Archive for February 2nd, 2013

More on the Patricia Cook case.

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

The verdict stands.

Former Culpeper Police Department officer Daniel Harmon-Wright will serve three years in prison. (Edited to add: Well, technically, jail. “…in Virginia, sentences measured in months, like in his client’s case, the person convicted serves their imprisonment in a county jail.” This doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, though: if I’m sentenced to 99 years, I go to prison, but if I’m sentenced to 1,188 months, I go to jail? I’d always thought the dividing line was: a year or less, jail. More than a year, prison.)

Harmon-Wright said he heard about the opening at the Culpeper PD in 2006 through his mother, administrative secretary to the police chief at the time. Friday, he described his colleagues at the police department as dedicated and professional saying it was “a thrill” to serve the community as part of the force. He added that after the events of Feb. 9, 2012 that he would never consider a job in law enforcement again — as a convicted felon Harmon-Wright would be ineligible to work in law enforcement or own a firearm. His lawyer said he would consider appealing the conviction.

Ah, yes, his mother. That would be the woman charged with “uttering” for allegedly aaltering her son’s police department personnel records.

(Previously. Previously.)

Posted in Clippings, Cops, Law | Comments Closed

Banana republicans on trial: February 2, 2013.

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

Yesterday’s development from the Bell trial: patented Rizzo confuse-o-vision!

Bell’s former top administrator went to great lengths to confuse City Council members, purposely making resolutions ambiguous and complex so they’d have trouble understanding the documents, a prosecution witness in the city’s corruption trial testified Friday.

Lourdes Garcia, the $422,000 a year “former director of administrative services” went on to testify that “former City Manager Robert Rizzo regarded council members as unsophisticated and easily manipulated”. And the things “Ratso” Rizzo did were “all justifiable because ‘it was for the greater good of the organization.'”

It gets even better.

In one instance, Rizzo complained after hearing that an employee was taking an ethics class.
“Mr. Rizzo was always giving me directions that gave me the perspective that he did not want ethics in the organization,” she said.

Posted in California Über Alles, Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

Captain Renault, call your office, please.

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

The NYT would like for you to know that there’s illegal gambling going on in New Orleans.

Michael said he first saw one at church, when he was 11 or 12. He was sitting next to his grandfather in one of the pews. Just before the sermon began, his grandfather pulled him close. “I know church is going to bore you for the next 45 minutes,” his grandfather said as he slipped him a card, “so take a look at this, make your three plays, and we’ll talk about it on the way home.” Within a few years, Michael and his brother were making bets through their own bookie.

Posted in Clippings, Law | Comments Closed

A theater critic once bit my sister.

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

I am absolutely mind croggled. Utterly speechless.

The “Beautiful Soup Theater Collective” did a revival of “Moose Murders” by Arthur Bicknell.

Why does this leave me stunned? Because “Moose Murders” is a legendary fiasco, one that opened and closed on the same night. Here’s the original Frank Rich review from the NYT.

And here’s Charles Isherwood’s review of the revival:

…the odium surrounding “Moose Murders” was not founded on myth. Although Mr. Bicknell has apparently done some rewriting — a reference to Martha Stewart would have been obscure three decades ago — the play is every bit as inane and inept as history has recorded. And, sad to say, there’s no joy to be had in attending its exhumation. It’s like attending a wake for someone who died 30 years ago, then being served Champagne that’s been sitting open during the interim.

(By the way, the producers of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” say they’ve “re-shuffled” funds and are going ahead. Previously.)

Posted in Clippings, Theatre | Comments Closed

When are we going to get to the fireworks factory?

Saturday, February 2nd, 2013

How about “never”? Is “never” good enough for you?

A truck laden with fireworks exploded on an elevated expressway in central China on Friday, unleashing a blast that threw vehicles 30 yards to the ground below and killing at least nine people, state news reports said.

Posted in Bridges, Clippings, Explosives, Roads | Comments Closed