Man Fatally Hits Cop with Vehicle Following Shooting: A mentally ill man was charged with first-degree murder on Sunday for fatally striking a Memphis police officer with a stolen car after shooting three people. Fox News reports that Justin Welch, 21, was previously committed in December 2013, two and a half years prior to Saturday's crime spree that left Officer Verdell Smith, 46, an 18-year veteran of the police force, dead. Two people shot by Welch are in critical condition, while the other victim's condition is unknown. Welch faces additional charges of vehicular homicide, evading arrest, theft and reckless driving. His motive for the crime spree has not yet been determined.
Obama Admin Failing to Screen, Track Foreign Immigrants: A congressional member of the House Judiciary Committee says that the Obama administration failed to properly screen and track nearly 10 million foreign immigrants admitted to the U.S. on visas last year, citing the "tremendous pressure" on federal authorities to green light visas despite being unable to fully vet applicants. Adam Kredo of the Free Beacon reports that according to Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.), the risk of infiltration and fraud in the visa program remain at record highs and the Obama administration is admitting immigrants in record numbers. The expediency of admission has allowed terrorists to gain legal entry into the country, says Forbes. In response, he has proposed legislation that would: mandate the visa applications from countries with known terrorism ties to receive extra scrutiny from federal authorities, require authorities to review the social media accounts of visa applications, boost security cooperation between agents and deny entry to any foreigner who fails to complete an application.
Federal Bill Introduced to Restore Voting Rights of Convicts: A bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and restore the voting rights of convicted felons. Joe Schoffstall of the Free Beacon reports that Rep. Alan Grayson (D.-Fla.) introduced the No One Can Take Your Right to Vote Act of 2016 arguing that felons deserve a second chance and are entitled to equal protection under the law. An election integrity group, the Public Interest Legal Foundation, countered Grayson's claim, and argued that the Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment allows states to remove voting rights of people convicted of crimes. The group also cited a recent study that found seven out of 10 felons register as Democrats, concluding that, "Democrats would benefit from additional ex-felon participation." Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe recently stirred controversy when he announced an executive order to restore the voting rights of 206,000 felons, in what many criticized as "political opportunism" ahead of the 2016 election.
Obama Admin Failing to Screen, Track Foreign Immigrants: A congressional member of the House Judiciary Committee says that the Obama administration failed to properly screen and track nearly 10 million foreign immigrants admitted to the U.S. on visas last year, citing the "tremendous pressure" on federal authorities to green light visas despite being unable to fully vet applicants. Adam Kredo of the Free Beacon reports that according to Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.), the risk of infiltration and fraud in the visa program remain at record highs and the Obama administration is admitting immigrants in record numbers. The expediency of admission has allowed terrorists to gain legal entry into the country, says Forbes. In response, he has proposed legislation that would: mandate the visa applications from countries with known terrorism ties to receive extra scrutiny from federal authorities, require authorities to review the social media accounts of visa applications, boost security cooperation between agents and deny entry to any foreigner who fails to complete an application.
Federal Bill Introduced to Restore Voting Rights of Convicts: A bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that would amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and restore the voting rights of convicted felons. Joe Schoffstall of the Free Beacon reports that Rep. Alan Grayson (D.-Fla.) introduced the No One Can Take Your Right to Vote Act of 2016 arguing that felons deserve a second chance and are entitled to equal protection under the law. An election integrity group, the Public Interest Legal Foundation, countered Grayson's claim, and argued that the Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment allows states to remove voting rights of people convicted of crimes. The group also cited a recent study that found seven out of 10 felons register as Democrats, concluding that, "Democrats would benefit from additional ex-felon participation." Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe recently stirred controversy when he announced an executive order to restore the voting rights of 206,000 felons, in what many criticized as "political opportunism" ahead of the 2016 election.
"A mentally ill man was charged with 1st degree murder.. shot 3 people..
His motive for the crime spree has not yet been determined."
-- What difference does it make?
He's " mentally ill ", so he can't be held fully culpable by an intelligent & compassionate society.
~Adamakis
"Not guilty by reason of insanity" is not the same thing as "mentally ill." The psychiatrists push the definition of mental disorders further and further into territory previously considered odd but not mental with each edition of the DSM. By DSM-8, I predict, we will all be "mentally ill."
Understood (ominously).
Regardless of Tennessee's particular terminology, it is just painfully frustrating
that heaps of evidence of intent and capability can be so facilely trashed
because of SO-CALLED "incompetence", "not criminally responsible by
reason of mental disorder",
"not guilty by reason of insanity", 'guilty but non compos mentis' et al.
Interestingly, my step-father is a psychiatrist -- and a legal immigrant from
Nazi Germany -- but he is an old-fashioned liberal
who doesn't easily countenance phony excuse-making under the
guise of a "medical" or "chemical" imbalance or some-such. He contributed to
some murder cases in his day, such as a case in which a defendant claimed to be
"Lord God Mother". He testified that she sufficiently understood that she was
killing the victim. Unfortunately, his way, is on the way, out.
way out.
~Adamakis
Understood (ominously).
Regardless of Tennessee's particular terminology, it is just painfully frustrating
that heaps of evidence of intent and capability can be so facilely trashed
because of SO-CALLED "incompetence", "not criminally responsible
by reason of mental disorder", "not guilty by reason of insanity",
'guilty but non compos mentis' et al.
Interestingly, my step-father is a psychiatrist -- and a legal immigrant from
Nazi Germany -- but he is an old-fashioned liberal who doesn't easily
countenance phony excuse-making under the guise of a "medical"
or "chemical" imbalance or some-such.
He contributed to some murder cases in his day, such as a case in which a defendant claimed to be "Lord God Mother". He testified that she
sufficiently understood that she was killing the victim.
Unfortunately, his way, is on the way, out.
~Adamakis