US arrests 4 suspects in China espionage cases
Alexis Unkovic at 3:20 PM ET


A former Chinese-American engineer at Boeing was arrested Monday for allegedly stealing corporate trade secrets related to the Space Shuttle and other aerospace programs and turning them over to China. ****fan "Greg" Chung was indicted [PDF text] last Wednesday on charges of economic espionage, conspiracy to commit economic espionage, obstruction of justice, making false statements to FBI investigators, and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. Chung's arrest is reportedly related to the case of Chi Mak , a Chinese-American engineer convicted in 2007 of conspiring to smuggle sensitive naval intelligence data to China.

In related news Monday, federal agents also arrested three other suspects, including an official with the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) of the US Department of Defense, on separate espionage charges related to divulging classified US government documents and information to the Chinese government.

AFGHANISTAN: An Islamic group expressed surprise today at reports that RAF
spy planes in south Afghanistan have detected Taliban fighters speaking in British accents.

Nimrod surveillance aircraft flying over Helmand province recently picked up
voices lapsing from local languages into English with Midlands and Yorkshire
accents, according to reports.

Inayat Bunglawala, assistant secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said he was aware that some British Muslims travelled to
Afghanistan to fight when hostilities began in 2001.

He had heard of no cases since then, but accepted it was "not beyond the bounds of possibility", given that the conflict had "dragged on with still no end in sight".

Linguists on board the Nimrods from 51 Squadron, normally based at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, detected the British voices while listening in on Taliban radio traffic, according to The Sun.

An unnamed RAF source told the newspaper: "The missions specialists could easily jam the Taliban transmissions - but the RAF believes listening in to their plans is much more productive.

"It was quite startling to hear English being spoken with clear Bradford and West Brom accents.

"They reverted to English when they couldn't remember the Afghan Persian or
Pashto - the two local languages - for certain words."

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) would not confirm the report, but it said the Nimrods had "highly sophisticated and sensitive" reconnaissance equipment.

Mr Bunglawala said: "I do know when the initial bombing was occurring in late 2001, there was a lot of sympathy for the Afghan people, who had
endured so much.

"I am surprised if people are going now. I wasn't surprised then, but I am
surprised now.

"That's the effect of the conflict having dragged on. We were told it would
all be over in a few weeks, but the conflict has dragged on with still no
end in sight."

He urged British Muslims opposed to the war in Afghanistan to protest peacefully using the democratic means available in the UK.

He added: "I don't think it can be denied that our actions overseas have contributed to some British Muslims being radicalised.

"Our advice to youngsters is to campaign within the democratic framework here.

"Going to fight British soldiers in Afghanistan leaves them open to accusations, quite rightly, that they are betraying their own country."

The MoD said in a statement: "The Nimrod R1 operated by No 51 Squadron has a
highly sophisticated and sensitive suite of systems used for reconnaissance
and gathering electronic intelligence.

"However, due to operational security, we are unable to discuss its operational capability."

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/world/article.html?in_artic...=98358&in_page_id=64

*Amazingly intelligent and very capable people. They have mastered numerous languages and accents including English, while a certain group of people from Mexico have been in the US 20 years and can't speak a word of the kings English.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008


Federal judge allows limited probe into White House office in missing e-mails case
Joshua Pantesco at 8:10 AM ET


A federal judge on Monday issued an order permitting the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) to conduct "very limited" discovery in its case against the White House Office of Administration (OA), the government office that provides administrative services to the Executive Office of the President. CREW filed a lawsuit against the OA last May under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to force the OA to respond to CREW's FOIA request for "documents relating to the loss of email records of the Executive Office of the President from EOP-managed email systems and environments." Though the OA has responded to FOIA requests in the past, the administration argued in this case that the OA is not an agency under the meaning of FOIA and that it is not independent of the executive branch. On Monday, US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly permitted CREW to conduct "very limited" discovery on the issue of whether the OA is subject to FOIA. The parties will submit discovery plans by February 21.

The issue of missing e-mails has been an ongoing controversy throughout the Bush administration, arising first during the CIA leak investigation and again during the US Attorney firing scandal. Last Tuesday, CREW urged US Attorney General Michael Mukasey to appoint a special counsel to investigate whether the White House had violated the Federal Records Act and the Presidential Records Act in failing to preserve millions of missing White House e-mails. CREW has publicly alleged that White House officials may have deliberately lost or tampered with e-mail records to hide illegal conduct.

Monday, February 11, 2008


Federal judge sentences former Milberg Weiss partner Lerach to 2 years in prison
Alexis Unkovic at 3:20 PM ET



US District Judge John Walter of the Central District of California on Monday sentenced former Milberg Weiss [ partner William Lerach to two years in prison for his part in the firm's illegal kickback scheme . Lerach pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to obstruct justice after reaching an agreement with prosecutors in September. In January, the US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California recommended that Lerach receive two years in prison. Lerach's attorneys filed a sentencing memorandum with the court Friday requesting the imposition of a 12-month sentence to be divided between six months of incarceration followed by six months of home confinement. Lerach's attorneys also provided the court with more than 150 letters written by individuals urging leniency on Lerach's behalf. In addition to prison time, Lerach was sentenced to two years probation and 1,000 hours of community service. He must also pay a $250,000 fine. AP has more.

In October, Milberg Weiss co-founder Melvyn Weiss pleaded not guilty to federal charges of conspiracy, racketeering, obstruction of justice and making false statements. In May 2006, a federal grand jury indicted the firm and two name partners, David J. Bershad and Steven G. Schulman, on charges of conspiracy to make false statements and obstructing justice. Lerach was named as "Partner B" in the indictment . As part of the scheme, certain individuals who agreed to serve as lead plaintiffs in class action and shareholder derivative lawsuits were promised 10 percent of the attorney fees eventually gathered by Milberg Weiss. Prosecutors allege that the firm paid up to $11.3 million in illegal kickbacks since 1984. Three individuals pleaded guilty in connection with the scheme in May 2006, and Bershad pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in July.

Monday, February 11, 2008


Egypt appeals court overturns sentence for 'police torture' film reporter
Alexis Unkovic at 2:46 PM ET



An Egyptian appeals court Monday overturned the jail sentence of an Al Jazeera television reporter convicted for her role in producing a film on police torture. Howayda Taha was tried in May 2007; she was sentenced in absentia to six months in prison and fined 20,000 Egyptian pounds for her work on a film that Egyptian authorities say includes phony shots of Egyptian police torturing suspects. The appeals court upheld the fine Monday. Al Jazeera responded that the footage in question was a reenactment of actual scenes of torture by actors. Human rights groups maintain that torture is commonplace in police stations in Egypt, but Egyptian authorities have denied the allegations.

Taha was first detained by Egyptian authorities in January 2007 as she was leaving the country at the completion of filming. She was charged with "harming Egypt's national interest" after prosecutors discovered the videotapes in her baggage, but was released on bail. Taha was not present at the Egyptian court hearing Monday

Russia in Ukraine missile threat

Russian RS-18 ballistic missile in a silo in Kazakhstan (29 October 2007)
Russia has warned that a new arms race is unfolding around the world
Russia has said it may target its missiles at Ukraine if its neighbour joins Nato and accepts the deployment of the US missile defence shield.

Russian President Vladimir Putin made the comments in Moscow alongside Ukraine's President, Viktor Yushchenko.

Mr Putin has condemned US plans to include Poland and the Czech Republic in its missile defence shield.

The leaders had been meeting in urgent talks over a gas dispute and announced a deal to avoid disrupting supplies.

'Frightening'

Speaking at a news conference at the Kremlin on Tuesday, Mr Putin said he had advised Ukraine not to join Nato, but admitted he would be unable to interfere in any such move.

"Restrictions on sovereignty... have already had certain consequences, such as the stationing of bases or a positioning area for missile defence in Eastern Europe, which we believe is aimed at neutralising our nuclear missile potential," he said.

"Russia therefore faces a need to take retaliatory action."

The US wants the shield to destroy incoming ballistic missiles potentially coming from North Korea and Iran.

Current plans would see some interceptor missiles based in Poland and an associated radar built in the Czech Republic.

"It is frightening not only to say but even to think that Russia, in response to the emergence of such positioning areas on Ukrainian territory, which cannot be ruled out in theory, will target its offensive missile systems at Ukraine," he said.

"Can you imagine that for a second? That is what we are concerned about."

President Yushchenko said he realised a number of "sensitive issues" would emerge from Ukraine's attempt to join Nato, but that he hoped they could be dealt with through dialogue, openness and trust.

"One must realise that everything Ukraine is doing in this area is certainly not aimed against any third country, especially Russia," he added.

In a televised speech to the Russian State Council last week, Mr Putin had warned that a "new phase in the arms race is unfolding in the world".

He said other countries were spending far more than Russia on new weapons, but that his country would respond to the challenges of an arms race by developing hi-tech weaponry.

Nato invitation

On the gas dispute, Ukraine agreed to start repaying $1.5bn (£770m) owed to the Russian gas company, Gazprom, from Thursday. In return, Russia is reported to have agreed to freeze the price of gas exports to Ukraine at last year's level.

The dispute had raised concerns in European countries, which experienced disruption to their gas supplies as the result of a similar dispute two years ago.

Separately on Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Mr Putin had accepted an invitation to attend the forthcoming Nato summit in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, in April.

Mr Putin will no longer be Russian president in April. Elections for his successor will be held next month.

"This yet again testifies to the fact that Russia is open to dialogue on any issues," Mr Lavrov told reporters while attending the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva.

At the conference, Russia and China proposed a new treaty to ban the use of weapons in space and the use or threat of force against satellites or other craft.

Travelers to Europe may face fingerprinting


The European Commission will propose Wednesday that all foreign travelers into and out of Europe, including U.S. citizens, should be fingerprinted. If approved by the European Parliament, the measure would mean that precisely identifying information on tens of millions of citizens will be added in coming years to databases that could be shared by friendly governments around the globe.

The United States already requires that foreigners be fingerprinted and photographed before they can enter the country. So does Japan. Now top European security officials want to follow suit, with travelers being fingerprinted and some also having their facial image stored in a Europe-wide database, according to a copy of the proposal obtained by The Washington Post.

The plan is part of a vast and growing trend -- especially across the Atlantic -- to collect and share data electronically for the purposes of tracking and identifying people in the name of national security and immigration control. U.S. government computers now have access to data on financial transactions; air travel details such as name, itinerary and credit card numbers; and the names of those sending and receiving express-mail packages -- even a description of the contents.

By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press Writer
Tue Feb 12, 5:52 PM ET



COLUMBUS, Ohio - Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is counting on the almost-Super Tuesday primaries March 4 for another comeback, as she and rival Sen. Barack Obama both begin ads in Texas and Ohio, the day's biggest prizes.

ADVERTISEMENT

Barring an upset win for Clinton in the next five Democratic contests, she could well have suffered 10 straight defeats by the time Democrats begin voting March 4 in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont — the biggest single day left on the Democratic nominating calendar.

The New York senator bounced back earlier in New Hampshire after Obama defeated her in Iowa. Now she says "I am very confident" of doing much better when 370 delegates are allocated March 4.

Neither Clinton nor Obama could win enough delegates that day to clinch the nomination, but the outcome could sway increasingly crucial superdelegates — the party officials who are not bound by primary and caucus voting and may end up picking the nominee.

Clinton herself underlined the importance of Ohio in a satellite interview Tuesday with WCPO in Cincinnati: "Ohio is really going to count in determining who our Democratic nominee is going to be." She spent the day doing satellite interviews with 10 television stations in Texas, Ohio and Wisconsin before heading to an election night rally in El Paso, Texas.

Both campaigns launched TV ads Tuesday in Texas and Ohio, where voters will select 193 and 141 delegates, respectively. Between them, the two states have another 55 superdelegates.

Clinton herself underlined the importance of Ohio in a satellite interview Tuesday with WCPO in Cincinnati: "Ohio is really going to count in determining who our Democratic nominee is going to be." She spent the day doing satellite interviews with 10 television stations in Texas, Ohio and Wisconsin before heading to an election night rally in El Paso, Texas.

The Illinois senator's ad targeted one of Clinton's perceived strengths — health care.

Her ads played on one of her strengths, going up simultaneously in English and Spanish, crucial in Texas where Hispanics could supply up to half the Democratic votes. Hispanics have heavily favored Clinton over Obama in earlier contests. He planned Spanish ads later in the week.

Saturating the huge Texas media markets could cost each of them $1 million a week, but there were other places to spend money as the neck-and-neck Democratic contenders battle over every delegate. With three weeks to the voting, both camps also are scrambling to build organizations in all four states.

"It won't be as strong of a ground game as they had in Iowa because they had months and months and months" to prepare for the campaign's first contest, said Caleb Faux, executive director of Ohio's Hamilton County Democratic Party.

The campaigns used tickets to punk-rock concerts, deep-fried foods and even drinks called Hillaritas to lure volunteers who can build databases, canvass and staff phone banks.

"The directive we've gotten is to do everything you can locally to harness the energy," said Carter Stewart, an Obama volunteer who has coordinated Ohio friends to wave signs at events.

Last Friday, the Clinton campaign, which has done better among lower-paid workers, dispatched Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland to rally support in the economically depressed Rust Belt city of Youngstown. "It would be very difficult for her to proceed to eventual victory without winning Ohio," Strickland said Monday.

Next Friday, Obama's camp plans to bring 2,000 new volunteers to Cleveland, home to a significant batch of the black voters who account for one in eight registered Ohio Democrats. Bidding to be the first black president, Obama has overwhelmingly won black votes in earlier contests.

At Ohio's Bowling Green State University, Obama volunteers combined a punk-rock concert with a campaign sign-up.

In Rhode Island, where voters will allocate 21 delegates, more than 250 Obama volunteers already met at a Dollar General store to go door-to-door. The campaign was making use of Craig Robinson, Michelle Obama's brother and the coach of Brown University men's basketball team.

In Vermont, where voters will decide on 15 delegates, former state Rep. Mary Sullivan, an Obama supporter, has been looking for space to house an expected influx of workers as people in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and New York call to volunteer. Billi Gosh, a Vermont super delegate who supports Clinton, expressed frustration that her campaign has relied entirely on volunteers in Vermont and has yet to send in a staff worker. "We really need a staffer, and we need Bill or Hillary Clinton to come here," she said.

In Dallas, potential Clinton supporters piled into wood-paneled booths at Metro Grill to watch Super Tuesday returns and snack on fried red onion strings.

Clinton herself scheduled personal appearances Tuesday and Wednesday in El Paso, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and McAllen, all predominantly Latino cities where her husband, the former president, is so popular his portrait hangs in many Mexican restaurants.

Obama is relatively new to Texans but held two well-attended rallies in the past year in Austin, the state's most liberal city. He's also been lining up notable supporters in Houston and Dallas. Obama has time to catch up, said Lydia Camarillo, vice president of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project in San Antonio. "The Hispanic vote is Hillary's right now. But he's made some gains."

Some Latino voters could be swayed by Obama's support from the Kennedy family, said political science professor Jerry Polinard at the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg. But Polinard added, "He's going to have difficulty cracking her stranglehold on the Latino vote."

In Ohio, bus loads of activists and their friends and neighbors rolled into Columbus' Harrison Park Center to hear how they could help Obama in Ohio. More than 500 came; the room inside was set up with 120 chairs.

"The good news, if you're running the Obama campaign, is there's a lot of energy there and people are ready to work," said Ed Helvey, chairman of Ohio's Delaware County Democratic Party who visited the meeting.

"The bad news? They had their first real big meeting a month out."

___

Cops Dump Man Out of Wheelchair

AP
Posted: 2008-02-13 09:22:39
Filed Under: Crime News, Law News, Nation News
TAMPA, Fla. (Feb. 13)

SEE SHOCKING VIDEOhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3uD8znXETg


- Four Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies have been suspended after purposely tipping a quadriplegic man out of his wheelchair at a jail, authorities said Tuesday.

Orient Road Jail surveillance footage from Jan. 29 shows veteran deputy Charlette Marshall-Jones, 44, dumping Brian Sterner out of his wheelchair and searching him on the floor after he was brought in on a warrant after a traffic violation.



Sterner said when he was taken into a booking room and told to stand up, Jones grew agitated when he told her that he could not.

"She was irked that I wasn't complying to what she was telling me to do," he told The Tampa Tribune. "It didn't register with her that she was asking me to do something I can't do."

Jones has been suspended without pay, and Sgt. Gary Hinson, 51, Cpl. Steven ****ey, 45 and Cpl. Decondra Williams, 36 have also been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation, sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.


Tell Us

"The actions are indefensible at every level," Chief Deputy Jose Docobo said. "Based on what I saw, anything short of dismissal would be inappropriate."

He said the officers' actions were an aberration.

A woman who answered Jones' telephone said Jones was unavailable. A message left at a telephone number listed for a Steven ****ey in Tampa was not immediately returned Tuesday night. Listings for Hinson and Williams could not be located.

"That none of the supervisors acted upon what they saw is of great concern," Docobo said. "This is not the norm at the sheriff's office."

Sterner was arrested at his Riverview home and taken to the jail Jan. 29 on a charge of fleeing and attempting to elude a police officer, according to records. He posted $2,000 bond and was released Feb 3.

A warrant for Sterner's arrest was issued after an Oct. 25 incident, in which Tampa police stopped him in Ybor City. He was stopped while driving a Mini Cooper that had been fitted with hand pedals and was cited for blocking an intersection.

"My client was stopped that night and was given a traffic citation, so how could he be fleeing and eluding?" Sterner's lawyer John Trevena said. "We're very skeptical about the basis for the charge itself."

Trevena said he hopes authorities investigate the deputies for criminal charges. He said he was "mortified" when he watched the footage.

"I couldn't believe that a detention deputy would be so callous toward an individual, whether they were disabled or not," he said.

On Sterner's MySpace page, the 32-year-old cites interests that include wheelchair rugby, yoga, art shows and documentaries.



This is the most vile conduct from anybody let alone an enforcement officer. So Sad.. There is no excuse and no honor if that local government is going to condone or justify this type of behavior.

I heard and saw that on the news last night 4now. How terrible and sad.

They said on the news that the officers thought he was joking about not being able to stand up, so they tipped him out on the floor.

It was also reported that the guy ended up with 2 broken ribs from that fall.

You cannot know how mad i am about that. Firing is not good enough. i think charges should be filed against her! Animal

I totally agree with you. Hopefully they might be able to press civil charges?

Federal lawsuit challenges New York City campaign finance rules
Brett Murphy at 9:43 AM ET



Real estate businesses have filed a lawsuit against the New York City Campaign Finance Board claiming that a new law that greatly restricts the amount that city businesses can donate to city campaigns violates the US Constitution. The suit, filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on Monday, alleges that the new campaign finance rules discriminate against minorities, who rely on financial backing from businesses for campaigns, and runs counter to the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech. The city argues that the law was formulated to help those without connections to wealthy business lobbyists by leveling the playing field.

The new rules, which took effect this month, reduce the amount that businesses can contribute from $4,950 to $400 in mayoral campaigns and from $2,950 to $250 in City Council campaigns.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008


US Senate passes surveillance bill with telecom immunity grant
Brett Murphy at 7:31 AM ET



The US Senate on Tuesday voted 68-29 [roll call] in favor of the FISA Amendments Act , legislation intended to replace the temporary Protect America Act in modernizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The Protect America Act is currently set to expire February 15. The bill passed by the Senate Tuesday would provide immunity for telecommunications companies from lawsuits related to their participation in the NSA warrantless surveillance program . The House version ] of the legislation, approved in November , did not include the provisions on immunity, and House Republicans are now pressing for a vote on the Senate bill to side-step potentially difficult negotiations to reconcile differences between the versions. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) sent a letter to White House Counsel Fred Fielding Tuesday, maintaining his position against the granting of retroactive immunity to telecom companies. Conyers said that there was no reason for such a broad grant of amnesty.

Congress has mulled the controversial issue of telecom immunity while working on long-term legislation to "modernize" the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) ; the Bush administration has indicated it will veto any legislation passed without a telecom liability protection. On Tuesday, the Senate approved by voice vote an increase in the power of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to monitor the government's eavesdropping on American citizens. Current law allows the US government to eavesdrop inside of the US without court approval as long as one end of a conversation is reasonably perceived to have been outside of the US; the amendment will extend the court order requirement to Americans located overseas.

Guatemala legislature passes bill to restore death penalty
Leslie Schulman at 7:22 AM ET


The Guatemalan Congress voted to restore the death penalty Tuesday, passing a bill that ends a six-year moratorium on executions imposed by the Constitutional Court in 2002. Under the new law, Guatemalan President Alvaro Colom will have to decide whether to grant clemency to the 24 inmates currently on death row or to order their executions to take place. Each prison sentence would be commuted to 50 years, which is the maximum sentence permitted under Guatemalan law. Colom, sworn into office last mont, is an opponent of the death penalty and will have 30 days to grant clemency individually to each inmate.

In 2002, former President Alfonso Portillo directed the Constitutional Court to set the capital punishment moratorium in Guatemala, concluding that a 1892 law permitting commutation was unclear as to which part of the government had jurisdiction to grant clemency. The Constitutional Court granted the moratorium, stating that it was Congress' job to amend the law.