Openly-gay mayoral candidate slain in Mississippi: Many local residents believed Marco McMillian, 35, to be the first viable openly-gay candidate for public office in the history of Mississippi. As of now, the murder, discovered on Tuesday and reported by police on Wednesday, is not being investigated as a hate crime; however, police do already have one suspect in custody. Though they have not been formally charged, the unidentified suspect was found in McMillian’s wrecked car on Tuesday, with the Clarksdale mayoral candidate nowhere to be seen. (photo by Troy Catchings/The Clarksdale Press Register)
Ridiculous Story of the Day: A California high school student set up a sting operation to catch a locker thief at Linden High School, only to discover one of her teachers was actually the one guilty of taking students’ money. Naturally, after she showed the footage to her principal, he asked her to delete the footage. Yes, really. (ht Gawker) source
The judge presiding over the prosecution of the WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning has ruled that the US soldier was brought to trial in good time within the military rules governing a court martial.
The ruling dashes the defence team’s hopes of having the charges against Manning dismissed. His lead lawyer, David Coombs, had argued in legal argument to the court that “extreme foot-dragging” by the prosecution had violated the accused’s right to a speedy trial.
The ruling has yet to be completed, with Colonel Denise Lind still set to rule on whether or not Pfc. Manning’s rights were violated under the Sixth Amendment and/or Article 10 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, though Col. Lind is not expected to side with Manning on those claims either. Assuming there are no changes, Pfc. Manning’s 12-week trial is scheduled to begin on June 3.
Las Vegas police are looking for a black Range Rover after a sudden burst of gunshots and a car fire led to the deaths of three people on the famed Strip, shutting down the gambling boulevard in several directions.
A Range Rover Sport with black rims and tinted windows pulled up to a Maserati at a stoplight at the intersection of Las Vegas and Flamingo Boulevards around 4:20 a.m. Thursday, Sgt. John Sheahan of the Las Vegas Police Department said.
Early reports indicated that guns were fired from both the Range Rover and the victims’ Maserati; however, police say there is no evidence that the second vehicle’s occupants fired a weapon of any kind. In addition to the three casualties, three additional victims were treated and released from a local hospital for minor injuries, and a fourth remains at the medical facility for additional treatment.
According to MSNBC’s Ned Resnikoff, systematic usage of paid internships disproportionately shuts out working-class and lower-middle-class writers from journalism careers. Do you agree?
This is a definite issue for young journalists — though not across the board. Many newspapers, for example, offer paid internships, and when I started in the industry, I was lucky enough to get a temporary job that was paid. (Magazines, traditionally, are less likely to offer paid internships.) So I definitely feel for journalists struggling to make a career out of this. Good on The Ed Show for raising the issue, though the next question is, what are NBC’s own practices on the matter? — Ernie @ SFB
Murder suspect on the run from the law for over a year turns himself in, told the police station is closed … Murder suspect on the run from the law for over a year turns himself in, told the police station is closed … No matter how many times we read, type, or say this one out loud, we’re pretty sure nothing is ever going to make this make sense to us. Even if “things are a bit messy” right now, are you really telling us there wasn’t anybody that could have escorted Mr. Hadri to another station? source
Investigators have reportedly found Christopher Dorner’s wallet beside charred human remains at the forest cabin where he made a last stand, giving California police some peace of mind as they prepared to bury their dead.
Scientists examined the remains on Wednesday to confirm they belonged to the fugitive who waged a bloody vendetta against law enforcement officers and their families.
The Los Angeles police department stood down from high alert and withdrew protection from most, though not all, of the officers believed to have been on Dorner’s hit list. He is believed to have killed four people and wounded three.
Christopher Jordan Dorner was on the run for six days, and stands accused of four murders during that same period period. His most recent victim, an unidentified San Bernardino Sheriff’s deputy, died after exchanging gunfire with Dorner at the Big Bear cabin on Tuesday. The deputy’s partner remains in the hospital at this time, but is expected to make a full recovery.
Christopher Dorner was engaged in a shootout with federal authorities in the Big Bear area Tuesday, a law enforcement source told The Times.
The shooting occurred after Dorner burglarized a home, tied up a couple and stole their car, the source said.
The LA Times had a live stream of the developing situation at Big Bear on the front page of their website (update: moved), but the video has been spotty at best for us the last few minutes. One officer is confirmed to have been wounded by Dorner, and it’s possible another has been shot and wounded as well.
An explosion at a Russian coal mine on Monday killed nine people and eight more were feared trapped under rubble at the pit in the northern Komi region, the Interior Ministry said.
The Emergencies Ministry had said earlier on Monday that nine miners were feared trapped and that at least eight had been saved.
Emergency workers are currently working to free the miners still trapped underground after this morning’s explosion, which was believed to be the result of a methane build-up. We’ll keep you updated on the story as more becomes available.
Yahoo wants to buy Hulu now too. They’re going on an “I...
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Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
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I know most of you who personally know me are in disbelief to hear from media reports that I am suspected of committing such horrendous murders and have taken drastic and shocking actions in the last couple of days. You are saying to yourself that this is completely out of character of the man you knew who always wore a smile wherever he was seen. I know I will be villified by the LAPD and the media. Unfortunately, this is a necessary evil that I do not enjoy but must partake and complete for substantial change to occur within the LAPD and reclaim my name.
As authorities scoured Southern California for an ex-Los Angeles police officer suspected of shooting three officers, killing one, officials broadened the alert to include the entire state Thursday morning, and authorities in Nevada were warned.
The California Highway Patrol originally issued a “blue alert” for nine Southern California counties, warning that suspect Christoper Jordan Dorner, 33, was considered “armed and extremely dangerous,” early Thursday. Shortly after 9 a.m. that alert was broadened to the include the entire state.
Dorner is also a suspect in a Sunday double homicide that left a young couple dead, one of whom was the daughter of a retired LAPD captain. Dorner also isn’t the only one responsible for injuries on Thursday. Law enforcement officials have confirmed that officers shot two women delivering newspapers in Torrance after they mistook their vehicle for one being driven by Dorner. Both women were taken to area hospitals, and are expected to make a full recovery. Another shooting, for the same reason, did not lead to any injuries. We’ll have more on the story as it’s available.
A law enforcement source says initial reports indicate that a five-year-old boy who was being held hostage in an underground bunker in Alabama for nearly a week has been released.
Authorities say 65-year-old Jimmy Lee Dykes shot and killed a bus driver last week in Midland City and then abducted the boy.
Dykes is now dead, the source says, but the boy is in stable condition. An ambulance was seen leaving the area of the bunker.
We’re glad to hear that unidentified young man is safe, and will be keeping an eye on the situation as new details continue to emerge. Officials have not yet released Dykes’ cause of death, though its possible that such an announcement could take place during a press conference scheduled this afternoon.
Senior defense officials say Pentagon chief Leon Panetta is removing the military’s ban on women serving in combat, opening hundreds of thousands of front-line positions and potentially elite commando jobs after more than a decade at war.
The groundbreaking move recommended by the Joint Chiefs of Staff overturns a 1994 rule prohibiting women from being assigned to smaller ground combat units. Panetta’s decision gives the military services until January 2016 to seek special exceptions if they believe any positions must remain closed to women.
A senior military official says the services will develop plans for allowing women to seek the combat positions. Some jobs may open as soon as this year. Assessments for others, such as special operations forces, including Navy SEALS and the Army’s Delta Force, may take longer.
While it’s not an across-the-board authorization that some were undoubtedly hoping for, the changes being authorized by Sec. of Defense Leon Panetta still seem like a step in the right direction. An official announcement about the change is expected on Thursday.
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