:::::~News from around the World~:::::

[MASTER PAI MEI]

PeacecaeP to all the members here.

This idea originally came to mind when Iniquity posted a News article from the Bay Area. I thought hey that would be interesting if members can post articles they believe is relevent to Society in these days in time. Whether it be crime, weather, politics and/or funny stories. I'm curious of how people live and where everyone on this site resides and the social impacts of poverty. So please use this thread as a way to inform us (your community) here on Wutangcorp.com


I was Born and Raised in the inner Mission District of San Francisco, Ca.

So I will start with this article.


(03-31) 10:25 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- Police have arrested a 19-year-old San Francisco man in connection with the death of man who was struck and killed by a car following an altercation at a Mission District gas station Thursday afternoon.

San Francisco police Sgt. Neville Gittens said Carlos A. Alaguna turned himself in to police early this morning and has been booked on suspicion of felony hit-and-run and driving without a license.

Gittens said Alaguna was at the Shell station at Randall and Mission streets getting gas shortly after 4 p.m. when he was approached by three men whom he did not know, and the group began arguing.

During the altercation, two of the men began breaking out windows in Alaguna's car, which was occupied by a child in a car seat, Gittens said.

Alaguna got into his car to leave and in the process struck and killed Andrew Kelly, 25, of Brisbane. Then, he fled, abandoning his car a few blocks away at Richland and Mission streets, where police found it a couple of hours later.

"Investigations are looking into whether the driver intended to strike the decedent or if his flight in the vehicle was predicated by actions on the part of the three male suspects," Gittens said.

Shortly before he was killed, Kelly had left a memorial service for a shooting victim at the Valencia Street Serra Mortuary at Valencia and 26th streets, according to James Eagleton, an acquaintance of Kelly.

Eagleton said he was coming home from the same wake on the bus when he saw the crime scene at the gas station. He recognized Kelly, whom he knew only by the nickname "Joker."

Eagleton said he thought Kelly was getting gas but was going to return to the funeral home, where people were gathered for the wake of Rolando Valladares, 21, who was gunned down Saturday as he walked with a group of friends at Capp and 25th streets.

Staff writer Cicero A. Estrella contributed to this report. Staff writer Cicero A. Estrella contributed to this report.

[LHX]

Teen, 18, among two dead in three T.O. shootings

var byString = ""; var sourceString = "CTV.ca News Staff"; if ((sourceString != "") && (byString != "")) { document.write(byString + ", "); } else { document.write(byString); }CTV.ca News Staff
Three separate shootings on the streets of Toronto Monday night left a teenager, 18, and another man dead.
Four people were also wounded in the brash of gun violence.
The teenager, Romaine Lawrence, and several friends were eating at a pizza shop, in the Weston Road and Eglinton Avenue area, when a car pulled up and shot at the store around 10 p.m.
"My opinion is that this case does have hallmarks of gang-related activity," Toronto police Det. Scott Spratt told reporters on Tuesday. "At this point I don't have a motive."
When emergency crews arrived, they found a second man lying outside the shop bleeding from gunshot wounds.
That man, believed to be in his 20s, is still in hospital in serious condition.
Two other victims, one with a gunshot wound, took a taxi cab to an area hospital for treatment. The non-gunshot victim was injured by glass debris from the gunfire.
An hour later, a 22-year-old man died after being rushed to hospital with gunshot wounds related to a separate incident.
Jermaine Lincoln Brown, of Brampton, was found on the lawn of an apartment building at 235 Grandravine Dr., in the Jane Street and Finch Avenue area.
Police found his car still running when they arrived.
Around 7:30 p.m., a woman was taken to hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg.
She had been shot in the Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue area.
Police are looking for two suspects in the shooting, which may have been the result of a domestic dispute.
The murders are the 14th and 15th of 2006 with seven of them gun-related.
Investigators are interested in speaking to the taxi cab driver who picked up the two injured men and dropped them off at the hospital.

[Aqua Luna]

LB Police Seize $300,000 Worth Of Marijuana

(CBS) LONG BEACH, Calif. Long Beach police arrested one man on Monday night after finding $300,000 worth of marijuana plants in a warehouse.

The discovery was made around 7:30 p.m. in the 1400 block of West 14th Street, near Santa Fe Avenue, according to Officer Jackie Bezart of the Long Beach Police Department.

About 400 plants were seized from the warehouse where "a silk screen business was being used as a front," Bezart said.

Philip Northcutt of Long Beach has been taken into custody. He allegedly had a loaded handgun in his possession when he was arrested, according to Long Beach police.

Northcutt had a recommendation from a doctor to use marijuana, but the number of plants in the warehouse "far exceeded" the amount of marijuana one is legally allowed to possess for medical purposes.

Police also found other weapons in the warehouse including a shotgun and bows and arrows.

Northcutt told officers that he recently returned from military service in Iraq, but police had yet to confirm that with military officials.

[MASTER PAI MEI]

Recently the media has covered a number of stories about Mothers killing their own children. An Incident that occured a while back and the circumstances surrounding it are very sad. A Mother of Four stripped her children down 1 @ a Time and one by one she threw them off a Pier into the San Francisco Bay, as ( This is what really is Sickening ) Bystandards watched. No one intervened. The Childrens ages ranged from 9 months to 7 years old. Once I find the article I'll post it, but for now here's another LOST MOTHER...

A San Francisco woman charged with murdering her 3-year-old daughter and trying to murder her 4-year-old son had been despondent over the breakup of her marriage and had been seeing a therapist, police said Thursday.

Linda Woo, 39, allegedly lit a portable barbecue Wednesday in a Subaru Outback in the garage of her Ingleside Terrace home. The fumes killed her daughter, Olive Murphy, and left her son, Carter Murphy, in critical condition from apparent carbon monoxide poisoning.

The boy is expected to survive, but authorities don't know yet whether he suffered any brain damage, Assistant District Attorney Harry Dorfman said.

"It's very sad," said Inspector Karen Lynch of the homicide detail. "All of her friends knew she was depressed over her marriage ending."

Woo's acquaintances told police that she had talked recently of suicide, but they thought the therapist she had been seeing was helping, Lynch said.

"They were all trying to help her," Lynch said. "No one saw this coming."

When Woo didn't bring the children to day care Wednesday, the school contacted her estranged husband, Gavin Murphy, police said. Murphy called friends, one of whom discovered the mother and children in the garage at 370 Moncada Way and phoned 911.

Police found a note on the car's dashboard. They said the note suggested Woo was upset over the breakup of her marriage and had been depressed.

She told a neighbor last week that she didn't want to live and that there was "something wrong'' with her brain, authorities say.

Police said Woo had apparently led the children to believe that they were going on a camping trip in the Subaru, which she had borrowed from a friend.

Prosecutors filed murder and attempted murder charges Thursday against Woo, who works as a principal project manager at Pacific Gas and Electric Co. in San Francisco.

She was being treated in the jail ward of San Francisco General Hospital and is expected to recover. Arraignment was scheduled for Monday.

"I'm sure that there are going to be evaluations of her mental condition,'' Dorfman said.

E-mail Jaxon Van Derbeken at [email protected].

[Visionz]

Law Enforcement: Austin Police Chief Fires Cop Who Killed Daniel Rocha 11/25/05
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/...ielrocha.shtml
Austin Police Officer Julie Schroeder, the officer who shot and killed 18-year-old Daniel Rocha in June, has been fired by Austin Police Chief Stan Knee. Another officer involved in the incident, Sgt. Don Doyle, has been suspended for 28 days. Rocha was shot and killed as Schroeder and Doyle attempted to arrest him for possession of a small amount of marijuana.

Although the killing -- the 14th of a minority by Austin police in the last seven years -- aroused loud and angry protests, an Austin grand jury refused to indict Schroeder in the killing. Similarly, an Austin Police Department internal affairs investigation found that Schroeder had not violated departmental policy on the use of force. But an Austin citizens review committee recommended that Schroeder be fired. The committee also recommended that Doyle be demoted, but Chief Knee did not follow that recommendation.

While police shootings have roiled relations with Austin's black and brown community, Schroeder's firing is the first of any officer for an on-duty shooting in years. The local police union, the Austin Police Association, responded by calling for the firing of Chief Knee.

Rocha was shot in the back and killed on a southeast Austin street after he and two others were stopped during a police drug operation. A struggle broke out, Schroeder lost control of her Taser and, fearing Rocha would turn the weapon on herself or Sgt. Doyle, she shot Rocha. But in firing Schroeder, Chief Knee made it clear that Schroeder's stated belief that she fired because she thought she and Doyle were in danger was not justified.

While Schroeder has been fired, that's not quite the end of it. She has the right to appeal the chief's decision, and the Austin Police Association is ready to support her. The union has called for the chief to be fired for his decision in Schroeder's case. Meanwhile, an FBI investigation into the killing remains open.

[MASTER PAI MEI]

OAKLAND
12 indicted on pot-candy charges

Henry K. Lee

Friday, March 31, 2006

A federal grand jury indicted 12 people Thursday on charges that they worked at East Bay warehouses to make candy and soft drinks resembling popular goodies but laced with marijuana.

The alleged ringleader, Kenneth Affolter, 39, of Lafayette, six other men and five women worked at Beyond Bomb and allegedly manufactured a range of pot-laced treats with names like Buddahfingers, Munchy Way, Rasta Reece's and Puff-a-Mint Pattie, authorities said.

Beyond Bomb operated from adjoining warehouses at 1055 and 1071 Yerba Buena Ave. and 3960 Adeline St. in Emeryville, according to Drug Enforcement Administration agents.

Most of the defendants have been released from bond, but Affolter will be in court today to argue for his release, said his attorney, Robert Byers of Oakland.

Medical marijuana advocates say the treats are legal under state law and are designed for sick patients who rely on cannabis to ease their symptoms. DEA officials say marijuana in any form is illegal under federal law.

These are Associates of my Friends

[galt john galt]

Man, 78, gets $75,000 for beating
RETIRED BAKER SETTLES POLICE BRUTALITY CASE
By Shirley Dang
Knight Ridder
A black eye, a bloody lip and a fractured rib are no way to end a morning walk.

But if you're 78-year-old Melvin Ainsworth, it might be worth a new car.

Barely a year ago, a Vallejo Police Department officer tackled Ainsworth, a retired baker, on the Carquinez Bridge.

A posse of officers had sped to the bridge in response to a 911 call about someone who looked like he was going to leap over the side.

The incident landed Ainsworth in the emergency room and at the law offices of John Burris, a prominent Oakland attorney specializing in police brutality cases.

Earlier this month, Ainsworth won a $75,000 settlement. Though his $50,000 cut amounted to considerably less than the $500,000 in damages he originally sought, Ainsworth said Thursday that he feels relieved nonetheless.

``I'm glad it's over with,'' said Ainsworth, leaning back in a velvety reclining chair, comfortable in his blue sweat pants.

Waiting for the lawsuit to end made him anxious, he said: ``I was cranky and crotchety and cross.''

To take his mind off the suit, Ainsworth worked on patenting a can-crushing device (U.S. Patent No. D510,095).

He also turned to his trusty oven, churning out walnut banana bread and German chocolate cakes oozing with cream cheese, butter and powdered sugar filling.

On March 20, Ainsworth picked up his check from the settlement. He paid off his debts and bought a silver 2005 Volkswagen Passat station wagon, complete with climate control.

``This car is so beautiful,'' Ainsworth said.

Still, when the weather's good, he prefers to walk.

san jose mercury news

[galt john galt]

Oakland Teachers Plan One-Day Work Stoppage

POSTED: 2:24 pm PST March 30, 2006

OAKLAND -- The union representing 3,100 Oakland public school teachers announced Thursday that teachers will hold a one-day strike on April 20 if contract talks don't lead to a settlement before then.

Ben Visnick, the president of the Oakland Education Association, also said there will be a large rally against state administrator Randolph Ward, who has run the financially troubled Oakland Unified School District for three years, at 4 p.m. on April 5.

Visnick said, "The administration doesn't listen too well so we have to set limits and deadlines" in the effort to reach a contract agreement.

Visnick said he also has been talking almost daily with the head of the union representing San Francisco public school teachers about the possibility of coordinating a work action with them.

"Both unions would be stronger if we go on strike together," Visnick said.

He said, "There's a possibility of a joint San Francisco-Oakland strike. We hope it doesn't happen but that is a possibility."

Visnick said Oakland teacher union leaders met with the school district informally Wednesday night but no further talks are scheduled at this time.

He said the key issues in the contract talks, which have lasted almost two years, are salaries and health care benefits.

Copyright 2006 by KTVU.com and Bay City News. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[MASTER PAI MEI]

The San Francisco Bay Area is falling into the Bay


WHEN IT RAINS, IT SLIDES -- BAY AREA ON THE ALERT

Michael Cabanatuan, Chronicle Staff Writer

Saturday, April 1, 2006

In like a lion, out like a lion. Chronicle Graphic Unstable ground. Chronicle Graphic A worker climbs under a tarp at a construction site on Bu...



The relentless rains that set Bay Area records in March now threaten to create big problems in April as soggy hillsides show signs they could give way.

"If we continue to have these continuous bursts of rainfall for another week or more, we could have hundreds of landslides -- easily,'' said Alan Kropp, a Berkeley geotechnical engineer.

Forecasters with the National Weather Service say the rainy weather is likely to continue after an expected pause today.

Showers lingering after the latest dousing Friday should end this morning, and the rest of the day should be dry and partly cloudy -- "the best day of the weekend,'' said meteorologist Suzanne Anderson.

More rain is expected Sunday through Tuesday. After a break on Wednesday, yet another storm is due Thursday or Friday, possibly extending into next weekend.

"It doesn't look like there will be any change in the pattern for the foreseeable future,'' Anderson said.

Saturated hillsides around the Bay Area already are beginning to move. In Sausalito on Thursday, a slide carried mud, a wooden deck and a 30-foot-tall tree downhill toward the city's main street. On notoriously unstable Highway 1 in San Mateo County, underground sensors detected movement Friday on Devil's Slide and switched on warning lights, though Caltrans officials said the movement was slight and did not pose a danger.

Crews worked Friday to shore up sinking roadway, undermined by a slide, on Highway 1 south of Pacifica at Shamrock Ranch, but they had to quit for the day when heavy rains inundated the area. Caltrans spokeswoman Lauren Wonder said the agency is keeping watch over those slides and will close the highway if they become dangerous.

Kropp had a burst of business in January helping homeowners cope with slides. He has seen business pick up again in the past couple of weeks, particularly in the East Bay hills.

"I've got lots of mud on my boots and pants in the laundry,'' he said.

They could get a lot muddier.

Heavy rains, combined with unstable soil conditions on slanting terrain, can trigger two types of landslides, said Gerald Wieczorek, a geological engineer and landslide specialist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park.

Fast-moving, shallow landslides known as "debris flows" are often set off by intense rains -- perhaps 5 inches in 24 hours, he said. They strike quickly and can carry away houses, trees and rocks, and travel hundreds of yards. Particularly heavy rains in January 1982 touched off 18,000 landslides and debris flows that killed 20 people in the Bay Area, he said.

The rains that inundated the Bay Area between Christmas and New Year's Day also brought such landslides, particularly in the North Bay.

Continuous rains cause the other type of slide -- slow-moving, deep slides known as "earth flows" or "earth slumps," Wieczorek said. The steady soaking of rain into the soil -- even if the rains are not particularly intense -- can create enough water pressure beneath the ground to cause the earth to move, usually slowly, but in some cases not so slowly.

The rains in the month just ended -- which set the record in San Francisco and other Northern California locations for the March with the most rainy days -- generally were not very intense. So the deeper type of landslide is the biggest threat, barring an unanticipated deluge.

"At this point, (the rain) is building up water deeper in the soil,'' said Wieczorek, "and will be developing deeper slides.''

Where those slides will occur depends on the nature of the rainfall, the type of soil or rock, and the degree of the slope, he said. Debris flows typically happen on steep slopes, but the deeper, slower slides can occur on hills with as little as an 8 percent slope.

Parts of the Bay Area particularly prone to slipping and sliding hills include the areas in or near the Santa Cruz Mountains, Mount Tamalpais and the East Bay hills, Wieczorek said. The USGS has produced landslide maps that identify the areas of greatest risk, Kropp said, where 90 percent of all slides are expected to occur.

As the rains continued to fall Friday, some residents of the Bay Area's hillier neighborhoods were admittedly nervous.

In Oakland, residents on Wallace Street near Highland Hospital kept a wary watch. In 2002, three homes were red-tagged by the city after a mudslide.

On Friday, about 20 sandbags were lined outside the fence of a home shared by Carrie Ramirez, 33, and Evan Beckert, 38. Runoff from the rain was going down the hill on Wallace.

Last year, when people parked along the curb, the car tires sent water right into the basement.

Ramirez said, "I'm from the Seattle area, so when I came back here and saw the rain and the mud, that was one of my concerns."

As long as the water stays there," said Beckert, pointing to the gutter, "we're cool."

In Sausalito, Robert Taylor, a 46-year-old native of Australia who moved next door to a slide area three years ago, said the hillside had been stripped bare and trampled by construction workers over the past year. That, combined with constant pounding rain, he said, was asking for trouble.

"It seems anyone can build anything around here if they have enough money," said Taylor, a retired engineer, "until something goes wrong, and then the s -- hits the fan."

The record rains, mudslides and flooding are all part of a plan, said Alberto Alvarez, 84, as he walked confidently up a hill to his own home on Bulkley Avenue, where the hillside was still intact.

"Mother Nature is the boss, and sometimes she gets upset," said Alvarez, who has lived in Sausalito since 1962. "No, no, no, I'm not worried. We cannot be upset because that's just the way it goes."

[Visionz]

will hold a one-day strike on April 20

and really what better day than that. lol

[MASTER PAI MEI]

BERKELEY
Family's best efforts didn't keep party safe
Text messaging seen as a culprit in event that took deadly turn

Jim Herron Zamora, Chronicle Staff Writer

Sunday, April 2, 2006


Aderian and Afeni Gaines thought they'd found a solution to the problem of kids not having anywhere safe to go, or anything positive to do, on the weekends -- they started hosting house parties for neighborhood youth.

They took pains to ensure the gatherings, which would draw dozens of teens to their south Berkeley home, remained safe. They searched people for weapons, forbade backpacks and purses, and kept a tally of how many kids came from each neighborhood, so as not to upset the delicate balance of turf.

But despite their best efforts, things went horribly awry last weekend when a partygoer fatally shot Aderian "Dre" Gaines after the 36-year-old disarmed the teen and kicked him out of the house.

It was the second time this year a party grew larger than anyone expected before turning violent and leaving someone dead. Juan Carlos Ramos, 18, was stabbed Feb. 11 during an unchaperoned party in the Berkeley hills that drew more than 100 teens.

In both cases, police said the parties simply grew too large as word spread via the Internet and cell phone text messages.

Although police say that the fatalities are anomalies and that they haven't seen an increase in large parties or violence resulting from them, some wonder whether the gatherings are a good idea.

"It's extremely common for word to get around (via text message) when you have no idea whose house it is," said Kaila Harrell, a freshman at Berkeley High School. "Normally, it's no big deal. But if the wrong person finds out, it can all go bad."

Even some who joined the Gaines family in throwing the parties have had second thoughts.

"It was a good idea to try to help kids with those parties, but they let it get out of control," said Ernest Carroll, a longtime neighbor and family friend who chaperoned several of the Gaines' parties. "If they just kept it to 20 to 25 friends, it would have been cool. But you can't have 60 to 70 kids coming from all over Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond and everywhere else in the East Bay and expect to stay safe."

Police said Aderian Gaines was shot twice in the chest on March 25 by a teen at the party.

The family told The Chronicle last week that the gunman was part of a group from West Oakland who was denied entry before chaperones relented. Inside, someone saw a pistol tucked into the suspect's waistband and alerted Gaines, who threw the teen out of the house. He returned, shooting Gaines and wounding another person whose name was not released. Police said that there are conflicting reports of exactly what happened just before the shooting but that they are certain who is responsible.

Police arrested suspected gang members James Freeman, 29, and Antonio Harris, 18, Wednesday night. Police believe that Harris was the gunman and Freeman the getaway driver. No one at the party, which was intended only for minors, knew the two suspects, who live in West Oakland, but beat officers there identified Harris based on descriptions partygoers gave Berkeley police.

The party was the fourth the family had hosted since January.

Previous parties went off without a hitch because the Gaines children and their friends would alert chaperones if someone who didn't belong showed up or if trouble erupted, Carroll said. He noted that previous parties had been marred by one fistfight, "and we ended that one quick."

But this party apparently grew too fast and got out of control as word of its location spread via cell phone text messages.

"There were at least 60 people there. I saw at least 20 arrive all at once (about 9 p.m.) but from different directions," said Carroll, whose girlfriend, Natasha Jackson, was the party's DJ. "That house is too small for that."

But Berkeley police weren't worried. They had stopped by a couple of hours earlier after someone complained about the noise. They talked to Gaines and left satisfied that everything was under control.

"The beat officer went and spoke to the Gaineses, and the beat officer thought that they had some thoughtful measures in place," Berkeley police Lt. Mary Kusmiss said. "It was well before the noise ordinance kicks into effect at 10 p.m. There was no reason to shut the party down then."

Even before the Gaines killing, Berkeley police compiled a list of tips for avoiding trouble at parties, Kusmiss said. They include common-sense suggestions like limiting the size of a party and admitting only guests you know.

Oakland police said they support parents who, like the Gaineses, strive to provide a safe environment for teens to gather, but they too advise caution.

"People need to know who is coming to these parties and who their kids are hanging around with," said Officer Roland Holmgren. "Parents should set an upper limit (on attendance) from the beginning and say this number is non-negotiable.

"Most of all, you should just trust your instincts -- if it feels like a party is starting to go in the wrong direction, shut it down."

But others with experience hosting such gatherings question the wisdom of opening your home to large numbers of youth.

Deane Calhoun runs the Oakland nonprofit Youth Alive, which teaches young people how and why to avoid violence. She said house parties -- with or without chaperones -- have long been problematic. All it takes, she said, is one troublemaker.

"Young people will go to parties and act up, and use alcohol or drugs and get in fights," she said. "The things that have changed are that everyone has a cell phone to spread the word quick and that some kids carry guns."

But Youth Uprising, another nonprofit in East Oakland, hosts hip-hop "dance battles" and other contests and has had no major problems. The events have strict rules and many chaperones who insist that the youth center is neutral turf.

"We've had as many as 400 people in here," said board member Jacky Johnson. "It's amazing we don't have more problems. But I think it's because of the culture we keep here."

Security personnel are quick to turn off the music at the first hint of trouble. Respect is given to all, and all are expected to reciprocate. That means that although someone might throw gang signs or call out their neighborhood or city, it doesn't escalate into violence, Johnson said.

"We understand that people are proud of where they are from, and we respect that," Johnson said. "But we also want them to know that when you're here, we're all family. You leave the rest of that outside the center. What we do here works because everyone knows it's a safe place."
Party tips

The Berkeley Police Department offers these tips for hosting a party:

-- Limit the size of the party to 50 people.

-- Don't promote the party through e-mail or text messaging, and ask guests to respect that.

-- Do not admit strangers.

-- Do not supply alcohol to underage guests.

-- Once guests leave, do not allow them to return.

-- Notify the police immediately if you suspect someone is armed or if there is a disturbance.

-- Alert your neighbors to the party ahead of time. Have a time in mind to shut it down, and stick to it.

E-mail Jim Zamora at [email protected].

[MASTER PAI MEI]

Police in Richmond discover woman's body

Bay City News

Sunday, April 2, 2006




Richmond -- Police in Richmond located the body of a woman Saturday afternoon who is believed to be the victim of a homicide, according to the Richmond Police Department.

A resident directed police to the body, which was in a grassy area near the dead end of South 25th Street, around 3:50 p.m. Saturday. The victim had unknown traumatic injuries to the upper body.

The woman may have been killed in a different location and her body dumped where police discovered it, according to the initial investigation by police.

The Contra Costa County Coroner's office will attempt to identify the victim.

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact Detective Aaron Mandell at (510) 620-6622 or the Richmond communications center at (510) 233-1214.

Copyright 2006 by Bay City News, Inc. Replication, republication or retransmission without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.

[MASTER PAI MEI]

SAN FRANCISCO
52° F
Mostly Cloudy
Wind: SE at 7 mph
Humidity: 71%
Visibility: 10 miles
Today: Mostly cloudy. Rain likely near San Francisco with a chance of rain elsewhere. Highs in the mid 50s to mid 60s. Southwest winds 5 to 15 mph...becoming southeast.
Tonight: Periods of rain. Lows in the 40s to lower 50s. East winds 5 to 15 mph.

[Aqua Luna]

'Suge' Knight misses court appearance

Rap music mogul Marion "Suge" Knight failed to appear at a court-ordered debtor hearing Saturday, triggering legal actions that a judge had warned would place his Death Row Records in receivership.

In addition, lawyers suing him plan to ask that he be held in contempt and jailed until he participates in the debtor hearing that requires him to disclose all of his assets.

At issue is an unpaid judgment against Knight for $107 million that was awarded to Lydia Harris, the former Knight associate who claimed she helped start the rap record empire with her former husband, Michael Harris.

Harris, an imprisoned drug dealer serving a 28-year sentence at San Quentin Prison, is claiming half of the $107 million as community property in their divorce.

Harris also claims he put up $1.5 million from behind bars to help start the record label, a contention that Knight has repeatedly denied.

Superior Court Judge Ronald Sohegian issued an order last week appointing a receiver to take over Death Row Records. But he stayed the order pending Knight's appearance at Saturday's hearing.

Knight's attorney, Dermot Givens, contacted by phone, declined to comment saying, "We try our cases in the court and not in the press."

Attorney Steve Goldberg, who represents Harris, said attorneys would appear in Sohegian's court Tuesday to make sure the receivership takes effect and to ask that Knight be held in contempt.

He noted that the receiver would take control of all assets of Death Row Records including an extensive music library including the records of Tupac Shakur, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and many other rap legends.

"We are going to ask the receiver to take ownership of the music library and auction it off," Goldberg said.

He predicted this could be "a death sentence for Death Row Records."

[GuardianOne]

GOVERNMENT has called for the development of Ethno-tourism, which involves attracting tourists by maintaining ethnic or cultural identities.
Tourism and Environment Minister, Kabinga Pande, said many countries were tourism destinations because they maintained their culture and ethnicity.
Mr Pande said Ethno-tourism was about exploiting unique cultures and that was how countries such as Australia with their Aborigines people, Kenya with the Masaai and Botswana with their Bushmen were attracting tourists because of their unique heritage.
The minister was speaking in Kitwe on Friday night when he officiated at the Nsakwa Yaba Kaonde fundraising dinner for the Kamano Traditional ceremony to be held in May.
He said ethno-tourism ensured that even locals that were upholding culture, benefited from the tourism boom.
Mr Pande said the Kaonde people’s culture was rich and should be promoted for tourism as well.
He denounced politicians who were advocating politics along tribal lines saying this would bring divisions among the many tribes of Zambia.
And Nsakwa national chairman, Geoffrey Mukala, said the association was non-partisan and sought to promote culture and bring the tribe together and work with the Government of the day.