Good morning, D.C. Among the many, many crime stories to choose from over the weekend, this one seems to be drawing the most interest on neighborhood email lists. Nearly three dozen people were arrested late Friday night in a raid in the Shaw neighborhood for being in possession of about 30 pounds of khat. Khat is a green shrub native to East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula that is chewed, or sometimes drunk as a tea, to produce euphoric effects thanks to an active drug similar to mild amphetamines. It is indeed illegal to use Khat in the United States, though its legal use is quite common in East Africa and parts of Europe, including the United Kingdom. It’s telling, for instance, that the police raided a location on 7th Street where East African immigrants who live in the neighborhood gather to play cards and drink coffee.
Deadly Weekend: At least eight people (and possibly nine) are dead and as many were wounded in one of the District’s most violent weekends on record. Once again, most of the violence took place in the 5th Police District in Northeast, despite increased patrols in the area by the MPD. The city’s death toll now exceeds that of 2007 for the first time this year, standing at at least 73.
Don’t Pay the Fare in an Non-metered Taxicab: Sunday was the first day that the District had promised to shell out $1,000 fines for any city taxicabs attempting to operate without a time and distance meter. Did you notice a big difference yesterday? The Examiner has the money quote from Taxicab Commission Chairman Leon Swain: “… if you get into a cab and you find out that cab doesn’t have a meter, as far as I’m concerned you don’t have to pay the fare. That’s not a D.C. taxicab,” Swain told the paper. So all of a sudden we’re actually hoping to stumble on a zone cab this week. So confused!
Briefly Noted: Sen. Ted Kennedy undergoing surgery at Duke this morning … Woman rescued from underneath Metro train at Smithsonian … Man shot and killed by police after a domestic dispute in Northeast … Weekend storm left thousands without power in outer suburbs.
Photo by spiggycat
