murder

May 10 2013

Faces 51 years to life

COMPTON, Calif. — A teenage girl was convicted today of two counts of first-degree murder for her role in the killings of her mother and stepfather in the family’s Compton mobile home.

Jurors deliberated for about four hours before reaching a verdict in the trial of Cynthia Alvarez, 16.

May 7 2013

Blames boyfriend for the killings

COMPTON, Calif. — A 16-year-old girl charged with murdering her mother and stepfather tearfully told a Compton jury today that she did not take part in the killings and blamed her boyfriend for them.

Cynthia Alvarez testified that she was outside her family’s Compton mobile home when she heard her mother shout her name and later heard her boyfriend, Giovanni Gallardo, call for her, the Los Angeles Times reported.

When she went back inside the home, she found her mother dead, she testified, according to The Times.

May 3 2013

Shooting spree at United States Fire Protection

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — A grand jury indictment unsealed today charges a man with murdering two women and one man and injuring two other people during a shooting spree last October at a business and a home in Downey.

Jade Douglas Harris, 30, pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles Superior Court to 10 felony counts, including three counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder, four counts of kidnapping for carjacking and one count of being a felon with a firearm.

Apr 16 2013

79-year-old aunt

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — A 60-year-old woman was ordered today to stand trial for the shooting death of her 79-year-old aunt, who was the mother of a Los Angeles Police Department training officer.

Barbara Jean Davenport is charged with murder and robbery in connection with the June 2, 2012, slaying of Cleo Hughes.

The murder charge includes the special circumstance allegation that Hughes was killed during a robbery or attempted robbery.

Harry C. Alford  |   OW Guest Contributor
Apr 11 2013

Beyond the Rhetoric

This is the beginning of a series of articles about street gangs in our nation. Gone are the days back in the 1960s and before when gangs were social organizations and were geographically linked. Beginning in the 1970s, these street gangs evolved into criminal organizations. They are the generators of murder, drugs, robbery, etc. No longer are they cool or cute. They are pure savages craving fast money and a fast lifestyle. This week let’s take a look at Detroit.

One of the earliest gangs was the Errol Flynns. They took the name from the Caucasian movie star.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.