Crime
Judge dismisses cases brought against Wisconsin officer who killed three men over five years
Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah resigned under pressure in 2020 and joined the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) – A federal judge has dismissed two of three claims against a former Wisconsin police officer who killed three people of color over a five-year period.
The families of Antonio Gonzales, Jay Anderson and Alvin Cole filed federal lawsuits in 2021 and 2022 against former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah and town’s police department, alleging Mensah used excessive force and the department promoted racism. In September 2022, the court cases were merged.
U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman in Milwaukee on Thursday dismissed the Gonzales and Anderson families’ claims, court records show. He allowed Cole’s case to proceed, setting oral arguments for next month.
The families’ attorney, Kimberly Motley, said last fall the Gonalzes family acknowledged they probably would not win the case. Still, he plans to ask Adelman to reconsider dismissing the Anderson family’s case.
Prosecutors say Mensah shot Gonzales, 29, in 2015 after Gonzales approached him with a sword and refused to drop it. He shot Anderson in 2016 after finding Anderson, 25, sleeping in a automobile at a park after hours. Mensah said he opened fire when Anderson reached for a gun within the passenger seat. And he shot and killed 17-year-old Cole during a chase outside a mall in 2020. Mensah said the teenager shot first.
Mensah is black. Anderson and Cole were black, and Gonzales identified as Native American.
Prosecutors decided to not charge Mensah in any of the incidents. Mensah resigned from his police position under pressure in 2020 and joined the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department.
Adelman said within the written order that Mensah twice warned Gonzales to drop his sword before opening fire.
As for Anderson, the judge said police automobile footage shows him reaching toward the passenger seat twice before Mensah fired the shot. Mensah radioed the dispatcher before the shooting to tell other officers that Anderson had a gun, and backup officers reported finding the gun within the seat, Adelman added.
Adelman confirmed claims by Anderson’s family that he was reaching for his mobile phone. But he said the phone was next to the gun and there was no way Mensah could have known whether Anderson was reaching for the gun or something else.
The judge said he didn’t need to handle the racism allegations since the excessive force claim had not been established.
Motley said she disagreed with the choice to dismiss Anderson’s case, saying the jury should resolve whether he tried to take the phone, the gun, or nothing in any respect. She said she plans to file a motion asking Adelman to reconsider his decision.
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The post Judge Dismisses Cases Filed Against Wisconsin Officer Who Killed 3 Men Over 5 Years appeared first on TheGrio.
Crime
Luigi Mangione, 26, in police custody in connection with the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO
New York authorities have identified 26-year-old Luigi Mangione as an individual of interest in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
According to police, a McDonald’s worker recognized Mangione in a photograph taken by NYPD Crime Stoppers and called authorities to report that he was eating at the restaurant, which led to his arrest.
Police say Mangione was carrying an anti-corporate manifesto, false identification and a ghost gun.
“It fits the description we were looking for,” Mayor Eric Adams said. An early NYPD report drew criticism online for calling the suspect a “light-skinned male” fairly than simply saying he was white.
The New York Post reports that Mangione previously attended the University of Pennsylvania, was valedictorian of the highschool in 2016 and had ties to Towson, Maryland. His social media posts indicate motivation related to dissatisfaction with the health care industry.
The shooting gained national attention because of the lukewarm response to Thompson’s death from many voters, who criticized the high insurance denial rate and greed that contributed to the American loss of life.
NYPD officers will now travel to Pennsylvania to query Mangione. Watch the entire press conference below:
Crime
OJ Simpson’s audio testimony claims have been proven false
Iroc Avelli, OJ Simpson’s former bodyguard, claimed to have a recording of the late NFL player admitting to killing Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. According to .evaluation of the audio recording showed the claim to be false.
In June 2024, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) contacted the Bloomington, Minnesota police department to realize access to thumb drives confiscated during Avelli’s 2022 arrest.
Bloomington Police Department arrested Avelli for alleged assault in 2022; upon arrest, the police seized Avelli’s backpack and obtained an order to gather relevant evidence on the scene. The backpack contained multiple flash drives that the previous security guard said contained Simpson’s confessions.
According to Peasant! News“search warrant filed in Hennepin County requested by Officer George Harms seek for image pendrives in order that “a full forensic examination could possibly be carried out on all of the pendrives to acquire the recording.”
The Bloomington Police Department didn’t return the drives, opting as an alternative to conduct an internal forensic examination. After a digital forensics specialist examined the drives, Bloomington police didn’t disclose any information of “probative value” to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The further investigation into the Simpson and Goldman murders is strange because on October 3, 1995, OJ Simpson was acquitted of all charges. The former San Francisco 49er maintained his innocence until his death from cancer on April 11, 2024.
After his acquittal, OJ Simpson continued to benefit from his fame. In 1996, the Buffalo Bills player published a book titled If I Did It: Confessions of a Killer. Many found the book’s title and content distasteful and criticized it Naked weapon the actor’s constant presence in celebrity culture.
However, many individuals imagine that Simpson’s acquittal ought to be enough to just accept his presence in all spaces. BLACK ENTERPRISES reports on rapper Cam’Ron’s response to criticism after Simpson was invited on his sports show before his death.
The It is what it’s the host and businessman believes that the accusations – proven in court – shouldn’t result in ostracization. Cam’Ron believes that Simpson’s race may have played a job in continuously questioning his innocence throughout his life.
“Look, if he was guilty, we wouldn’t have him on the show,” he said. “You wish to proceed convicting an innocent man. He is innocent. If it was another person, whiter, you’d all say, “Oh, he’s innocent.” TO BE reported.
It appears that the hearings and investigation into Orenthol James Simpson’s role, or lack thereof, in his ex-wife’s murder will proceed even after his death.
Crime
Suspect charged with fatally shooting 3-year-old on Thanksgiving Day
Tatisha Refuge, a 47-year-old New Orleans resident, turned herself in to authorities after the death of 3-year-old Rudy Ratliff. Refuge is charged with “manslaughter by negligence.”
Rudy’s mother, Leshawn Ratliff, lives in Texas but visited Refuge, her foster mother, in the previous few days of Thanksgiving. Nov 8 News.
“I came here on Saturday to pick up my older son. He was here over Thanksgiving break, and I came down on Saturday to pick him up so we could go home on Sunday and they could go back to school on Monday.” Ratliff he said.
While playing UNO, Refuge’s unsecured gun fell from her belt and fired, striking Rudy. Ratliff she recounted how the scene unfolded when she discovered Rudy had been shot.
“I began seeing blood coming out of his chest. That’s once I knew he had been shot. So I called 911.
The mother didn’t wish to wait for 911. Instead, she decided to take Rudy to University Medical Center for treatment. She said that after they arrived at the ability, Rudy seemed to be alive. Unfortunately, 20 minutes later she was informed of his death.
Tatisha Refuge has been charged with negligent homicide within the shooting death of 3-year-old Rudy Ratliff. #Khou11 @AmandaHTV
https://t.co/BFIeGhAHYG— KHOU 11 Houston News (@KHOU) December 4, 2024
Ratliff she nurtured her relationship with Refuge and is torn now that the accusations involve her foster mother.
“It was a random shooting. His grandfather’s gun fell. It wasn’t within the secure. It wasn’t within the gun position. I believe it went into the pocket and fell out and shot my son,” Ratliff said. “I understand it was a mistake. I imagine in my heart that it was a mistake. I just don’t understand. I just don’t understand.
The grieving mother began a GoFundMe and is asking the general public for help with Rudy’s burial. To support the Ratliff family of their time of need, click here.
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