Results tagged “lawenforcement”

Good morning, Washington. Think good thoughts for Tian Tian, the National Zoo's male giant panda and the biological father of Tai Shan/Butterstick. Tian Tian underwent eye surgery yesterday to remove inflamed tissue from one of his third eyelids. He's expected to make a full recovery, but in the meantime he'll have to live with the shame of being the one to expose this whole pandas having third eyelids monstrosity. DCist has always held a firm editorial stand that pandas are adorable, but after learning this fact we may have to convene our board to reconsider.

Former D.C. Police Chief Charles Ramsey has been named police commissioner of Philadelphia by Mayor-elect Michael Nutter, reports the Associated Press. Ramsey came to D.C. in 1998 after serving for 31 years in his hometown of Chicago, and became Washington's longest-serving police chief in more than three decades, serving as top cop in the District until the end of 2006, when he was replaced by incoming Mayor Adrian Fenty. Since we've had a little bit...

The Examiner reports on a new DMV program that would install SmarTrip chips into every new D.C. driver's license and identification card beginning in October, 2008. The program is a combined effort by the agency and WMATA, the latter of which has made no secret of its intention to make universal conversion to SmarTrip a priority. Recently Metro General Manager John Catoe made SmarTrip cards available for sale at more Giant Food stores and announced...

The Associated Press is reporting that a dark cherry red Peterbilt tanker truck hauling gasoline was stolen at gunpoint this morning in Baltimore. ABC News follows up with word that police believe it to be a straight-up robbery and not connected to terrorism in any way, but that the Joint Terrorism Task Forces from Washington and Baltimore are assisting local Police in the investigation as a precaution. The suspect was last seen driving the truck...

Written by DCist Contributor Fredo Alvarez In a 60-39 cloture vote, the U.S. Senate barely passed the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (S 1105) today as an amendment to the FY 2008 Defense Authorization Bill (HR 1585). The measure would expand protection against hate crimes to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and would enable the Federal government to provide assistance in the investigation or prosecution of...

>> Mayor Fenty has named Shannon Lee Hader, an epidemiologist and public health physician who has directed the U.S. AIDS program in Zimbabwe, to head the District's HIV/AIDS Administration. [WaPo] >> D.C. Law enforcement officials are trying to seize control of a house at 1923 Rhode Island Avenue NE, a long-time location for illicit activity. [WJLA] >> A small plane crash landed in the Hollywood area of St. Mary's County. Two of three passengers...

Few things are less reassuring about the state of crime and degree of safety we have in this town than police officers who can't be bothered to learn basic law. Blogger Amber at Prettier than Napoleon reports a story we sincerely hope is not true. Her friend, she says, was home when two men attempted to break into her house. Apparently her presence made them rethink their efforts, but they remained nearby in an alley...

From the tallest skyscraper in the City of Brotherly Love to Canadian tourism copywriting brilliance, here's what you should know from our -ist cities: This week, Phillyist took a gleeful listen to the White Stripes' exciting new release, watched in awe as their new tallest skyscraper was finally completed, found a cheaper way to get to Gothamist, invented a tasty new dessert, and brought back their Craigslist Round-Up feature with a bang. Bostonist watches...

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti...

Back in January we found ourselves a bit confused by a group of Virginian gun owners who were protesting New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's presence in D.C. Bloomberg was heading up a meeting of mayors working to fight illegal firearms, which seemed to us like a relatively benign cause. Nobody wants crooks to have guns, right? But after reading today and yesterday's Post stories about Bloomberg's latest anti-gun efforts, we can kind of understand...

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine has declared a state of emergency in the Commonwealth after 32 people, mostly students, were killed today in two shootings at Virginia Tech University. Dozens are still hospitalized with injuries ranging from minor to critical. The tragedy is being called the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. Officials say the assailant, described as an Asian man in his 20s, took his own life after the second attack. The first shooting happened...

Whether you are legitimately concerned about the future of transportation development in Virginia or simply sick of the endless debate clogging column inches in your local paper, the end is finally in sight. When the General Assembly finally compromised on a transportation funding package earlier this month, Governor Tim Kaine was not particularly pleased with what he saw. The Governor had promised to exercise his option to amend the bill and send it back to...

Remember the days of the Cold War, when Soviet and American diplomats would slyly meet in D.C. restaurants to share some moo shu in between bringing the world to the edge of nuclear annihilation? It seems the days of Spy vs. Spy aren't as far in the past as we'd like to think. As you've no doubt heard, on March 1 Paul Joyal, an expert on Russian intelligence, was shot outside his Adelphi, Maryland home,...

If Illinois gets the slogan "Land of Lincoln," D.C. deserves "Land of Too Many Museums." To be fair, it's fun to spend a day catching up on exhibits at one of the many Smithsonians. It's free and you might learn something -- albeit sometimes a little dated. But what about those other museums? Well, if you're yearning for something slightly more informative and less terrifying than the Drug Enforcement Administration Museum and Visitors Center in...

On this, the eighth day of the Fenty administration, the Examiner poses an interesting question about the promised increase in beat-walking cops. The strategy is a hallmark of new Police Chief Cathy Lanier's community policing plan for a safer city. Officials haven't said where they'll be targeting, but the paper lists ten likely areas of increased presence, including Chinatown, Adams Morgan, and Takoma Park. The law enforcement theory behind assigned beats says they're most effective...

Earlier this week we reported on some of the twists and turns in the murder investigation of 32-year-old lawyer Robert Wone in a Swann Street rowhouse in early August. A killing that was originally blamed on an intruder suddenly became more complicated late last week, when police announced that the room in which Wone's body had been found had been cleaned before police could arrive at the scene. Commenters on our post -- some who...

While D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams pushes to increase the size of the police force by some 1,300 officers, one resident is asking that more be done with the ones currently on the job. Brendan Bush, a two-year District resident, has kicked off an online petition to demand that more police patrol neighborhoods on foot, instead of driving around them as has been the norm. He writes: Putting cops on foot instead of in their...

With over 180 different designs, it's no secret that Virginia loves it some personalized license plates. There are plates supporting veterans, cancer research, bowling, and even a proposal for a plate supporting "traditional marriage" (which has since been withdrawn). Starting this weekend, if you are a hybrid owner who relies on your ability to drive in Northern Virginia HOV lanes, you will need to get your own personalized "Clean Special Fuel" tags. The bright blue...

In a media-heavy city like Washington, one might pay heed to the Chicago Tribune's story from yesterday afternoon announcing that a senior law enforcement official told ABC News, "It's time for you to get some new cell phones, quick," in reference to the government's tracking of calls with whistleblowers and other confidential sources. Makes you wish that Qwest expanded their service to the news media, if not the entire country, right? Williams Endorses Cropp:...

Redskins second-year safety Sean Taylor may have gotten off with a slap on the wrist for his last on-field incident – spitting in the face of Tampa running back Michael Pittman – but in Taylor’s off-field travails, things may have gotten a good deal worse for the troubled athlete. Last year, Taylor, believing himself to have identified the individuals responsible for the theft of a pair of all-terrain vehicles, took complete leave of his...

If you don't like sweets and sparkling wine, you're a Communist. Well, you could be a diabetic-slash-recovering alcoholic, which is frankly the only understandable alternative explanation for not liking sweets and sparkling wine. For everyone else, Equinox's Todd and Ellen Gray are putting on their fourth annual Sugar and Champagne Affair on Wednesday night (Jan. 25) at the Ritz-Carlton at 22nd and M Streets NW. Benefiting the Washington Humane Society's Humane Law Enforcement Team (which,...

Yesterday we explored the contentious issue of double-parking around area churches on Sundays. Many commenters echoed a basic question we asked: Since double-parking is against the law, why don't police officers crack down on it, churchgoer or otherwise? Today the Washington Times has provided us with an answer. Straight from the mouth of Mary Myers, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Works, which is charged with enforcing District parking regulations: I think overall there...

Last Saturday, Washington National Opera opened its new production of George Gershwin's classic American opera Porgy and Bess (1935), and this DCist was happy to be in the Kennedy Center Opera House for the performance Wednesday night. We know that many DCists wonder why we bother to cover things like opera and classical music, which seem too stuffy and expensive for many people. However, this opera especially is part of our heritage as Americans, and...

Safety tool or unwarranted invasion of privacy? Necessary law enforcement device or shameless moneymaking scheme? These may be some of the questions that city councilmembers ask today in a hearing dedicated to the issue of cameras in law enforcement. The Council's Committee on Public Works and the Environment, chaired by Carol Schwartz (R-At Large), is debating legislation introduced by Schwartz, Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), and Sharon Ambrose (D-Ward 6) concerning the District's six-year old program...

Remember a few years back, when then Attorney General John Ashcroft introduced the TIPS program? You know, the nationwide law enforcement initiative technically known as the Terrorist Information and Prevention System, whose stated purpose was to recruit "American workers who, in the daily course of their work, are in a unique position to see potentially unusual or suspicious activity in public places." Remember the willies some of us may have gotten at the prospects of...

Good morning Washington. Have you ever wondered why the WB advertises its show "Gilmore Girls" on bus shelters? Has anyone actually watched the show? (Apparently it takes place in Connecticut.) Well, A Nameless Yeast snapped this photo of the reflection of the WB ad in an unknown location, somewhere in the city we assume. So Where Would the Plane Have Come Down? One question we had sitting in the back of our mind during...

Yes, we're already hungry for lunch. This photo of some Shanghai noodle soup and sushi, snapped by The Washington Post's Keith Jenkins aka Burnt Pixel, was posted in DCist Photos via Flickr. The weather today? Highs in the low 70s with clouds, according to Capital Weather. Now on to this morning's news ... Tourists Trapped in Washington Monument: The Post reports that 25 people got stuck in the Washington Monument's elevator yesterday, about 470...

The Ides of March are upon us, and we have a possible bioterror attack on our hands. More on that in just a second. First, we turn to the corner of North Capitol and F streets. Last week, we told you about how St. Patrick's Day port-a-johns outside the Dubliner signaled the first sign of spring. Well, the drinking tent went up this past weekend, as you can see from this DCist photo we...

This past week, the District was filled with worried faces. The tension and uncertainty was palpable. News from the typical "official" sources had been filled all week with rumor and conjecture and the not knowing was starting to take its toll on a nervous city. By the time DCist got to the Wilson Building, you could see the beginnings of panic starting to seep into the voices of the gathered crowd. Above, on a ledge,...

A tip from a neighbor has placed Arlington resident Nancy Swift under the eye of the federal government. The school teacher found her home and work visited by groups of federal agents last summer, apparently after a neighbor called authorities to report a tenant of her home, a young Middle Eastern resident, had friends over to visit. The same neighbor also calls authorities when her grass is too long. Now Swift and her former housemate...