Crime

In a press conference that aired live this afternoon, investigators revealed that the primary weapon used in yesterday’s ambush attack on Baton Rouge police was an IWI Tavor SAR 5.56 rifle. The weapon sells for about $1800 and according to review sites it will “readily convert” to accept AR-15 magazines, some of which hold 100 rounds. The NRA is surely …

From the Los Angeles Times: Los Angeles police are investigating after Playboy model Dani Mathers apologized for taking a photo of a woman in a locker room shower at an LA Fitness exercise center and posted it on Snapchat with disparaging comments about the woman’s body. LAPD Capt. Andrew Neiman said the department received a report of “illegal distribution” of …

Alaska Dispatch News reports: Track Palin, the son of former Gov. Sarah Palin, has entered a plea agreement with the state in a special court for veterans after his January arrest for allegedly punching a woman in the face at the family’s Wasilla home. Kevin Fitzgerald, Track Palin’s attorney, said Friday his client had opted into Anchorage Veterans Court — …

The Washington Post reports: A truck rammed into a crowd celebrating Bastille Day in the French Riviera city of Nice on Thursday night, killing at least 84 people in an apparent terrorist attack in which the driver also opened fire on revelers before being shot dead by police. The truck struck the crowd after a fireworks display for the French …

Little Green Footballs blogger Charles Johnson tonight directed his Twitter followers to the website of Alaska’s judicial system, which shows that Track Palin has been “remanded into custody” on the three charges that resulted from his drunken attack on his girlfriend in January. Those three charges are Class A misdemeanors and at this writing there’s no news account on why …

From the Detroit Free Press: A viral video of a man shouting slurs and pointing a gun at another man he believed was gay as he exited a convenience store on Detroit’s west side has sparked outrage and is being investigated by police, an official confirmed Wednesday. “We are aware of it,” said Detroit Police Sgt. Michael Woody. “It was …

From Philadelphia Magazine: Kathryn Knott is now a free woman. On Tuesday morning, Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Roxanne Covington heard Knott’s motion for parole. “Miss Knott has been an exemplary inmate,” argued Center City attorney William Brennan, Knott’s lawyer. “She completed anger management in a timely, quick fashion. And she elected not to appeal. That speaks volumes to her …

The Arizona Republic reports: Chris Simcox, the former leader of the Minuteman border vigilante group, was sentenced to 19.5 years in prison Monday, bringing an end to a sex-abuse case involving two girls under 10. A Maricopa County Superior Court jury found Simcox, 55, guilty last month of two counts of child molestation and one count of furnishing obscene material …

Raw Story reports: Michael Strickland, the right-wing agitator and Trump supporter seen in this video brandishing a gun at a peaceful Black Lives Matter rally, has been charged with two class A felonies after being arrested and initially released Friday morning on his own recognizance without bail. At his arraignment today at the Multnomah County Courthouse in downtown Portland Strickland …

A gay police officer was among those wounded in last night’s attack in Dallas. The New Civil Rights Movement reports: Jesus Retana, 39, has worked for Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) for the last 10 years. Retana, above left, is pictured with his husband, Andrew Moss. Moss was behind an effort to get DART to add insurance benefits for same-sex …

But don’t expect actual action on the wide availability of assault weapons. Here’s the transcript of the video below: “A few perpetrators of evil do not speak for us. They do not control us. The blame lies with the people who committed these vicious acts and no one else. And as the President rightfully said, justice will be done. We …

From the Dallas CBS affiliate: Dallas Police Chief David Brown confirmed the death of one gunman, later identified by CBS News as 25-year old Micah Xavier Johnson of Mesquite, the suspect that police cornered in a parking garage at El Centro College in the downtown area immediately following the shooting. According to Brown, police cornered Micah Johnson and negotiated with …

Mediaite reports: The more conservative of the New York City tabloids is under fire this morning for its choice cover following the tragedy that unfolded late last night in Dallas. The reaction on social media was swift, with some decrying the sensationalized Post cover as race-baiting and editorially irresponsible. The headline implies that a national civil war is now underway …

In a nationally televised press conference, Dallas Police Chief David Brown just revealed that the dead suspect in last night’s attack had declared his anger over recent police shootings and wanted to kill white officers. “The suspect said he was upset about Black Lives Matter. He said he was upset about recent police shootings. The suspect stated he wanted to …

From the Voice Of America: Dallas police say three suspects are in custody and a fourth is dead hours after snipers killed five police officers during a coordinated attack on a peaceful demonstration. At least six officers were wounded in the ambush which occurred Thursday evening during a protest against the killing of two black men by white police officers …

CNN reports: President Barack Obama said Friday that the nation was “horrified” after what he called “a vicious, calculated and despicable attack on law enforcement” in Dallas. It was the second somber statement about shootings on American soil the President made from Europe in less than 12 hours. He condemned the recent shootings by police of black men in Minnesota …

“All Americans should be deeply troubled by the fatal shootings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minnesota. We’ve seen such tragedies far too many times, and our hearts go out to the families and communities who’ve suffered such a painful loss. “Although I am constrained in commenting on the particular facts of these …

The Irish Post reports: A Catholic priest who raped a boy in the 1980s with a crucifix has been sentenced to two years in prison. Anthony Walsh, 63, who first gained notoriety in Britain and Ireland through his Elvis impersonations as part of Father Michael Cleary’s All Priests Show was found guilty of forcing the child to have sex twice. …

From Sacramento’s NBC affiliate: Ten people were injured during a clash between anti-fascists and white supremacists at the State Capitol Sunday, authorities said. Two people suffered life-threatening stab wounds were taken to area hospitals, officials said. Nine men and one woman, ages 19 to 58, were injured during the fight. At least three people were stabbed at the State Capitol …

The Times Of Israel reports: The Jerusalem District Court on Sunday sentenced to life behind bars Yishai Schlissel, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man convicted of stabbing to death 16-year-old Shira Banki at the Jerusalem Gay Pride Parade last year. Schlissel was given another 30 years in prison for attempted murders of the six other people he injured in the attack, and …