Sexual Assault at Rusheon Middle School

The motto of Rusheon Middle School is posted on their website.

Motto:
RMS is a place where all students can be safe, successful, and supported!
That motto was put to shame last week.
KTBS has reported on the arrest of two teenage boys, ages 13 & 14, for sexually assaulting two 13 year old girls at Rusheon Middle School in Bossier City.
According to a news release, the incident occurred after an out-of-town band trip. The boys reportedly forced the girls into a boys’ restroom, then sexually assaulted them.
All of the individuals involved in the incident are students at the school. The two boys were arrested Saturday morning after an investigation. The 14-year-old suspect was arrested on a charge of simple rape, and the 13-year old suspect was booked on a charge of simple battery. Both were booked into the Bossier Juvenile Detention Center. Detectives are continuing their investigation into the incident and say more arrests are likely.

A little Sunday Morning Fun

Call the Nestle Hot line at 1-800-295-0051.

When asked if you want to continue in English or Spanish, wait quietly for about 10 seconds and you will smile.

Keep going and press 4.

Then press 7.

If you comment on this, don't give away the surprise.

Shreveport Firefighters shocked by lawsuit

Members of the Shreveport Fire Department, as well as many people in the community, were stunned to learn that Traci Adams, the widow of Shreveport Fire Department Battalion Chief Tommy Adams, has filed a lawsuit against the City of Shreveport in District Court.
The lawsuit, says his death "resulted from substandard care and treatment" and a "breach of applicable medical standards" by Fire Department personnel. "Shreveport Fire Department personnel failed to adequately secure an airway, failed to provide supplemental oxygen and failed to take appropriate measures consistent with applicable medical standards resulting in (Adams') oxygen deprivation and resulting brain damage.”
Mrs. Adams also faulted EMS Personnel for transporting him to Willis-Knighton Pierremont rather than the trauma center at LSU Medical Center.
Adams, 52, died last December of complications from his injuries. He had been in a comatose state since February 2009, when he fell from a ladder truck after a Mardi Gras parade. He suffered neck and traumatic brain injuries.
Fellow firefighters held fundraisers while Adams was injured, orchestrated a honor procession when he returned to Shreveport after treatment in a specialized treatment facility and buried him with honors (video here).
A number of fundraisers were held to help the family pay personal expenses during the time he was hospitalized. According to The Times, his medical expenses were paid by worker’s compensaton, and Ms. Adams received a payout from his life insurance policy. She also received benefits from his retirement account.
Mayor Cedric Glover and Fire Chief Brian Crawford released a statement which says "The brave men and women of the Shreveport Fire Department are extremely disappointed in the lawsuit filed and the allegations that have been made against the city of Shreveport and its employees by Mrs. Traci Adams. Needless to say, we will vigorously and aggressively defend the lawsuit and will refute each and every allegation in the petition."
An opinion piece written by Traci Adams for publication in The Times July 19, states, "I will be forever grateful for those who responded to him in his greatest time of need, the night of Feb. 21, 2009."
"You have saved us," she wrote, referring to the "brotherhood" of firefighters who responded to her family's cry for help. "Thank you for all your hard work, dedication, love, prayers and support. I am forever in your debt."
Before her husband's return home, firefighters helped remodel the Adams' Shreveport home in June to make it suitable for his recovery. At the time, she said, "You can feel the love being built."

More at KTBS and The Times.

Thamm murder trial postponed again

The 1st degree murder trial of Lance Thamm, who is accused of killing his 17 month old daughter in January of 2008, has been postponed again.

This time the defense says it needs time to locate out of state witnesses. The trial is now scheduled to begin April 26th.

Bossier DA Schuyler Marvin is seeking the death penalty in the case.

Man charged in home invasion has internet presence

Ricardo Palos, who was arrested by a Bossier Parish Sheriff's Deputy this morning in the home invasion referred to in the last two blog posts, has quite an internet presence.
On My Space, he introduces himself to us:
• Status: Single
• Here for: Networking, Friends
• Hometown: 2718 S. Homan
• Orientation: Straight
• Body type: More to love!
• Ethnicity: Latino / Hispanic
• Religion: Catholic
• Zodiac Sign: Taurus
• Children: Proud parent
• Drink: Yes
• Education: Some college
• Occupation: carnicero
• Income: Less than $30,000
For education, he lists:
• Latino Youth Alternative Hs
o Chicago, IL
o Graduated: N/A
o Student status: Alumni
o Degree: High School Diploma
1991 to 1994
Under companies he lists:
• Los cuatro Hermanos
o Springdale, Arkansa US
o President
And finally, this:
About me:
Born and Raised in Chicago currently living in Arkansas work with pops and moms in the grocery store proud father of two boys and four girls love them all with all my heart i am very proud of were i come from were i was raised the brothers in the hood lots of love.

And I'll bet those brothers in the hood are proud of him too, ganging up with two other thugs and tying up a 68 year old woman and robbing her.

Mr. Palos has come a long way from that Chicago hood - or has he?

He is also on Black Planet.

You can check out pictures of the family store in Springdale on Flickr.

Benton Homes Invasion: 2nd Suspect arrested, 3rd being sought

26-year-old Gerardo Cortina of Illinois was arrested Thursday afternoon and faces the same charges as 35-year-old Ricardo Palos of Arkansas who was arrested earlier Thursday.

39-year-old Miguel "Bear" Escutia (below) is still being sought.

Benton Home Invasion

From The Bossier Parish Sheriff's office:
An Arkansas man was arrested early this morning and charged with aggravated burglary, false imprisonment and simple battery of the infirmed, said Bossier Sheriff Larry Deen. Ricardo Aleman Palos, 35, of the 600 block of Crutcher Avenue in Springdale, was taken into custody after a home invasion in the 200 block of Hurricane Bluff in Benton just after midnight.
A 68-year-old female told Bossier Sheriff’s deputies she was awakened by her dog barking and was confronted by three males in ski masks and dark clothing. They bound her with duct tape at the ankles and the wrists and put some over her mouth. They kept demanding, “Where’s the safe?”, and repeatedly told her they were not going to harm her.
The three men rummaged through the residence and eventually found a safe. They took it and some jewelry and fled the scene in a pickup truck. At that point, the victim, who suffered only a minor injury, was able to free herself and call the Bossier Sheriff’s Office, at which time a B.O.L.O. (be on the lookout) was issued, instructing law enforcement agencies to watch for a suspicious pickup truck.
A Bossier Sheriff’s deputy soon spotted a pickup truck on LA Hwy. 3 at Cash Point Road and saw a large object under a tarp in the bed of the truck. The object looked like a safe. The deputy continued to follow the truck which began to weave from lane to lane in an effort to get away from the deputy.
The truck led the deputy into the Greenacres Subdivision in Bossier City and back out onto Highway 3. In the 3900 block of Highway 3, the truck stopped and all three men fled. The deputy was able to apprehend Palos, but the other two men escaped.
Deputies are still looking for Palos’ accomplices, but Palos is being held in the Bossier Maximum Security Facility. His bond is pending.

Congratulations Jarrod Jackson

Our congratulations to Jarrod Jackson, a senior at Parkway High School for being chosen as one of two Louisiana students to represent the state at the United States Senate Youth Program in Washington D.C. in March. He plans to attend Howard University after graduation.

The United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP) is an intensive weeklong educational experience and scholarship sponsored by the United States Senate for outstanding high school students who are interested in pursuing careers in public service.
Jackson is one of only 104 students in the country selected to serve as delegates to Washington Week, March 6 through March 13.
Jackson has a 4.0 grade point average and is Parkway’s “Student of the Year”.
He was one of only three
He is president of the student council, vice-president of the National Honor Society, and an athlete.
Complete story at NWLA News

Barbara Norton, The Inquisitor and the Infinity to Understand

Danny Lawler at The Inquisitor gives us a report about State Representative Barbara Norton’s shameful behavior at the African American History Parade earlier this month. The Inquisitor obtained police video of the incident as well as eyewitness accounts of what transpired as police officers began to check drivers of vehicles in the parade, as required by city law.
The law was passed a few years ago when a child was hit by a float being pulled by a vehicle driven by a person who was intoxicated.
Being the ‘public official’ that she is, apparently Norton thought the law didn’t apply to her, and began making racial slurs at the officers, according to reports, calling one white officer a white motherfucker and a black officer, Kevin Anderson, an ‘Uncle Tom’.
There is a lot more to the story, but you’ll have to buy The Inquisitor to read it.
I thoroughly searched Channel 3, Channel 6, Channel 12 and The Times and there is no mention whatever of the incident.
I wonder why?
I did find the video below on Channel 3’s website from January. Gerry May interviewed Ms. Norton about Black History Month and the parade. She said that the purpose is “to teach our children and grandchildren about who they are, where they came from, and to give them the infinity to understand that others can do, and also that they can do it too.”
The infinity to understand? Now what the hell does that mean?

Old Violin