Police Scotland received thousands of complaints under the nation's new hate crimes law just in the first few days after it took effect. Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf told The Telegraph that "a tiny percentage" of the numerous complaints are "turning into actual investigations," but control room staff is running up overtime weeding through them. Yousaf, who backed the law, said that even if complaints start to dwindle in the future, it will take "weeks or months" and cost "hundreds of thousands of pounds" to work through the backlog.
In England, Swansea Crown Court Judge Geraint Walters wanted to know why prosecutors dropped charges against photographer Dimitris Legakis on the eve of the trial. Legakis had been arrested for taking photos near a crime scene and charged with assaulting an emergency worker, obstructing or resisting a police officer, and using threatening or abusive words or behavior. A prosecutor said charges were dropped because the officer's original statement differed from a later one. But Walters said that after reading the record, he believed that Legakis was arrested because a police officer "took offence" to him taking photos. He said he believed prosecutors knew early on that "there was no evidential basis" to charge Legakis.
An internal investigation by the Connecticut State Police found that four troopers entered hundreds of fake tickets into agency records systems in 2018 in an effort to make their productivity look better. Investigators found the officers' actions may have been felony crimes, but they did not alert prosecutors to the results of their investigation. Chief State's Attorney Patrick Griffin said he only found out about the scheme in late 2022, years after the investigation, when a local newspaper began asking about it. Griffin opened a criminal investigation at that time, but he said recently that the troopers will not face charges because the statute of limitations has run out. Two of the troopers retired without punishment and are each collecting nearly $70,000 in annual pensions; the other two received brief suspensions—one for 10 days and the other for two days—before being transferred to new units.
The Chechen government has banned all music it deems too fast. Or too slow. Minister of Culture Musa Dadayev said that from now on, all music in Chechnya must have a tempo ranging from 80 to 116 beats per minute. This includes vocal performances and music that backs dance performances. Dadayev says this requirement conforms to "Chechen mentality and musical rhythm" and will bring "to the people and to the future of our children the cultural heritage of the Chechen people."
An officer with London's Metropolitan Police, whose name has not been released, was placed on restricted duties after being accused of taking money from a dead bicyclist's wallet. Claudio Gaetani suffered a heart attack while riding his bike. Officers who responded to the call took his passport and wallet but allowed his friends to keep his bicycle and his backpack. When one of his friends later went to collect the wallet, she claimed money was missing from it. The case has been referred to the Crown Prosecution Service after surveillance footage allegedly showed an officer counting money.
In Nigeria, Chioma Okoli faces up to three years in prison and a fine of 7 million naira (around $5,600 U.S.) after posting on Facebook that she found a tomato puree made by local company Erisco Foods Limited to be too sweet. Police have charged her under the nation's cybercrimes law with "the intention of instigating people against Erisco Foods." The company has also filed a civil lawsuit against her.
In May 2023, the St. Louis County SWAT team used a battering ram to knock down the door to Brittany Shamily's home in Ferguson, Missouri. Cops detained her and her family while they ransacked the place, searching for evidence related to a carjacking that had happened earlier that day. One of the victims told police his AirPods were in the car. They used the Find My app to locate them. It seemed to indicate they were in the home, according to a federal lawsuit filed by the family. But the Find My app isn't quite that precise: Police didn't find any evidence related to the carjacking, but according to the lawsuit, they did find the AirPods in the street near the house.
Police Scotland says it will no longer investigate minor crimes, but it refuses to say exactly what constitutes a minor crime. In response to a freedom of information request by a local newspaper, the police force said releasing that information would give a "tactical advantage" to criminals. Officials said the move is aimed at freeing up resources to investigate major crimes. Don't worry: Police officials say they will continue to investigate all reported hate crime incidents even if they don't meet the charging threshold.
Michael Cassidy was charged with criminal mischief after destroying a Baphomet altar erected by the Satanic Temple of Iowa in the state capitol in 2023. Since Cassidy "destroyed the property because of the victim's religion," they tacked on a hate crime enhancement, increasing the charge from a misdemeanor to a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and up to $10,245 in fines. (Illustration: Peter Bagge)
For three years, the Bond family requested permission to remove two trees on their property that they thought looked dangerous. But the Portland, Oregon, Urban Forestry Commission denied their requests, saying it would "significantly affect neighborhood character." Then during a storm, one of those trees fell onto the Bonds' home, forcing them out. A city arborist advised the family that they will have to apply for a permit to remove the remains of the tree and pay to have a tree planted to replace it. They were also advised to remove the second tree from their property and apply for a retroactive permit, but if that permit is denied, they could be fined for removing the tree.
Christina Lea Gilchrist is a Canadian sex worker who offers a 25 percent discount to customers in the military. Although her sex work is legal, the military claims that her ads—which depict Gilchrist in uniform—are illegal. As a result, she says Canadian military police threatened to press charges against her and warned soldiers not to use her services. (Illustration: Peter Bagge)
Former Miami-Dade School Board Vice Chair Lubby Navarro faces charges of fraud and grand theft. Prosecutors say she used her school system credit cards to make $100,000 in illegal purchases, including two fake pregnancy bellies that she used to try to convince her ex-boyfriend she was pregnant with his child.
Video showed reporter David Menzies approaching Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland with a microphone and walking alongside her on a public sidewalk, asking questions about government policy. Menzies seemingly bumped into a police officer who stepped into his path; that officer then shoved Menzies against a wall and told him he was under arrest for assault. Ontario police later dropped the charges, saying "no credible security threat existed."
A jury convicted former House of Representatives of Puerto Rico member María Milagros "Tata" Charbonier of conspiracy, bribery, and money laundering, among other charges. While in office, Charbonier increased her assistant's biweekly pay from $800 to between $2,100 and $2,900. But the assistant kicked back between $1,000 and $1,500 of each paycheck to Charbonier, her husband, and their son. (Illustration: Peter Bagge)
Atlanta developer Jeff Raw had a water meter installed on a vacant lot he owned. Over the next five months, he received bills totaling nearly $30,000. A city inspector verified there were no water lines or leaks on the site and the utility sent Raw an email admitting there was a leak in its part of the system, but officials still insisted he pay those bills.
Before taking her oath of Canadian citizenship, Maria Kartasheva learned she had been tried in absentia in Russia, her home country, and found guilty of "public dissemination of deliberately false information" for social media posts she made while living in Canada opposing the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Canada has a similar law, and those charged with an offense that would be a crime in Canada may be denied citizenship. After several media outlets picked up her story, the government agreed to let Kartasheva become a citizen after all.
As part of his retirement from the U.S. Army, Sgt. Major Eriq Brown was screened for disability benefits. That's when a psychologist asked him if a pending criminal charge was causing him emotional issues. Brown was confused: He wasn't facing any charges. It turns out that another soldier had accused him of assault two years earlier. An investigation found no evidence to support that claim, and in fact it found that Brown wasn't even on post on the day in question, but the allegation remained in his record. Brown is one of thousands of military members who has a criminal record despite never being convicted of or even charged with a crime. A Department of Defense policy requires military investigators to put someone's name into the FBI's National Crime Information Center database if they have "credible information" that the person committed a crime. Someone filing a report is considered "credible information." The service member doesn't know his name has been entered until someone does a criminal background check, and the military is reluctant to remove the name even if charges are never filed.
Sherri Chance's son called 911 when he noticed flames shooting out of the clothes dryer at their home in DeKalb County, Georgia. He expected a quick response since there was a fire station just two miles away, but he was put on hold—for 41 minutes. Family members and neighbors tried to battle the growing blaze themselves in the meantime. Finally, a passing FedEx driver saw the house on fire, drove to the fire station, and alerted firefighters who went to the house and put out the fire. Chance said her representatives on the county commission told her the 911 center is experiencing staffing shortages.
Victor Silva Sr. says he used to paint over graffiti on the fence of his home in Oakland, California. But the 102-year-old adds that since he has been confined to a wheelchair that has been difficult. City officials don't seem to have any sympathy for Silva's plight: They sent him a notice to remove the latest graffiti painted on the fence or be fined $1,100 and an additional $1,277 fine each time the fence fails a re-inspection. "It's hard to keep up with it because as soon as we get it painted, it's gonna be graffiti on it again, and it won't last," said Silva's son, who added that he tries to help his father keep the fence free of graffiti.
In England, the Hastings Borough Council has enacted new rules banning one person from walking more than six dogs at a time. Those who violate the ordinance face a fine of up to £1,000 ($1,256 U.S.). The rules also ban dogs from a number of public places.
Training materials for Scottish police say that actors performing a play could run afoul of the nation's new hate speech law, which bans communication that could stir up hatred of protected groups. Supporters of the law had claimed it would only apply to producers, directors, and others involved behind the scenes with a play, not the actors. Those found guilty of violating the law face up to seven years in prison.
In India, Ishwar Deen spent more than two months and 250,000 rupees ($2,998) modifying his car to look like a helicopter, welding a propeller to the top and a boom with a propeller to the back. The first day he took the car on the road, police seized it for illegal modifications. Deen was also fined 2,000 rupees ($24).
A four-star U.S. army general has been suspended and is now under investigation after Military.com reported he made concerted efforts to ensure a female lieutenant colonel passed an assessment board for battalion command. Gen. Charles Hamilton spent about a month lobbying officers on the board to pass her. When she failed, he got her a second panel two days later, something that sources told Military.com was unprecedented. She failed the second panel.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) says it has found that former CBI forensic scientist Yvonne "Missy" Woods manipulated data in the DNA testing process or posted incomplete test results in hundreds of cases. The CBI says it has found 652 cases affected by Woods' work between 2008 and 2023, when she was placed on administrative leave and then retired. It is currently reviewing her cases from 1994 to 2008. The CBI says it has not found any evidence that Woods falsified data, but it says she cut corners and did not follow standard protocols, leaving the reliability of her work in question, and deleted or altered data to conceal her actions.
In London, England, the Greenwich council has ordered an award-winning fish and chips shop to remove a patriotic mural. The mural outside the Golden Chippy features an anthropomorphic fish holding a Union Jack flag and reaching into a bag of french fries (chips, as the Brits call them) and a slogan saying "A Great British Meal." Owner Chris Kanizi said the mural has given a boost to business, with tourists coming to snap a selfie in front of the mural and grab a bite to eat. That seems to be the problem, as the council calls it an "unauthorised advert."
Mayor Earl Johnson of Andalusia, Alabama, has apologized to Twyla Stallworth after an officer entered her home and arrested her for not showing her identification. Under Alabama law, police officers can only demand ID from someone who is in a public place and has committed a crime or whom they suspect is going to commit a crime. Stallworth had called to file a noise complaint against a neighbor. No police officer ever came, so she set off her car alarm to annoy the neighbor, who then called to report her; at that point, an officer was dispatched to the scene. Stallworth was not charged for setting off the car alarm, but she was charged with obstruction, resisting arrest, and attempting to elude. Johnson said all charges will be dropped.
After suffering a heart attack, Ken Jones spent 20 hours sitting in "a hard plastic chair" in Gloucestershire Royal Hospital in England before he was seen by a doctor. After he finally got an angiogram, it was discovered he had three blocked arteries. "We recognise that patients continue to experience waits longer than any of us would wish and our staff continue to provide the best possible care," said Gloucestershire Deputy Medical Director Dr. Kate Hellier. "We would encourage the patient to raise any concerns with our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALs)."
Kentucky's Louisville Metro Police released cellphone videos that show two officers throwing slushies on pedestrians from inside unmarked police vehicles. Officers Bryan Wilson and Curt Flynn pleaded guilty in 2022 in federal court to violating the rights of citizens through arbitrary use of force while on duty. Flynn was sentenced to three months in prison, while Wilson received 30 months in prison, with each sentence to be followed by three years of probation.
J.D. Bales, a former middle school soccer coach at Texas' Bridgeport High School, was charged with felony theft after police say he ran up more than $5,000 in charges on a school district credit card at a Houston strip club. Bridgeport Police Chief Steve Stanford told reporters that Bales initially tried to report the charges as fraud. (Illustration: Peter Bagge)
A judge in British Columbia ordered former political candidate David Hilderman to stop referring to himself as an engineer. Hilderman, who has an university degree in engineering and works in the electronics and computer industry, used the word to describe himself in campaign materials. "Engineer" is a protected title in Canada, and the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia filed a complaint against Hilderman because he does not have an engineering license.
In Massachusetts, Great Barrington Police Department Police Chief Paul Storti apologized after an officer searched an eighth-grade classroom for a copy of the book Gender Queer after classroom hours. The book contains sexually explicit images. The officer warned an English teacher that "you can't present that kind of material to people under 18" and asked if other books at the school contained similar images.
A deputy U.S. marshal traveling to London to extradite a prisoner was charged by British authorities with being drunk and disruptive on the flight. A woman on the plane accused the marshal of touching her inappropriately, but the police said "no further action" will be taken on that allegation.
(Illustration: Peter Bagge)
New York lawmakers introduced a bill that would require any restaurants located in state highway rest areas to be open seven days a week. While the law would apply to all such restaurants, backers are open about the fact it is aimed at Chick-fil-A, the fast-food chain famously not open on Sundays. The bill would not apply to restaurants operating under current contracts with the state but would apply to any future contracts.
Officials charged New York Police Department Officer Andy Urrutia with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, petit larceny, official misconduct, unlawful possession of personal ID information, attempted petit larceny, and attempted identity theft. Urrutia allegedly took a photo of a debit card belonging to a woman who had been arrested and sent the photo to friends with the message "Lunch on me, guys." One of them tried to use the card at a Starbucks that day. (Illustration: Peter Bagge)
Police in Senatobia, Mississippi, arrested 10-year-old Quantavious Eason for public urination and took him to jail. Officers saw the boy urinating next to his mother's car while she was inside a lawyer's office with a "no public restroom" sign. The police chief called the arrest an "error in judgment" and claimed one of the officers involved would be disciplined and another no longer worked for the department, but a juvenile court judge sentenced Eason to three months of probation and required him to write an essay about Kobe Bryant.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams has approved clean air rules for coal- and wood-fired stoves that could force some pizzerias to install expensive emission control devices or go out of business. Some pizzerias that have already installed emission control systems to meet the new mandate said it cost them over $600,000, a price others may not be able to afford.
According to his death certificate, Anthony Don Mitchell died as a result of hypothermia as well as "sepsis resulting from infections injuries obtained during incarceration and medical neglect." Mitchell was held for 14 days in the Walker County, Alabama, jail after he fired a gun towards officers who had come to his home for a welfare check. Mitchell had become delusional, and a cousin called 911 because he thought Mitchell needed psychiatric help. According to a lawsuit filed by his mother, Mitchell was held in a cell known as "the freezer" because staff were able to blow cold air into it. According to notes from the doctor who treated Mitchell when he was finally taken to the emergency room, he arrived with a rectal temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit. The doctor's notes said he found it difficult to understand how someone being incarcerated could have such a low temperature.
German police raided homes across the nation and interrogated 45 people suspected of posting misogynistic content online on what the police called a "combating misogyny on the internet" day of action. "Today's day of action makes it clear: We consciously go into the spaces of hate, identify acts and perpetrators, take them out of anonymity and bring them to accountability," said Holger Muench, the head of Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office. The names of the suspects will now be sent to local prosecutors to decide if charges will be filed.
Officials in Fowlerville, Michigan, have agreed to pay $320,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by Ryohei Akima, who was wrongly charged with driving under the influence after a rookie officer misread a breathalyzer test. Akima blew a 0.02, below the blood alcohol content for a drunk driving charge. But officer Caitlyn Peca read that as 0.22—nearly three times the limit. Peca told a colleague over the radio, "I have no idea what I'm doing." The charges were dropped when a blood test showed Akima was under the limit.
Home invasions by criminals seeking to steal automobiles rose 400 percent last year, according to the Toronto Police Service, and one officer said there's an easy way for residents to protect themselves from such a crime. "To prevent the possibility of being attacked in your home, leave your fobs at your front door," said Const. Marco Ricciardi during a community meeting. "They're breaking into your home to steal your car. They don't want anything else." He further warned, "A lot of them that they're arresting have guns on them and they're not toy guns, they're real guns. They're loaded." In a statement, the police service said it is concerned about "an escalation in violence" when weapons are used to steal autos. But it acknowledged there are other ways to reduce the chances of home invasion and auto theft, such as installing a security system and reporting suspicious people and vehicles.
A girl in the United Kingdom's Wetherby Young Offender Institution twice had her clothes removed while being restrained by an all-male team of prison officers, according to a report by the Inspectorate of Prisons. The girl was reportedly trying to use her clothes to harm herself. Wetherby is a correctional institution for people aged 15–18. The report found 24 children were strip-searched in one 12-month period, half of them forcibly; pain-inducing restraint techniques were used nine times over the same period. The report said that not one use of such techniques was found to be appropriate by an independent review panel. It also discovered that one use of the restraint injured a child, but this was not reported to officials.
Former California State Controller's Office employee Miguel Espinosa has pleaded guilty to three counts of grand theft. Espinosa stole $300,000 worth of diamonds, as well as coins and other jewelry, over a seven-year period from the mailroom where he worked. In April, Espinosa is scheduled to be sentenced to three years and four months in prison.
King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion said she won't file felony charges against Officer Kevin Dave of the Seattle Police Department, who fatally struck Jaahnavi Kandula with his patrol car in January 2023. "Our legal analysis reveals that the PAO (Prosecuting Attorney's Office) lacks sufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Kevin Dave was impaired by drugs or alcohol, driving in a reckless manner, or driving with disregard for the safety of others," Manion said in a statement. Dave reached speeds of up to 74 mph while responding to an overdose call, but he used his siren only at intersections instead of running it continuously. He struck Kandula in a crosswalk in an area where the speed limit is 25 mph, applying his brakes less than a second before hitting her. Dave's case has been referred to the city attorney's office which will consider a misdemeanor charge of operating a motor vehicle in a negligent manner.
Canadian Justice Minister Arif Virani, who is also the nation's attorney general, says it is very important that the government have the power to punish someone it believes might commit a hate crime even if that person actually hasn't committed a crime. An online harms bill proposed by the government would give it such powers. Whoever the government contends might commit a hate crime would face a range of punishments, including restrictions on their Internet use, being forced to wear an electronic monitor, and house arrest. But Virani insists the bill would not infringe on free speech, saying speech that is "awful but lawful" would not be punished.
North Richland Hills, Texas, residents Dale and Anne Smith received bills totaling $1,065 for unpaid tolls from the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA). The bills were for 11 different vehicles, none of which are owned by the Smiths. When they tried to clear the matter up, the NTTA told the Smiths it was up to them to prove they didn't own the cars. The Smiths even got the police involved. The cops found all of the license plate numbers on the bills sent to the Smiths were from temporary tags connected to an Arlington car dealership. But that wasn't enough for the NTTA. Finally, when a local newspaper began digging around on the story, the NTTA told the Smiths it was voiding their debt because it had discovered the vehicles belonged to someone else.
When Melissa Evans' dog Spotty got away, she feared she might never see him again. But she got a call from Oklahoma City Animal Welfare saying they had picked up the dog and she could get him back if she got him neutered; she agreed. But when she went to pick up Spotty, staff told her the dog had been mistakenly euthanized. "There were two dogs in this particular kennel that had come in together," said Animal Welfare Superintendent Jon Gary. "Very similar-looking dogs. Same coloring, same sex, same breed type." The other dog was scheduled to be euthanized instead of Spotty. "We went into the kennel and mistakenly pulled the wrong dog out," Gary said. "And the wrong dog was euthanized."
The Scottish Ambulance Service fired Christopher Gallacher, a duty manager at West Centre in Glasgow, after finding he had an on-duty emergency dispatcher pick him and his family up at the airport after a vacation. According to a disciplinary tribunal, this happened on an evening when there were a "high number of calls" and patients were waiting for "lengthy periods of time." The dispatcher was away from his post for 45 minutes. Gallacher said he had assumed the man would use his break to pick him up.
California state Sen. Anthony Portantino, (D–Burbank) has introduced a bill that would require gun owners to annually register their firearms with the state. The registration information would be available to law enforcement agencies. "SB 1160 will give the state better data and help us understand how many firearms are in private hands and who owns them," said Portantino.
A man says he was threatened with arrest after his dog urinated on a public street in Bournemouth, England. Steve Schuurman said an "aggressive" female Dorset police officer shouted at him to "clear your fucking dog piss." Schuurman said he would have cleaned up if his dog had defecated but wasn't sure what the officer wanted him to do with urine. He said when he complained, a Bournemouth council community safety patrol officer threatened to have him arrested if he did not move on. The Dorset police department said it is looking into the incident. A Bournemouth Council spokesperson said its "community safety officers were only involved in this incident in an effort to de-escalate the situation and seek a resolution for the gentleman involved."
Following public ridicule and the defection of co-sponsors, a Tennessee legislator has withdrawn a bill that would have banned convenience stores and supermarkets from selling refrigerated beer. State Rep. Ron Gant (R–Rossville) said he did not want "to infringe on law-abiding citizens or be unfair to businesses." Gant originally proposed the measure as a way to reduce drunk driving.
In Canada, Charlie Angus, a New Democratic Party member of Parliament, has introduced a bill that would make it illegal "to promote a fossil fuel, a fossil fuel-related brand element or the production of a fossil fuel." Regular citizens who violate the act would face a fine of up to $500,000 ($369,622 U.S.), while oil company executives would face up to two years in jail or a fine of $1,000,000 ($739,245 U.S.). The bill defines promotion as "a representation about a product or service by any means" that is "likely to influence and shape attitudes, beliefs and behaviours about the product or service." It specifically bars people from saying that some types of fossil fuels are less harmful than others and could even punish anyone who claims that the oil and gas sector benefits the economy.
The New York City government is refusing to reimburse Adam and Elizabeth Rizer for the loss of their car, which was totaled during a police chase. An officer was pursuing a suspected stolen vehicle when the officer's vehicle, with its lights flashing, T-boned a Hertz rental car in an intersection. That car then collided with the Rizers' Jeep, which was parked outside their apartment. The entire incident, including the collision, was caught on video. Police reports note that the police vehicle struck the Rizers' vehicle, but the city comptroller's office insists the vehicle that was T-boned actually struck their car and referred the couple to Hertz for possible compensation.
Italian aviation officials blocked a British Airways flight from leaving Milan for London after a surprise inspection found some of the seat cushions were too thick and too wide. Seat cushions on exit rows over the wings are supposed to be smaller to create more room in case of an evacuation. The air crew called out serial numbers for the correct seats and had passengers see if any of the cushions on their seats matched those numbers. They were able to locate enough cushions to swap out for those over the exit rows, and the flight departed after a delay of an hour.
New York City Council Member James Gennaro has introduced a bill banning the sale or distribution of laundry or dishwasher detergent pods and laundry sheets that contain polyvinyl alcohol, a petroleum-based plastic film that holds detergents. Those who violate the ban would face a fine of $400 for a first violation. The fine would increase $400 for each additional violation. Supporters say these pods and sheets leave microplastics in the environment and the city water supply. The bill is backed by Blueland, a cleaning products manufacturer whose products compete with pods and sheets.
San Francisco Board of Supervisors member Dean Preston has proposed an ordinance that would require supermarkets to provide at least six months' notice before closing any stores. It would also require supermarket executives to meet with community members before closing a store and require them to try to find a replacement supermarket. The Board of Supervisors passed a similar law in 1984, but it was vetoed by then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein after one supermarket executive warned it would discourage new supermarkets from opening in the city. At the time, Feinstein called the ordinance "an unnecessary intrusion of governmental regulatory authority."
A student police officer in England's Thames Valley police said he was shunned by others in the department after he reported a fellow officer for watching bodycam video of a woman having a seizure and making crude remarks about her. The officer said he was later told he was not fit for police work and dismissed from the department. The woman had been arrested when officers believed she was the aggressor in an incident, though she was later found to be the victim. While she was being transported in the back of a police van, she had a seizure that left her breasts and groin exposed. The next day, four officers watched the video and made remarks about her. A Thames Valley Police spokesperson told the media those remarks were "unacceptable" and the department was grateful that the student officer had reported them. The spokesperson said the termination of the student officer's employment was an "entirely separate" issue.
Officials in Aurora, Colorado, have agreed to pay $1.9 million to settle a lawsuit brought by Brittney Gilliam, her daughter, her sister, and her two nieces. In 2020, the five were pulled out of their SUV at gunpoint and handcuffed. Police said their computer system showed the SUV was stolen, but in fact, it was a motorcycle with the same license plate number from Montana that had been stolen. Local prosecutors called the incident "unacceptable and preventable" but declined to charge the officers.
United Airlines received its first Airbus A321neo airplanes in December, and it has already had to ground them. But United wants you to know there were no safety issues—rather, it has to do with a 1990 Federal Aviation Administration rule requiring "No Smoking" signs to be operated by the flight crew, even though smoking on airplanes has been banned for decades. The A321neo has software that keeps the "No Smoking" sign turned on continuously during flights. In 2020, United got an exemption to that rule for all of its planes that keep the sign on continuously. But that exemption only applies to the aircraft it listed at the time. United has since applied for an exemption for the Airbus A321neo, and it says the FAA has agreed to let the airline fly those aircraft while it evaluates the application.
Los Angeles station NBC4 reports that the California Department of Motor Vehicles may have improperly charged tens of thousands of drivers late fees for their vehicle registration. It found that the DMV has often rejected electronic checks even when the account had sufficient funds and there were no other issues, then billed the drivers late fees. The DMV told the station it isn't sure exactly how many drivers were affected or how much revenue it collected from those improper late fees.
Gov. Janet Mills has appointed former Maine Supreme Judicial Court Justice Donald Alexander to overhear a request by Oxford County commissioners to remove Sheriff Christopher Wainwright. Wainwright sold dozens of firearms from evidence without recording the transactions or notifying commissioners. Wainwright said he used the proceeds from the sales to buy equipment for the sheriff's office. The commissioners said they have seen no proof of that claim. Wainwright apologized for his actions but said they don't warrant his removal.
New tires for automobiles could become more expensive and less safe under legislation proposed by Washington state lawmakers. The proposed bill would give the state Department of Commerce the power to ban the sale of tires it deems bad for the environment. The bill targets heavier and more durable tires, which sponsors say have greater rolling resistance, making them less energy efficient. But critics say the bill would effectively ban cheaper tires and make those that are sold less safe. "The easiest way to reduce rolling resistance is to reduce tread depth which will, in turn, reduce wet traction performance," said Tracey Norberg of the U.S. Tire Manufacturer's Association. "It'll reduce tire life, and it'll increase scrap tire generation."
Glynn Simmons spent 48 years in an Oklahoma prison for the murder of a liquor store clerk killed during a robbery. But a judge ordered him freed last year, and, in a separate proceeding, declared him to be "actually innocent." His lawyers said detectives withheld a report saying that an eyewitness did not identify him as the killer in a lineup. That woman, who was shot in the head during the robbery, did identify at least five other men in different lineups. Simmons has now filed a federal lawsuit against the detectives and the departments they worked for.
