True Crime Online Newsletter - March 31, 2014
I couldn't make this up if I tried. . .Want to get paid to follow Toronto Mayor Rob Ford while playing tuba? Go on Craigslist
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/03/2
An ad posted on Craigslist earlier this week is seeking someone to fulfill a rather unusual request -- follow Toronto Mayor Rob Ford around while playing a tuba. The gig is an eight-hour shift of following Ford, and it pays $125. (“You must be able to provide your own tuba. A trombone would also be acceptable.”)
According to the ad:
“I'm looking for hire a person to follow Rob Ford around for one day while playing a tuba. You must be willing to adhere to the following:
- wear a gopro camera (provided) to document the ensuing antics
- wear a shirt with @UnethicalHacks (provided) printed on the back for the entire day”
The post also includes a link to a YouTube video of a clip from Family Guy.
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Visit WHOA on the web at http://www.haltabuse.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NEWS TO USE AND PASS ALONG!
(DISCLAIMER: The following news items were found on the web and were not written or endorsed by WHO@; they are for informational purposes only)
Man ordered to take down police officer’s name and picture from Internet - 03/31/14
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volo
[Jordan] Klaffer is a gun owner who frequently fires his gun at objects on private property. On May 1, 2013, Jerry Bledsoe, a police officer, confronted Klaffer while responding to a noise complaint. Klaffer videotaped the interaction, where Bledsoe issued an ultimatum to Klaffer to surrender his guns or be arrested. Klaffer refused to give up his guns and was arrested for disturbing the peace.
Instagram Stories Spark Questions About Responsibility - 03/29/14
http://guardianlv.com/2014/03/insta
Instagram has grown exponentially, big enough even to rival a wildly popular site like Twitter. Unlike the text based social site where users are challenged to condense themselves into 140 characters or less, this social sharing site has a new challenge: find an image to convey the perfect message. It is a seemingly simple task, but the stories about Instagram users spark new questions about sharing responsibility.
Targeting online bullies - 03/29/14
http://www.thestar.com.my/Opinion/Colum
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is trying to tame the untameable cyberspace. A TEENAGE girl gets a series of e-mail propositions from a stranger: have sex or else! She panics. Her worried parents report it to the police but the harassments continue. Elsewhere a girl finds her topless photo circulated over the Internet. Such cases of web abuse are on the rise in modern Singapore. Then there are instances of online bullying of students by classmates – threats, insults and name-callings are frequently used. Mental health suffers.
Tri-Central students suspended over tweets - 03/29/14
http://www.kokomotribune.com/local/x138
Multiple Tri-Central High School students were suspended this week after harassing comments made on Twitter disrupted the school day Tuesday. The investigation is ongoing into how many students were behind a Twitter account making negative comments about their peers. Acting assistant principal Sharon Fields could not give specifics on the name of the Twitter account or the content of the tweets, but she described them as “harassing, obscene, profane and intimidating.”
Man jailed over e-mail threats to ex-law chief - 03/28/14
http://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/lo
A MAN who claimed ties with CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden has been jailed for harassing Scotland’s former top prosecutor. Timothy Rustige, 65, was found guilty of causing Dame Elish Angiolini to suffer fear and alarm by subjecting her to a campaign of harrassment following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
LV blogger Bernie O'Hare wins defamation award - 03/28/14
http://www.wfmz.com/news/news-regio
Lehigh Valley blogger Bernie O'Hare has won a $67,140 award against defendant Tricia Mezzacappa in Northampton County Court. The verdict, announced Friday by Judge Michael J. Koury, Jr., following consideration of evidence presented at a non-jury trial on March 11.
18-year-old charged with putting nude photos of girls on social media sites - 03/28/14
http://www.salisburypost.com/article/20
An 18-year-old has been arrested in connection to an investigation into nude photos of young girls showing up on social media sites. The Landis Police Department and the Granite Quarry-Faith Joint Police Authority worked with other law enforcement agencies, including the SBI, and issued 14 warrants for Peter Thomas Kiever on Thursday night.
RUMSON CHARGES MAN WITH WEB STALKING - 03/28/14
http://www.redbankgreen.com/2014/03/rum
Rumson police charged a Wall Township man with online stalking of more than one borough resident Thursday. Kevin Brennan, 44, was arrested on a warrant without incident at his home following a “lengthy” investigation to determine his identity and location, police said.
Man pretends to be mayor and fools town - 03/28/14
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/0
A man fooled a town in England into think he was their mayor by setting up a fake Twitter account. A man going by James Billington created the Twitter handle @mayorofStafford with a bio saying he's, "delighted to be representing the town of Stafford & surrounding areas."
Court case continued for Robert Jenkins on Craigslist sex-ad charges - 03/28/14
http://www.sbsun.com/general-news/20140
The felony settlement conference for former San Bernardino Councilman Robert Jenkins was pushed back again on Friday. “We still don’t have all the discovery, so it got continued,” said Roberta A. Prosise of Virginia Blumenthal Law Offices, which is representing Jenkins.
Minnesota girl wins $70K in Facebook lawsuit settlement with Minnewaska Area Schools - 03/2714
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/0
A Minnesota girl will receive $70,000 as part of a settlement reached after a lawsuit claiming school officials forced her to surrender her Facebook password was filed in federal court. The Minnesota branch of the American Civil Liberties Union helped Riley Stratton with her case and ended up settling with the Minnewaska Area Schools for $70,000 and an agreement that district would rewrite its social media policies.
Alleged Cyber-Stalker Terrorizes Oklahoma City Woman - 03/27/14
http://www.news9.com/story/25096118/all
An Oklahoma City woman has turned to News 9 after being the repeated victim of cyber-stalking. Bonnie Montgomery, 32, says during the past two years, she's received a handful of hate emails. Half of them she says claim to be from her daughter. Her daughter actually died in 1999 from "sudden infant death" syndrome.
The Case for Making Revenge Porn a Federal Crime - 03/27/14
http://gawker.com/the-case-for-making-r
With Rep. Jackie Speier's announcement yesterday that she intends to introduce a federal bill criminalizing "revenge porn" into the house in the month, people were asking the same question they often ask about revenge porn: Why isn't this already illegal? The short answer is that law enforcement often doesn't take it seriously. There are existing laws against harassment, but even victims of ordinary harassment have always had a hard time getting the authorities to pay attention.
Southfield pet store files lawsuit against animal activist group - 03/26/14
http://www.dailytribune.com/general-new
The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has asked an Oakland County judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by a local pet store against a group of animal welfare activists who protest and advocate against the commercial breeding of puppies and the sale of such puppies by for-profit pet stores. The ACLU alleges that the lawsuit is designed specifically to suppress the speech of the law abiding activists, calling it a SLAPP suit, or strategic lawsuit against public participation.
Court Weighs Severity of Impersonation on the Internet - 03/26/14
http://www.newyorklawjournal.com/id=120
The behavior of a man who assumed a false identity to discredit scholars who were in a professional dispute with the man's father over the origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls is "absolutely ubiquitous" in the Internet age and is not criminal, the man's lawyer told the state Court of Appeals Tuesday.
Charlotte Laws' fight with Hunter Moore, the internet's revenge porn king - 03/26/14
http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2
I don't realise quite how brave Charlotte Laws is until I see her in action at the United States Court House in Los Angeles. I'd met her at her home two days previously, but for most of the interview she'd been sitting down, and it's only amid the imposing gloom of the 1940s building that I realise how tiny she is – less than 5ft tall, despite a pair of platform heels – and what exactly it is that she has taken on. We're waiting for a bail hearing in the case of the United States versus Charlie Evens, and Laws is clutching a stash of printouts from the internet which she shows the prosecutor before the judge arrives.
Stalking, Threats And A Celebrity: Memphis Man Charged - 03/26/14
http://wreg.com/2014/03/26/stalking-thr
(Memphis) Police slapped handcuffs on a man accused of harassing an ex-girlfriend for weeks, causing her to fear for her life. It’s a tangled web that involves stalking, threats, and a celebrity. Threatening text messages saying things like “I see you,” “Only God can save you now,” and “Get right with God before it’s your time to go,” fill Alaaeddin Diab’s ex-girlfriend’s phone. Police say she dumped Diab weeks ago when she found out he was married, but the split didn’t stop Diab from hounding his former flame.
‘Text spree’ threats sends Longview man to prison - 03/25/14
http://tdn.com/news/local/text-spree-th
A Longview man who threatened to kill his child’s mother and their child during a “text spree” will spend the next year in prison. Joshua Peter McCoy, 38, was sentenced Monday on charges of second-degree extortion and four counts of cyberstalking (threats to kill). He pleaded guilty earlier this month. He also must pay $1,875 in restitution and court fees.
Cyberbullying victim puts past behind her - 03/25/14
http://www.issaquahpress.com/2014/0
The lewd images and messages scrawled across her daughter’s Facebook page in 2011 still burn bright in Issaquah resident Tara Cote’s memory. In a case that made national headlines, then 12-year-old Leslie Cote was the victim of cyberbullying, as two classmates hacked into her social media page and posted altered photos, including one with “I’m a slut” superimposed on it. Two Issaquah girls, who also used the site’s instant messaging service to act as Leslie to proposition boys for sexual acts, were charged with cyberstalking and first-degree computer trespassing.
Internet troll, 42, who trawled Facebook to find women and young girls then flashed them using FaceTime is jailed for seven years - 03/25/14
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar
An internet troll who prowled Facebook for women and young girls so he could subject them to bouts of online ‘flashing’ has been jailed for seven years. Michael Atherton, 42, contacted his victims on the social media network via video call app FaceTime, and by email using false profiles before exposing himself to them over the web.
Government backs tougher sentences on cyber-bullies and text perverts - 03/25/14
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/go
The Government today backed tougher laws that could see cyber stalkers and text perverts locked up for two years. Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said the new rules will target offenders who make victims’ lives a misery by abusing or sexually harassing them online or on mobiles.
DJ says she lost social media gigs after being cyber stalked by fiancé's ex-girlfriend - 03/24/14
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-yor
Scarlett Hauck, 26, who goes by the stage name Scarlett Etienne, says stalking by parochial schools fundraiser Angela Kovalesky, 34, made her stay away from Facebook and other social media platforms costing Hauck hundreds of thousands of dollars because she was unable to book or promote her DJ appearances.
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/03/2
An ad posted on Craigslist earlier this week is seeking someone to fulfill a rather unusual request -- follow Toronto Mayor Rob Ford around while playing a tuba. The gig is an eight-hour shift of following Ford, and it pays $125. (“You must be able to provide your own tuba. A trombone would also be acceptable.”)
According to the ad:
“I'm looking for hire a person to follow Rob Ford around for one day while playing a tuba. You must be willing to adhere to the following:
- wear a gopro camera (provided) to document the ensuing antics
- wear a shirt with @UnethicalHacks (provided) printed on the back for the entire day”
The post also includes a link to a YouTube video of a clip from Family Guy.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Visit WHOA on the web at http://www.haltabuse.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NEWS TO USE AND PASS ALONG!
(DISCLAIMER: The following news items were found on the web and were not written or endorsed by WHO@; they are for informational purposes only)
Man ordered to take down police officer’s name and picture from Internet - 03/31/14
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volo
[Jordan] Klaffer is a gun owner who frequently fires his gun at objects on private property. On May 1, 2013, Jerry Bledsoe, a police officer, confronted Klaffer while responding to a noise complaint. Klaffer videotaped the interaction, where Bledsoe issued an ultimatum to Klaffer to surrender his guns or be arrested. Klaffer refused to give up his guns and was arrested for disturbing the peace.
Instagram Stories Spark Questions About Responsibility - 03/29/14
http://guardianlv.com/2014/03/insta
Instagram has grown exponentially, big enough even to rival a wildly popular site like Twitter. Unlike the text based social site where users are challenged to condense themselves into 140 characters or less, this social sharing site has a new challenge: find an image to convey the perfect message. It is a seemingly simple task, but the stories about Instagram users spark new questions about sharing responsibility.
Targeting online bullies - 03/29/14
http://www.thestar.com.my/Opinion/Colum
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is trying to tame the untameable cyberspace. A TEENAGE girl gets a series of e-mail propositions from a stranger: have sex or else! She panics. Her worried parents report it to the police but the harassments continue. Elsewhere a girl finds her topless photo circulated over the Internet. Such cases of web abuse are on the rise in modern Singapore. Then there are instances of online bullying of students by classmates – threats, insults and name-callings are frequently used. Mental health suffers.
Tri-Central students suspended over tweets - 03/29/14
http://www.kokomotribune.com/local/x138
Multiple Tri-Central High School students were suspended this week after harassing comments made on Twitter disrupted the school day Tuesday. The investigation is ongoing into how many students were behind a Twitter account making negative comments about their peers. Acting assistant principal Sharon Fields could not give specifics on the name of the Twitter account or the content of the tweets, but she described them as “harassing, obscene, profane and intimidating.”
Man jailed over e-mail threats to ex-law chief - 03/28/14
http://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/lo
A MAN who claimed ties with CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden has been jailed for harassing Scotland’s former top prosecutor. Timothy Rustige, 65, was found guilty of causing Dame Elish Angiolini to suffer fear and alarm by subjecting her to a campaign of harrassment following a trial at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.
LV blogger Bernie O'Hare wins defamation award - 03/28/14
http://www.wfmz.com/news/news-regio
Lehigh Valley blogger Bernie O'Hare has won a $67,140 award against defendant Tricia Mezzacappa in Northampton County Court. The verdict, announced Friday by Judge Michael J. Koury, Jr., following consideration of evidence presented at a non-jury trial on March 11.
18-year-old charged with putting nude photos of girls on social media sites - 03/28/14
http://www.salisburypost.com/article/20
An 18-year-old has been arrested in connection to an investigation into nude photos of young girls showing up on social media sites. The Landis Police Department and the Granite Quarry-Faith Joint Police Authority worked with other law enforcement agencies, including the SBI, and issued 14 warrants for Peter Thomas Kiever on Thursday night.
RUMSON CHARGES MAN WITH WEB STALKING - 03/28/14
http://www.redbankgreen.com/2014/03/rum
Rumson police charged a Wall Township man with online stalking of more than one borough resident Thursday. Kevin Brennan, 44, was arrested on a warrant without incident at his home following a “lengthy” investigation to determine his identity and location, police said.
Man pretends to be mayor and fools town - 03/28/14
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/0
A man fooled a town in England into think he was their mayor by setting up a fake Twitter account. A man going by James Billington created the Twitter handle @mayorofStafford with a bio saying he's, "delighted to be representing the town of Stafford & surrounding areas."
Court case continued for Robert Jenkins on Craigslist sex-ad charges - 03/28/14
http://www.sbsun.com/general-news/20140
The felony settlement conference for former San Bernardino Councilman Robert Jenkins was pushed back again on Friday. “We still don’t have all the discovery, so it got continued,” said Roberta A. Prosise of Virginia Blumenthal Law Offices, which is representing Jenkins.
Minnesota girl wins $70K in Facebook lawsuit settlement with Minnewaska Area Schools - 03/2714
http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/0
A Minnesota girl will receive $70,000 as part of a settlement reached after a lawsuit claiming school officials forced her to surrender her Facebook password was filed in federal court. The Minnesota branch of the American Civil Liberties Union helped Riley Stratton with her case and ended up settling with the Minnewaska Area Schools for $70,000 and an agreement that district would rewrite its social media policies.
Alleged Cyber-Stalker Terrorizes Oklahoma City Woman - 03/27/14
http://www.news9.com/story/25096118/all
An Oklahoma City woman has turned to News 9 after being the repeated victim of cyber-stalking. Bonnie Montgomery, 32, says during the past two years, she's received a handful of hate emails. Half of them she says claim to be from her daughter. Her daughter actually died in 1999 from "sudden infant death" syndrome.
The Case for Making Revenge Porn a Federal Crime - 03/27/14
http://gawker.com/the-case-for-making-r
With Rep. Jackie Speier's announcement yesterday that she intends to introduce a federal bill criminalizing "revenge porn" into the house in the month, people were asking the same question they often ask about revenge porn: Why isn't this already illegal? The short answer is that law enforcement often doesn't take it seriously. There are existing laws against harassment, but even victims of ordinary harassment have always had a hard time getting the authorities to pay attention.
Southfield pet store files lawsuit against animal activist group - 03/26/14
http://www.dailytribune.com/general-new
The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has asked an Oakland County judge to throw out a lawsuit filed by a local pet store against a group of animal welfare activists who protest and advocate against the commercial breeding of puppies and the sale of such puppies by for-profit pet stores. The ACLU alleges that the lawsuit is designed specifically to suppress the speech of the law abiding activists, calling it a SLAPP suit, or strategic lawsuit against public participation.
Court Weighs Severity of Impersonation on the Internet - 03/26/14
http://www.newyorklawjournal.com/id=120
The behavior of a man who assumed a false identity to discredit scholars who were in a professional dispute with the man's father over the origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls is "absolutely ubiquitous" in the Internet age and is not criminal, the man's lawyer told the state Court of Appeals Tuesday.
Charlotte Laws' fight with Hunter Moore, the internet's revenge porn king - 03/26/14
http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2
I don't realise quite how brave Charlotte Laws is until I see her in action at the United States Court House in Los Angeles. I'd met her at her home two days previously, but for most of the interview she'd been sitting down, and it's only amid the imposing gloom of the 1940s building that I realise how tiny she is – less than 5ft tall, despite a pair of platform heels – and what exactly it is that she has taken on. We're waiting for a bail hearing in the case of the United States versus Charlie Evens, and Laws is clutching a stash of printouts from the internet which she shows the prosecutor before the judge arrives.
Stalking, Threats And A Celebrity: Memphis Man Charged - 03/26/14
http://wreg.com/2014/03/26/stalking-thr
(Memphis) Police slapped handcuffs on a man accused of harassing an ex-girlfriend for weeks, causing her to fear for her life. It’s a tangled web that involves stalking, threats, and a celebrity. Threatening text messages saying things like “I see you,” “Only God can save you now,” and “Get right with God before it’s your time to go,” fill Alaaeddin Diab’s ex-girlfriend’s phone. Police say she dumped Diab weeks ago when she found out he was married, but the split didn’t stop Diab from hounding his former flame.
‘Text spree’ threats sends Longview man to prison - 03/25/14
http://tdn.com/news/local/text-spree-th
A Longview man who threatened to kill his child’s mother and their child during a “text spree” will spend the next year in prison. Joshua Peter McCoy, 38, was sentenced Monday on charges of second-degree extortion and four counts of cyberstalking (threats to kill). He pleaded guilty earlier this month. He also must pay $1,875 in restitution and court fees.
Cyberbullying victim puts past behind her - 03/25/14
http://www.issaquahpress.com/2014/0
The lewd images and messages scrawled across her daughter’s Facebook page in 2011 still burn bright in Issaquah resident Tara Cote’s memory. In a case that made national headlines, then 12-year-old Leslie Cote was the victim of cyberbullying, as two classmates hacked into her social media page and posted altered photos, including one with “I’m a slut” superimposed on it. Two Issaquah girls, who also used the site’s instant messaging service to act as Leslie to proposition boys for sexual acts, were charged with cyberstalking and first-degree computer trespassing.
Internet troll, 42, who trawled Facebook to find women and young girls then flashed them using FaceTime is jailed for seven years - 03/25/14
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar
An internet troll who prowled Facebook for women and young girls so he could subject them to bouts of online ‘flashing’ has been jailed for seven years. Michael Atherton, 42, contacted his victims on the social media network via video call app FaceTime, and by email using false profiles before exposing himself to them over the web.
Government backs tougher sentences on cyber-bullies and text perverts - 03/25/14
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/go
The Government today backed tougher laws that could see cyber stalkers and text perverts locked up for two years. Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said the new rules will target offenders who make victims’ lives a misery by abusing or sexually harassing them online or on mobiles.
DJ says she lost social media gigs after being cyber stalked by fiancé's ex-girlfriend - 03/24/14
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-yor
Scarlett Hauck, 26, who goes by the stage name Scarlett Etienne, says stalking by parochial schools fundraiser Angela Kovalesky, 34, made her stay away from Facebook and other social media platforms costing Hauck hundreds of thousands of dollars because she was unable to book or promote her DJ appearances.
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