Whether allegations of police misconduct during a raid -- including claims that several women were stripped searched in front of male officers and that officers "stole cash from a safe and coin-operated video games" -- are true, they beg the question: Why did the raid occur?

Police confirm they began the raid with a flash grenade, and that it happened at 11:30 p.m. May 30, 2008 .... That night, just over 20 people were attending a party inside the La Familia Motorcycle Social Club, 2500 W. Fullerton, and the department says the officers, wearing body armor and wielding assault weapons, were responding to a tip that illegal drugs were being used or sold there.

Does the war on drugs necessitate that level of force at a private party? All because of a tip? What's the point? [more ...]

Much of the time, "jailhouse lawyers" give lousy advice. Sometimes they get it right. Allen Penoyer, a 68 year old lifer, helped fellow inmate Jeffery Sipple challenge his manslaughter conviction.

Penoyer, using a blue ballpoint pen and blank sheets of white paper, challenged Sipple's conviction on the grounds that his attorney, Michael Connell, allowed the jury to hear an invalid instruction that negated Sipple's self-defense argument. "He studied it, and sure enough, they violated my rights," Sipple said.

The 5th District Court of Appeal agreed in December and granted Sipple a new trial.

Sipple's family chipped in to hire a lawyer from Tampa to argue Sipple's appeal. Freed from prison after serving four years of a twelve year sentence, Sipple struck a new deal that will allow him to remain free if he obeys the terms of his probation. He's moved to Indiana, and his goal now is simple.

"I'm trying to start over and keep a low profile," he said.

More thread for you.

If you're online today and looking for a place to chat, here you go.

And don't believe the rumors I'm seeing on other threads about the Denver Convention being canceled or scaled back to a single day due to lack of funds. The only thing canceled was the media walk-through for this coming week -- and the Sunday night parties are being combined into a single event.

For the latest, check the Rocky Mountain News and Denver Post. The fundraising is being done by the Denver Host Committee, not the DNC or the DNCC. What's the difference?

The Denver 2008 Convention Host Committee is a non-profit organization charged with generating the funding to pay for the 2008 Democratic Convention; organizing a volunteer base; and providing hospitality to delegates and credentialed media. Our mission is to showcase Denver and the Rocky Mountain West, to include all aspects of the community and culture of the entire region, and to emphasize environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable development.

More...

Tim Russert's passing reminds me that this Obama-McCain matchup was the election the Media dreamed of. This was the one that was going to change politics.

Well, anyone watching the first week of the campaign since the departure of Hillary Clinton must have noticed that in fact what we have gotten is more of the same. John Mercurio writes:

[L]isten closely to the debate this week over the campaign's No. 1 issue, and you'll hear how comfortably Obama and McCain conform to their parties' tried-and-true orthodoxies, the ones that repeatedly set the stage for a sharply divided -- and static -- electoral map.

As a Democrat, I am glad to see the Obama team understands that Obama can not change politics, that he must engage in it. A sharply partisan campaign is very much to Obama's favor and the first rule in politics is you win before you can transform. Others have noticed the pedestrian nature of the campaign:

9th Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski has declared a mistrial and recused himself from presiding over an obscenity trial following revelations this week that he had s!xually expl!cit material on his own personal website. (TChris' background is here.)

"In light of the public controversy surrounding my involvement in this case, I have concluded that there is a manifest necessity to declare a mistrial," said Alex Kozinski, chief judge for the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. "I will recuse myself from further participation in the case and will ask the chief judge of the district court to reassign it to another judge."

Barack Obama dissed the "New Rochelle train" and commuting to work.

David Mendell's Obama: From Promise to Power, p. 148-149:

"[Obama] always talked about the New Rochelle train, the trains that took commuters to and from New York City, and he didn't want to be on one of those trains every day," said Jerry Kellman, the community organizer who enticed Obama to Chicago from his Manhattan office job. "The image of a life, not a dynamic life, of going through the motions... that was scary to him."

....There's nothing wrong with saying, "that life, taking the New Rochelle train, just isn't for me."

[More...]

According to Tim Russert's son Luke, his dad's favorite music was what Russert called "geezer rock" and included “Springsteen, Fogerty, Van Morrison and James Taylor.”

Watching the media coverage tonight, you can't help but feel touched by how much his colleagues respected him and will miss him. This is for them.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Susan Atkins has spent 37 years in prison for her role in the horrific murders of Sharon Tate and Gary Hinman. I've written a few times about why she should be paroled (same for Leslie Van Houton.)

Atkins is dying of brain cancer and had a leg amputated. With less than six months to live, she has received initial approval for compassionate release so she can die outside of prison.

Even former Manson prosecutor Vicent Bugliosi does not object:

"She has paid substantially, though not completely, for her horrendous crimes. Paying completely would mean imposing the death penalty," Bugliosi said. "But given that she has six months to live, and the loss of her leg, I don't have an objection to her being released."

[More...]

RIP, Tim Russert.

Tim Russert, NBC News’ Washington bureau chief and the moderator of “Meet the Press,” died Friday after a sudden heart attack at the bureau, NBC News said Friday. He was 58.

Russert was recording voiceovers for Sunday’s “Meet the Press” program when he collapsed, the network said.

Those who follow crime in the news may be interested in the verdict that has finally been rendered in the drawn-out and highly publicized prosecution of R. Kelly:

A jury acquitted R. Kelly on all counts of child pornography after less than a day of deliberations Friday, ending an ordeal for the R&B superstar that began when he was charged six years ago.

Calling all health insurance and math whizzes: As long as I'm on economics today and I don't know much about health insurance, taxes or math, I'm looking for opinions.

Every year my insurance premium rises even though I'm healthy, have no medical conditions and barely use it. This month I was told my premiums are going up $75 a month to almost $600 a month even though my age bracket is the same and I'm healthy. My choices are to downgrade my plan and pay even more of a copay for doctors and prescriptions or go with an HSA (health savings account) with a "catastrophic" insurance plan. [More...]