A priest and a rabbi were sitting next to each other on an airplane.
After a while, the priest turned to the rabbi and asked, “Is it still a requirement of your faith that you not eat pork?”
The rabbi responded, “Yes, that is still one of our laws.”
The priest then asked, “Have you ever eaten pork?”
To which the rabbi replied, “Yes, on one occasion I did succumb to temptation and tasted a ham sandwich.”
The priest nodded in understanding and went on with his reading.
A while later, the rabbi spoke up and asked the priest, “Father, is it still a requirement of your church that you remain celibate?”
The priest replied, “Yes, that is still very much a part of our faith”
The rabbi then asked him, “Father, have you ever fallen to the temptations of the flesh?”
The priest replied, “Yes, rabbi, on one occasion I was weak and broke my Faith.”
The rabbi nodded understandingly and remained silent, and sat thinking, for about five minutes.
Finally, the rabbi said, “Beats the shit out of a ham sandwich, doesn't it?”
Friday, February 27, 2015
Thursday, February 26, 2015
WHO AND WHAT TO TRUST MORE THAN PRESIDENT OBAMA
“If you like your doctor and your health plan, you can keep your doctor and your plan.” – President Obama
Mexican tap water
A porcupine with a "'pet me" sign
An elevator ride with Ray Rice
Taking pills offered by Bill Cosby
A Bigfoot sighting
A Palestinian on a motorcycle
A Hillary Clinton war story
Gas station sushi
Charlie Manson
Jimmy Carter
Bernard Madoff
Brian Williams news reports
Pete Carroll coaching decisions
Eddie Ray Routh
Loch Ness monster sightings
Iran’s word about enriching uranium for peaceful purposes only
Bill Clinton saying “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”
Mexican tap water
A porcupine with a "'pet me" sign
An elevator ride with Ray Rice
Taking pills offered by Bill Cosby
A Bigfoot sighting
A Palestinian on a motorcycle
A Hillary Clinton war story
Gas station sushi
Charlie Manson
Jimmy Carter
Bernard Madoff
Brian Williams news reports
Pete Carroll coaching decisions
Eddie Ray Routh
Loch Ness monster sightings
Iran’s word about enriching uranium for peaceful purposes only
Bill Clinton saying “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”
Sunday, February 22, 2015
HOUSTON NUMERO UNO!
The Bayou City leads the nation in bank robberies and armored car robberies
BarkGrowlBite | February 22, 2015
My pal Bob Walsh seems to take great pride in his hometown’s homicide rate. While Stockton may rank high in the number of murders, it can’t hold a candle against my hometown in other crime areas.
The FBI notes that Houston leads the nation in bank robberies and armored car robberies. And while Stockton may beat us in homicides per 100,000 people, Houston probably has more murders in one day than Bob’s hometown has in a month.
Texas proud and Houston proud! Bob, eat your heart out.
BarkGrowlBite | February 22, 2015
My pal Bob Walsh seems to take great pride in his hometown’s homicide rate. While Stockton may rank high in the number of murders, it can’t hold a candle against my hometown in other crime areas.
The FBI notes that Houston leads the nation in bank robberies and armored car robberies. And while Stockton may beat us in homicides per 100,000 people, Houston probably has more murders in one day than Bob’s hometown has in a month.
Texas proud and Houston proud! Bob, eat your heart out.
Saturday, February 21, 2015
CRAIGLIST BUYING AT THE FULSHEAR COP SHOP
A small Texas police department provides a safe place for Craiglist shoppers
BarkGrowlBite | February 21, 2015
Shopping on Craiglist and similar social media websites can be a risky business. Not only can you get ripped off while buying or selling on Craiglist, but you are literally risking your life dealing with strangers. Crooks are using the sites to prey on innocent victims. Last month, a Georgia couple was murdered after they drove to a secluded area to buy a vintage car listed on Craigslist. Last year a Houston man thought he was buying a Sony PlayStation when he was robbed and shot to death. Craiglist shoppers throughout the country have been ripped off, robbed and assaulted.
Fulshear, Texas is a small city just west Houston. Its police department is now providing Craiglist buyers and sellers a safe place to conduct their transactions. They are being encouraged to meet in the police station’s parking lot or inside the cop shop’s lobby if they prefer.
Fulshear Police Chief Kenny Seymour says, “You are dealing with the unknown you are meeting people for the first time you don't know, generally these involve cash transactions, the criminal knows that and is where he is taking advantage of these individuals.”
The parking lot is covered by eight surveillance cameras. Those cameras would discourage a crook from attempting to rob his intended victim.
Chief Seymour said his officers will also check to see if any items being bought or sold are stolen. "Just to ensure that everything is kosher with these transactions, we are willing to take the items if they have identification numbers to make sure they are not stolen.”
What a great idea! By providing its parking lot or police station lobby as safe transaction places, the Fulshear Police Department has put real meaning in the police motto: To Protect and To Serve.
BarkGrowlBite | February 21, 2015
Shopping on Craiglist and similar social media websites can be a risky business. Not only can you get ripped off while buying or selling on Craiglist, but you are literally risking your life dealing with strangers. Crooks are using the sites to prey on innocent victims. Last month, a Georgia couple was murdered after they drove to a secluded area to buy a vintage car listed on Craigslist. Last year a Houston man thought he was buying a Sony PlayStation when he was robbed and shot to death. Craiglist shoppers throughout the country have been ripped off, robbed and assaulted.
Fulshear, Texas is a small city just west Houston. Its police department is now providing Craiglist buyers and sellers a safe place to conduct their transactions. They are being encouraged to meet in the police station’s parking lot or inside the cop shop’s lobby if they prefer.
Fulshear Police Chief Kenny Seymour says, “You are dealing with the unknown you are meeting people for the first time you don't know, generally these involve cash transactions, the criminal knows that and is where he is taking advantage of these individuals.”
The parking lot is covered by eight surveillance cameras. Those cameras would discourage a crook from attempting to rob his intended victim.
Chief Seymour said his officers will also check to see if any items being bought or sold are stolen. "Just to ensure that everything is kosher with these transactions, we are willing to take the items if they have identification numbers to make sure they are not stolen.”
What a great idea! By providing its parking lot or police station lobby as safe transaction places, the Fulshear Police Department has put real meaning in the police motto: To Protect and To Serve.
Friday, February 20, 2015
CHRISTOPHER LEE WILLIS FLUNKED BURGLARY 101
After being chased out of a second floor window in a neighboring house, Chris tries another house only to meet a widow with a blazing gun
BarkGrowlBite | February 20, 2015
Christopher Lee Willis, 28, was not a very good burglar. He was a noisy burglar. He is now a dead burglar.
Chris was burglarizing homes in a Columbus, Ohio neighborhood during the early hours of Thursday morning. Instead of being quiet, Chris made a lot of noise by breaking windows to gain entry. Around 5 a.m. he got caught in one house where the occupants chased him out a second floor window. Undaunted, he picked himself up and smashed the window of a neighboring house, climbed in and … bang, bang, bang, bang … his body looked like Swiss cheese.
The house Chris broke into was occupied by a widow. Last week, her son had bought her a gun because he feared for his mother’s safety, living alone in a crime-infested Columbus neighborhood.
When the widow heard the window being smashed, she grabbed the gun, spotted ‘ole Chris inside her house and with the gun blazing away, perforated his body multiple times. The hapless burglar died in a hospital two hours later.
Chris not only flunked Burglary 101, but in his case the saying should go: If at first you don’t succeed … don’t try again!
BarkGrowlBite | February 20, 2015
Christopher Lee Willis, 28, was not a very good burglar. He was a noisy burglar. He is now a dead burglar.
Chris was burglarizing homes in a Columbus, Ohio neighborhood during the early hours of Thursday morning. Instead of being quiet, Chris made a lot of noise by breaking windows to gain entry. Around 5 a.m. he got caught in one house where the occupants chased him out a second floor window. Undaunted, he picked himself up and smashed the window of a neighboring house, climbed in and … bang, bang, bang, bang … his body looked like Swiss cheese.
The house Chris broke into was occupied by a widow. Last week, her son had bought her a gun because he feared for his mother’s safety, living alone in a crime-infested Columbus neighborhood.
When the widow heard the window being smashed, she grabbed the gun, spotted ‘ole Chris inside her house and with the gun blazing away, perforated his body multiple times. The hapless burglar died in a hospital two hours later.
Chris not only flunked Burglary 101, but in his case the saying should go: If at first you don’t succeed … don’t try again!
Thursday, February 19, 2015
BRA-HOLSTER MALFUNCTIONS
Pistol-packing momma shoots herself dead while adjusting her bra-holster
BarkGrowlBite | February 19, 2015
Reports are just now coming to light that on New Year’s Day a St. Joseph, Michigan woman accidentally shot herself to death while adjusting her bra-holster. Christina Bond, 55, was repositioning a handgun inside her brassiere when it accidentally discharged. She was looking down at the hardware when the errand round struck her in the eye.
St. Joseph Public Safety Director Mark Clapp said, "She was having trouble adjusting her bra holster, couldn't get it to fit the way she wanted it to. She was looking down at it and accidentally discharged the weapon.”
Christina, a Navy veteran who served as a shore patrol officer, was taken to Lakeland Hospital, then airlifted to Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo where she expired the next day.
Bond had recently been elected as a Republican precinct judge. You could say that her term in office was rather short-lived due to a malfunctioning bra-holster.
Apparently bra-holsters are becoming popular with well-endowed women. However, they rank at the very bottom on my list of handgun holsters. They are absolutely useless in quick-draw situations and are obviously dangerous to women as well. My expertise in this area may be somewhat questionable since my boobs are not big enough to conceal a firearm.
BarkGrowlBite | February 19, 2015
Reports are just now coming to light that on New Year’s Day a St. Joseph, Michigan woman accidentally shot herself to death while adjusting her bra-holster. Christina Bond, 55, was repositioning a handgun inside her brassiere when it accidentally discharged. She was looking down at the hardware when the errand round struck her in the eye.
St. Joseph Public Safety Director Mark Clapp said, "She was having trouble adjusting her bra holster, couldn't get it to fit the way she wanted it to. She was looking down at it and accidentally discharged the weapon.”
Christina, a Navy veteran who served as a shore patrol officer, was taken to Lakeland Hospital, then airlifted to Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo where she expired the next day.
Bond had recently been elected as a Republican precinct judge. You could say that her term in office was rather short-lived due to a malfunctioning bra-holster.
Apparently bra-holsters are becoming popular with well-endowed women. However, they rank at the very bottom on my list of handgun holsters. They are absolutely useless in quick-draw situations and are obviously dangerous to women as well. My expertise in this area may be somewhat questionable since my boobs are not big enough to conceal a firearm.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
HARRY SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT SOME NEW UNDERWEAR BEFORE HE WENT TO SEE THE DOCTOR
The doctor said, "Harry, the good news is I can cure your headaches. The bad news is that it will require castration. You have a very rare condition, which causes your testicles to press on your spine and the pressure creates one hell of a headache. The only way to relieve the pressure is to remove the testicles."
I was shocked and depressed. I wondered if I had anything to live for. I had no choice but to go under the knife. When I left the hospital, I was without a headache for the first time in 20 years, but I felt like I was missing an important part of m yself. As I walked down the street, I realized that I felt like a different person. I could make a new beginning and live a new life.
I saw a men's clothing store and thought, that's what I need... A new suit... I entered the shop and told the salesman, "I'd like a new suit."
The elderly tailor eyed me briefly and said, "Let's see... Size 44 long."
I laughed, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years!" the tailor said.
I tried on the suit it fit perfectly.
As I admired myself in the mirror, the salesman asked, "How about a new shirt?"
I thought for a moment, and then said, "Sure."
The salesman eyed me and said, "Let's see, 34 sleeves and 16-1/2 neck."
I was surprised, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years."
I tried on the shirt and it fit perfectly.
I walked comfortably around the shop and the salesman asked, "How about some new underwear?"
I thought for a moment, and said, "Sure."
The salesman said, "Let's see... Size 36.
I laughed, "Ah ha! I got you! I've worn a size 34 since I was 18 years old."
The salesman shook his head, "You can't wear a size 34. A size 34 would press your testicles up against the base of your spine and give you one hell of a headache."
I was shocked and depressed. I wondered if I had anything to live for. I had no choice but to go under the knife. When I left the hospital, I was without a headache for the first time in 20 years, but I felt like I was missing an important part of m yself. As I walked down the street, I realized that I felt like a different person. I could make a new beginning and live a new life.
I saw a men's clothing store and thought, that's what I need... A new suit... I entered the shop and told the salesman, "I'd like a new suit."
The elderly tailor eyed me briefly and said, "Let's see... Size 44 long."
I laughed, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years!" the tailor said.
I tried on the suit it fit perfectly.
As I admired myself in the mirror, the salesman asked, "How about a new shirt?"
I thought for a moment, and then said, "Sure."
The salesman eyed me and said, "Let's see, 34 sleeves and 16-1/2 neck."
I was surprised, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years."
I tried on the shirt and it fit perfectly.
I walked comfortably around the shop and the salesman asked, "How about some new underwear?"
I thought for a moment, and said, "Sure."
The salesman said, "Let's see... Size 36.
I laughed, "Ah ha! I got you! I've worn a size 34 since I was 18 years old."
The salesman shook his head, "You can't wear a size 34. A size 34 would press your testicles up against the base of your spine and give you one hell of a headache."
NEWSFLASH: PRISONS ARE UNPLEASANT PLACES
Because of Moonbeam’s realignment program, California’s prisons are now housing “real bad guys”
By Bob Walsh | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 16, 2015
The Associated Press and the San Francisco Chronicle have jointly announced a remarkable “fact”: Prisons are unpleasant places, they are just full of nasty, violent, unpleasant people, and it is all Jerry Brown’s fault.
The article asserts that, over a recent two-year period, the prisoner-on-prisoner homicide rate in the California system was about 15 per 100,000 per year, which is alleged to be more than twice the national average for such things. It is further alleged that sex offenders bear a proportionally large amount of this violence. It is almost as though people, even other prisoners, don’t like baby rapists.
A large part of the problem in California is alleged to be caused by Moonbeam’s realignment program. The prisons are now focused on housing “real bad guys” instead of pot smokers and hubcap thieves. This program has remarkably led in an increasing proportion of violent prisoners serving long prison terms. (Gee, who could possibly have foreseen that happening???)
Perhaps we should switch directions and lock up retired Sunday school teachers and accountants and let all of the dangerous prisoners out. Then the inside of the prison will be very, very safe indeed. On the streets, not so much, but that’s OK as long as prisons are safe. Problem solved!!!!!!!
By Bob Walsh | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 16, 2015
The Associated Press and the San Francisco Chronicle have jointly announced a remarkable “fact”: Prisons are unpleasant places, they are just full of nasty, violent, unpleasant people, and it is all Jerry Brown’s fault.
The article asserts that, over a recent two-year period, the prisoner-on-prisoner homicide rate in the California system was about 15 per 100,000 per year, which is alleged to be more than twice the national average for such things. It is further alleged that sex offenders bear a proportionally large amount of this violence. It is almost as though people, even other prisoners, don’t like baby rapists.
A large part of the problem in California is alleged to be caused by Moonbeam’s realignment program. The prisons are now focused on housing “real bad guys” instead of pot smokers and hubcap thieves. This program has remarkably led in an increasing proportion of violent prisoners serving long prison terms. (Gee, who could possibly have foreseen that happening???)
Perhaps we should switch directions and lock up retired Sunday school teachers and accountants and let all of the dangerous prisoners out. Then the inside of the prison will be very, very safe indeed. On the streets, not so much, but that’s OK as long as prisons are safe. Problem solved!!!!!!!
IT DOES NOT PAY TO PISS OFF YOUR CELLIE IF HE IS DOING LIFE ALREADY
By Bob Walsh | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 4, 2015
Yesterday morning inmate Roberto Baldizon, 35, was found in his cell in the maximum security area of California State Prison-Sacramento with several extra holes in his body, apparently installed with an inmate manufactured stabbing weapon, which was found at the scene. Baldizon was pronounced dead at 1027, approximately 1/2 hour after being discovered.
Baldizon’s cellie, Antolin Cepeda, 37, is believed to be the hole installer.
Baldizon has been down for not quite 2 years, doing 12 years out of LA for assault with a deadly weapon. Cepeda is also out of LA doing life for Murder 1. It does not pay to piss off your cellie if he is doing life already.
Yesterday morning inmate Roberto Baldizon, 35, was found in his cell in the maximum security area of California State Prison-Sacramento with several extra holes in his body, apparently installed with an inmate manufactured stabbing weapon, which was found at the scene. Baldizon was pronounced dead at 1027, approximately 1/2 hour after being discovered.
Baldizon’s cellie, Antolin Cepeda, 37, is believed to be the hole installer.
Baldizon has been down for not quite 2 years, doing 12 years out of LA for assault with a deadly weapon. Cepeda is also out of LA doing life for Murder 1. It does not pay to piss off your cellie if he is doing life already.
Monday, February 16, 2015
CHANGING THE MEANING OF THINGS
Little League International Cleans House in Chicago
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 16, 2015
This past week Chicago-style politics changed the meaning of things to a particular segment of our society: the little league baseball community. When I was a kid, playing little league gave boys from all walks of life a chance to play a team sport. Coaches, parent-volunteers who loved the game of baseball, were our role-models and mentors. Boys in little league learned the valuable life lessons of teamwork, fair play, sportsmanship, and following rules, while developing and practicing athletic skills needed to compete against our peers.
Cheating was never a part of the game. You could get benched for rules violations and poor sportsmanship, but cheating got you thrown out of the game and kicked off the team, if you were caught.
According to an article posted on February 11, 2015, playing by the rules was apparently not as important as winning for the Jackie Robinson West little league team of Chicago, Illinois. This team of boys (ranging in age from 11 to 13) was the darling of the media for several weeks in 2014, as they battled their way to the championship game against South Korea before losing in the Little League World Series.
Little League International was forced to strip the Jackie Robinson West team of all its titles won during the 2014 season. Why?
The League says the Jackie Robinson West organization cheated. The all-Black Chicago team was illegally stacked with ineligible players.
Little League International has stripped Jackie Robinson West of the national title that the Chicago team won last summer after an investigation revealed it had falsified boundaries to field ineligible players. (read the full story at http://tinyurl.com/oylfbjr.)
This scandal is disgraceful on so many levels. And though the article does not fathom the impact beyond the actions of Little League International’s decision to strip the team of its titles and clean house with Jackie Robinson West, it would appear that doing things the Chicago-way (a political reference) has corrupted an entire organization and a particular segment of a Chicago community.
Could it be anymore embarrassing and hurtful for a time-honored youth sports program to be corrupted by win-at-all-costs politics?
And what could be more of a poke-in-the-eye to the Black community? Really? Based on the implications of this scandal, it might suggest that an all-Black team in Chicago cannot succeed at baseball without an enhanced advantage (i.e., a stacked team.) Who in the Jackie Robinson West organization forgot the rules?
Who among the organizers, coaches, parents, and players did not remember the history of the man who their organization was named after? Did anyone bother to remind those little league players what a “color barrier” was back when Jackie broke it for them? (Here is a link to the official Jackie Robinson website to remind them (http://www.jackierobinson.com/.)
Where is the outcry from the Black community over this disgraceful debacle? This is not about skin color—it is about the content of their character.
Perhaps it is more fashionable for the press to give scant coverage to this story because it is President Obama’s hometown. Where are the talking heads bemoaning the tragic outcome for Black children, for the sport of baseball, for the impact cheating has on young people in general? There is no vilification of the folks responsible for perpetrating this deception. Instead, they have a lawyer now and are not speaking to the press.
Ah! They live in Chicago—forget about it!
Riders, think about every team that was beaten by the illegally-stacked Jackie Robinson West team in 2014. Teams that played by the rules, followed guidelines, invested lots of money to play and travel (in order to compete), and lost to the team that was cheating from the outset. There were local, regional, national, and international teams who were unfairly eliminated by this Chicago team and its organization. Thousands of kids and families were affected during the 2014 season by the unscrupulous deception of this Jackie Robinson West team.
And how does this scandal reflect upon American sportsmanship internationally? Heck, it’s just a game. Well, I ask you, is it? Is it really? We expect this kind of scandal from a third-world country that stacks a team with short, hairy thirty-five-year old pitchers and falsified birth certificates. But not America!
Baseball is America’s game. Now our national past time has been marred by a scandal involving middle-schoolers and Chicago-style politics. Can’t we even get the game of baseball right?
To make matters worse, the players and their parents had to know they were cheating. Boundaries are boundaries. Everyone knows where they live and what schools they can or cannot attend based on boundaries. This is not rocket-science.
According to the Fox News article, others in the community assisted them in carrying out this deception. When corruption spreads, it taints everything around it. But hey! It’s Chicago, right? That’s how they play in Chicago politics. Why not little league baseball?
I cannot help but think that poor role-modeling had something to do with this on a grander scale. Who in politics might have indirectly influenced the Jackie Robinson West organization to double-down and cheat?
Nah….Enjoy your President’s Day.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The team the Chicago Crooks beat for the U.S. championship was a team from the Pearland suburb of Houston which played by the rules. Unfortunately, those Pearland boys never got the chance to face South Korea because of all the ringers they had to face.
And what’s worse is that the ‘community’, the White House and the media are standing solidly behind the Chicago Crooks, claiming the boys were victimized by their coaches and parents. Sorry, but I don’t buy that. Those boys were old enough to know that a bunch of ringers had been thrown into their midst. Much was made of the fact that all these players came from the poorest black section of Chicago and how wonderful it was how these disadvantaged boys managed to to scratch and claw their way to the U.S. championship. I guarantee you that had Pearland been caught cheating, the White House and the media would have dropped those middle class boys in the grease.
Greg is right about Jackie Robinson. He endured some of the sorriest abuse imaginable and he took it with dignity as he beat the socks off his white tormentors among the ballplayers, while ignoring the racist taunts of the fans. In the history of American sports, Jackie Robinson ranks right up there wit MLK.
The cheating by the Chicago Crooks shows that the ‘community’ really never learned anything from either Martin Luther King, Jr. or Jackie Robinson. Neither of these two honorable leaders ever advocated that the end justifies the means. It would appear that the ‘community’ prefers to tiptoe in the muddy footprints of Al Sharpton, rather than adhere to what MLK preached.
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 16, 2015
This past week Chicago-style politics changed the meaning of things to a particular segment of our society: the little league baseball community. When I was a kid, playing little league gave boys from all walks of life a chance to play a team sport. Coaches, parent-volunteers who loved the game of baseball, were our role-models and mentors. Boys in little league learned the valuable life lessons of teamwork, fair play, sportsmanship, and following rules, while developing and practicing athletic skills needed to compete against our peers.
Cheating was never a part of the game. You could get benched for rules violations and poor sportsmanship, but cheating got you thrown out of the game and kicked off the team, if you were caught.
According to an article posted on February 11, 2015, playing by the rules was apparently not as important as winning for the Jackie Robinson West little league team of Chicago, Illinois. This team of boys (ranging in age from 11 to 13) was the darling of the media for several weeks in 2014, as they battled their way to the championship game against South Korea before losing in the Little League World Series.
Little League International was forced to strip the Jackie Robinson West team of all its titles won during the 2014 season. Why?
The League says the Jackie Robinson West organization cheated. The all-Black Chicago team was illegally stacked with ineligible players.
Little League International has stripped Jackie Robinson West of the national title that the Chicago team won last summer after an investigation revealed it had falsified boundaries to field ineligible players. (read the full story at http://tinyurl.com/oylfbjr.)
This scandal is disgraceful on so many levels. And though the article does not fathom the impact beyond the actions of Little League International’s decision to strip the team of its titles and clean house with Jackie Robinson West, it would appear that doing things the Chicago-way (a political reference) has corrupted an entire organization and a particular segment of a Chicago community.
Could it be anymore embarrassing and hurtful for a time-honored youth sports program to be corrupted by win-at-all-costs politics?
And what could be more of a poke-in-the-eye to the Black community? Really? Based on the implications of this scandal, it might suggest that an all-Black team in Chicago cannot succeed at baseball without an enhanced advantage (i.e., a stacked team.) Who in the Jackie Robinson West organization forgot the rules?
Who among the organizers, coaches, parents, and players did not remember the history of the man who their organization was named after? Did anyone bother to remind those little league players what a “color barrier” was back when Jackie broke it for them? (Here is a link to the official Jackie Robinson website to remind them (http://www.jackierobinson.com/.)
Where is the outcry from the Black community over this disgraceful debacle? This is not about skin color—it is about the content of their character.
Perhaps it is more fashionable for the press to give scant coverage to this story because it is President Obama’s hometown. Where are the talking heads bemoaning the tragic outcome for Black children, for the sport of baseball, for the impact cheating has on young people in general? There is no vilification of the folks responsible for perpetrating this deception. Instead, they have a lawyer now and are not speaking to the press.
Ah! They live in Chicago—forget about it!
Riders, think about every team that was beaten by the illegally-stacked Jackie Robinson West team in 2014. Teams that played by the rules, followed guidelines, invested lots of money to play and travel (in order to compete), and lost to the team that was cheating from the outset. There were local, regional, national, and international teams who were unfairly eliminated by this Chicago team and its organization. Thousands of kids and families were affected during the 2014 season by the unscrupulous deception of this Jackie Robinson West team.
And how does this scandal reflect upon American sportsmanship internationally? Heck, it’s just a game. Well, I ask you, is it? Is it really? We expect this kind of scandal from a third-world country that stacks a team with short, hairy thirty-five-year old pitchers and falsified birth certificates. But not America!
Baseball is America’s game. Now our national past time has been marred by a scandal involving middle-schoolers and Chicago-style politics. Can’t we even get the game of baseball right?
To make matters worse, the players and their parents had to know they were cheating. Boundaries are boundaries. Everyone knows where they live and what schools they can or cannot attend based on boundaries. This is not rocket-science.
According to the Fox News article, others in the community assisted them in carrying out this deception. When corruption spreads, it taints everything around it. But hey! It’s Chicago, right? That’s how they play in Chicago politics. Why not little league baseball?
I cannot help but think that poor role-modeling had something to do with this on a grander scale. Who in politics might have indirectly influenced the Jackie Robinson West organization to double-down and cheat?
Nah….Enjoy your President’s Day.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The team the Chicago Crooks beat for the U.S. championship was a team from the Pearland suburb of Houston which played by the rules. Unfortunately, those Pearland boys never got the chance to face South Korea because of all the ringers they had to face.
And what’s worse is that the ‘community’, the White House and the media are standing solidly behind the Chicago Crooks, claiming the boys were victimized by their coaches and parents. Sorry, but I don’t buy that. Those boys were old enough to know that a bunch of ringers had been thrown into their midst. Much was made of the fact that all these players came from the poorest black section of Chicago and how wonderful it was how these disadvantaged boys managed to to scratch and claw their way to the U.S. championship. I guarantee you that had Pearland been caught cheating, the White House and the media would have dropped those middle class boys in the grease.
Greg is right about Jackie Robinson. He endured some of the sorriest abuse imaginable and he took it with dignity as he beat the socks off his white tormentors among the ballplayers, while ignoring the racist taunts of the fans. In the history of American sports, Jackie Robinson ranks right up there wit MLK.
The cheating by the Chicago Crooks shows that the ‘community’ really never learned anything from either Martin Luther King, Jr. or Jackie Robinson. Neither of these two honorable leaders ever advocated that the end justifies the means. It would appear that the ‘community’ prefers to tiptoe in the muddy footprints of Al Sharpton, rather than adhere to what MLK preached.
Sunday, February 15, 2015
DAMN THOSE ALABAMA STATE TROOPERS AND SHERIFF JIM CLARK
If Congressman John Lewis is right, ‘Bloody Sunday’ saddled us with Barack Obama
BaekGrowlBite | February 15, 2015
On March 7, 1965, more than 500 unarmed black voting rights marchers led by John Lewis and Rev. Hosea Williams set out from Selma for the state capitol at Montgomery, Alabama. Gov. George Wallace had denounced the planned march. Dallas County Sheriff Jim Clark deputized all the county’s white men 21 and older into a posse to help state troopers stop the march. After the marchers left Selma and crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge on U.S. 80, the black men, women and children were attacked by club-swinging state troopers on foot and on horseback. What followed has come to be known as ‘Bloody Sunday.’
Appearing on Sunday’s CBS Face The Nation, Congressman John Lewis told host Bob Schieffer:
"If it hadn't been for that march across Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday, there would be no Barack Obama as president of the United States of America."
Damn those Alabama state troopers and Sheriff Jim Clark!
BaekGrowlBite | February 15, 2015
On March 7, 1965, more than 500 unarmed black voting rights marchers led by John Lewis and Rev. Hosea Williams set out from Selma for the state capitol at Montgomery, Alabama. Gov. George Wallace had denounced the planned march. Dallas County Sheriff Jim Clark deputized all the county’s white men 21 and older into a posse to help state troopers stop the march. After the marchers left Selma and crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge on U.S. 80, the black men, women and children were attacked by club-swinging state troopers on foot and on horseback. What followed has come to be known as ‘Bloody Sunday.’
Appearing on Sunday’s CBS Face The Nation, Congressman John Lewis told host Bob Schieffer:
"If it hadn't been for that march across Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday, there would be no Barack Obama as president of the United States of America."
Damn those Alabama state troopers and Sheriff Jim Clark!
MALICIOUS INTERNET MISCHIEF: THE PRESIDENT WE LOV TO HATE
I've concluded that 95 per cent of the negative stuff on the internet about Obama and his inner circle is either an outright lie or a gross distortion of the truth
BarkGrowlBite | February 15, 2015
[Valerie] Jarrett is one of the most powerful presidential advisers in history. No wonder Obama leans toward the Islamists. READ VALERIE JARRETT'S WORDS BELOW CAREFULLY. IF YOU'RE NOT SCARED, YOU'RE IN DENIAL.
"I am an Iranian by birth and of my Islamic faith. I am also an American Citizen and I seek to help change America to be a more Islamic country. My faith guides me and I feel like it is going well in the transition of using freedom of religion in America against itself." - Valerie Jarrett, Stanford University 1977
Farsi-speaking Valerie Jarrett , the senior advisor to Obama, his right-hand woman was born in Iran . She also has ties with terrorist William Ayers, and her father-in-law, Vernon Jarrett is a card-carrying communist party member and associate of Frank Marshall Davis, the controversial Communist Party activist who was Obama's childhood mentor. While a student at Stanford University , Jarrett admitted her loyalty to Islam and continues to object to any negative statements aimed at any part of her "religion of peace."
I have received countless emails, the latest example of which is above, about President Obama and his traitorous inner circle that are designed to scare the supreme shit out of me into believing that Obama and his advisors are turning America into a communist country under Sharia law.
As much as I dislike Obama, I've concluded that 95 per cent of the negative stuff on the internet about Obama and his inner circle is either an outright lie or a gross distortion of the truth.
Here is what Snopes had to say about the accusations against Valerie Jarrett:
Contrary to common rumor, however, neither Jarrett nor her parents are Iranian, nor (as far as well can tell) are any of them Muslim. Jarrett's parents, James E. Bowman and Barbara Taylor Bowman, were both American-born U.S. citizens from Washington, D.C. and Chicago, respectively; the couple merely lived in Iran for about six years in the late 1950s and early 1960s while James served as chair of pathology at Nemazee Hospital in Shiraz as part of a program that sent American physicians to work in developing countries.
Valerie was born in Shiraz during the Jarretts' sojourn in Iran; she returned to the U.S. with her parents in 1962 (when she was five years old), whereupon she attended prep school in Massachusetts, graduated with a B.A. in psychology from Stanford University in 1978, and earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1981 before returning to Chicago to begin her working career. We've found no evidence Valerie Jarrett is (or ever was) Muslim, her only apparent connection to that religion being the incidental one that she temporarily lived in a predominantly Muslim country with her American parents for the first few years of her life.
The quote to attributed "Valerie Jarrett, Stanford University, 1977" about her "seek[ing] to help change America to be a more Islamic country" is an unfounded one that has no source other than recent repetition (primarily on right-wing web sites and blogs) and that in its commonly reproduced form is too stilted to be believable as the utterance of a fluent English speaker (e.g., "I am an Iranian by birth and of [sic] my Islamic faith"). No news article or document associated with Stanford University records Jarrett as having made this statement back in 1977; and if there were any credible evidence Jarrett had ever said anything remotely like this, it would have been a well-covered news story since shortly after the 2008 presidential election and not a obscure meme that didn't pop up until several years later.
Ever since Obama was first elected President, I have received a steady stream of one or more emails per week about Obama and his fellow conspiracists that are simply false or a gross distortion of the truth.
Of course, these false emails are preaching to the choir of those who dislike or hate Obama. Many of those folks readily eat all that shit up. Whatever its purpose, that malicious internet mischief hasn't worked. We're still stuck with the president we love to hate.
By the way, look for the same internet barrage of falsehoods about Hillary during her terms as president. If the Republicans keep harping on abortion, contraception and immigration, they will drive away the women’s and Hispanic voting blocks, thereby handing the presidency to Hillary on a silver platter.
BarkGrowlBite | February 15, 2015
[Valerie] Jarrett is one of the most powerful presidential advisers in history. No wonder Obama leans toward the Islamists. READ VALERIE JARRETT'S WORDS BELOW CAREFULLY. IF YOU'RE NOT SCARED, YOU'RE IN DENIAL.
"I am an Iranian by birth and of my Islamic faith. I am also an American Citizen and I seek to help change America to be a more Islamic country. My faith guides me and I feel like it is going well in the transition of using freedom of religion in America against itself." - Valerie Jarrett, Stanford University 1977
Farsi-speaking Valerie Jarrett , the senior advisor to Obama, his right-hand woman was born in Iran . She also has ties with terrorist William Ayers, and her father-in-law, Vernon Jarrett is a card-carrying communist party member and associate of Frank Marshall Davis, the controversial Communist Party activist who was Obama's childhood mentor. While a student at Stanford University , Jarrett admitted her loyalty to Islam and continues to object to any negative statements aimed at any part of her "religion of peace."
I have received countless emails, the latest example of which is above, about President Obama and his traitorous inner circle that are designed to scare the supreme shit out of me into believing that Obama and his advisors are turning America into a communist country under Sharia law.
As much as I dislike Obama, I've concluded that 95 per cent of the negative stuff on the internet about Obama and his inner circle is either an outright lie or a gross distortion of the truth.
Here is what Snopes had to say about the accusations against Valerie Jarrett:
Contrary to common rumor, however, neither Jarrett nor her parents are Iranian, nor (as far as well can tell) are any of them Muslim. Jarrett's parents, James E. Bowman and Barbara Taylor Bowman, were both American-born U.S. citizens from Washington, D.C. and Chicago, respectively; the couple merely lived in Iran for about six years in the late 1950s and early 1960s while James served as chair of pathology at Nemazee Hospital in Shiraz as part of a program that sent American physicians to work in developing countries.
Valerie was born in Shiraz during the Jarretts' sojourn in Iran; she returned to the U.S. with her parents in 1962 (when she was five years old), whereupon she attended prep school in Massachusetts, graduated with a B.A. in psychology from Stanford University in 1978, and earned a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1981 before returning to Chicago to begin her working career. We've found no evidence Valerie Jarrett is (or ever was) Muslim, her only apparent connection to that religion being the incidental one that she temporarily lived in a predominantly Muslim country with her American parents for the first few years of her life.
The quote to attributed "Valerie Jarrett, Stanford University, 1977" about her "seek[ing] to help change America to be a more Islamic country" is an unfounded one that has no source other than recent repetition (primarily on right-wing web sites and blogs) and that in its commonly reproduced form is too stilted to be believable as the utterance of a fluent English speaker (e.g., "I am an Iranian by birth and of [sic] my Islamic faith"). No news article or document associated with Stanford University records Jarrett as having made this statement back in 1977; and if there were any credible evidence Jarrett had ever said anything remotely like this, it would have been a well-covered news story since shortly after the 2008 presidential election and not a obscure meme that didn't pop up until several years later.
Ever since Obama was first elected President, I have received a steady stream of one or more emails per week about Obama and his fellow conspiracists that are simply false or a gross distortion of the truth.
Of course, these false emails are preaching to the choir of those who dislike or hate Obama. Many of those folks readily eat all that shit up. Whatever its purpose, that malicious internet mischief hasn't worked. We're still stuck with the president we love to hate.
By the way, look for the same internet barrage of falsehoods about Hillary during her terms as president. If the Republicans keep harping on abortion, contraception and immigration, they will drive away the women’s and Hispanic voting blocks, thereby handing the presidency to Hillary on a silver platter.
RONNIE MOODY: VIOLENT JERK IS ALSO STUPID
Acting as his own lawyer, Ronnie Moody flunked Introduction to the Bar 101 by calling the judge a fat motherfucker
By Bob Walsh
PACOVILLA Corrections blog
February 13, 2015
Ronnie Moody, 32, is either really stupid or just doesn’t give a damn. It is likely to cost him dearly, and I for one am OK with that.
Moody is s denizen of the City and County of San Francisco. He is under charge for 18 criminal counts including 13 felonies and three traffic violations stemming from an incident that occurred six days ago. These charges include assault with a deadly weapon and assault on a peace officer. He has priors for domestic violence and assault on an officer. He is being held pending a $700,000 bail.
He is acting as his own lawyer. While acting as his lawyer he called the judge, Philip Moscone, a “fat mother-fucker” and made a few further indecent suggestions which probably will not endear him to the local judiciary.
By Bob Walsh
PACOVILLA Corrections blog
February 13, 2015
Ronnie Moody, 32, is either really stupid or just doesn’t give a damn. It is likely to cost him dearly, and I for one am OK with that.
Moody is s denizen of the City and County of San Francisco. He is under charge for 18 criminal counts including 13 felonies and three traffic violations stemming from an incident that occurred six days ago. These charges include assault with a deadly weapon and assault on a peace officer. He has priors for domestic violence and assault on an officer. He is being held pending a $700,000 bail.
He is acting as his own lawyer. While acting as his lawyer he called the judge, Philip Moscone, a “fat mother-fucker” and made a few further indecent suggestions which probably will not endear him to the local judiciary.
Saturday, February 14, 2015
AMERICAN SNIPER SHOT DEAD BY POT HEAD
Eddie Ray Routh and his uncle smoked “strong” pot together shortly before he killed Chris Kyle
BarkGrowlBite | February 14, 2015
Testimony in a Stephenville, Texas courtroom Friday, revealed that Eddie Ray Routh smoked pot shortly before he killed Chris Kyle. Testifying during Routh’s murder trial, his uncle James Watson told a jury that he and his nephew smoked “strong” pot together just before Chris Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield picked Routh up on that fateful trip to a firing range. Watson said the marijuana was strong, and his “buzz” lasted around three hours.
After killing Kyle and Littlefield, Routh contacted Watson and told him “He thought people were out to get him.”
Also on Friday, Belton police officer Gene Cole testified that when he was an Erath County deputy sheriff, he heard Routh say in jail, "I shot them because they wouldn't talk to me. I was just riding in the backseat of the truck, and nobody would talk to me.”
When the police stopped Routh in Kyle’s pickup truck, a cop’s body camera recorded the killer mentioning voodoo, hell and the apocalypse, and saying, "I don't know if I'm going insane."
Routh thought people were out to get him, which is typical of the paranoia experienced by drug users, in this case by a pot head. And his statement that nobody would talk to him was another symptom of paranoia.
Routh’s attorneys claim that PTSD led the former Marine to kill Kyle and Littlefield. I say horseshit to that. His uncle testified that after he and his nephew ended their pot smoking session, he remained high for another three hours. It stands to reason that Routh remained high for a similar period of time, so that he would have been under the influence of marijuana at the time of the killings. And when he mentioned voodoo, hell, the apocalypse, and going insane, those were the ramblings of a man with his mind altered by pot.
The proponents of pot will say that I am full of shit and that marijuana in no way played any part in the killing of the American sniper. I’m probably tilting at windmills in my continuing opposition to the legalization of marijuana, but I am going to take every opportunity to expose the proponents of pot for the liars they are!
And they keep saying that smoking pot is harmless. Yeah, right. And pigs can fly.
BarkGrowlBite | February 14, 2015
Testimony in a Stephenville, Texas courtroom Friday, revealed that Eddie Ray Routh smoked pot shortly before he killed Chris Kyle. Testifying during Routh’s murder trial, his uncle James Watson told a jury that he and his nephew smoked “strong” pot together just before Chris Kyle and his friend Chad Littlefield picked Routh up on that fateful trip to a firing range. Watson said the marijuana was strong, and his “buzz” lasted around three hours.
After killing Kyle and Littlefield, Routh contacted Watson and told him “He thought people were out to get him.”
Also on Friday, Belton police officer Gene Cole testified that when he was an Erath County deputy sheriff, he heard Routh say in jail, "I shot them because they wouldn't talk to me. I was just riding in the backseat of the truck, and nobody would talk to me.”
When the police stopped Routh in Kyle’s pickup truck, a cop’s body camera recorded the killer mentioning voodoo, hell and the apocalypse, and saying, "I don't know if I'm going insane."
Routh thought people were out to get him, which is typical of the paranoia experienced by drug users, in this case by a pot head. And his statement that nobody would talk to him was another symptom of paranoia.
Routh’s attorneys claim that PTSD led the former Marine to kill Kyle and Littlefield. I say horseshit to that. His uncle testified that after he and his nephew ended their pot smoking session, he remained high for another three hours. It stands to reason that Routh remained high for a similar period of time, so that he would have been under the influence of marijuana at the time of the killings. And when he mentioned voodoo, hell, the apocalypse, and going insane, those were the ramblings of a man with his mind altered by pot.
The proponents of pot will say that I am full of shit and that marijuana in no way played any part in the killing of the American sniper. I’m probably tilting at windmills in my continuing opposition to the legalization of marijuana, but I am going to take every opportunity to expose the proponents of pot for the liars they are!
And they keep saying that smoking pot is harmless. Yeah, right. And pigs can fly.
MO TRIAL AND ERROR
Procedural Trial Errors in Missouri Execution Case - 25 Years Later Storey Ends
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 13, 2015
According to an Associated Press article featured by Fox News, a thrice-condemned Missouri inmate has finally been executed a quarter of a century after the commission of his crime.
Walter Timothy Storey exhausted his final opportunity to gain yet another delay through a Supreme Court appeal over lethal injection concerns. The Court refused to hear his case allowing final judgment to proceed. Hence Mr. Storey’s long-delayed appointment with death and the rule of law finally met at the intersection of Reckoning and Justice.
The story of Walter Storey is not overshadowed by questionable witnesses, lack of DNA evidence, or any possibility that he had been framed by someone else. In fact, there was only one witness to his crime—his murder victim, 36-year-old Jill Frey—who lived next door.
As the story goes, Walter was unhappy over a pending divorce and had been staying at his mother’s house. He began drinking heavily on the night of February 2, 1990. As fate would have it, Walter ran out of beer, and needed more in order to further enhance his own defilement. However, he had no money for more beer.
Next door, neighbor Jill Frey had left the sliding glass door on her balcony open. Walter climbed onto the balcony and attacked Frey in her bedroom. He beat her so savagely that the coroner’s report revealed she suffered six broken ribs and severe wounds to her head and face. Imagine the terror and suffering Jill experienced in that attack inside her own home.
But the Storey was not finished. He went to her kitchen, grabbed a knife, and proceeded to slice Jill’s throat all the way back to her spine, nearly decapitating her. She stopped breathing and bled out immediately.
The following day, Walter returned to the scene of his crime. He tried to erase all traces of evidence of his presence by wiping down the crime scene and disposing of evidence. However, Walter missed one bloody palm print on a dresser. And, because he had been arrested previously, investigators were able to link Mr. Storey to the murder.
Picture this irrefutable evidence: the proximity of suspect to victim (next-door neighbors), victim’s blood on his hands via the palm print of the suspect (Walter) left at the crime scene. So why did it take twenty-five years to carry out Storey’s execution?
According to the Fox News piece, the culprit was technical trial error.
The Missouri Supreme Court tossed the conviction, citing concerns about ineffective assistance of counsel and “egregious” errors committed by Kenny Hulshof, who was with the Missouri attorney general’s office at the time and handled the prosecution. Hulshof was later a congressman and a candidate for governor.
Storey was tried again in 1997, and sentenced again to death. That conviction was also overturned, this time over a procedural error by the judge. Storey was sentenced to death a third time in 1999. (for full story see http://tinyurl.com/nvbxsvq)
Quite often, one of the first appeals filed on behalf of the condemned in a death penalty case is “ineffective assistance of counsel.” In other words, the defense lawyer was incompetent. If this is so often the case, then why aren’t more lawyers disbarred? I cannot imagine what egregious trial errors occurred from the prosecutorial side of the matter to convince the Missouri Supreme Court to overturn Storey’s first conviction.
This is the age old ethical dilemma of legal procedure: doing things right versus doing the right thing. Reversible error is the technical side of the court system. Everything during a trial must be followed to the smallest detail (and there are a lot of details in a legal proceeding), or somewhere down the road of appeal an attorney may convince a higher court judge that a reversible error has occurred.
And where a human life hangs in the balance (death penalty) lawyers and judges wrestle over these nuances, creating more delays, higher court costs, and a legal logjam on court dockets all across America. In my estimation, the notion of swift justice in America has been co-opted by the advent of technicality.
In the Storey matter, there really was no question of guilt. It appears the matter was finally settled when all of the proverbial “i”s were dotted, and the “t”s were crossed.
For what it’s worth, the attorney representing Walter Storey in the article said Walter was remorseful. While he was awaiting execution, apparently Walter spent thousands of hours helping crime victims through a prison program. That is good. In fact, it might even seem rehabilitative.
Still, there was the matter of Jill Frey, the victim; a special education teacher whose life was taken at the hands of Storey. Imagine all the thousands of hours missed by children with learning disabilities, who could have received the help they needed from Ms. Frey. Imagine the possibility of marriage, children, and grandchildren that Jill would never experience thanks to a brutal, selfish, and savage act brought about by her killer—Walter Storey.
I hope Walter Storey truly repented of his sin while incarcerated. I hope he made peace with God. My belief and faith have no issues with forgiving Walter Storey for his sins, however heinous they were.
But the law demands justice. And justice demanded the life of Walter Storey for the unlawful and brutal killing of Jill Frey. Though delayed for far too long, Storey’s execution was a reckoning and due payment for his vicious crime.
Only God knows the sincerity of Walter Storey’s remorse—but that is another story.
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 13, 2015
According to an Associated Press article featured by Fox News, a thrice-condemned Missouri inmate has finally been executed a quarter of a century after the commission of his crime.
Walter Timothy Storey exhausted his final opportunity to gain yet another delay through a Supreme Court appeal over lethal injection concerns. The Court refused to hear his case allowing final judgment to proceed. Hence Mr. Storey’s long-delayed appointment with death and the rule of law finally met at the intersection of Reckoning and Justice.
The story of Walter Storey is not overshadowed by questionable witnesses, lack of DNA evidence, or any possibility that he had been framed by someone else. In fact, there was only one witness to his crime—his murder victim, 36-year-old Jill Frey—who lived next door.
As the story goes, Walter was unhappy over a pending divorce and had been staying at his mother’s house. He began drinking heavily on the night of February 2, 1990. As fate would have it, Walter ran out of beer, and needed more in order to further enhance his own defilement. However, he had no money for more beer.
Next door, neighbor Jill Frey had left the sliding glass door on her balcony open. Walter climbed onto the balcony and attacked Frey in her bedroom. He beat her so savagely that the coroner’s report revealed she suffered six broken ribs and severe wounds to her head and face. Imagine the terror and suffering Jill experienced in that attack inside her own home.
But the Storey was not finished. He went to her kitchen, grabbed a knife, and proceeded to slice Jill’s throat all the way back to her spine, nearly decapitating her. She stopped breathing and bled out immediately.
The following day, Walter returned to the scene of his crime. He tried to erase all traces of evidence of his presence by wiping down the crime scene and disposing of evidence. However, Walter missed one bloody palm print on a dresser. And, because he had been arrested previously, investigators were able to link Mr. Storey to the murder.
Picture this irrefutable evidence: the proximity of suspect to victim (next-door neighbors), victim’s blood on his hands via the palm print of the suspect (Walter) left at the crime scene. So why did it take twenty-five years to carry out Storey’s execution?
According to the Fox News piece, the culprit was technical trial error.
The Missouri Supreme Court tossed the conviction, citing concerns about ineffective assistance of counsel and “egregious” errors committed by Kenny Hulshof, who was with the Missouri attorney general’s office at the time and handled the prosecution. Hulshof was later a congressman and a candidate for governor.
Storey was tried again in 1997, and sentenced again to death. That conviction was also overturned, this time over a procedural error by the judge. Storey was sentenced to death a third time in 1999. (for full story see http://tinyurl.com/nvbxsvq)
Quite often, one of the first appeals filed on behalf of the condemned in a death penalty case is “ineffective assistance of counsel.” In other words, the defense lawyer was incompetent. If this is so often the case, then why aren’t more lawyers disbarred? I cannot imagine what egregious trial errors occurred from the prosecutorial side of the matter to convince the Missouri Supreme Court to overturn Storey’s first conviction.
This is the age old ethical dilemma of legal procedure: doing things right versus doing the right thing. Reversible error is the technical side of the court system. Everything during a trial must be followed to the smallest detail (and there are a lot of details in a legal proceeding), or somewhere down the road of appeal an attorney may convince a higher court judge that a reversible error has occurred.
And where a human life hangs in the balance (death penalty) lawyers and judges wrestle over these nuances, creating more delays, higher court costs, and a legal logjam on court dockets all across America. In my estimation, the notion of swift justice in America has been co-opted by the advent of technicality.
In the Storey matter, there really was no question of guilt. It appears the matter was finally settled when all of the proverbial “i”s were dotted, and the “t”s were crossed.
For what it’s worth, the attorney representing Walter Storey in the article said Walter was remorseful. While he was awaiting execution, apparently Walter spent thousands of hours helping crime victims through a prison program. That is good. In fact, it might even seem rehabilitative.
Still, there was the matter of Jill Frey, the victim; a special education teacher whose life was taken at the hands of Storey. Imagine all the thousands of hours missed by children with learning disabilities, who could have received the help they needed from Ms. Frey. Imagine the possibility of marriage, children, and grandchildren that Jill would never experience thanks to a brutal, selfish, and savage act brought about by her killer—Walter Storey.
I hope Walter Storey truly repented of his sin while incarcerated. I hope he made peace with God. My belief and faith have no issues with forgiving Walter Storey for his sins, however heinous they were.
But the law demands justice. And justice demanded the life of Walter Storey for the unlawful and brutal killing of Jill Frey. Though delayed for far too long, Storey’s execution was a reckoning and due payment for his vicious crime.
Only God knows the sincerity of Walter Storey’s remorse—but that is another story.
Friday, February 13, 2015
DRIVING DRUNK DOWN BUT DRIVING UNDER INFLUENCE OF POT IS WAY UP
A NHTSA study revealed that drivers under the influence of marijuana are more likely to be in a car crash
BarkGrowlBite | February 13, 2015
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has just completed two extensive studies on driving under the influence of alcohol and pot.
The first study, which was voluntary and anonymous, rounded up data from drivers across the country who agreed to participate at a roadside test site. According to the NHTSA, the study found “about 8 percent of drivers had alcohol in their system on weekend nights. That's down by about 30 percent from the last survey, conducted in 2007, and 80 percent from the first survey in 1973.”
But there is no cause to celebrate because “the number of drivers with marijuana in their system jumped by nearly 50 percent compared to 2007.”
The second study was conducted over a 20-month period by examining accidents involving 3,000 drivers in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The NHTSA found that “drivers who use marijuana are more likely to be in a car crash.”
What has to be most alarming is that the first NHTSA study was conducted nationwide and the second study, although extensive, was conducted in Virginia. Neither study focused in on the states of Colorado and Washington, both of which have legalized the recreational use of pot. The Colorado Highway Patrol has reported a significant increase in the number of car crashes involving drivers who were smoking pot.
Just imagine what those marijuana numbers would have shown had the two studies focused in on the states of Colorado and Washington. Those pot percentages would have zoomed right off the charts.
All of this is very bad news for the innocent, non-drinking and non-pot using driver in Colorado and Washington who is now in greater danger of getting struck by some jerk driving under the influence of pot.
And they keep saying that smoking pot is harmless. Yeah, right. And pigs can fly.
BarkGrowlBite | February 13, 2015
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has just completed two extensive studies on driving under the influence of alcohol and pot.
The first study, which was voluntary and anonymous, rounded up data from drivers across the country who agreed to participate at a roadside test site. According to the NHTSA, the study found “about 8 percent of drivers had alcohol in their system on weekend nights. That's down by about 30 percent from the last survey, conducted in 2007, and 80 percent from the first survey in 1973.”
But there is no cause to celebrate because “the number of drivers with marijuana in their system jumped by nearly 50 percent compared to 2007.”
The second study was conducted over a 20-month period by examining accidents involving 3,000 drivers in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The NHTSA found that “drivers who use marijuana are more likely to be in a car crash.”
What has to be most alarming is that the first NHTSA study was conducted nationwide and the second study, although extensive, was conducted in Virginia. Neither study focused in on the states of Colorado and Washington, both of which have legalized the recreational use of pot. The Colorado Highway Patrol has reported a significant increase in the number of car crashes involving drivers who were smoking pot.
Just imagine what those marijuana numbers would have shown had the two studies focused in on the states of Colorado and Washington. Those pot percentages would have zoomed right off the charts.
All of this is very bad news for the innocent, non-drinking and non-pot using driver in Colorado and Washington who is now in greater danger of getting struck by some jerk driving under the influence of pot.
And they keep saying that smoking pot is harmless. Yeah, right. And pigs can fly.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE WASHINGTON AND LINCOLN HOLIDAYS?
The birthday celebrations of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln vanished in the sea of political correctness
BarkGrowlBite | February 12, 2015
When I was growing up, I always looked forward to February because we got to celebrate two holidays – Abraham Lincoln’s birthday on the 12th and George Washington’s birthday on the 22nd. Washington’s birthday was an officially designated federal holiday. Although Lincoln’s birthday was never a federal holiday,, it was officially designated as a holiday by many states.
Then a tsunami of political correctness swept through Congress. Italian-Americans had long been clamoring for a holiday to honor Christopher Columbus. Columbus Day was created in 1971. African-Americans then demanded a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King Day was created in 1986.
Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays continued to be holidays until officials realized there were too many paid holidays for government and school employees. So in 1971, Lincolns birthday was combined with Washington’s and eventually the day became known as Presidents’ Day.
As most of you know, I do not subscribe to this Political Correct bullshit!
George Washington led our revolutionary militia in the war for independence from the British. We won and Washington became our first president.
Abraham Lincoln was President of the North during the Civil War with the Confederate States. The North won and Lincoln is credited with preserving the United States of America. Lincoln also freed the slaves.
Christopher Columbus discovered America. Like hell he did! He never set foot on the American mainland. He crossed the Atlantic, an extraordinary feat at the time, and landed on the island of Hispaniola. Columbus believed he had landed in India. He made thee more trips to Hispaniola, but he never sailed beyond that island. It is said that Columbus and his crew brought small pox to the Indians who returned the favor by introducing syphilis to the Europeans. But the truth is that Columbus and his crew pillaged the Hispaniola villages, raped the women and enslaved the islanders.
Martin Luther King Jr. was without doubt one of the greatest men in American history. His civil rights campaign for all minorities, not just for blacks, led to the passage of many anti-discriminatory laws.
Now, political correctness aside, we should restore Washington’s birthday and Lincoln’s birthday as officially designated separate holidays. We should dump Christopher Columbus from the holiday list to make room for Washington and Lincoln. Columbus, never having set foot on the American mainland, does not deserve to be honored with a holiday in this country, especially after what he and his crew did to Hispaniola's 'Indians.'
I believe that Martin Luther King Jr, has earned the right to be honored with a holiday, but only if it’s not at the expense of either Washington or Lincoln.
As for any outraged Italian-Americans, I urge them to go to Hispaniola and campaign there for a holiday in honor of Columbus. Those ungrateful islanders have thus far failed to honor the man credited with discovering America – oops that should be Hispaniola, not America.
BarkGrowlBite | February 12, 2015
When I was growing up, I always looked forward to February because we got to celebrate two holidays – Abraham Lincoln’s birthday on the 12th and George Washington’s birthday on the 22nd. Washington’s birthday was an officially designated federal holiday. Although Lincoln’s birthday was never a federal holiday,, it was officially designated as a holiday by many states.
Then a tsunami of political correctness swept through Congress. Italian-Americans had long been clamoring for a holiday to honor Christopher Columbus. Columbus Day was created in 1971. African-Americans then demanded a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King Day was created in 1986.
Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays continued to be holidays until officials realized there were too many paid holidays for government and school employees. So in 1971, Lincolns birthday was combined with Washington’s and eventually the day became known as Presidents’ Day.
As most of you know, I do not subscribe to this Political Correct bullshit!
George Washington led our revolutionary militia in the war for independence from the British. We won and Washington became our first president.
Abraham Lincoln was President of the North during the Civil War with the Confederate States. The North won and Lincoln is credited with preserving the United States of America. Lincoln also freed the slaves.
Christopher Columbus discovered America. Like hell he did! He never set foot on the American mainland. He crossed the Atlantic, an extraordinary feat at the time, and landed on the island of Hispaniola. Columbus believed he had landed in India. He made thee more trips to Hispaniola, but he never sailed beyond that island. It is said that Columbus and his crew brought small pox to the Indians who returned the favor by introducing syphilis to the Europeans. But the truth is that Columbus and his crew pillaged the Hispaniola villages, raped the women and enslaved the islanders.
Martin Luther King Jr. was without doubt one of the greatest men in American history. His civil rights campaign for all minorities, not just for blacks, led to the passage of many anti-discriminatory laws.
Now, political correctness aside, we should restore Washington’s birthday and Lincoln’s birthday as officially designated separate holidays. We should dump Christopher Columbus from the holiday list to make room for Washington and Lincoln. Columbus, never having set foot on the American mainland, does not deserve to be honored with a holiday in this country, especially after what he and his crew did to Hispaniola's 'Indians.'
I believe that Martin Luther King Jr, has earned the right to be honored with a holiday, but only if it’s not at the expense of either Washington or Lincoln.
As for any outraged Italian-Americans, I urge them to go to Hispaniola and campaign there for a holiday in honor of Columbus. Those ungrateful islanders have thus far failed to honor the man credited with discovering America – oops that should be Hispaniola, not America.
ENORMOUS SCAM BY INSULIN PUMP MAKERS
Capitalism at its best ….. or worst
BarkGrowlBite | February 12, 2015
It has just been brought to my attention that the makers of insulin pumps are perpetrating an enormous scam on people suffering from diabetes and the U.S. government is turning a blind eye to it.
Here is how the scam works. The most popular insulin pumps and initial supplies, including tubing, syringes, cartridges, and dressings, cost more than $5,000. But the insulin pump makers like Animas, Accu-Check, Asante, Medtronic and others are not selling pumps, they are selling four-year warranties.
At the end of four years, the pump maker will notify the pump owner that he will have to buy another insulin pump. If anything goes wrong with the pump, they will not repair it, even if the owner is willing to pay for any repairs. It’s buy another pump or you do not have a pump.
Now that’s the same as if you bought a new Chevy and GM says that at the end of the warranty you have to buy another Chevy because they will not repair your car even if you will pay for the repairs. Of course, GM cannot do this because there are plenty of independent car repair shops that will do the work for you.
Unfortunately for the insulin pump owners, there are few, if any, independent insulin pump repair shops to be found.
If this is not an enormous scam, I’ll eat my John Deere cap. This is capitalism as its best for the manufacturer, but at its worst for the consumer. Uncle Sam, where the fuck are you?
BarkGrowlBite | February 12, 2015
It has just been brought to my attention that the makers of insulin pumps are perpetrating an enormous scam on people suffering from diabetes and the U.S. government is turning a blind eye to it.
Here is how the scam works. The most popular insulin pumps and initial supplies, including tubing, syringes, cartridges, and dressings, cost more than $5,000. But the insulin pump makers like Animas, Accu-Check, Asante, Medtronic and others are not selling pumps, they are selling four-year warranties.
At the end of four years, the pump maker will notify the pump owner that he will have to buy another insulin pump. If anything goes wrong with the pump, they will not repair it, even if the owner is willing to pay for any repairs. It’s buy another pump or you do not have a pump.
Now that’s the same as if you bought a new Chevy and GM says that at the end of the warranty you have to buy another Chevy because they will not repair your car even if you will pay for the repairs. Of course, GM cannot do this because there are plenty of independent car repair shops that will do the work for you.
Unfortunately for the insulin pump owners, there are few, if any, independent insulin pump repair shops to be found.
If this is not an enormous scam, I’ll eat my John Deere cap. This is capitalism as its best for the manufacturer, but at its worst for the consumer. Uncle Sam, where the fuck are you?
FEEL GOOD SCOTUS APPEAL HALTS OK EXECUTIONS
Bleeding Heart Standard: ANY Pain a Killer Feels Is Too Painful for Eighth Amendment Guidelines
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 11, 2015
According to a report from The Christian Science Monitor, on January 28, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) agreed to hear a last-minute appeal from three Oklahoma death row inmates. The State of Oklahoma has suspended the scheduled executions of those inmates, due to the appeal argument that the lethal injection protocol and specifically, the drug (midazolam), which is a part of that protocol, might not effectively cause unconsciousness in the condemned, which could cause them to feel pain as their lives are being terminated.
Due to the time needed to plead this case before the Court, a suspension of execution was needed in order to consider their claim lest the three suffer death before the court appearance date.
Unlike California, where most death row inmates die of natural causes, the Bleeding Heart Standard (BHS) in the OK case appears to promote the notion that ANY pain a condemned prisoner experiences during execution is TOO MUCH pain, and legally amounts to State-inflicted, unconstitutional torture.
However, one condemned inmate had already been executed by the State of Oklahoma, before SCOTUS agreed to hear the pending matter on the other three inmates. Whatever the outcome of this appeal, it could create yet another backlog in an already convoluted execution schedule across the United States.
“Specifically at issue in the Supreme Court challenge is whether the first drug administered in the execution process – midazolam – is effective in rendering the condemned prisoner into a coma-like unconsciousness before the other two drugs are administered.
Lawyers for the inmates have expressed fear that if the first drug is ineffective, their clients will be subject to intense pain when the second and third drugs are administered.
The concerns were raised after botched executions in Oklahoma, Ohio, and Arizona last year. In all three cases, midazolam was the first drug used in a three-drug lethal injection protocol.” (for the CSM story see http://tinyurl.com/qhn4sxk.)
If the present appeal fails, Pacovilla.com suggests a more reasonable appeal on a generic level, that most Americans could identify with, would be: “I don’t like needles.”
Riders, let’s be perfectly clear about the reason executions should and do occur as a consequence of the rule of law. Capital punishment is the highest price and most serious penalty (aka: death penalty) a human being can be subjected to under the rule of law in the United States of America. It is not a form of euthanasia—putting down a sick cat, puppy, or, in parts of Europe, a bedridden granny—it is a severe and exacting punishment to be experienced and felt by the one whom the law deems must pay the penalty.
In State courts, murder with special circumstances is generally the standard that qualifies for a death penalty case. What types of special circumstances qualify? Serial killing or the torture, planned ambush, kidnap, robbery, rape, child molestation, burglary, or arson preceding a murder may qualify a defendant for capital punishment. However, prosecutors often mitigate these types of cases by offering plea bargains of Life Without Possibility of Parole (LWOP), Life, or very long prison sentences.
As a general rule, the most vile and heinous cases imaginable end up as death penalty cases.
According to a specific State-sanctioned process (which as stated above, first begins with the capital crime of first-degree murder), evidence is collected and reviewed, charges are brought against a defendant, a legal proceeding is brought before a judge through multiple hearings, witnesses are examined, a jury trial is conducted, and a final decision and finding of GUILTY must be rendered. Only then can a second trial be conducted to determine if a guilty finding justifies the condemnation of said defendant. Otherwise the defendant receives incarceration, a lesser sentence than death.
Opponents of the death penalty would like the general public to believe that every inmate on death row somehow deserves to live by the mere essence of their human existence. It is unfortunate that the anti-death penalty crowd routinely ignores the suffering of the families of the victims brought to bear by the criminal acts of those condemned inmates. Their ilk generally subscribes to a belief that the State-sanctioned killing of a convicted murderer is morally reprehensible.
It is as if the life of a condemned inmate, through his or her well-documented act of despicable intention, unconscionable cruelty, wanton disregard, and brutal achievement, matters more to these anti-capital punishment advocates than the life unlawfully claimed through a criminal act. In other words, the legal system only applies to their passionately dysfunctional appeals for reprieve, clemency, and mercy, when none was ever given by the condemned to their victim(s.) Victims be damned; condemned be given life.
Personally, I care nothing about the financial cost of executing duly convicted and condemned inmates. What I care about is the continued obfuscation of the rule of law by special interest groups; whether it is on the issue of illegal immigrants, health care, social programs, or, in this instance, the death penalty. The anti-death penalty crowd and the many lawyers (who file appeals ad nasaum on behalf of those condemned souls whom the rule of law has determined must die at the hands of the State) are a special interest group.
People lose their heads all the time in the Middle East, and no one their seems concerned about the cruel and unusual nature of those executions
Let’s recall what the Eighth Amendment really says:
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
By the rule of law, State execution is neither cruel or unusual. Neither are American executions barbaric. Inmates are not drawn and quartered (pulled apart by their arms and legs by horses), tortured for hours before being set on fire (as witnessed recently in an ISIS video), beheaded (Google Saudi Arabia for more on this), or impaled or crucified to die long, agonizing deaths.
Even in the attorney-proclaimed and press-regurgitated “botched execution” of Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma, in April 2014, it appeared that a mechanical failure of equipment, was the culprit, not the drug in question. Yet read the emotional response of the attorneys who were present in their statements to the press, and how the press presented the article:
““This was botched, and it was difficult to watch,” said David Autry, one of Mr. Lockett’s lawyers.
Dean Sanderford, another lawyer for Mr. Lockett, said, “It looked like torture.”
A medical technician inserted the IV needle and then the the first drug, a sedative intended to knock the man out and forestall pain, was administered at 6:23 p.m. Ten minutes later, the doctor announced that Mr. Lockett was unconscious, and the team started to administer the next two drugs, a paralytic and one intended to make the heart stop.
At that point, witnesses said, things began to go awry. Mr. Lockett’s body twitched, his foot shook and he mumbled, witnesses said.
At 6:37 p.m., he tried to rise and exhaled loudly. At that point, prison officials pulled a curtain in front of the witnesses and the doctor discovered a “vein failure,” Mr. Patton said.
Without effective sedation, the second two drugs are known to cause agonizing suffocation and pain.
Mr. Lockett’s apparent revival and writhing raised questions about the doctor’s initial declaration that he was unconscious and are sure to cast doubt on the effectiveness of the sedative used. (see cite below)
Notice that the above quote did not cite any authority in reference to the “agonizing suffering and pain” associated with the second two execution drugs. Compare that journalistic presentation of facts to what was initially reported in the same article:
Clayton D. Lockett, began to writhe and gasp after he had already been declared unconscious and called out “oh, man,” according to witnesses. (full story at http://tinyurl.com/kgoptoo.)
The utterance of “Oh, man” is a far cry from the horrific screams of a tortured soul.
According to the same article, at about 7:06 p.m. (Central Time) Lockett suffered a heart attack. Writhing and gasping is a usual reaction during a heart attack. In medical terms, Lockett died of a natural cause (a heart attack) as the result of his State-approved execution. Can a reasonable person deduce, though the line failure was inadvertent, that what occurred to Mr. Lockett was not cruel or unusual?
In other words, the State did not step outside the protocol, but an accident occurred during the procedure. Perhaps it is unfortunate that Lockett’s one line collapsed while he was being executed. It triggered a heart attack and he died. In the grand scheme of things, the protocol and procedure did not end in a botched execution—-HE WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE!!! AND HE DID!!!
Call it botched if it makes you feel better. Still, what happened to Mr. Lockett, when all is said and done hardly seems cruel or unusual. Three Oklahoma condemned prisoners were days away from meeting their Maker, when an appeal based upon Clayton Lockett’s “botched execution” bought them a temporary reprieve. The one who did not benefit was inmate Charles Warner.
What happened to condemned inmate Charles Warner on January 15, 2015? He tired to make people think he had been tortured before any drugs had been administered. Nice try, Charlie. Mr. Warner was successfully executed, with no line failure (for full story see http://tinyurl.com/nqbzy25.)
Let’s hope SCOTUS does not further muddy the waters in this new appeal.
The rule of law demands three men in Oklahoma pay the highest price for their crimes. How much longer must justice for their victims be delayed?
By Greg ‘Gadfly’ Doyle | PACOVILLA Corrections blog | February 11, 2015
According to a report from The Christian Science Monitor, on January 28, 2015, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) agreed to hear a last-minute appeal from three Oklahoma death row inmates. The State of Oklahoma has suspended the scheduled executions of those inmates, due to the appeal argument that the lethal injection protocol and specifically, the drug (midazolam), which is a part of that protocol, might not effectively cause unconsciousness in the condemned, which could cause them to feel pain as their lives are being terminated.
Due to the time needed to plead this case before the Court, a suspension of execution was needed in order to consider their claim lest the three suffer death before the court appearance date.
Unlike California, where most death row inmates die of natural causes, the Bleeding Heart Standard (BHS) in the OK case appears to promote the notion that ANY pain a condemned prisoner experiences during execution is TOO MUCH pain, and legally amounts to State-inflicted, unconstitutional torture.
However, one condemned inmate had already been executed by the State of Oklahoma, before SCOTUS agreed to hear the pending matter on the other three inmates. Whatever the outcome of this appeal, it could create yet another backlog in an already convoluted execution schedule across the United States.
“Specifically at issue in the Supreme Court challenge is whether the first drug administered in the execution process – midazolam – is effective in rendering the condemned prisoner into a coma-like unconsciousness before the other two drugs are administered.
Lawyers for the inmates have expressed fear that if the first drug is ineffective, their clients will be subject to intense pain when the second and third drugs are administered.
The concerns were raised after botched executions in Oklahoma, Ohio, and Arizona last year. In all three cases, midazolam was the first drug used in a three-drug lethal injection protocol.” (for the CSM story see http://tinyurl.com/qhn4sxk.)
If the present appeal fails, Pacovilla.com suggests a more reasonable appeal on a generic level, that most Americans could identify with, would be: “I don’t like needles.”
Riders, let’s be perfectly clear about the reason executions should and do occur as a consequence of the rule of law. Capital punishment is the highest price and most serious penalty (aka: death penalty) a human being can be subjected to under the rule of law in the United States of America. It is not a form of euthanasia—putting down a sick cat, puppy, or, in parts of Europe, a bedridden granny—it is a severe and exacting punishment to be experienced and felt by the one whom the law deems must pay the penalty.
In State courts, murder with special circumstances is generally the standard that qualifies for a death penalty case. What types of special circumstances qualify? Serial killing or the torture, planned ambush, kidnap, robbery, rape, child molestation, burglary, or arson preceding a murder may qualify a defendant for capital punishment. However, prosecutors often mitigate these types of cases by offering plea bargains of Life Without Possibility of Parole (LWOP), Life, or very long prison sentences.
As a general rule, the most vile and heinous cases imaginable end up as death penalty cases.
According to a specific State-sanctioned process (which as stated above, first begins with the capital crime of first-degree murder), evidence is collected and reviewed, charges are brought against a defendant, a legal proceeding is brought before a judge through multiple hearings, witnesses are examined, a jury trial is conducted, and a final decision and finding of GUILTY must be rendered. Only then can a second trial be conducted to determine if a guilty finding justifies the condemnation of said defendant. Otherwise the defendant receives incarceration, a lesser sentence than death.
Opponents of the death penalty would like the general public to believe that every inmate on death row somehow deserves to live by the mere essence of their human existence. It is unfortunate that the anti-death penalty crowd routinely ignores the suffering of the families of the victims brought to bear by the criminal acts of those condemned inmates. Their ilk generally subscribes to a belief that the State-sanctioned killing of a convicted murderer is morally reprehensible.
It is as if the life of a condemned inmate, through his or her well-documented act of despicable intention, unconscionable cruelty, wanton disregard, and brutal achievement, matters more to these anti-capital punishment advocates than the life unlawfully claimed through a criminal act. In other words, the legal system only applies to their passionately dysfunctional appeals for reprieve, clemency, and mercy, when none was ever given by the condemned to their victim(s.) Victims be damned; condemned be given life.
Personally, I care nothing about the financial cost of executing duly convicted and condemned inmates. What I care about is the continued obfuscation of the rule of law by special interest groups; whether it is on the issue of illegal immigrants, health care, social programs, or, in this instance, the death penalty. The anti-death penalty crowd and the many lawyers (who file appeals ad nasaum on behalf of those condemned souls whom the rule of law has determined must die at the hands of the State) are a special interest group.
People lose their heads all the time in the Middle East, and no one their seems concerned about the cruel and unusual nature of those executions
Let’s recall what the Eighth Amendment really says:
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
By the rule of law, State execution is neither cruel or unusual. Neither are American executions barbaric. Inmates are not drawn and quartered (pulled apart by their arms and legs by horses), tortured for hours before being set on fire (as witnessed recently in an ISIS video), beheaded (Google Saudi Arabia for more on this), or impaled or crucified to die long, agonizing deaths.
Even in the attorney-proclaimed and press-regurgitated “botched execution” of Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma, in April 2014, it appeared that a mechanical failure of equipment, was the culprit, not the drug in question. Yet read the emotional response of the attorneys who were present in their statements to the press, and how the press presented the article:
““This was botched, and it was difficult to watch,” said David Autry, one of Mr. Lockett’s lawyers.
Dean Sanderford, another lawyer for Mr. Lockett, said, “It looked like torture.”
A medical technician inserted the IV needle and then the the first drug, a sedative intended to knock the man out and forestall pain, was administered at 6:23 p.m. Ten minutes later, the doctor announced that Mr. Lockett was unconscious, and the team started to administer the next two drugs, a paralytic and one intended to make the heart stop.
At that point, witnesses said, things began to go awry. Mr. Lockett’s body twitched, his foot shook and he mumbled, witnesses said.
At 6:37 p.m., he tried to rise and exhaled loudly. At that point, prison officials pulled a curtain in front of the witnesses and the doctor discovered a “vein failure,” Mr. Patton said.
Without effective sedation, the second two drugs are known to cause agonizing suffocation and pain.
Mr. Lockett’s apparent revival and writhing raised questions about the doctor’s initial declaration that he was unconscious and are sure to cast doubt on the effectiveness of the sedative used. (see cite below)
Notice that the above quote did not cite any authority in reference to the “agonizing suffering and pain” associated with the second two execution drugs. Compare that journalistic presentation of facts to what was initially reported in the same article:
Clayton D. Lockett, began to writhe and gasp after he had already been declared unconscious and called out “oh, man,” according to witnesses. (full story at http://tinyurl.com/kgoptoo.)
The utterance of “Oh, man” is a far cry from the horrific screams of a tortured soul.
According to the same article, at about 7:06 p.m. (Central Time) Lockett suffered a heart attack. Writhing and gasping is a usual reaction during a heart attack. In medical terms, Lockett died of a natural cause (a heart attack) as the result of his State-approved execution. Can a reasonable person deduce, though the line failure was inadvertent, that what occurred to Mr. Lockett was not cruel or unusual?
In other words, the State did not step outside the protocol, but an accident occurred during the procedure. Perhaps it is unfortunate that Lockett’s one line collapsed while he was being executed. It triggered a heart attack and he died. In the grand scheme of things, the protocol and procedure did not end in a botched execution—-HE WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE!!! AND HE DID!!!
Call it botched if it makes you feel better. Still, what happened to Mr. Lockett, when all is said and done hardly seems cruel or unusual. Three Oklahoma condemned prisoners were days away from meeting their Maker, when an appeal based upon Clayton Lockett’s “botched execution” bought them a temporary reprieve. The one who did not benefit was inmate Charles Warner.
What happened to condemned inmate Charles Warner on January 15, 2015? He tired to make people think he had been tortured before any drugs had been administered. Nice try, Charlie. Mr. Warner was successfully executed, with no line failure (for full story see http://tinyurl.com/nqbzy25.)
Let’s hope SCOTUS does not further muddy the waters in this new appeal.
The rule of law demands three men in Oklahoma pay the highest price for their crimes. How much longer must justice for their victims be delayed?
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