WTH?

L.A. officials defend mapping of Muslim areas

Mayor Villaraigosa says the LAPD has 'good intentions' in gathering intelligence. Chief Bratton says the effort should be seen as 'community engagement.'
Los Angeles Times
City officials this morning defended the LAPD's decision to identify Muslim enclaves across the city, saying that instead of "mapping," Angelenos should see the program as "community engagement."

Civil rights groups have harshly criticized the new initiative as racial profiling that unfairly targets Muslims. The American Civil Liberties Union along with other community groups sent a letter to the LAPD this week saying the prospect of such a measure raised "grave concerns."

At a press conference about police recruitment in Elysian Park, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Police Chief William Bratton and Councilman Jack Weiss said they stood behind Deputy Chief Michael P. Downing's decision to gather extensive intelligence about local Muslim communities.

"Chief Downing has good intentions here," said Villaraigosa, who added that he had only learned of the new program through newspaper articles and at a short briefing.

The Police Department respects "the civil and human rights of Muslims in Los Angeles," Villaraigosa said.

The mapping program would be headed by Downing, who is in charge of the LAPD's anti-terrorism bureau.

"We want to map the locations of these closed, vulnerable communities, and in partnership with these communities . . . help [weave] these enclaves into the fabric of the larger society," Downing said in testimony about the program before Congress on Oct. 30.

At the hearing, Downing said his intentions were to "mitigate radicalization," and that law enforcement agencies everywhere faced "a vicious, amorphous and unfamiliar adversary on our land."

Jury Nails Another One

Reports The San Diego Union-Tribune's News Blog:

A U.S. District Court jury has convicted Brent Wilkes on all 13 counts in his corruption trial. The Poway defense contractor had been accused by prosecutors of leveraging more than $600,000 in cash bribes and thousands more in gifts to ousted Rep. Randy Duke Cunningham in exchange for Cunningham's influence in securing more than $80 million in government contracts.

Update: Wilkes faces up to 20 years for his conviction here, but keep in mind that this is just the first of two trials that Wilkes will face. The second deals with Wilkes' alleged bribes of former CIA executive director Dusty Foggo.

SCOTUS and Guantanamo

Carlin on Airport Security

Yes, I'd say so.

Kerik and Co.

I find myself unable to get angry at Bernie Kerik. Everything about him tells me he tried to play way above his class and didn't know how. That doesn't excuse his behavior; it certainly does rap those who reached out and moved him several steps above his abilities. Reminds me a little of "heckuva job, Brownie."

Robot Taser

GPS Dope

Stolen Satellite Navigation System Directs Police To Hideout
It might be the easiest arrest that police in Mt. Ommaney, Australia, have ever made.

One man has been charged with robbery after he was tracked by a GPS that he had stolen which inadvertently took police to his exact whereabouts. The bust led police to recover a humongous amount of stolen equipment taken in what appeared to be sophisticated heists.

The breakthrough is thanks to Sumner Park company Fleetlink GPS.

When thieves broke into the company’s office early last month, they stole more than $13,000 worth of equipment including a demonstration pack, a laptop computer, and six in-car navigators.

The cutting edge equipment is used by transport companies to monitor their fleets.

But five days later, a thief plugged in the software which alerted Fleetlink to the exact location of its hot equipment.

“We were fairly confident he was going to be silly enough to plug it in because it looks like something to plug in,” said business development manager Murray Griffith.

“The curiosity would have killed the cat, without a doubt.

“It was quite funny, we had a bit of a laugh and then contacted police.

“But I don’t think it took much to outsmart him though.

“If he was that smart he wouldn’t be a criminal.”

The thief’s location was traced to a residence in the nearby suburb of Camira — exactly eight kilometers or 13 minutes and 41 seconds away.

Using this evidence, police were able to obtain a search warrant and search the property which uncovered a virtual Aladdin’s Cave of stolen equipment.

Griffith said that the thief had disposed of the demonstration pack worth $3,000, but the remaining equipment, adding up to more than $10,000, was able to be recovered.

The suspected thief, an unidentified 54-year-old man, has been hit with a notice to appear in court and will do so next month.