pee Play on Broadway
Irish director-playwright Paul Walker's production of "Ladies & Gents" opened for a March run in New York City 29 blocks north of Broadway in a public restroom. According to an Associated Press report, the entire play takes place among the porcelain in a bathroom in Central Park, portraying "the seedy underside of 1950s Dublin," with the audience of 25 standing beside rows of stalls, near "spiders, foul odors and puddles of questionable origin." Walker proudly admits that he wanted to take the audience "out of their comfort zone" to create "a different energy." Actor John O'Callaghan recalled that rehearsals were especially difficult: "One man actually came in and had a pee right in front of us." [KYW-TV (Philadelphia)-AP, 3-19-08]
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Duck Gets Order Of Protection Against Neighbor
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A pet duck named Circles, shot and wounded by a neighbor with a pellet gun, has received an order of protection to keep it safe, the first duck in New York state's Suffolk County to benefit from such an order.
Circles was in its owner's backyard on Long Island -- long known as a habitat for wild waterfowl -- when it was shot by a neighbor through the neck, said Michelle Auletta, prosecutor at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.
Circles, a white, yellow-billed duck, was treated by a vet and survived, she said.
The neighbor was charged with animal cruelty. At the attacker's arraignment on Thursday, Circles' owners received an order of protection.
"It's the first case that I know of in this area where a duck got an order of protection," Auletta said. "And in Suffolk County, Long Island, it is the first case where an animal was included in an order of protection that was not a domestic violence case."
In 2006, former New York Governor George Pataki signed into law a provision to include pets in orders of protection.
(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Philip Barbara)
Circles was in its owner's backyard on Long Island -- long known as a habitat for wild waterfowl -- when it was shot by a neighbor through the neck, said Michelle Auletta, prosecutor at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.
Circles, a white, yellow-billed duck, was treated by a vet and survived, she said.
The neighbor was charged with animal cruelty. At the attacker's arraignment on Thursday, Circles' owners received an order of protection.
"It's the first case that I know of in this area where a duck got an order of protection," Auletta said. "And in Suffolk County, Long Island, it is the first case where an animal was included in an order of protection that was not a domestic violence case."
In 2006, former New York Governor George Pataki signed into law a provision to include pets in orders of protection.
(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Philip Barbara)
Monday, April 7, 2008
Drug Testing Bandits
Krystal Evans, 26, and Denise McClure, 24, rifled through packages on a DHL delivery truck in December in Crescent City, Calif., looking for their urine samples headed for the lab because they were certain theirs would test positive, which would have meant their return to jail. The driver summoned police, and the women were arrested for destroying evidence and violating their probation and in March were convicted and could face two years in prison. Evans' original sample turned out to be clean, after all, but during the December arrest, she tested positive for methamphetamine. [Times-Standard (Eureka, Calif.), 3-18-08]
If Only We Had Politicians This Honest About Their Crimes
"Look, it is no big deal," Christopher Wilkins told the Fort Worth, Texas, jury trying to decide in March whether to send him to death row or life in prison. "I'm as undecided (about that) as you are." Wilkins even belittled his own lawyers for bringing his family in to beg the jury for mercy: "They (my lawyers) sprung that charade on me," he told the jury. When his lawyers suggested that his murders were not cold-blooded but were the result of drug use, Wilkins said, "I wouldn't put too much weight on that." Before leaving the witness stand, Wilkins complimented the prosecutor ("You're doing a fine job") and added, "I haven't been any good to anybody for the last 20 years, and I won't be for the next 20 or the 20 after that." (The jury chose the death penalty.) [Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3-12-08]
Does This Trump The Horses Head In The Godfather?
Jason Fife was sentenced to probation and community service after harassing his estranged wife's boyfriend with a special package delivery. Fife, said his lawyer, now "understands that in a civilized society, a person cannot send (someone) a severed cow's head ...." [Pottstown Mercury, 1-8-08]
Flirting 101
In October, the government of Singapore, anxious about the city's declining birth rate, began teaching its high school polytechnic students in formal courses on how to flirt. Said Isabel, 18: "My teacher said if a guy looks into my eyes for more than five seconds, it could mean that he is attracted to me, and I stand a chance," according to a March Reuters dispatch. The course includes "love song analysis" and how to chat online. [Reuters, 3-20-08]
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