“Swatting” is when people call the police to report a fake crisis, usually a shooting or a fire, currently going down at another person’s house. Police then send out SWAT teams and helicopters, only to find out the report was but a hoax. (Oops!) Lately, Los Angeles is being bamboozled with incidents of swatting, including at the homes of regular citizens and those belonging to celebrities Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, and yesterday, actor and comedian Russell Brand.

I have to admit: it is kind of funny to picture SWAT teams surrounding the homes of some of the more annoying celebs. (Other “victims” include the Biebs, Chris Brown and Simon Cowell, all of whom I think could use a little messing with.) HOWEVER, the ridiculous price tag on each call is anything but funny. According to LAPD, each incident can cost up to $10,000 depending on the number of officers and helicopters dispatched, leaving taxpayers to bear the burden of these annoying shenanigans.

New Anti-Swatting Law

California lawmakers are eager to crack down on the $10k pranks, and have already pushed a bill through the Senate Public Safety Committee to crack down on the swatting. Championed by Senator Ted Lieu, if passed, the bill would authorize judges to make perpetrators of swatting fit the bill for costs incurred by the responding law enforcement. In the case of children making the call, the bill would also allow imposing the fine on the parents of the accused, regardless of their knowledge of or participation in the stunt. Ashton Kutcher’s house was the target of swatting back in 2009; a 12-year-old boy was charged and later admitted to orchestrating the prank, along with another call-out to a Los Angeles bank.

Other anti-swatters are trying to make it a felony to falsely report a crime, creating the potential for real prison time if convicted. In 2008, a Washington state swatter was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison for his participation in an elaborate swatting hoax intended to discombobulate law enforcement. In that case, there were some 250 “victims” and about $250,000 worth of damages.

Bystanders Beware!

Along with the ridiculous price tag, police here claim that swatting is also extremely dangerous and have repeatedly warned that “it’s only a matter of time before someone gets hurt or killed as a result.” At first I thought this was a bit melodramatic, but the more I think about it, the more I agree. Why? Because LAPD is maybe the most trigger-happy law enforcement around! Imagine how easily one of them could mistakenly fire on a dog-walker or other innocent bystander while responding to one of these swatting calls. Remember the Deadly Dorner Drama? During the manhunt, police shot two WOMEN in a car that they thought looked like Dorner’s without making any attempt to verify their suspicions whatsoever!

Boy Who Cried Wolf-Much?

Perhaps the most damaging impact of the swatting shenanigans is the future action – or, inaction – of LAPD, as a result of all the pump fakes. I actually heard it on the news (ABC Local News) that police will no longer send out full SWAT teams based on phoned-in reports. Rather, they will only send “a few deputies” to check it out first. In other words, next time there is a serious crime in progress, a couple of lambs (pigs?) will first be sent to slaughter and THEN we will bring out the big guns. Hopefully there is no one on the brink of death, in need of an ambulance and full emergency response or a house burning down, right? Awesome plan. I mean, I get it – Los Angeles certainly does not have the extra money to spend on these little shithead pranks – but I would still rather err on the side of safety when it comes to emergency response.

The current bill won’t see the California Senate floor until at least June or July and if approved, will go into effect as early as September. Stay tuned for developments in anti-swatting laws and ensuing shenanigans!

I can no longer resist the urge to write about this Casey-Anthony look alike murder trial in the case against Jodi Arias. Earlier this week, Juror #5 was dismissed and escorted out of the courthouse in tears. This, after the defense made a motion to dismiss the miscreant juror for alleged misconduct and a motion for mistrial. The former was granted and the latter denied.

There were a total of 18 jurors hearing the trial, including alternates. Ultimately, a panel of 12 will make the decision. Arias could face the death penalty if convicted. She is accused of killing her ex-boyfriend back in 2008 and claims she did so in self-defense.

Why Was Juror #5 Dismissed?

Juror #5 has been described as being a particularly attentive juror who took copious notes throughout the trial. So what did this errant Arias juror do? She made statements that showed bias, or her inability to be impartial, in the presence of other jurors. The records are sealed, so we are left to fill in the blanks as to what was actually said. (At least until the gag order is lifted and Juror #5 releases her “exclusive” interview with every news station that will take her.) Anyway, Judges are not quick to dismiss jurors, especially those who have already spent three months serving on a long cause trial. In other words, Juror #5’s statements must have been pretty egregious to have led to such a ruling.

Prosecutor’s Publicity Parade

What troubles me is the manner in which this misconduct was revealed to the defense. Counsel for Arias was questioning the Prosecutor, Mr. Juan Martinez, about his signing autographs and posing for pictures outside the courthouse. It was during that publicity melee that prosecutor Martinez overheard Juror #5 make the statements indicating her bias, he told defense counsel. The defense also made a motion to dismiss based on prosecutorial misconduct. The motion was denied but as a result, jurors were called into court one by one to be questioned about what they had seen of Martinez’s tryst with the press.

Not only do her actions form the basis for her own dismissal, but what Juror #5 pulled will also be scrumptious grounds for an appeal on the grounds that other jurors, who were present at the time of the statements, were likewise biased and unable to render an impartial verdict. That, coupled with the prosecutor’s participation in the whole charade, would certainly give me pause before accepting the validity of this jury’s verdict.

A breakdown of the evidence in the Jodi Arias trial coming soon!

The Italian Supreme Court reversed the acquittal of Amanda Knox, previously convicted in the 2007 killing of her then-roommate, Meredith Kercher, with the help of her boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito. She was found guilty in 2009 and the Court of Appeals reversed that conviction in 2011 on grounds of insufficient evidenceand lack of motive. Meanwhile, Knox spent a long and lonely four years in Italian prison. Since her successful appeal, she has moved back to Seattle and attempted to reestablish a “normal” life as a student at the University of Washington.

So, what about that little thing we call Double Jeopardy?

First of all, Italy’s Constitution does not protect against double jeopardy and allows for the prosecution to appeal the loss of a criminal case. In the United States, the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution includes the text “nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb.” And Amanda is an American citizen. She was studying abroad at the time of the alleged offense, likely on a student visa, and is protected by the laws of the United States regardless.

Will Amanda Knox be extradited to Italy for Retrial?

Some experts on the subject disagree, but I am going to vote NO on the topic. Why? Because the United States has an Extradition Treaty with Italy dating back to the 1980’s, wherein Article 6 provides the grounds for denial of extradition: “Extradition shall be denied when the person sought has been in jeopardy in the requested State for the same offense.” Seems pretty cut and dry to me! The Italian court can also hold the trial in absentia and if they convict, can ask the U.S. government to order her extradition.

Amanda was not present in the Italian Supreme Court when it rendered its decision today and is unlikely to be taking any voluntary trips to Italy any time soon.

Did I mention someone else has ALREADY BEEN CONVICTED for the killing of Meredith Kercher?

There’s a little nugget that seems to get cut from most major news broadcasts on the subject is that Rudy Guede was convicted of murdering Meredith Kercher. After being confronted with “overwhelming DNA evidence” against him, Guede admitted being present at the house near the time of Kercher’s murder, but claimed he had gone in another room for a few minutes and came out to find Kercher bleeding to death. According to the website injusticeinperugia.org, the evidence against Guede included the following:

• Guede admitted he was in the room.
• Guede’s DNA was found all over the crime scene. 
• Guede’s DNA was found in and on Meredith’s body. Guede’s DNA along with Meredith’s blood, was found on Meredith’s purse. 
• Guede’s excrement was found in the toilet. 
• Guede’s shoe prints, set in Meredith’s blood, were found in the bedroom and hallway. 
• Guede’s handprints, in Meredith’s blood, were found on a pillowcase in Meredith’s room and on her wall. 
• Guede had a cut on his right hand that was still visible when he was arrested. 
• Guede fled the country. 

Stay tuned for more developments on the Amanda Knox Saga Italiana!

Another police officer was killed (and one more wounded) as authorities close in on Christopher Dorner near Big Bear, California. The picture above shows the house where Dorner is holed up, black clouds of smoke billowing out, where a gun battle is apparently still going down.

Holy Sh!t!!!

Everyone was saying that Dorner had surely left the Big Bear area and likely fled to Mexico, but it turns out, he has hardly moved over the past few days. He had taken two women hostage and tied them up in order to steal their car near Big Bear Lake, but the ladies were allegedly unharmed. Then when police showed up, gunfire erupted and two police were shot; one deputy was pronounced dead just moments ago while another one is in critical condition.

The death toll is up to at least 4 now, along with several others severely wounded, all a result of the Christopher Dorner saga. Dorner, former LAPD and former military, is currently cornered in a burning cabin in the woods, while SWAT teams surround the area, apparently getting ready to take him down. ABC 7 just confirmed that the house is “fully engulfed in flames.”

What we don’t know – is anyone else in the house?

I’ve been glued to the TV for the past half an hour or so and one thing I have not seen is a fire truck! (We don’t need no water let the mother*$#@r burn?!) The News is reporting that fire fighters will not respond to the situation until it is deemed “safe.” Pffft! Wish I was wrong, but my prediction from my previous entry seems all the more likely at this point – Christopher Dorner will not come out of this alive. Gunshots continue to be fired and the situation intensifies. Stay tuned for updates on the Deadly Dorner Drama!