Posts Tagged ‘police’

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Bill Would Let People Record Audio of Cops

By Dawn in court cases, Debugging - Electronic Countermeasures, eavesdropping, Illinois, invasion of privacy, MSI Detective Services at January 16th, 2012 | No comments

 

St. Rep. Elaine Nekritz, D-Northbrook, IL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recent court case rulings in Illinois regarding the constitutionality of Illinois’ eavesdropping law have placed this topic at the agenda forefront of some Illinois legislators and the ACLU.

Illinois’ eavesdropping law is one of the strictest in the country. The law makes it illegal to audio-record police without their consent, even when they’re working in public. Illinois is one of a handful of states in which it is illegal to record audio of public conversations without the permission of everyone involved.

Breaking this law carries a harsh penalty. It is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. This law has come under increased scrutiny in the last few years in courts throughout the state.

State Representative Elaine Nekritz, D-Northbrook has filed a bill that would allow people to audio-record a police officer working in public without the officer’s consent. In an interview last Thursday, Rep. Nekritz said, “I believe that the existing statute is a significant intrusion into First Amendment rights, so with the prosecutions and the court cases that have been reported about, it just seemed that this is a problem in need of a swift solution.”

Last August, a Cook County jury acquitted a woman who had recorded two Chicago police internal affairs investigators she believed were trying to dissuade her from filing a sexual harassment complaint against a patrol officer.

In another Cook County case, Chicago artist Chris Drew is facing trial for allegedly making an illegal audio recording of Chicago police during a 2009 arrest for selling art on a downtown street without a permit.

In September, a Crawford County judge ruled the law unconstitutional and dismissed eavesdropping charges against a man accused of recording police and court officials without their consent. Read the full article »

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Wikileaks Spy Files Target Forensic Companies

By Dawn in Debugging - Electronic Countermeasures, eavesdropping, Hacking, invasion of privacy, MSI Detective Services, Surveillance Services, Technology, Terrorism at January 4th, 2012 | No comments

 

 

 

 

 

In December, Wikileaks revealed what it has dubbed “the Spy Files,” a collection of 287 documents that include information about companies that provide different types of surveillance methods including cell phone forensics, spyware, and Wifi interceptions.

“Over a year or longer, SSL certificates have been penetrated by various organized crime groups and intelligence agencies. The entire SSL system, which is the mechanism that guarantees security and anonymity online, has been compromised. SSL is beyond repair,” says Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

The ACLU also has listed a very detailed account of what they consider illegal domestic spying in America. “The FBI, federal intelligence agencies, the military, state and local police, private companies, and even firemen and emergency medical technicians are gathering incredible amounts of personal information about ordinary Americans that can be used to construct vast dossiers that can be widely shared with a simple mouse-click through new institutions like Joint Terrorism Task Forces, fusion centers, and public-private partnerships. The fear of terrorism has led to a new era of overzealous police intelligence activity directed, as in the past, against political activists, racial and religious minorities, and immigrants.”

Read story@ dfinews

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Cops: Man Gouges Out Uncle’s Eyes Over TV Remote

By Dawn in Crime, Illinois, Investigations, MSI Detective Services, Violence at January 4th, 2012 | No comments

 

 

 

 

A northern Illinois man is accused of gouging his uncle’s eyes out during a fight over a remote control. The attacker, Exulam I. Holman, 32, is said to be a career criminal, according to police.

Will County Sheriff’s police were called shortly after 10 p.m. Saturday, New Year’s Eve, to a residence in the 1100 block of McKay Street in Joliet Township where a 62-year-old man reported he’d been attacked. A deputy found the 62-year-old victim with blood streaming from his eyes.

The victim, whose name was not released, had “blood streaming from both eyeballs, covering his face below his eyes. Both of his eyeballs were swollen, dislocated and were protruding approximately a quarter-inch from the eye sockets,” police said.

The victim told deputies his nephew tried to pry his eyes out with his thumbs. The man told police he and his nephew had been arguing over the TV’s remote control. Holman broke the remote on the ground, pushed his uncle to the kitchen floor and straddled him. Holman is 5′ 7″ tall and weighs 280 pounds. His uncle is five inches shorter and weighs 140 pounds less.

The victim said that Holman, “inserted his thumbs into his eyes … and attempted to pry the eyeballs out of the sockets.” Read the full article »

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FBI Placed GPS Tracker on Bank Robber’s Car

By Dawn in Crime, gps tracker, Investigations, MSI Detective Services, murder, Police Records, robbery, Stolen Property, Theft Investigations at December 20th, 2011 | No comments

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a story where miscommunication, and lack of willingness to share crucial information, resulted in the death of a police officer. The controversy surrounding this incident is primarily directed at the FBI.

FBI agents knew of a bank robbery before it occurred, but they were keeping the details to themselves. The FBI contacted Muskegon County (Michigan) dispatchers to warn them about the possibility of a bank robbery. FBI Resident Agent in Charge, John King, had called the Muskegon Dispatch Center at roughly 10:20 a.m. to alert them to a bank robbery that was about to occur – 16 minutes later - ChoiceOne Bank was robbed.

“Hey, this is John King with the FBI in Grand Rapids,” dispatch tapes recorded. “We are right now tracking a couple individuals up in the Muskegon County area around Ravenna. And so, if there happens to be a bank robbery come out, can you make sure we end up getting a phone call?” The FBI had been tracking the two bank robbers with a GPS tracking device placed on the suspect’s car and on a phone.

Although the FBI had placed a GPS tracker on the suspect’s vehicle, they did not provide a vehicle description when asked by a Muskegon dispatcher.

Dispatch tapes also show that one of the FBI agents appeared to know beforehand that suspects Derryl LaFave and Kristopher Cheyne were going to be in a black Chevrolet Blazer that they used as their first getaway car. The Blazer had been stolen the day before the robbery. The suspects abandoned the Blazer, which had the GPS tracker, not far from the bank before escaping in a blue Oldsmobile Bravada.

“We had our suspects in there before the bank robbery, so I’m sure that’s it,” FBI Task Force member Pat Harig told a dispatcher. At the time, he was discussing the Blazer. Harig told dispatchers the FBI had been tracking the suspects into Ravenna through GPS, and they wanted to keep that a secret. “Without putting this on the air, we have GPS on the vehicle and on a phone,” Harig told a dispatcher. “We do not need that on the air.” Read the full article »

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