Brooke Bellah

National: Suspect hunted after man killed in traffic stop
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/13/miami.shootings/index.html

Summary:
There was a shooting on Thursday after a man in Miami was pulled over for swerving on the road. Four police officers were shot and at this point one is pronounced dead. Two others should be alright and the other's medical condition is not being released (which probably means it isn't good). The gun involved was found in a canal nearby, and the suspect's car was found at Target parking lot not too long after. It turns out the car wasn't the suspected shooter's, Sherwin Labeet, but that it was his brother's. Police have still not found the men who did this, and a lrge mahunt is still underway in Miami.
Opinon:
The man who did this must have been on drugs or something. Who shoots a police officer for somehing so trivial as a traffic violation...unless there was drugs in the car, or the shooter was on probation. Even then, it's better to let the police pull you over, find the drugs in your car, and go to prison for a year, then it would be to go to jail for life for murder.

National: Groups press for hate-crime charges in woman's alleged torture
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/13/woman.tortured.ap/index.html

Summary:
A black woman in West Virginia was kidnapped, raped, and tortured for an entire week by six white people. The leaders of black churches in Charleston are pressing for this to be prosecuted as a hate-crime, saying that it was racially motivated, but authorities have not placed this among the charges--however, they say it is not being ruled out. The woman was forced to eat animal feces, drink out of a toilet, and was repeatedly beaten and sexually abused while being called racial slurs. The only evidence that may damage a hate-crime charge is the fact that the victim knew one of her kidnappers.
Opinion:
Anyone who does this to another human being deserves to face the maximum amount of jail time. But..just because the woman was black and her attackers were white does not prove that this was a hate-crime. Yes, they used racial slurs against her, but this could have just been another way to demean her while they were torturing her. The attackers were probably racist or at least prejudiced ( it is the South) but this doesn't prove they singled their victim out because she was black. It is a possibility, and I believe they should at least be charged with it, but the fact that she knew her kidnappers seems to indicate that the group may have had some earlier confrontation with this woman. I am about 40/60 on the fence in believing that this was a hate crime. (60% sure that it was)

International: Key Sunni ally of U.S assassinated
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/09/13/iraq.killing/index.html

Summary:
Abu Reesha, an anti- al Queda activist was killed on Thursday by a roadside bomber. The shiek was an important public figure in Iraq, and was head of an organization designed to work with U.S forces to counter al Queda attacks in Iraq. It is believed that he was assassinated by al Queda. Two of the shiek's bodyguards were also killed and five other escorts were injured. Many speculate that this attack will only anger the shieks and unite them against the al Queda forces. Represenatives for the U.S Embasy in Iraq had this to say: "Sheik Sattar exemplified the strength of the Iraqi people in the face of terrorism. His work will go on, and his legacy will never be forgotten."
Opinion:
The al Queda isn't that bright sometimes. They probaby thought that by killing one of their adversaries, they would discourage anyone else from uniting against them. Really, this assassination will probabl have the opposite effect. Whatever fear the al Queda had over the people of Iraq before the war, is drastically reduced now, and I doubt the Iraqis will put up wit the loss of such a beloved figure.

International: Gang used ATM "blood-suckers" to steal, Brazil police say
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americas/09/13/brazil.atm.ap/index.html

Summary:
24 people were arrested on Thursday for participating in a gang which implanted devices inside of ATM's. These devices were designed to record a user's password and account information. Brazil authorities estimate that over $10 million was stolen from customer's bank accounts. The devices engineers were arrested along with the gang's masterminds.
Opinon:
Uhhh..what does this gang call itself ? Do they do normal gang stuff, or is this just a bunch of computer nerds hacking into a bank's system, stealing money, and then calling themselves a gang. If they are a powerful ang in Brazil (the article doesn't say what the name of the gang is) then they're the smartest gang I've ever heard of. Hopefully no other smart gang members, or bored computer nerds will hear of this and commit a copycat crime here in the United States. I guess we'll have to all stop using ATM machines...