Eideard

The father of a boy found abandoned on Interstate 20 on Tuesday is facing attempted murder charges.

Sweetwater Police Detective Lance Richburg said Carlos Rico was in custody Wednesday in Nolan County Jail after being arrested in Saginaw in Tarrant County on a charge of endangering a child…

During the investigation, Richburg said officers learned that Rico claimed to have had a religious experience. “He said he had been compelled by a higher power to take his son’s life”.

Richburg said Rico had taken the boy off the interstate to a fence, in the middle of a thick stand of mesquite trees and cactus plants. He allegedly threw the child over the fence and left. Richburg said there was some physical evidence that indicated the boy had been choked or strangled.

Angel was found in the middle of I-20 east of Sweetwater about 6:30 a.m. Tuesday by the high school basketball coach and his son, who were headed to a golf tournament. Angel was bruised and covered in hundreds of cactus spines.

Why do the folks who get direct communications from their favorite invisible old fart in the sky either try to kill off some innocent member of their family – or a passerby – or try to involve the whole country in some extra-suicidal international stupidity?

Toilet reserved for Mugabe

When the call of nature comes, it cannot always be denied. Few have answered it in such an unfortunate fashion as Alois Mabhunu.

While on duty at a trade fair the Zimbabwean police sergeant simply could not hold on and allegedly dashed to the nearest toilet – disastrously, as it transpired, a toilet specially reserved for President Robert Mugabe.

Mabhunu’s relief was thus shortlived. He was arrested and has languished in jail for two weeks on suspicion of invading the presidential privy…

Under the headline “Never Use Toilet Reserved For President!” VOP’s website reported that Mabhunu was on duty at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair grounds during its official opening by Mugabe and Jean-Louis Ekra, the president of Afreximbank.

“Mabhunu, due to the call of nature, rushed to the toilets reserved for Mugabe and his guest Ekra, but was stopped by other officers guarding the toilets,” VOP said. “…He was arrested the following day on 7 May after a report was made to Mugabe’s security men and to senior police officers in the city.”

Mabhunu, a murder detective, is in police detention at barracks on the outskirts of Bulawayo. The legality of the case against him was challenged by Beatrice Mtetwa, one of Zimbabwe’s leading human rights lawyers.

“There has to be a law saying the toilet is the president’s, but this was a public one,” she said. “They will have had to issue a proclamation in the government gazette specifying it. I bet they didn’t do that.”

Mugabe’s personal space – and reputation as father of the independent nation – are fiercely protected. Several motorists are said to have been assaulted by his security personnel for not giving way to the presidential motorcade.

Insulting the president is punishable by up to a year in jail. Even if the insult is generated by your digestive tract. Apparently.

A plainclothes police detective allegedly pulled his gun out and waved it at a large group of people in a snowball fight at the corner of 14th and U Streets NW Saturday afternoon.

An off-duty member of the Metropolitan Police Dept. was reportedly driving his car in the area when the car was suddenly pelted with a barrage of snowballs, according to a statement from the MPD.

The detective stopped his car, got out and approached a crowd of people that might have thrown the snowballs. He then got into a verbal fight with members of the crowd, according to police.

At some point, the detective called for assistance. According to witnesses, one of the uniformed officers that responded pulled out his weapon as he approached the plainclothes detective. As soon as the detective identified himself, the uniformed officer put his gun back in the holster, police said.

MPD claims the footage does not show the detective drawing his weapon, but they have since received additional images and statements that would seem to support that allegation.

According to 3D Commander George Kusik, the uniformed officer conducted himself appropriately.

Uh, OK. There wasn’t anything more demanding of his attention? Like going home, having supper, leaving people alone?

The High Court has refused to preserve the anonymity of an award-winning policeman who has blogged about the force and government ministers.

Mr Justice Eady refused an injunction to prevent the Times identifying serving officer “Night Jack”, winner of an Orwell prize for blogging.

The judge said said blogging was “essentially a public rather than a private activity“.

Night Jack’s lawyer said preserving his anonymity was in the public interest.

Hugh Tomlinson QC said the thousands who communicated via the internet under a cloak of anonymity would be “horrified” to think the law would do nothing to protect their identities if someone carried out the necessary detective work to unmask them.

But the judge ruled any right of privacy on the part of the blogger would be likely to be
outweighed by a countervailing public interest in revealing that a particular police officer had been making such contributions.

In his blog “Night Jack – An English Detective” the unnamed officer chronicled his working life in an unnamed UK town: descriptions of local criminals and his struggle with police bureaucracy.

Like most bloggers, I disagree with the Judge’s decision. The quality of anonymity is what draws many to speaking out, identifying and discussing what they feel needs examination within their nation and society.

Oh, the photo? That’s some Lancashire copper named Richard Horton.