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Police in Mississippi tasered a black man 18 times until he was covered in his own vomit, Justice Department says

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Mississippi Cops Shocked Black Man with Tazer 18 Times Until He Was Covered In His Own Vomit, DOJ Says

A Mississippi city that made headlines when a video of its police chief bragging about shooting a black man 119 times went viral is now the topic of a damning latest report by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging widespread civil rights violations .

Since 2021, Lexington police have arrested roughly a quarter of the town’s residents and issued greater than $1.7 million in fines during that period – The Justice Department made the disclosure Thursday after a nearly year-long investigation. That works out to about $1,400 for each man, woman and child in the Delta town of 1,200, positioned in certainly one of the poorest counties in the country.

The money was intended to finance the Police. For 2021-2023, Lexington increased police spending from $662,925 to $965,130.

Police in Mississippi shocked a black man with a Taser 18 times until he was covered in his own vomit, Justice Department says
Lexington Police Department patrol automobile. (Police Department on Facebook/Lexington)

“Lexington has turned the prison into the kind of debtors’ prison that Charles Dickens described in his novels written in the 19th century,” said Todd Gee, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi.

The Justice Department said black residents, who make up 76 percent of the town’s population, were particularly targeted and arrested for minor offenses resembling profanity. This is not any surprise given Lexington’s recent history.

In 2022, Police Chief Sam Dobbins, appointed to the position a 12 months earlier, was fired after he was recorded bragging that he shot “that N—- 119 times, OK?”

A 12 months later, his term was cut short when a former LPD officer released an audio recording
recording of Dobbins’ comments. He claimed to have killed 13 people in the road of duty, said he didn’t confer with “queers” and told one other officer, “I don’t care if you kill a motherfucker in cold blood.”

The Justice Department found a rise in low-level arrests targeting black people coincided with Dobbins’ nominationwhich is white. Under his leadership, Lexington police had a mean per capita arrest rate greater than 10 times higher than the remaining of the state, prosecutors said.

According to community members cited in the Justice Department report, Dobbins’ deputy, Charles Henderson, has replaced him as chief and continues to foster a “culture of abuse and harassment.”

In one incident, which occurred hours after the Justice Department announced it was opening an investigation into Lexington police, officers chased a black man – accused of obstruction – into a field and used a Taser on him nine times. The man began to foam on the mouth; certainly one of the officers then noticed that the probe he fired had hit the suspect in the top.

The man, who suffered from a behavioral disorder, has been arrested three times this 12 months for trespassing and stealing a cup of coffee and a bag of sugar. Each time, police illegally detained him until old charges for previous offenses were settled. But with each arrest, one other wonderful was added, and by November 2023, the unemployed and asset-less man owed greater than $7,500, the Justice Department said.

“Through a combination of poor leadership, retaliation, and a complete lack of internal accountability, LPD has created a system in which officers can ruthlessly violate the law,” the Justice Department report said.

They were often brutal in enforcing the law, sometimes using cattle prods to force compliance, said Assistant U.S. Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Kristen Clarke.

“For example, officers used a Taser to strike a black man 18 times until he was covered in his own vomit and could not speak or talk,” Clarke said.

Local civil rights activist Jill Collen Jefferson was arrested in 2023 for recording a traffic stop. She said Lexington residents essentially live in a police state.

“They are arresting them for things like taking too long to get out of their car at the grocery store…the police have waged a complete and total campaign of fear and control over Black citizens” – Jefferson he told the Mississippi Free Press.

The report shows that city officials expressed willingness to implement reforms after being informed of the Justice Department’s findings in February. They not arrest or detain people for outstanding fines, for instance.

“But … LPD has an ongoing pattern or practice of unconstitutional conduct and additional measures are necessary to stop it,” the report concluded.

This article was originally published on : atlantablackstar.com
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Politics and Current

Kamala Harris reacts to attacks on her race: ‘I don’t listen to it. I really know clearly who I am.”

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All the Smoke, Kamala Harris

In a brand new interview on the favored sports podcast “All The Smoke,” Vice President Kamala Harris responded to attacks on her racial identity that falsely questioned her blackness.

When asked by co-host Matt Barnes, a former NBA player who was herself born right into a multi-ethnic family, with an Italian mother and a black father, about how she was misrepresented by former President Donald Trump, Harris, whose father is a black Jamaican and whose mother is Indian, it explained how silly these attacks looked.

“You’ve always been confident in who you are, but what do you think when you see people question who you are?” Barnes said.

“First of all, I don’t listen to it. I’m really clear about who I am, and if another person is not, they’ve to undergo their very own therapy, it’s none of my business,” Harris said. “My mother was very clear; she raised two black girls to be two proud black women. And that was never a matter.

The false questioning of Harris’ blackness was amplified by former President Donald Trump, who was interviewed on the NABJ conference in August and used the stage to spread a lie about how Harris identified.

During the All the Smoke interview, Harris further explained why questions on multi-ethnicity or mixed race must bear in mind America’s complex history, with segregation tied to systems similar to “one drop rule”, which meant that anyone with even one ancestor of African descent was considered black and discriminated against by law.

Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris waits to speak during a campaign rally at 900 United Auto Workers on August 8, 2024 in Wayne, Michigan. (Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“Over the years, journalists – some, not most – wanted to talk about it, and I said OK, if you want to have that conversation, I’m willing to do it, but sit down and get comfortable for a few hours if you want to start talking about race in America.” Harris said truthfully, as Barnes and co-host Stephen Jackson nodded in agreement.

“You want to talk concerning the 1/8 rule? You want to speak about what this implies by way of who you’re perceived to be, and the impact it could have on the remaining of your life, no matter who you really are, by way of your God-given abilities and the rights you could have and it is best to Possess?”

Harris, an HBCU (Historically Black College) and Howard University graduate, also spoke concerning the importance of HBCUs and why the Biden-Harris administration helped invest $16 billion at school funding.

“So a big part of my work, especially in the Senate and now as vice president, has been to increase federal funding for HBCUs. Because again, I know they are centers of academic excellence, centers of academic excellence, but they don’t necessarily have the same types of resources,” Harris explained.

“When I was a senator, I was liable for helping get billions to literally modernize the physical structure since it’s old. And I think increasingly more persons are realizing what you are saying – possibly we have skipped an era, but we’re getting back to a degree where more people understand what our HBCUs do and supply them with more financial support. But we’ve got to.

During the interview, the vice chairman talked about her economic plan for America should she be elected president and the way she deals with right-wing political attacks for being a stepmother.

To watch the total interview, visit the web site YouTube channel for “All the Smoke”.

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This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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Trump throws chicken nuggets at a University of Alabama football game

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Trump, rally shooting, assignation at temp


When 17-year-old University of Alabama freshman phenom Ryan Williams wowed the Tuscaloosa crowd on September 28 with a thrilling, unimaginable catch on the sideline against the University of Georgia, Former President Donald Trump has once more acted strangely.

This time, they are saying, the previous president waved to the group after which tossed several boxes of chicken nuggets to seemingly random football fans at the University of Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium.

According to the Associated Press, Trump was there as a guest of Ric Mayers Jr., an Alabama businessman who can also be a member of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago golf club. Mayers indicated to the AP that he wanted Trump to enjoy a warm welcome, which the group gave, chanting “USA! USA!” while Trump threw boxes of nuggets.

Trump’s visit to a football game, where he was accepted and seemingly praised by the audience, stands in stark contrast to the coverage he has received since he spread a baseless conspiracy theory on the talk stage in early September.

Consistent with most of Trump’s appeals to conservatives who’ve latched onto his “Make America Great Again” slogan, there may be a view that America needs saving from black and brown people, especially black and brown immigrants.

Most of his supporters, nevertheless, would probably share the emotions of Shane Walsh, a 52-year-old businessman from Austin, Texas. Walsh said that although he doesn’t consider the previous president to be a good man, despite his personal feelings for him, Walsh believes that Trump is a figure who should represent America.

“I do not necessarily like him as a person, but I believe Washington is broken and it’s each side’ fault, and Trump is the sort of guy who can rise up for himself. It has many benefits, but weak will not be one of them. He is an optimist; he just makes you think it if he’s the one in charge. We’ll be nice. Walsh said .

While the group seemed overwhelmingly supportive of Trump based on their response, save for a few boos and prolonged middle fingers, the reality on campus could be very different than his reception at the game, in line with Braden Vick, president of the University of Alabama’s College Democrats chapter.

“I believe there may be a silent majority amongst students who are usually not with Trump. “We have a great atmosphere for a top-five game between these two teams that has playoff and championship implications, and it’s a shame that Donald Trump has to try to ruin it with his selfishness,” Vick said.

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This article was originally published on : www.blackenterprise.com
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Politics and Current

An Ohio police officer has been fired after shocking footage of him brutally kicking a kneeling black man in the chest

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Authorities in Canton, Ohio, announced the firing of a veteran police officer who was caught on video kicking a suspect while he was kneeling on the ground along with his hands in the air.

Brandon Momirov was fired on Monday, almost a month after a video showing the unprovoked attack on 21-year-old Jaemiir McElroy went viral. Video recorded by a witness shows Momirow running toward McElroy and kicking him in the chest, despite the fact that the suspect complied.

“I don’t understand why the cop ran up and kicked him in the face, but it was inappropriate because he didn’t actually do anything” – witness Amari Reese he said Guangzhou TV station.

A viral video showing an Ohio police officer kicking an unresisting black man in the head is the latest example of police committing a
The photo on the left shows Jaemier McElroy obeying police orders by kneeling and holding his hands up when Canton Police Officer Brandon Momirov, circled in the photo on the right, runs up and kicks him in the chest. Photo: YouTube video screenshots/WKYC channel).

McElroy was hospitalized with a concussion, his lawyer Bob DiCello said. He was charged with obstructing official business and resisting arrest, and these allegations are usually not supported by the body camera footage. Police were responding to reports of an argument involving 10 to fifteen people.

“I have said many times that we can do better, but I am tired of saying that. It’s about action,” Canton Mayor William V. Sherer II said in a statement. “This behavior is unacceptable.”

Sherer offered his support to Police Chief John Gabbard, calling the taped beating an “isolated incident.” Gabbard initially defended Momirov, saying, “Our officers often face stressful, dangerous situations and confrontations with armed suspects.”

DiCello praised Momirov’s firing, but noted that it likely wouldn’t have happened without the video.

“In the end, they saw the same thing we saw,” he said. in line with News 5 Cleveland. “The officer who inexcusably knocked Jaemiir McElroy, my client, to the ground. It wasn’t a defensive move, it was an offensive attack.

According to police, McElroy, Terrence Backie and one other unidentified person were arrested after police found two guns and a great amount of marijuana.

Canton police said that after they arrived, several people in the crowd had fled, including one man who “was carrying a weapon clearly visible to the pursuing officer,” in line with the Canton Repository.

Body camera footage from Momirov and one other officer shows them briefly chasing the gunman. The officer then sees McElroy and 4 other people in the parking zone and demands that they stop. He then calls for backup.

“I even have five at gunpoint in this parking zone, which is against the rules. I could use more units,” the officer says. However, body camera footage shows McElroy and the others kneeling in unison.

Seconds later, Momirov approaches the group, attacking McElroy.

– Why did you hit my brother like that, brother? asked one of the men on the ground, probably McElroy’s brother.

“Because he doesn’t comply,” Momirov replies.

Momirov is asked again why he kicked McElroy.

“How many times have I told you to get down?” Momirov replies.

“You don’t want to listen, that’s fine,” he tells the other officers. “So don’t be surprised if we lay hands on you.”

DiCello is involved in six other cases of alleged harassment by Canton police over the past two years. Half of the cases resulted in death, and all of the lawyer’s surviving clients suffered serious injuries.

“There is a group of law enforcement officers in Canton who treat ordinary civilians like enemy combatants,” DiCello said NBC News.

Relations between police officers and the community have been strained since New Year’s Eve 2022. Police killed a Black man named James Williams after ceremoniously firing a shot into the air. No charges were brought against the officer who took part in the incident.

In December 2023, 24-year-old Zachary J. Fornash, armed with a pellet gun, was shot and killed by police. Earlier this 12 months, a 53-year-old man died in police custody after committing multiple offenses he told the officers “I can’t breathe.” The coroner’s office ruled Frank Tyson’s death a homicide.

In May, one other incident occurred with the participation of a suspect who complied with the regulations. Canton Police Officer Nicholas Castro unleashed a German Shepherd K-9 on Kiev’s Conver, who was already lying face down on the ground, restrained by the officer. Conver was stopped for failure to signal.

Castro was fired in June.

This article was originally published on : atlantablackstar.com
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