The Sweet Smell Of Victory!!
The moral of the story is, CHEATERS NEVER WIN!! Despite being screwed out of a goal that EVERYONE clearly saw and knew was a goal, Brazil really didn't need it in the end. They won!!
CONGRATULATIONS BRAZIL!!!!!
From war to peace and politics to gossip, if we have an opinion on something we'll share it here.
Dozens of National Guard Soldiers Sick After Iraq 2003 Deploy, Toxic Chemical Eyed
Larry Roberta's every breath is a painful reminder of his time in Iraq. He can't walk a block without gasping for air. His chest hurts, his migraines sometimes persist for days and he needs pills to help him sleep.
James Gentry came home with rashes, ear troubles and a shortness of breath. Later, things got much worse: He developed lung cancer, which spread to his spine, ribs and one of his thighs; he must often use a cane, and no longer rides his beloved Harley.
David Moore's postwar life turned into a harrowing medical mystery: nosebleeds and labored breathing that made it impossible to work, much less speak. His desperate search for answers ended last year when he died of lung disease at age 42.
What these three men — one sick, one dying, one dead — had in common is they were National Guard soldiers on the same stretch of wind-swept desert in Iraq during the early months of the war in 2003.
These soldiers and hundreds of other Guard members from Indiana, Oregon and West Virginia were protecting workers hired by a subsidiary of the giant contractor, KBR Inc., to rebuild an Iraqi water treatment plant. The area, as it turned out, was contaminated with hexavalent chromium, a potent, sometimes deadly chemical linked to cancer and other devastating diseases.
No one disputes that. But that's where agreement ends.
Among the issues now rippling from the courthouse to Capitol Hill are whether the chemical made people sick, when KBR knew it was there and how the company responded. But the debate is more than about this one case; it has raised broader questions about private contractors and health risks in war zones.
Questions, says Sen. Evan Bayh, who plans to hold hearings on the issues, such as these:
"How should we treat exposure to potentially hazardous chemicals as a threat to our soldiers? How seriously should that threat be taken? What is the role of private contractors? What about the potential conflict between their profit motives and taking all steps necessary to protect our soldiers?
"This case," says the Indiana Democrat, "has brought to light the need for systemic reform."
For now, dozens of National Guard veterans have sued KBR and two subsidiaries, accusing them of minimizing and concealing the chemical's dangers, then downplaying nosebleeds and breathing problems as nothing more than sand allergies or a reaction to desert air.
KBR denies any wrongdoing. In a statement, the company said it actually found the chemical at the Qarmat Ali plant, restricted access, cleaned it up and "did not knowingly harm troops."
Ten civilians hired by a KBR subsidiary made similar claims in an arbitration resolved privately in June. (The workers' contract prevented them from filing suit.)
This isn't the first claim that toxins have harmed soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan; there have been allegations involving lead, depleted uranium and sarin gas.
This also isn't the first challenge to KBR, whose billions of dollars of war-related contracts have been the subject of congressional scrutiny and numerous legal claims.
Among them are lawsuits recently filed against KBR and Halliburton Co. — KBR's parent company until 2007 — that assert open-air pits used to burn refuse in Iraq and Afghanistan caused respiratory illnesses, tumors and death. (KBR says it is reviewing the charges. Halliburton maintains it was improperly named and expects to be dismissed from the case.)
Earlier this year, several members of Congress asked Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki to investigate potential burn pit hazards. He replied that his agency is conducting a health study of 30,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans and noted the VA "has learned important lessons from previous military conflicts" as it deals with environmental exposure questions.
Some veterans advocates say the military is more attuned to health risks than it was in Vietnam and the Gulf War, but still falls short.
"I'm a realist — things are going to get burned, things are going to be blown up," says Tom Tarantino, an Iraqi veteran and policy associate at the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. "But I think the DOD (Department of Defense) could do a better job at tracking what people are exposed to. If there's a big pit outside your base, you need to know what's going on and do tests ... so if people start getting sick, they won't spend years trying to figure out what's wrong with them."
This isn't a natural fit, he concedes, since the Defense Department "is a war-fighting agency, not an environmental protection agency. But I think there's a lack of information out there."
This case stems from the chaotic start of the war in 2003 when a KBR subsidiary was hired to restart the plant, which had been looted of equipment, wiring, even metal roofing and siding. The Iraqis had used hexavalent chromium to prevent pipe corrosion at the plant, which produced industrial water used in oil production.
It's the same chemical linked to poisonings in California in a case made famous in the movie "Erin Brockovich."
Hexavalent chromium — a toxic component of sodium dichromate — can cause severe liver and kidney damage and studies have linked it to leukemia as well as bone, stomach, brain and other cancers, according to an expert who provided a deposition for the civilian workers.
The chemical "is one of the most potent carcinogens know to man" and it can "enter every cell of the body and potentially produce widespread injury to every major organ in the body," said Max Costa, chairman of New York University's Department of Environmental Medicine.
KBR, however, says studies show only that industrial workers exposed to the chemical for more than two years have an increased risk of cancer — and in this case, soldiers were at the plant just days or months.
The company also notes air quality studies concluded the Indiana Guard soldiers were not exposed to high levels of hexavalent chromium. But Costa says those tests were done when the wind was not blowing.
Both soldiers and former workers say there were days when strong gusts kicked up ripped-open bags of the chemical, creating a yellow-orange haze that coated everything from their hair to their boots.
"I was spitting blood and I was not the only one doing that," recalls Danny Langford, who worked for the KBR subsidiary. "The wind was blowing 30, 40 miles an hour. You could just hardly see where you were going. I pulled my shirt over my nose and there would be blood on it. I also saw the soldiers. They had blood splotches on their masks."
Larry Roberta, a 44-year-old former Oregon National Guard member, remembers a strange metallic taste and dust everywhere. He sat on a bag of the chemical, unaware it was dangerous.
"This orange crud blew up in your face, your eyes and on our food," he says. "I tried to wash my chicken patty off with my canteen. I started to get sick to my stomach right away."
Roberta had coughing spells and agonizing chest pains, he says, that "went all the way through my back. Whenever I breathed, the pain got more sharp. ... Every day I went there, I had something weird going on."
Russell Kimberling, a former Indiana National Guard captain, had severe sinus troubles that forced his evacuation to Germany. After returning, he became alarmed one August day in 2003 while escorting some officials to the plant in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.
"I jumped out of the truck and I turned around and they (KBR staff) had full chemical gear on," he says. "I looked at some of my soldiers and said, 'This can't be very good.'"
"They could have told us to put chemical suits on," Kimberling adds. "There are so many things that could have been done."
Ed Blacke, hired as plant health, safety and environmental coordinator, says he became worried after workers started having breathing problems and a former colleague sent him an internal KBR memo outlining the chemical's dangers. Blacke says when he complained at a meeting, he was labeled a troublemaker and resigned under pressure.
"Normally when you take over a job, you have a briefing — this is what's out there, here's what you need for protective equipment," says Blacke, who testified at a Senate Democratic Policy Committee hearing last year. "There was nothing, nothing at all."
Blacke and Langford were among those whose civil claims were resolved in arbitration.
Kimberling is among nearly 50 Guard veterans — most from Indiana, a smaller number from Oregon and West Virginia — who've sued.
Mike Doyle, the Houston lawyer representing the soldiers and civilians, maintains KBR knew as early as May 2003 the chemical was there, but didn't close the site until that September.
"Once they (KBR) found out about it, they didn't tell anybody and they did everything to conceal it," he contends. "You have (KBR) managers in Houston, in Kuwait City who knew about this. Their staff was getting reports and soldiers and civilians who were in the field were told, 'No big deal. There's nothing to worry about.'"
The lawsuit cites minutes of an August 2003 KBR meeting that mentions "serious health problems at the water treatment plant" and notes "almost 60 percent of the people now exhibit the symptoms."
In a recent wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press, KBR chairman William P. Utt suggested the company be given some latitude with its military contracts.
"We think there ought to be some consideration given in many of these claims to the same protections the government has from these suits that exist," he said.
He also said KBR has been unfairly targeted in war zones. "People think there's an opportunity here in Iraq, let's paint it on KBR, then we'll worry about making the facts precise or correct later," Utt said.
As for the water plant, KBR says once it learned of the chemical, it took precautions to protect workers, notified the Army Corps of Engineers and led the cleanup. It says the Corps had previously deemed the area safe.
KBR also points to Army tests of 137 Indiana Guard soldiers that showed no medical problems that could be linked to exposure, as well as a military board review that found it unlikely anyone would suffer long-term medical consequences.
But Bayh and Doyle say those tests were done too late to be valid and note that soil tests were taken after the contaminated area was covered with asphalt and gravel.
Doyle also disagrees with KBR's contention that workers weren't there long enough — weeks or months — to have elevated cancer risks.
It can take a long time for symptoms of illness to surface — five to 10 years or more for cancer. But some of those who say they were exposed are already ill.
Gentry, a retired lieutenant colonel who commanded the Indiana Guard unit, is in the late stages of lung cancer, which has spread to other parts of his body, according to his friend, Christopher Lee.
Gentry hasn't sued, but in a December 2008 deposition he recalled complaining to his superiors after his soldiers were told by KBR workers the orangish sand was a cancer-causing chemical. He said it was "very disappointing" that KBR managers didn't share that information.
"I'm dying because of it," he said.
While acknowledging he wasn't 100 percent certain that's why he has cancer, Gentry — who served a second tour in Iraq — said his doctor "believes the most probable cause was my exposure to this chemical."
KBR's actions, he said, had put "my men at risk that is unnecessary."
The Indiana, West Virginia and Oregon National Guards have sent hundreds of letters to soldiers notifying them of possible contamination and urging them to seek medical attention. The Oregon Guard also set up a Facebook page and reports about 15 soldiers have reported medical symptoms.
Bayh has introduced a bill calling for a special medical registry that would require the Department of Defense to notify all military members of exposure to potential toxins — and provide comprehensive medical care. (It would be limited to those serving after Sept. 11, 2001.)
A similar notification measure was approved Thursday in the U.S. House, an amendment to the defense authorization bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader, an Oregon lawmaker.
All these measures come too late for 1st Sgt. David Moore, who served with Gentry.
He thought his persistent cough in Iraq would stop when he returned home. Instead, breathing became difficult; he eventually needed a chair in the shower because he could no longer stand, says his brother, Steve. Moore had nosebleeds, too, and boil-like rashes behind his ears and on his back, arms and legs. He went from doctor to doctor. "None of them could ever figure out what it was," his brother says.
By late 2007, the one-time construction worker — who had been "strong as an ox," and ran 3 1/2 miles every other day — couldn't even venture outside, Steve Moore says. But he didn't give up.
"He was always upbeat," his brother says. "He said, 'They'll figure it out, they'll figure it out.' He thought that until the last time I talked to him. You could see the fear in his eyes. They had him on 100 percent oxygen and he still couldn't breathe. He requested to be put on a ventilator so they could figure it out."
Moore died in February 2008. The cause was lung disease. His death was ruled service-related. His brother believes it was hexavalent chromium.
Larry Roberta, the former Oregon Guardsman who needed stomach surgery after his return, still has physical and emotional problems: Post traumatic stress. Mood swings. Nose polyps. Chest pains. Migraines that can keep him bedridden for days.
He takes two inhalers — he can't walk a block without them — and high blood pressure medicine every day and testosterone shots every two weeks.
"I have 100 percent disability," he says. "I've got a long laundry list of things that happened to me while I was there. If you add it all up, I'd be almost 200 percent disabled."
Roberta recently testified before Oregon lawmakers, urging them to set aside money for Guard members who develop cancer from exposure to the chemical.
His wife, Michelle, says her husband's illness has dramatically changed his outlook.
"He has no ambitions for life anymore," she says. "At his age, that makes me very sad. I worry about him every day."
Kimberling, the former Indiana Guardsman, struggles as well.
The father of two young children — he's a pharmaceutical salesman in Louisville, Ky. — says he hasn't been able to get life insurance because his possible exposure is mentioned on his medical records.
Sometimes, he says, it's hard to sort out his real aches from his fears.
"I feel like I'm a 38-year-old in a 60-year-old's body," he says. "There are a lot of things that seem to be going south a lot quicker than they should. Sinus problems ... pain in my joints that I've never felt before.
"I'm not sure if it's the anxiety of finding out about it or not. I kind of know and feel it's just a matter of time before it catches up with me."
"KBR, however, says studies show only that industrial workers exposed to the chemical for more than two years have an increased risk of cancer — and in this case, soldiers were at the plant just days or months."
SC Gov. Sanford admits affair after going AWOL
COLUMBIA, S.C. – After going AWOL for seven days, Gov. Mark Sanford admitted Wednesday that he had secretly flown to Argentina to visit a woman with whom he was having an affair. Wiping away tears, he apologized to his wife and four sons and said he will resign as head of the Republican Governors Association.
"I've been unfaithful to my wife," he said in a bombshell news conference in which the 49-year-old governor ruminated aloud with remarkable frankness on God's law, moral absolutes and following one's heart. He said he spent the last five days "crying in Argentina."
Sanford, who in recent months had been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2012, ignored questions about whether he would step down as governor.
At least one state lawmaker called for his resignation. As a congressman, Sanford voted in favor of three of four articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton, citing the need for "moral legitimacy."
The affair is now over, Sanford said, describing the woman who lives in Argentina as a "dear, dear friend" that he's known for about eight years and been romantically involved with for about a year. He said he's seen her three times since the affair began, and wife found out about it five months ago.
"What I did was wrong. Period," he said. His family did not attend the news conference, and his wife Jenny Sanford said she asked the governor to leave and stop speaking to her two weeks ago. The governor says he wants to reconcile, and his wife's statement said her husband has earned a chance to resurrect their marriage.
"This trial separation was agreed to with the goal of ultimately strengthening our marriage," she said.
Sanford denied instructing his staff to cover up his affair, but acknowledged that he told them he thought he would be hiking on the Appalachian Trail and never corrected that impression after leaving for South America.
"I let them down by creating a fiction with regard to where I was going," Sanford said. "I said that was the original possibility. Again, this is my fault in ... shrouding this larger trip."
Questions about Sanford's whereabouts arose early this week. For two days after reporters started asking questions, his office had said he had gone hiking on the trail.
Cornered at the Atlanta airport by a reporter from The State newspaper, Sanford revealed Wednesday morning that he'd gone to Argentina for a seven-day trip.
When news first broke about his mysterious disappearance, Jenny Sanford told The Associated Press she did not know where her husband had gone for the Father's Day weekend.
Sanford emerged Wednesday afternoon at a news conference, where he mused openly of his love of hiking and how he used to guide trips along the Appalachian Trail, and eventually tearfully apologized to his wife, his staff and his friends — but without yet saying what he was apologizing for.
"I hurt a lot of different folks," he said, occasionally choking up throughout the news conference that lasted about 20 minutes.
With those watching still wondering what he was admitting, Sanford said: "The odyssey that we're all on in life is with regard to heart."
Several residents said they were disappointed.
"He shouldn't have lied to us. He should have been up straight," said college student Gerald Walker, 19, in downtown Columbia. "It's very embarrassing for someone in a leadership role that we are supposed to respect, especially me being a young guy."
Glenn Mitchell, of Columbia, said he felt Sanford's absence showed a lack of concern for the state.
"He left the state unattended," said Mitchell, 54, out of work recuperating from surgery. "He just hasn't been there for us."
State Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Columbia, called for Sanford's resignation.
"There is nothing left to save," Rutherford said. "There is no reason for him to remain as governor."
Sanford, a former three-term congressman, was elected governor in 2002. He has more than a year remaining in his second term and is barred by state law from running again.
The libertarian-leaning Republican was seldom a firebrand. But he was known for salting tales of family life into policy discussions.
He criticized the $787 billion federal stimulus law and efforts by legislators to claim a share of it by saying in tough times a family would sit around the table and find ways to cut spending.
His vocal battle against the Obama administration over the stimulus money won praise from conservative pundits, but ultimately, a state court order required him to take the money.
Jenny Sanford, a millionaire whose family fortune comes from the Skil Corp. power tool company, has been central to Sanford's political career. She ran his congressional campaigns and his first race for governor. She was an almost daily fixture at senior staff meetings, and often could be seen driving a minivan away from the Statehouse in the mornings.
The two met when Sanford, who has an MBA, was trying his hand on Wall Street. She was working at a brokerage house when he entered a training program.
As governor, Sanford has had seemingly endless run-ins with the GOP-dominated Legislature, once bringing pigs to the House chamber to protest pork barrel spending. He also put a "spending clock" outside his office to show how quickly a proposed budget would spend state money.
Sanford's announcement came a day after another prominent Republican, Sen. John Ensign of Nevada, apologized to his GOP Senate colleagues after revealing last week that he had an affair with a campaign staffer and was resigning from the GOP leadership.
A Japanese newspaper reported Thursday that North Korea might fire its most advanced ballistic missile toward Hawaii around the Fourth of July holiday.
Carrie Prejean -- Clear My Name or I'll Sue
Carrie Prejean says she means business. She's giving the Miss California USA team one last chance to clear her name -- or she's gonna sue.
In a letter Prejean's lawyer fired off to the lawyer representing pageant honcho Keith Lewis, the attorney says Lewis defamed her by making her seem uncooperative and difficult to deal with. He did not address Donald Trump's comment to us ... that Carrie treated people "like s**t."
The letter also accused Lewis of using Carrie to push a gay agenda.
And here's the best part ... Carrie's lawyer says Lewis had no right to release her confidential medical information -- aka, a boob job.
The letter claims Carrie has suffered "severe emotional distress." If Lewis doesn't recant his comments, Carrie's lawyer promises a lawsuit.
Family friend says US boy getting court-ordered chemotherapy is responding
SLEEPY EYE, Minnesota - X-rays show the tumour in the chest of a 13-year-old boy who resisted treatment has shrunk significantly after two courses of court-ordered chemotherapy, a family spokesman said Monday.
However, family friend and spokesman Daniel Zwakman said the side effects of the treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma have left Danny Hauser weak and miserable.
It's been 11 days since Danny's latest treatment and still "most of his day is spent on the couch," Zwakman said.
Danny received a single treatment of chemotherapy in February but stopped after enduring the harsh side effects. The family insisted on alternative medicine inspired by American Indian traditions.
When Brown County authorities attempted to compel the Hausers to treat the cancer conventionally, Danny and his mother fled the state for about a week in May.
When they returned, a court ordered them to see an oncologist. Zwakman said Danny had treatments on May 28 and June 4 and is expected to receive four more.
Zwakman said the teen and his family remain firmly against chemotherapy but are complying with the court order. "They are very adamant against having the chemo," he said.
Chemotherapy commonly causes nausea and vomiting, fatigue, pain and weakness, and anxiety and depression.
Zwakman said Danny's mother has been giving him natural therapies in consultation with the oncologist.
McCain said the Iranian people "should not be subjected to four more years of (President Mahmoud) Ahmadinejad and the radical Muslim clerics."
"I want them to know that we in the United States do not want to make any decisions for the Iranians, but we do believe that the Iranian people and their voices should be heard and respected," Obama said.
Biden expresses 'doubts' about Iranian election
(CNN) -- Vice President Joe Biden expressed doubts Sunday about the validity of Iran's presidential election, but said it will take time to analyze the results.
"I have doubts, but withhold comment," Biden said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Biden said the Iranian government has suppressed crowds and limited free speech, which he said raised questions. He also called the strong showing by Ahmadinejad "unlikely," based on pre-election analysis.
"Is this the response, is this the accurate response, is this the wish of the Iranian people?" Biden said.
Despite the questions, Biden said the government would continue working with its allies to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, which could mean direct talks with the Iranian government.
"The decision has been made to talk," he said of the allied effort. "And we're signed on to that."
"We're not going to allow Iran to go nuclear," said Biden.
Ahmadinejad won Friday's election with 62.63 percent of the vote, the Iranian government announced. The result sparked protests by supporters of his main rival, Mir Hossein Moussavi, who claim the vote was rigged.
Israel warned Sunday that the re-election of Ahmadinejad represented "an intensification of the Iranian threat," and called for redoubled international efforts to halt its nuclear program.
"After Ahmadinejad's re-election, the international community must continue to act uncompromisingly to prevent the nuclearization of Iran, and to halt its activity in support of terror organizations and undermining stability in the Middle East," Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said.
His deputy, Danny Ayalon, suggested that even if Moussavi had been declared the winner, Tehran would still pose a threat.
"Israel had no illusions regarding the elections, as on these two issues there was no substantial difference between the candidates," he said.
Hamas, the militant Palestinian movement backed by Iran, welcomed the results.
Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum urged the world to respect Iranian democracy and accept the results of the elections.
Meanwhile, the BBC reported that electronic jamming -- which they traced to Iran -- was disrupting its satellite feeds to some viewers of BBC Persian in Iran, the Middle East and Europe. Two BBC journalists were also briefly arrested while doing their jobs, according to a company statement.
"It seems to be part of a pattern of behavior by the Iranian authorities to limit the reporting of the aftermath of the disputed election," Peter Horrocks, director of BBC World Service, said in the statement. "Any attempt to block BBC Persian television is wrong and against international treaties on satellite communication. Whoever is attempting the blocking should stop it now."
Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, which borders Iran, called Ahmadinejad to congratulate him, Karzai's office said Sunday.
Karzai's view was that "relations between the two Muslim nations of Afghanistan and Iran expanded during Mr. Ahmadinejad's first term and hoped that these relations get stronger during his second term," the statement said.
Protests were planned Sunday in cities around the world, including London, Paris, New York, Sydney, Berlin, The Hague, Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles and Toronto.
About 200 people turned out for the protest in London on Sunday, CNN's Don Riddell said from the scene. Some 100,000 Iranians live in London.
The day before, about 100 people protested in front of the Iranian Embassy in London.
"It was completely unbelievable, especially with the turnout and everything," said one British protester. "It was obvious from the beginning that it was all rigged."
"Everyone was sure that ... Moussavi was the winner," said a woman at the demonstration. "People wanted change, people wanted -- you know, not democracy in a sense of Western democracy, but the democracy that we were hopeful of."
UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband said his government was monitoring the election. "We have followed carefully, and admired, the passion and debate during the Iranian election campaign. We note the result as announced by the Iranian Electoral Commission. We have also heard the concerns about the counting of ballots expressed by two of the candidates.
"This is a matter for the Iranian authorities to address. We will continue to follow developments. Our priority is that Iran engages with the concerns of the world community, above all on the issue of nuclear proliferation."
In Washington, about 40 protesters gathered outside the Iranian Interests Section to bring attention to what they say is a stolen election.
"People have gathered here to express their distrust of the government in Iran, which has really turned a very genuine election into a sham, and has basically stolen people's votes in order to maintain a regime that is seriously not wanted by the Iranian people," said protester Robert Babeyi.
Babeyi said he moved from Iran to the United States more than 30 years ago, but stands behind those Iranians who he feels have been wronged.
"We are hoping the voices of Iranian-Americans here are heard throughout the world and can express our solidarity for the people of Iran, that we are with them and we understand that they are cheated," Babeyi said.
Canada's foreign affairs minister said Saturday he was worried about reports of irregularities in Iran's election, while the U.S. secretary of state said the United States hoped the outcome reflected the will of Iranians.
"Canada is deeply concerned by reports of voting irregularities in the Iranian election," Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon told reporters in Niagara Falls, in Ontario, Canada, where he appeared at a briefing with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
"We're troubled by reports of intimidation of opposition candidates' offices by security forces," he said. "We've asked our embassy officials in Tehran to closely monitor the situation, and Canada is calling on Iranian authorities to conduct fair and transparent counting of all ballots."
Biden said the Iranian government has suppressed crowds and limited free speech, which he said raised questions. He also called the strong showing by Ahmadinejad "unlikely," based on pre-election analysis.
Angry Neighbors Won't Be Charged in Beating of Suspect in 11-Year-Old Girl's Rape
A mob of furious neighbors of an 11-year-old girl raped on her way to school in Philadelphia won't be charged for beating a man wanted for questioning in the case.
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said Thursday that no charges will be filed against the group of about a dozen residents of the city's West Kensington section who attacked 26-year-old Jose Carrasquillo.
Carrasquillo hasn't been charged with rape but was arrested on an unrelated warrant. Ramsey said investigators have forensic evidence and witness identification placing him at the scene of Monday's attack.
Carrasquillo was released from the hospital into police custody Thursday afternoon after being treated for head injuries. The girl also has been released from the hospital.
Ramsey said he made the decision not to charge the residents based on the severity of the man's injuries. He also factored in the neighbors' intent and the high level of emotion in the community. But, he added, he doesn't condone violence.
The crowd pummeled Carrasquillo for several minutes on Tuesday with wooden sticks, their hands and their feet before police arrived to take him into custody. The attack was videotaped.
The group recognized Carrasquillo from a photo released by police, who called him a person of interest in the girl's rape on Monday as she walked to school.
On Wednesday, police classified him as a suspect.
"He's a suspect. There's no question about that," Ramsey told FOX 29 in Philadelphia, adding that detectives are trying to determine whether he is responsible for other sexual assault cases under investigation.
Authorities also say they are analyzing a new videotape in their possession and are investigating reports of another girl's groping on Monday by a man outside the Kensington Creative and Performing Arts High School, FOX 29 reported.
Surveillance video of Carrasquillo's beating shows a man being chased by at least three people, one of whom hits him several times with what appears to be a bat or large stick. As they chase the man, a crowd gathers. A police officer arrives, and the video cuts off.
The rape victim had just dropped off a sibling at day care and was walking to school Monday when a man approached her, investigators said. He started to walk with her, threatened her and said he had a gun. He took her to a nearby backyard and raped her repeatedly, authorities said.
Philadelphia Police Lt. Frank Vanore said authorities did the right thing in publicizing their desire to talk to Carrasquillo. He noted he was wanted on a bench warrant and had 17 prior arrests.
"We've got an 11-year-old viciously raped," Vanore said. "We factored in a lot of things and the biggest thing was to get this individual off the street."
2 US journalists on trial in North Korea
SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea's top court began hearing the case Thursday of two American journalists accused of crossing into the country illegally and engaging in "hostile acts" — charges that could draw a 10-year sentence in a labor camp.
Laura Ling and Euna Lee, reporters for former Vice President Al Gore's California-based Current TV, were arrested March 17 near the North Korean border while on a reporting trip to China.
North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said in a brief dispatch earlier Thursday that the trial would begin at 3 p.m. (0600 GMT; 2 a.m. EDT) in Pyongyang's Central Court. Hours later, there was no word on the status of the proceedings.
U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood said Thursday that American officials had seen news reports that the trial had begun but had no independent confirmation. The North has told United States that no observers, including Swedish officials who act as the U.S. protecting power in Pyongyang, would be allowed to watch the trial, he said.
The trial began at a time of mounting tensions on the Korean peninsula following the regime's provocative May 25 nuclear test.
With discussions continuing at the United Nations and in Washington on how to punish the regime for its defiance, there were fears the women could become political pawns in the standoff with Pyongyang.
Analyst Choi Eun-suk, a professor of North Korean law at Kyungnam University, said the court could convict the women and then the government could use them as bargaining chips in negotiations with the U.S.
"The North is likely to release and deport them to the U.S. — if negotiations with the U.S. go well," Choi said.
North Korea and the U.S., former Korean War foes, do not have diplomatic relations, and analysts called Pyongyang's recent belligerence a bid to grab President Barack Obama's attention.
Pyongyang "believes the Obama administration has not made North Korea a priority," said David Straub of Stanford University's Korean studies program.
Back home, the reporters' families pleaded for clemency.
"All we can do is hope the North Korean government will show leniency," Ling's sister, TV journalist Lisa Ling, said in an emotional plea at a California vigil Wednesday night. "If at any point they committed a transgression, then our families are deeply, deeply sorry. We know the girls are sorry as well."
She urged Washington and Pyongyang not to let politics dictate the reporters' fate.
"Tensions are so heated, and the girls are essentially in the midst of this nuclear standoff," she said on CNN's "Larry King Live." She urged the governments to "try to communicate, to try and bring our situation to a resolution on humanitarian grounds — to separate the issues."
State-run media have not defined the exact charges against them, but South Korean legal experts said conviction for "hostility" or espionage could mean five to 10 years in a labor camp. Choi said a ruling by the top court would be final.
The circumstances of their arrest were hazy. The Current TV team had gone to the Chinese border city of Yanji to report on the trafficking of North Korean women, Lisa Ling said.
"Too many sad stories," her younger sister posted to Twitter days before her arrest.
They were seized somewhere near the frozen Tumen River dividing North Korea and China while a cameraman and their guide managed to evade the North Korean guards.
For weeks, there was little word about their condition in separate quarters in one of the world's most isolated nations. Sweden's ambassador to North Korea has visited the women and brought back a letter from Laura Ling saying she "cried so much" at first but was passing the time doing daily stretches and meditating.
Lisa Ling said she got a surprise phone call last Tuesday from her "extremely scared" younger sister, asking for help.
"My sister said that the only hope that she and Euna had to get released was if our government and North Korea's communicated directly," Lisa Ling said. "'I know that you've been trying to get other countries involved,' she said, 'but our only hope is if our countries talk.'"
The State Department has not divulged details about the sensitive negotiations for their freedom.
"We continue to consult with the families. And there is no higher priority that we have than protection of American civilians abroad," spokesman P.J. Crowley said Wednesday in Washington. "And we, again, hope that North Korea will forgo this legal process and return them to the United States."
Twice in the 1990s, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, then a congressman, was sent as a special envoy to negotiate the release of Americans detained by North Korea.
In New York, dozens turned out in a drenching rain for a vigil led by Ling's cousin Angie Wang. Some held yellow chrysanthemums.
"Nobody should be holding people for purely political gamesmanship purposes," said J.B. Miller, 44.
Media groups also pressed for their release.
"We urge that their fate not be linked to the ongoing security situation on the Korean peninsula," Bob Dietz of the Committee to Protect Journalists said in a statement. "Euna Lee and Laura Ling were acting as journalists, not criminals, and should be released."
Roxana Saberi, an American journalist who spent four months in an Iranian prison before being freed May 11 on a suspended sentence for spying, urged the women to "remain strong."
"If Laura and Euna's situation resembles anything like mine, I can imagine a little of what they might be wishing for: The presumption of innocence until proven guilty. A fair trial, with access to attorneys of their choice and the right to study what is claimed as evidence against them. More contact with their families, whom they probably worry are worrying about themselves!"
Air Filter |