War on Drugs, 420; Police State, Bad Cops, Brutality, Don't Tase Me, Bro; Law and Disorder, Trial and Error, Innocence, Prison, Death Penalty, Guns, Recording; Ticket, Road Rage

War on Drugs

• Toddler critically burned during SWAT raid—"Phonesavanh told Young the grenade landed in the child's crib, and she showed him a photo of a charred portable crib."
• Federal judges challenging stings as 'fictitious crime'—"Two federal judges have ruled that widely used sting operations designed to ensnare suspects with the promise of a huge payday for robbing an imaginary drug stash house are so 'outrageous' that they are also unconstitutional. One judge said the charges were so unfair that he threw them out after three suspects already pleaded guilty."
• NYPD Still Making Thousands Of Marijuana Arrests, And One Lawmaker Has Had Enough
• Despite new law, pot arrests still likelier than fines—"New study shows state, Chicago inconsistent in enforcing tickets and fines for holding small amounts of cannabis. 98.7% of marijuana arrests involved simple possession.
• Texas man facing possible life sentence for pot brownies
• N.D.Ga.: Court doesn't buy officer testimony they smelled marijuana; search suppressed
• Today's Heroin Addict Is Young, White And Suburban—Wrong color to arrest?

420

• House Votes To End DEA Raids On Legal Medical Marijuana Operations—"'Marijuana does not make people commit crime. It makes them overeat,' Rep. Steve Cohen said. The amendment passed 219-189." Next step is the Senate.
• Illinois House Approves Medical Cannabis for Epileptic Kids
• Legal marijuana created thousands of jobs in Colorado
• The FBI Is Struggling to Hire Hackers Who Don't Smoke Weed
• FBI Director: Don't Let Weed Stop You from Applying to the FBI—It's a trap!
• Apple pulls popular weed-growing game from App Store
• One Direction Stars Smoke Joint, World Keeps Spinning

Police State

• City of Aurora, Police Sued for 'More-Than-Two-Hour Mass Roundup' of Innocent People in Search for Bank Robber
• Pennsylvania cops don't need a warrant to search your car? That's a problem
• 7th Circuit upholds warrantless entry, seizure of gun rights activist
• In Complaint, Activists Seek Audit of New York Police Surveillance—"After reports that the Police Department secretly monitored political groups, several are requesting a review of its intelligence-gathering operations." NYT
• Another Bogus Hit From A License Plate Reader Results In Another Citizen Surrounded By Cops With Guns Out
• Police use cellphone spying device
• Root backdoor found in surveillance gear used by law enforcement—"Vulnerability one of nine critical weaknesses from lawful intercept provider."
• OKC police, FBI, Homeland Security raid SW OKC home—Warranted a trifecta.
• Where did $1 million of seized money go?—"San Diego Police Department is looking for the funds, missing from records."
• Banned, On the Run—"Baltimore Police freeze out a Sun reporter; Sun management follows suit."

Bad Cops

• $650G for New York woman mistakenly shot by police—"A county police officer shot the Hempstead woman in the chest after bursting into the wrong apartment while hunting for drug dealing suspects."
• Police must ID officers in on-duty shootings, court rules—"Police agencies must reveal the names of officers involved in on-duty shootings unless there is specific evidence that disclosure would pose a safety threat, the California Supreme Court decided Thursday."
• Cleveland police officer to be suspended for inappropriate behavior —Issued citation to get woman's personal information.
• Man in Pig Mask Arrested for Impersonating Police Officer
• Woman Sues City After Chicago Police Officer Shoots, Kills Puppy
• Tupac's final words revealed by police officer on scene of murder
• Co-owner of restaurant tells 911 not to send police
• Officer Arrested After Holding Gun To 5 Year Old's Head
• Miami Gardens 'Stop & Frisk' Nabs Thousands of Kids, Finds 5-Year-Olds 'Suspicious'—"Stop and Frisk quota policy at Miami Gardens Police Department results in over 99-thousand stops in a city of 110-thousand people."

Brutality

• Albuquerque Police Face Federal Scrutiny, Local Outrage
• Autopsy: James Boyd was shot in the back and arms—"Boyd's family suing Albuquerque."
• Seattle Police Say Force Policies Unconstitutional—"Dozens of Seattle police officers have filed a federal civil rights complaint against city and federal officials, saying use-of-force polices are restricting their constitutional rights to protect themselves."
• State trooper convicted of official oppression for illegal searches—"Ex-trooper pleads guilty to official oppression for cavity searches on 2 female motorists."
• Jury weighs police pepper spray that blinded woman
• Victim's friend called 911 before beating to complain of harassment by off-duty cops, sources say
• BPD officers allegedly shot teen with BB gun
• I was the victim of police brutality: How I survived my brush with death—"In 2010, Chicago police officers viciously attacked me. The incident haunted me — and then I made a discovery." Salon

Don't Tase Me, Bro

• Teen Treated At Local Hospital Dies After Being Tased By Police
• Supreme Court vacates police-immunity ruling in suit over multiple Tasering
• Cops Used TASER Several Times On Mentally Ill Man, Family Says
• Suit: Officer Instructed 'Tase The Bitch' During Deadly Beating

Law and Disorder

• Cal graduate sues In-N-Out over spilled coffee—Restaurant claims company policy not to call 911.
• Woman's Story in Fatal S.C. Shooting Was a Lie: Deputies—"A South Carolina woman lied to investigators about the death of a friend who she said asked her to shoot him to test his bulletproof vest, sheriff's deputies said Friday."
• French father tried for ordering daughter's killer kidnapped from Germany
• Indian woman pushed off train to her death—"The woman's two children boarded the air-conditioned coach then the conductor told the woman her tickets entitled them to travel only in a cheaper coach...."
• Southern California city drops bill against Sriracha hot sauce plant

Trial and Error

• New York Federal Judge: Tens Of Thousands Of Innocent People Have Likely Pleaded Guilty—"A prominent New York federal judge said this week that a broken guilty plea system is sending too many people innocent people to prison, coerced by the threat of long prison sentences and not enough information."
• Final Word on U.S. Law Isn't: Supreme Court Keeps Editing—"The Supreme Court has been quietly revising its decisions years after they were issued, a secretive process that has led judges, lawyers and scholars astray." NYT
• Arrestee alleges government misconduct; federal magistrate orders arrestee to apologize and recant, as a condition of bail —How is this not a miscarriage of justice? WaPo
• N.C. judge overturns Darryl Howard conviction, finds prosecutor misconduct by Mike Nifong—"Ruling comes as new book tries to rehabilitate Mike Nifong's reputation." WaPo
• Italy: Murder trial is suspended after judge spots court staff having sex

Innocence

• Innocent man cleared after serving 10 years as 'Bronx rapist'
• New York prosecutor to re-examine 90 convictions—"Fueled by the freeing of a prison inmate who claimed a detective framed him in a 1990 murder, the Brooklyn district attorney's office has undertaken one of the nation's most ambitious efforts to revisit cases of people put behind bars decades ago to determine whether they were wrongly convicted."
• Man freed after wrongful murder conviction earns law degree

Prison

• End Mass Incarceration Now—"The American experiment in locking up vast numbers of citizens has been a moral, legal, social and economic disaster. It cannot end soon enough." NYT
• Punitive damages—"Q&A on the economic and social costs of rising U.S. incarcerations, despite dipping crime rates."
• $25M lawsuit for inmate who 'baked to death' in New York prison—"Mother of Jerome Murdough, mentally ill homeless veteran found dead in overheated jail cell, filing wrongful death lawsuit."
• Miami Herald: Allegations Of Abuse Of Mentally-Ill In Florida Prison—"A 50-year-old mentally ill inmate at the Dade Correctional Institution, Rainey was pulled into the locked shower by prison guards" and "was left there unattended for more than an hour…. When guards finally checked on prisoner 060954, he was on his back and dead. His skin was so burned that it had shriveled from his body…."
• Inmate in solitary confinement says jail ignored birth, leading to baby's death
• Invasive airport body scanners have found a new home at US prisons

Death Penalty

• U.S. Supreme Court justice halts Missouri execution at 11th hour
• U.S. top court rules for Florida death row inmate over IQ test—"The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out a death sentence for a Florida man in a decision that found the state's method for assessing whether defendants are mentally disabled was unconstitutional."
• Judges Orders Temporary Halt to Ohio Executions
• Tennessee to use electric chair when lethal drugs unavailable
• Firing squad or poison gas: America hunts for new death penalty

Guns

• The NRA has been blocking a nominee for surgeon general since February
• NRA lobbying led to law that stopped CDC from using federal funds to study gun violence
• AZ Candidate Apologizes For Saying Shootings Are Committed By Dems
• Detroit's top cop defends NRA article on deadly force
• Maryland police mistake pellet gun for assault rifle, kill man
• Colorado: Thornton pays $25,000 to man arrested for openly carrying firearm into Cinnebarre Theater
• Chipotle: Don't bring guns in our stores
• Gun Activists Flaunting Assault Rifles Get Booted From Chili's and Sonic

Recording

• Court upholds "First Amendment" right to film police—"Ruling is one of many nationwide supporting right to record police."
• Chicago cops physically, verbally abuse woman on video
• Ohio woman injured, charged after deputy pries open her mouth to retrieve Tylenol
• Cali. officer threatens illegal car search: "Doesn't mean I can use what I find but I can do it."
• Youtube Video Leads to Exposure of Police Coverup in Florida Beating Death—"Key West police not only tried to have his body cremated without an autopsy, a requirement for all in-custody deaths, they waited four days to notify his family that he was clinging to life in a hospital. And when an autopsy was finally conducted, it was discovered he had suffered from ten broken ribs."
• Dallas cop indicted for shooting mentally ill man—"Police Chief David Brown has suggested an expansion of the use of body cameras to avoid relying solely on officers' statements in disputed situations...."
• Can Cop-Worn Cameras Restore Faith In New Orleans Police?
  
• City, Fraternal Order of Police reach agreement on use of body cameras—"In plain English this means the Grievants will no longer be required to wear the Axon body cameras."

Ticket

• Trial of former Traffic Court judges begins this week—"They and two businessmen are accused of participating in a widespread ticket-fixing scheme."
• Sheriff’s deputies at fault in 500 accidents, receive little to no punishment
• Mendham Township officer lawsuit: Illegal ticket quotas—"A 16-year officer in the Mendham Township Police Department has filed suit against the force, alleging he has been bypassed twice for promotion and denied chances to earn overtime because he refuses to 'profile' young drivers for tickets."
• No fines for DC cops running red lights
• Driverless cars could cripple law enforcement budgets—"Local government have long looked to speeding tickets to increase revenue. What will they do when autonomous cars stick to the speed limit?"
• Video: Vaga Para Deficiente (Disabled Parking Prank)—Use full screen to read the tiny subtitles. Also: Double parking douches.

Road Rage

• Blackwood man wins $1.5M settlement after Hollywood Cafe-sponsored bar crawl crash
• Drunk father accused of running from crash scene, leaving 7-year-old screaming in street
• Packed minibus filled with boiling water after 'geyser' bursts through Siberian street
• Taxi driver stiffed out of $1500 after 22-hour ride across five states
• Oregon man caused three-car crash by holding breath in tunnel

Fat Tuesday; War on Terror; Veterans; Gitmo; Military Industrial Complex, Drones; Afghanistan, Benghazi; DHS, FBI; USA "Freedom" Act, Snowden, Greenwald, NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy

Fat Tuesday

• Retired military leaders fret kids will be 'too fat to fight'
• Army's new training shooter makes out of shape soldiers look fat—"Virtual Battlespace 3 applies real-world fitness scores to avatars' performance."
• Heavy duty: Army creates fat camps

War on Terror

• A Memorial Inscription's Grim Origins—"Questions have arisen about whether a quotation from a translation of Virgil's 'Aeneid' about two warriors' deaths is appropriate for the National September 11 Memorial Museum." It's taken out of context. NYT
• CIA: No more vaccination campaigns in spy operations WaPo
• Al Qaeda's American Fighters Are Coming Home—And U.S. Intelligence Can't Find Them
• Lawsuit over 'INF1DL' and 'WAR SUX' license plates headed to trial
• The case for abolishing the TSA

Veterans

• Veterans Fire Back at Letter by Senator—"Senator Richard M. Burr's letter that said leaders of veterans groups were defending the status quo at the V.A. drew fierce responses." Says he clearly represents the worst in politics. NYT
• Thank You for Being Expendable—"The scandal over the care of veterans is really an old story." NYT
• Flashback: Republicans Block VA Benefits

Gitmo

• US forced to acknowledge secret tapes of Guantánamo force-feedings
• Guantánamo inmate vomited blood after force-feeding, documents show
• Judge allows forced feeding to resume on Guantanamo detainee
• Mos Def (Yasiin Bey) Unable To Re-Enter America Due To "Immigration Issues"—Retaliation for his force-feeding "simulations"? Update: This rumor has been debunked [Salon].
• Why Guantanamo remains open

Military Industrial Complex

• 'Over My Dead Body': Spies Fight Obama Push to Downsize Terror War
• House Poised to Reject Pentagon's Cost-Cutting Plans—"The House of Representative on Wednesday edged toward passage of an annual defense policy bill that rejects Pentagon plans to retire older weapons systems and slow the rise in military pay as it implements long-term spending cuts ordered by Congress." NYT
• Congress Blocks Navy's Plan to Lay Up 11 Cruisers—"The Navy's plan to lay up 11 cruisers and three amphibious ships as part of a cost-saving, long-term modernization plan has been met with skepticism, concern and caution from members of Congress."
• White House threatens veto of defense bill—"The White House is threatening a veto of the House version of a $601 billion defense bill over election-year moves to spare weapons systems and popular programs in the face of limited budgets."
• US House approves $600 million military aid package for Israel—And "authorizes provisions for Iron Dome, David's Sling and Arrow 3."

Drones

• Secret laws are a threat to American democracy—"Releasing the drone-assassination memo is only the first step."
• Iran Knows the Secrets of America's Stealth Drone—"Tehran tracked, captured, studied, copied RQ-170."
• The Catholic Church Proved the US Government Is Making Up Drone Rules On the Fly
• New Zealand PM John Key Confirms 'Legal' Data-Sharing with U.S.; Justifies U.S. Drone Strikes

Afghanistan

• Obama signals US to keep limited Afghanistan role—"President Barack Obama slipped into Afghanistan for a surprise visit Sunday and made clear that the U.S. will likely maintain a limited role here even after its combat mission ends this year and America's longest war comes to a close."
• Karzai refused to meet Obama at Bagram Air Base, says US official
• White House mistakenly identifies CIA chief in Afghanistan—Oops. WaPo
• Afghanistan Hits Out at U.S. Spying Allegations

Benghazi

• This Is How the Right Milks Benghazi for Cash—"And more proof it's all about Hillary Clinton."
• Allen West Says Rep. Tammy Duckworth, Decorated Veteran, Not 'Loyal' To America
• Issa's latest Benghazi stunt backfires
• John Kerry Trolls The House—Adroit political manuevering.

DHS

• We need to know why DHS is an NSA intelligence "customer", and what that means
• Planned Homeland Security headquarters, long delayed and over budget, now in doubt Salon
• Did GoDaddy and Homeland Security shut down a Mexican protest site?

FBI

• FBI chief: 'Be suspicious' of government power
• Microsoft wins case to block FBI request for customer data—Didn't "win" as much as the FBI withdrew their case, preventing legal precedence over NSLs.
• Pension for FBI shooter of Todashev draws scrutiny in Oakland

USA "Freedom" Act

• The White House Is Trying to Weaken the NSA Reform Bill: Report
• As Feared: House Guts USA Freedom Act, Every Civil Liberties Organization Pulls Their Support
• Changes to Surveillance Bill Stoke Anger—"At the Obama administration's request, House leaders revised a bill that limits the government's bulk collection of phone records, spurring several civil liberties groups to withdraw support for the bill."
• The NSA Reform Bill the House Passed Today Is a Watered-Down Piece of Nonsense
• The NSA Bill That Just Passed Is So Weak, Original Backers Voted Against It

Snowden

• Snowden's First Move Against the NSA Was a Party in Hawaii
• NBC News Trumps ABC's Hillary Clinton Exclusive With Edward Snowden's First American Interview Since NSA Info Dump
• Edward Snowden Seeking Return to US: Der Spiegel
• Snowden: "I Was Trained as a Spy."

Greenwald

• NYT Book Reviewer Wonders If Glenn Greenwald Should Be Locked Up—Greenwald responds to Kinsley and his hacktastic review.
• 'Journalist' Argues In NY Times That Publishing Decisions Should Ultimately Be Made By Government
• The Government Isn't Very Good at Deciding What to Keep Secret—"So why do so many Americans insist that the state, not the press, should call the shots?"
• NYT Public Editor Slams 'Sneering' Review Of Glenn Greenwald's Book
• Sony Acquires Film Rights For Glenn Greenwald's Snowden Book—The first part read like a thiller novel.
• Glenn Greenwald to publish list of U.S. citizens that NSA spied on

NSA Spying

• Privacy under attack: the NSA files revealed new threats to democracy—"Thanks to Edward Snowden, we know the apparatus of repression has been covertly attached to the democratic state. However, our struggle to retain privacy is far from hopeless."
• Pentagon report: scope of intelligence compromised by Snowden 'staggering'—Yeah, about that report.
• California lawmakers make modest attempt to halt NSA data collection—"There's nothing that says states have to cooperate with a federal agency."
• Fine Line Seen in U.S. Spying on Companies—"United States officials say the N.S.A. is free to spy on trade negotiators to help American trade officials, and by extension, American industries and workers they are trying to bolster." NYT
• Marc Andreessen: Tech companies are still fuming over the NSA WaPo
• China Said to Study IBM Servers for Bank Security Risks—"Government agencies, including the People's Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance, are asking banks to remove the IBM servers and replace them with a local brand as part of a trial program...."
• House Committee Puts NSA on Notice Over Encryption Standards—"Amendment would remove requirement that the National Institute of Standards and Technology consult with the NSA on encryption standards."
• Man who lost all those NSA secrets to teach cybersecurity at Harvard
• PBS: United States of Secrets

Surveillance and Privacy

• Secrets, lies and Snowden's email: why I was forced to shut down Lavabit—"For the first time, the founder of an encrypted email startup that was supposed to insure privacy for all reveals how the FBI and the US legal system made sure we don't have the right to much privacy in the first place." Update: More from Levision.
• Everything Is Broken
• Empty promises: ProtonMail—A caveat to using "secure" email services.
• Federal 'Biosurveillance' Plan Seeking Direct Access to Americans' Private Medical Records
• ID theft protector LifeLock deletes user data over concerns that app isn't safe
• LG Will Take The 'Smart' Out Of Your Smart TV If You Don't Agree To Share Your Viewing And Search Data With Third Parties
• Internet 'Do Not Track' system is in shatters
• For Do Not Call violations, Sprint will pay FCC $7.5M in largest ever settlement—FCC: "Protecting consumer privacy is a top enforcement priority."

War on Drugs, Mexico; 420, Planted, Law and Disorder, Colorado, Legalization and Decriminalization; Bad Cops, Frame Jobs, Police Brutality, Mentally Ill, Recording

War on Drugs

• End The War On Drugs, Say Nobel Prize-Winning Economists
• Global drugs war a 'billion-dollar failure'
• Stop The War On Drugs, Says Top Republican
• Is it time to rethink the war on drugs?

Mexico

• Mexico's anti-cartel vigilantes vindicated after tape shows mayor linked to crime boss?
• Mexico legalizes vigilantes fighting drug cartel
• Grand Closing: America's Pot Farmers Are Putting Mexican Cartels Out of Business
• 44 tons of marijuana seized in Tijuana, Mexico; no arrests reported

420

• Why marijuana shops are forced to run like lemonade stands
• Gov. Nixon Evades Questions About Jeff Mizanskey, Man ServingLife in Prison for Pot
• 100+ overdose on synthetic marijuana in Texas in 5 days—While the natural version, which is demonstrably safer, remains illegal.

Planted

• No criminal charges for four Philly officers in 'Tainted Justice' cases—"After years of investigation, federal and local prosecutors have decided not to file criminal charges against four Philadelphia narcotics officers accused of lying about evidence on search warrants and stealing from corner stores during raids, Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey told The Inquirer on Thursday."
  
• 2 former LA deputies accused of planting guns to justify medical marijuana dispensary arrests
• TYT: Cops BUSTED for Planting Drugs in Marijuana Dispensary

Law and Disorder

• DEA raids four Denver marijuana sites related to VIP Cannabis
• DEA Seizes Kentucky's Hemp Seeds Despite Congressional Legalization—Kentucky sues.
• Feds seek prison for rural Washington pot growers
• Sober DUIs for Pot Are 'Absurd,' Arizona Supreme Court Affirms
• TSA finds 81 pounds of pot in checked luggage

Colorado

• Since Denver legalized pot sales, revenue is up and crime is down
• Colorado Symphony Orchestra to host bring-your-own-cannabis 'High Note' concert series
• Colorado Senate OKs co-op banking option for marijuana sellers
• This high-tech vending machine sells marijuana—Colorado followed by Canada.

Legalization and Decriminalization

• Marijuana Bill to Change Schedule Class is Introduced
• Minnesota's Legislature OKs Medical Marijuana
• Retired Supreme Court Justice thinks marijuana should be legal
• Myrick '09, Cornell Forensics Society Debate Marijuana Legalization
• Christie on pot: Colo. law 'not the quality of life we want'
• IL lawmakers to create task force to help legalize recreational use of marijuana
• Springfield City Council Tried to Stop Marijuana Reform Vote, Now Has to Pay Up $225,000—They passed a decriminalization petition originally set as ballot initiative and then immediately repealed it.
• There's A Lot More To Uruguay's Legal Weed Than The $1-A-Gram Price
• Jamaica sees green in ganja—"After more than a century, the island of music and marijuana seems ready for legalization."
• Canadians rally to legalize marijuana
• Bermuda report urges easing marijuana laws

Bad Cops

• Cops can't threaten black suspects with all-white juries to get confession, IN court rules
• Miami police kill 2 unarmed suspects by shooting disabled car 377 times
• License plate reader error leads to traffic stop at gunpoint, court case—"Flagged vehicle did not even match the model of what the woman was driving."

Frame Jobs

• After 17 years in prison, a man walks free when a federal judge rules that officers manufactured evidence
• Circuit Court Overturns Immunity For Law Enforcement Officials Who Sent An Innocent Man To Prison For 22 Years
• Informant who tried to frame shop owner gets 6 to 12 years in prison—"Framed shop owner blasts liar informant, police at sentencing."

Police Brutality

• FBI Agent Who Killed Boston Bombing Suspect's Friend Was Twice Accused of Police Brutality
• Cops Jam Sharp Object Down Teens Throat, Killing Him
• University Place man dies after being tased by deputies
• Police promote commander in 'excessive force' case—"Albuquerque police promoted a commander who was accused in a lawsuit of burning off part a homeless man's ear with a stun gun, officials announced Thursday."

Mentally Ill

• Texas execution halted, court says Texas hid crucial evidence—"The execution of Robert Campbell was halted by a federal appeals court after evidence emerged that Texas had withheld tests scores that suggest Mr. Campbell is mentally handicapped."
• Unarmed man shot by police has mental illness
• Our Criminal Treatment of the Mentally Ill—"Unprepared police and lack of services have turned jails into psychiatric hospitals."

Recording

• Video shows Boynton Beach police officer kicking legs out from under child
• Chicopee woman faces wiretapping charges after allegedly recording her own arrest
• Lapel camera policy APD's most violated in 2013
• Deputy Who Choked Student Gets To Retire, Won't Face Charges
• Argentina: "Anti-Terrorism" Law Set to Land Journalist Years in Prison for Recording Police

War on Terror, FBI, Drones, Military, Benghazi, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Israel and Palestine; Nigeria; Russia, Ukraine; World News; NSA Spying, Surveillance and Privacy, Facebook

War on Terror

• 60 words—"This hour we pull apart one sentence, written in the hours after September 11th, 2001, that has led to the longest war in U.S. history. We examine how just 60 words of legal language have blurred the line between war and peace."
• Condoleezza Rice backs out of Rutgers commencement—"Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has backed out of delivering the commencement address at Rutgers University following protests by some faculty and students over her role in the Iraq War."
• Tony Blair should be prosecuted for war crimes – not just judged by history—"Boris Johnson is right, Blair is 'eel-like' – but if the Chilcot inquiry is published soon, he might not wriggle off the hook."
• Senate to Reconsider Iraq, Afghanistan War Authorizations
• Generals Want CIA Torture Report Declassified
• Blackwater guard charged over Baghdad murder—"US court indicts ex-security guard over alleged role in death of one of a number of civilians killed in city in 2007."
• House committee earmarks $69M for new secret prison—"Some members of Congress have added $69 million for a new secret prison at Guantánamo — even though the Pentagon hasn't asked for it. Construction is not certain." Emphasis mine.
• Cops dead from 9/11 illnesses outnumber officers who died in attacks

FBI

• This American Refused to Become an FBI Informant. Then the Government Made His Family's Life Hell.
• Boston Marathon bombing suspect's lawyers say FBI violated his rights
• Man arrested in F.B.I. sting found dead in federal custody
• FBI wants easier process to hack suspects computers—"Proposed rule would allow bureau to obtain warrants to target computers concealed in unknown locations." WaPo

Drones

• Obama court nominee wrote memos authorizing drone attacks on Americans—"ACLU: Nominee formed 'legal foundation' for US drone targeted killing program."
• Japan in Depth / U.S. drone missions to monitor Chinese, N. Korean activities
• Every Country Will Have Armed Drones Within Ten Years
• Our Drone Wars Are Just Beginning—"After 13 years, robot attacks are still escalating."
• Drones banned from Yosemite, other parks
• Deploying Drones for News Gathering in El Salvador
• A Drone Almost Crashed Into An U.S. Airliner In March
• Spy Plane Fries Air Traffic Control Computers, Shuts Down LAX

Military

• The Real Winner of the Afghan War Is This Shady Military Contractor—"The State Department paid out $4 billion to rebuild Afghanistan. Some $2.5 billion of that went to a single firm with a bad, bad past."
• F-35 jets fail to beat Chinese and Russian radars
• US Navy Orders 10 Virginia-class Submarines at a Record Cost of $17.6 Billion—These subs will probably be more useful than those tanks.

Benghazi

• Why There Is No Cure for the GOP's Benghazi Fever—"The latest outbreak of Benghazi-mania on the right shows the virus is only growing more resistant to reason."
• Center Ring at the Republican Circus—"House Republicans don't have time to pass a serious jobs bill or reform immigration, but they are happy to go all-out in whipping up their party's base." NYT
• GOP Hypocrisy: Outraged Over Benghazi, Silent on Iraq
• Forget about Obamacare. Benghazi is the Republican Party's new favorite 2014 buzzword. WaPo
• Warren: Benghazi Committee Chair 'Gives Oversight A Bad Name'
• Laura Ingraham Demonstrates How To Make Anything About Benghazi
• GOP's Benghazi Investigator Has 3 New Questions ... That Have Already Been Answered
• Congressman Warns New Benghazi Committee Could Cost 'Tens Of Millions'
• Former Bush Official Bashes Republicans for Obsessing over Benghazi While Ignoring Cheney's War Crimes
• CBS News Asked Nexis To Delete Transcript Of Discredited Benghazi Report
• Former CBS News Correspondent: 60 Minutes Botched Benghazi Report Demands An Independent Outside Review
• Jon Stewart's brilliant takedown of right-wing's hypocritical Benghazi "outrage"

Afghanistan

• How the US Created the Afghan War—and Then Lost It—"Driven by the idée fixe that the world was rigidly divided into terrorist and non-terrorist camps, Washington allied with Afghan warlords and strongmen."
• U.S. general: Corruption, not Taliban, the worst threat to Afghanistan
• A precarious time for Afghan women—Women in Afghanistan fear the freedoms they've gained since the toppling of the Taliban are in danger as U.S. troops leave."

Pakistan

• Lawyer for Pakistan doctor jailed over bin Laden hunt quits amid threats—"The lawyer defending a Pakistani doctor jailed after helping the CIA find Osama bin Laden is quitting the case because of death threats and alleged U.S. interference in the trial, the lawyer said Saturday."
• Lawyers: Man Jailed for Nine Years Is Innocent, Railroaded in Bush's War on Terror—"The case of Hamid Hayat was emblematic of zealous prosecutors building flimsy cases during a time of national panic."
• Pakistan frees FBI agent on bail

Israel and Palestine

• Israeli ministers approve bid to block Palestinian prisoner releases
• Calls to class far-right Jewish settlers as terrorists after Israeli soldiers attacked—"Senior ministers Tzipi Livni and Yitzhak Aharonovitch condemn 'price-tag' attacks as author Amos Oz calls militants neo-Nazis."
• US officials: Even if Israel doesn't like it, Palestinians will get state

Nigeria

• Nigeria refused help to search for kidnapped girls—Now they've accepted an Israeli offer.
• Boko Haram releases new video, says schoolgirls have converted to Islam
• Girl who escaped Boko Haram abduction speaks publicly about ordeal

Russia

• Russian law bans swearing in arts and media
• Russia Declares War On Bloggers With Sweeping New Censorship Law
• Russia hangs adults-only rating on The Sims 4—"The Russian Federation has placed an 18+ rating on the upcoming release of The Sims 4, marking the game as 'prohibited for children' due to a controversial law restricting the promotion of same-sex relationships to minors."

Ukraine

• Polls close in eastern Ukraine amid allegations of fraud and double-voting
• Reports: 100,000 'yes' ballots for referendum intercepted in Sloviansk
• Ukraine crisis: rebels claim sovereignty vote victory—"Ukraine's interim president calls referendum in Donetsk and Luhansk a 'propaganda farce without any legal basis' after organisers say 89 per cent voted in favour."
• Self-rule referendums 'a farce'
• EU says won't recognise result of east Ukraine vote

World News

• How a Single Tweet Could Land a Japanese Nuclear Activist in Jail
• Neo-Nazis spark first church alarm since WWII
• Vietnam tries to stop China oil rig deployment
• South Korea says North Korea must "disappear" soon

NSA Spying

• House Committee axes NSA bulk phone metadata collection—"Measure removes phone metadata records from NSA control, leaves them with telcos."
• Glenn Greenwald: how the NSA tampers with US-made internet routers—"The NSA has been covertly implanting interception tools in US servers heading overseas – even though the US government has warned against using Chinese technology for the same reasons, says Glenn Greenwald, in an extract from his new book about the Snowden affair, No Place to Hide."
• 'We Kill People Based on Metadata'—"A bill to rein in NSA spying on Americans's metadata is an important first step, but it addresses only one part of the NSA's surveillance activities."
• Intelligence employees, current and past, barred from citing news leaks—"Order comes amid steady stream of disclosures from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden."
• EFF: The Way the NSA Uses Section 702 is Deeply Troubling. Here's Why.
• Former NSA Chief Defends Stockpiling Software Flaws for Spying
• German NSA investigative panel to allow Snowden to testify—"NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden is to testify before a German panel investigating the activities of the spy agency. However, the panel has not yet determined whether he may travel to Berlin for the hearing."
• The NSA and Snowden: Securing the All-Seeing Eye—"How good security at the NSA could have stopped him."

Surveillance and Privacy

• John McCain: Americans Should Accept Big Brother
• Israeli spying on US at 'alarming level'
• Whisper CEO Crashes and Burns Over Questions About Gwyneth Paltrow
• Snapchat deceived customers, U.S. federal watchdog says—"'Some things didn't get the attention they should have' during app's development, Snapchat admits."
• Anti-surveillance mask lets you pass as someone else
• California Senate approves smartphone 'kill-switch' bill—"After failing in the state Senate two weeks ago, a bill requiring that device makers include antitheft software on phones sold in the state passes muster."

Facebook

• Is the government checking you out on Facebook?
• After Facebook Deal, Moves App Changes Privacy Policy WSJ
• Confused by Facebook privacy settings? So is the Supreme Court. WaPo
• Inside Facebook's brilliant plan to hog your data—"Facebook's 'Anonymous Login' is about neither anonymity nor logging in. It's about creating scarcity in the market for user data."
• Facebook defends new privacy policy on its activity tracker Moves—"According to the social network, 'sharing' data is not the same as 'commingling' it."
• Facebook Must Again Face User Fraud Claims Over Data
• Why There's No Such Thing As A Private Facebook Chat

War on Terror, FBI Entrapment, Domestic Terror, Israel and Palestine, NYT Fraud; Surveillance and Privacy, Whistleblowers, Tech Tracking, Your Rights Online; Net Neutrality, Comcast vs. Netflix; Haxx0red

War on Terror

• Supreme Court rejects hearing on military detention case—"The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to President Barack Obama's administration by declining to hear a challenge to a law that allows the U.S. military to indefinitely detain people believed to have helped al Qaeda or the Taliban."
• US senators remove requirement for disclosure over drone strike victims
• Judge Dismisses Case Against Blackwater Defendant
• State Department Gives 87% of Afghan Funds to Only Five Recipients
• Nursing mom wins $75K settlement from TSA over airport incident

FBI

• Dzhokhar bombshell: FBI pressed Tamerlan to become informant
• At the Tribeca Fest: Two bold documentaries expose FBI spying and entrapment
• FBI knew of zero-day attack on websites, let hackers use it—"NY Times reports Sabu directed attacks with Plesk exploit after arrest."

Domestic Terror

• Why it's time to take domestic terrorism seriously
• Minnesota militia member facing jail despite failure to prove terror plot
• Reports Back Op-Ed Linking Vets to Hate Groups
• Concerns growing about militia members at Bundy ranch

Israel and Palestine

• Abbas denounces murder of Jews in Holocaust as 'most heinous crime in modern era'
• Israeli push for visa-free travel to US faces test—"A campaign to allow Israelis to enter the United States without a visa is gaining steam in Congress, but is still running into a brick wall with the Obama administration over the U.S. government's most elementary demand: that the Jewish state provide the same treatment at its borders to all Americans, even if they are Arab or Muslim."
• MKs pan Kerry for saying Israel could become 'apartheid'—"Anti-Defamation League also slams Washington's top diplomat, who warned of aftermath of talks' collapse." Kerry goes oooops [Politico] but gets his message across.

NYT Fraud

• 'New York Times' Admits It Agreed to 'Gag Orders' in Israel
• New York Times Admits It Pushed Fabricated Evidence about Iraq, Syria and Ukraine
• In 'A Fragile Trust,' Jayson Blair Tries to Give Answers—"Samantha Grant's documentary, 'A Fragile Trust,' comes a decade after the fraud scandal at The New York Times perpetrated by the reporter Jayson Blair." NYT

Surveillance and Privacy

• Surveillance court rejected Verizon challenge to NSA calls program—"A ruling said that another judge's criticism of the NSA's data collection had been considered and rejected." WaPo
• Telecom firm fails in first known FISA court surveillance challenge—"Unnamed company challenged metadata surveillance in court for the first time but lost, an unsealed order reveals."
• Where's the White House on Warrantless Email Snooping?
• Mathematicians at the NSA and GCHQ: Is it ethical to work for spy agencies?
• DC thinks it can silence a new Snowden, but the anti-leak hypocrisy is backfiring—"The Obama administration's latest secrecy guidelines would make Deep Throat spin in his grave. Good thing the floodgates are about to open on drones"

Whistleblowers

• Pentagon Papers Whistleblower Says Americans Have 'Lost the Republic'—"Daniel Ellsberg says that whistleblowers are the last people able to stand up to the federal government."
• The glamorous life of a whistleblower: Working a dead-end job for minimum wage—"Long before Snowden made headlines, Peter Van Buren shined light on the State Dept. Then the other shoe dropped..." Salon
• Hillary Clinton Mocks Snowden, Displays Her Ignorance When It Comes to Whistleblowers

Tech Tracking

• The White House Wants to Issue You an Online ID
• Verizon's mobile advertising will now use your desktop browsing habits
• Reddit Frontpage Ads Get Location Targeting

Your Rights Online

• Brazilian Congress passes Internet bill of rights
• Russia Internet sovereignty: Vladimir Putin is tightening his grip on the Internet
• Weibo: We can't censor our users enough to satisfy the Chinese government Salon

Net Neutrality

• If John Kerry Thinks the Internet Is a Fundamental Right, He Should Tell the FCC
• Congress screwed up net neutrality, not the FCC
• Obama Has Not Kept His Promise to Enforce Net Neutrality
• Internet service providers charging for premium access hold us all to ransom—"An ISP should give users the bits they ask for, as quickly as it can, and not deliberately slow down the data."
• Could new net neutrality rules fuel piracy?
• The Costs of Internet 'Fast Lanes'
• FCC Offers E-mail Address to Field Neutrality Complaint
• Turncoat? FCC says new Internet 'fast lane' rules won't kill net neutrality
• FCC chairman says he won't let ISPs snuff out the next Google or Amazon—"'I won't hesitate' to declare ISPs common carriers, Wheeler writes."

Comcast vs. Netflix

• Comcast Has About 76 Lobbyists Working Washington On The Time Warner Cable Merger. This is Why.
• Comcast sells 1.4 million customers to Charter ahead of Time Warner Cable merger
• Comcast accuses Netflix of lying as public feud escalates
• After Comcast, Netflix signs traffic deal with Verizon

Haxx0red

• U.S., UK advise avoiding Internet Explorer until bug fixed
• Zero-day Flash bug under active attack in Windows threatens OS X, Linux too—"Adobe issues emergency update for exploits targeting Syrian dissidents."
• After Heartbleed, NSA reveals some flaws are kept secret—"The White House explains the government's process when deciding whether to withhold knowledge of a security vulnerability -- 'There are legitimate pros and cons to the decision to disclose.'"
• Tech giants, chastened by Heartbleed, finally agree to fund OpenSSL —Thousands of sites and devices still vulnerable.
• Easter egg: DSL router patch merely hides backdoor instead of closing it—"Researcher finds secret 'knock' opens admin for some Linksys, Netgear routers."
• You've Got Hacked: AOL Confirms 'Significant Number' of Mail Users Hit

Net Neutrality Neutered, Broadband; Fourth Amendment Fouls; Bad Cops, Albuquerque; Police Brutality, K9 Killers, Militarization; Law and Disorder, Trial and Error, Recording, Prison, Innocence; Guns; Uncharitable

Net Neutrality Neutered

• FCC proposal would destroy net neutrality
• The FCC's "fast lane" rule is awful for the Internet—just ask the FCC—"Pay-for-play is fine for Web users? That's not what the FCC said in 2010."
• The FCC is about to axe-murder net neutrality. Don't get mad – get even—"The former cable and wireless industry lobbyist Tom Wheeler is re-writing rules in favor of the telecom giants – not you, me or the internet. Here's what you can do to stop him."
• Why Comcast Will Be Allowed to Buy Time Warner Cable and Kill Net Neutrality—"Five registered lobbyists at Comcast have spent time at the FCC. One of the last FCC Commissioners is one of them. One chart describes it all."
• How Comcast gets whatever it wants despite being one of America's most hated companies
• Sen. Sanders' statement—"Under this terribly misguided proposal, the Internet as we have come to know it would cease to exist and the average American would be the big loser. We must not let private corporations turn bigger and bigger profits by putting a price tag on the free flow of ideas."
• Goodbye, Net Neutrality; Hello, Net Discrimination
• The FCC's New Net Neutrality Proposal Is Even Worse Than You Think
• Netflix: The Case Against ISP Tolls—Should they switch over to P2P?
• Internet For the 1 Percent: New FCC Rules Strike Down Net Neutrality, Opening Fast Lanes for Fees
• Save the Internet campaign
• Blast from the Past: Obama pledges Net neutrality laws if elected president—US citizens should remind him of his promise.

Broadband

• Is Your Internet Connection Slower Than Advertised? WSJ
• AT&T's 'Expansion' of 1 Gbps to 100 Cities is a Big, Fat Bluff
• Comcast says its customer service does a great job 'way more than 99%' of the time
• Verizon Knows You're A Sucker: Takes Taxpayer Subsidies For Broadband, Doesn't Deliver, Lobbies To Drop Requirements

Fourth Amendment Fouls

• Supreme Court Gives Police New Power To Rely On Anonymous Tips
• Feds Beg Supreme Court to Let Them Search Phones Without a Warrant
• Low-level federal judges balking at law enforcement requests for electronic evidence—"Judges at the lowest levels of the federal judiciary are balking at sweeping requests by law enforcement officials for cellphone and other sensitive personal data, declaring the demands overly broad and at odds with basic constitutional rights." WaPo

Bad Cops

• New Orleans cops ignore federal oversight—"Advocates say a federally mandated overhaul of the New Orleans Police Department has yielded few results."
• Reform in Reverse—"How Mayor Ed Murray Unraveled Two Years of Police Reform in Only Two Months."
• D.C. Lieutenant Working During Fire Station Death Bypasses Discipline
• Monterey County deputies mistake Air Force captain for burglar in Carmel—"U.S. Air Force Capt. Nicolas Aquino was tackled and handcuffed at his own house in Carmel because a Monterey County sheriff's deputy thought he was a burglar. Now, Aquino is being charged with resisting arrest and obstructing a peace officer."
• Pakistani judge dismisses charges against 9-month-old accused of attempted murder

Albuquerque

• Albuquerque: 3 Police Oversight Commission members quit—"Letter: 'I cannot continue to pretend or deceive the members of our community.'"
• Police body cameras didn't provide accountability in New Mexico
• Albuquerque police officer fatally shoots woman—"A 19-year-old woman suspected of stealing a truck was shot and killed during a chase with Albuquerque police, making her the third person in five weeks to be killed by officers and the first since the department was put under federal orders to reduce the use of deadly force and reform a culture of abuse and aggression."

Police Brutatlity

• #myNYPD Backfires As Twitter Users Share Photos of Police Brutality
• Bull Shoals police chief arrested in federal excessive-force case
• Federal jury acquits state trooper of stomping

K9 Killers

• Dog dies after police prevent neighbor from giving aid after it was hit by a car—"We asked Denver Police to view the video but they declined."
• Halifax cop shoots dog while conducting surveillance on home
• Owners ask for answers after Austin Police officers shoot and kill dog

Militarization

• The United States of SWAT?—"Military-style units from government agencies are wreaking havoc on non-violent citizens."
• Congratulations! Your tiny town has an MRAP and is ready for war—"Here at The Watch, we're looking for the smallest town in America to acquire an MRAP, or Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected armored personnel vehicle." WaPo
• Militarized police may be in a town near you

Law and Disorder

• Hate crime charge in mob attack on Detroit motorist
• Couple strip searched over $3 earrings at southeast Houston beauty supply
• Ohio man must pay $489,000 for fake distress report: court
• Driver of SUV that hit cyclists suing dead teen's family—'Her enjoyment of life has been and will be lessened,' suit claims." Sociopath?

Trial and Error

• Report: NYC court stenographer who typed 'gibberish' may jeopardize up to 30 convictions
• FBI rescues Wake Forest man; abduction related to daughter's work as prosecutor, investigators say
• Ohio judge orders man to hold 'I AM A BULLY!' sign WaPo
• Families of autistic kids sue Disney parks over policy on lines—"Disney changed the policy after media reports of abuse of guest assistance cards, such as visitors hiring disabled people to help them skip lines." Go sue those assholes first.
• Majority of complaints about Sriracha factory came from 4 households

Recording

• Rare 'Perry Mason' moment in court wins dismissal for defendant, desk duty for 5 police officers—"A seemingly routine suppression hearing in a suburban Chicago courthouse last month took an unexpected dramatic turn when video from a police car was introduced that disproved the testimony of five police officers."
• Detroit police unveil new cameras to be worn by officers and newest batch of scout cars
• Video shows Texas cop kicking, tripping high school soccer fans
• China: Rioting crowd severely beats 5 chengguan for killing civilian

Prison

• Texas prisons violate international human rights standards, report says—"Extreme temperatures in state-run facilities has caused the deaths of at least 14 inmates since 2007, according to human rights group."
• State pays $120,000 to settle prison claims
• Protesters want Gates Foundation to stop investing in prison operator
• Mike Anderson Sues MO Department of Corrections, Asks for Immediate Release—Put in jail after 13 years due to a 'clerical error.'

Innocence

• Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter dead at 76—"Former professional boxer became an advocate for the wrongly convicted."
• DA's fight against innocence claim may have left dangerous gunman on street
• The U.S. Abuses Its Wrongfully Convicted in More Ways Than One
• Life interrupted: Man exonerated in murder struggles to start fresh after 24 years behind bars
• Exonerated Illinois man could seek review of conviction in 1974 Shaker Square-area murder

Guns

• NJ gives driver 5 years on gun charge: targeted because he had Texas plates
• Despite deadline, protesters 'will not comply' with SAFE Act
• Republicans Say No to CDC Gun Violence Research—"Giving the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention money for gun violence research is a 'request to fund propaganda,' a Georgia congressman says."

Uncharitable

• Comic Relief money invested in arms and tobacco shares
• NY report: Telemarketers kept most charity donations
• Only 8 percent of NFL pink apparel sales go toward cancer research: report
• Report: Red Sox May Be Sued By Charitable Foundation Over Use Of 'B Strong' Logo