Sunday, August 09, 2015
Dog hailed a hero after calling 911 and saving blind owner from house fire
A service dog is being hailed a hero after she jumped into action and saved her blind owner’s life by alerting authorities to a house fire in Philadelphia on Thursday morning.
The fire started inside a home in the city’s Holmesburg section. Fire officials say the homeowner, a woman in her 60’s who is blind, was inside at the time. The woman’s service dog Yolanda immediately dialed 911 on a specialised phone.
Firefighters responded to the scene and controlled the blaze. The woman was taken to Nazareth Hospital and treated for smoke inhalation. It wasn’t the first time Yolanda saved her owner’s life.
Jen Leary, the founder of the Red Paw Emergency Relief Team, said Yolanda also called 911 last year when her owner fell down inside her home and lost consciousness. Yolanda and her owner were both displaced by the blaze and are being assisted by Red Paw Emergency Relief Team and the American Red Cross.
With news video.
The fire started inside a home in the city’s Holmesburg section. Fire officials say the homeowner, a woman in her 60’s who is blind, was inside at the time. The woman’s service dog Yolanda immediately dialed 911 on a specialised phone.
Firefighters responded to the scene and controlled the blaze. The woman was taken to Nazareth Hospital and treated for smoke inhalation. It wasn’t the first time Yolanda saved her owner’s life.
Jen Leary, the founder of the Red Paw Emergency Relief Team, said Yolanda also called 911 last year when her owner fell down inside her home and lost consciousness. Yolanda and her owner were both displaced by the blaze and are being assisted by Red Paw Emergency Relief Team and the American Red Cross.
With news video.
Judge ordered man to marry girlfriend or face jail
A Texas man and his girlfriend say they were forced down the aisle after a judge ordered them to get married or face jail time.
Last month, a Smith County judge ordered Josten Bundy to marry his 19-year-old girlfriend Elizabeth Jaynes within 30 days as part of a probation agreement. Bundy had got into a physical altercation with Jaynes' ex-boyfriend in February. The ex-boyfriend suffered no medical injuries, but still sued Bundy for assault.
If Bundy declined the judge's proposition, he would face 15 days in jail. "That would have been fine and I asked if I could call my job [to let them know]," Bundy said. "The judge told me 'nope, that's not how this works.'" Bundy was also ordered to write Bible verses and get counselling. Jaynes said she was embarrassed after hearing the judge's proposal. "My face was so red, people behind me were laughing," said Jaynes. "[The judge] made me stand up in court."
Bundy said he was afraid of losing his job if he went to jail for two weeks, so the couple had no choice but to get a marriage licence instead. While the couple had talked about getting married six months into dating, they are upset that Rogers took away the opportunity to have the wedding that they wanted. "It was just going to be kind of pieced together, I didn't even have a white dress," Jaynes said. "My father didn't get to go, and that really bothers me," Bundy said.
"I know he would have liked to be there ... none of my sisters got to show up, it was such short notice, I couldn't get it together." Some legal experts say that the order is illegal. "To say you're not going to be criminally punished if you get married is way out of left field," attorney Blake Bailey said. "It sounds like the old days of shotgun weddings, but not even the judge is capable of enforcing, what he thinks is best for some people in his court." The judge hasn't commented publicly on the sentencing. Bundy and Jaynes say that they plan to have a bigger wedding in the future when they can save enough money.
With news video.
If Bundy declined the judge's proposition, he would face 15 days in jail. "That would have been fine and I asked if I could call my job [to let them know]," Bundy said. "The judge told me 'nope, that's not how this works.'" Bundy was also ordered to write Bible verses and get counselling. Jaynes said she was embarrassed after hearing the judge's proposal. "My face was so red, people behind me were laughing," said Jaynes. "[The judge] made me stand up in court."
Bundy said he was afraid of losing his job if he went to jail for two weeks, so the couple had no choice but to get a marriage licence instead. While the couple had talked about getting married six months into dating, they are upset that Rogers took away the opportunity to have the wedding that they wanted. "It was just going to be kind of pieced together, I didn't even have a white dress," Jaynes said. "My father didn't get to go, and that really bothers me," Bundy said.
"I know he would have liked to be there ... none of my sisters got to show up, it was such short notice, I couldn't get it together." Some legal experts say that the order is illegal. "To say you're not going to be criminally punished if you get married is way out of left field," attorney Blake Bailey said. "It sounds like the old days of shotgun weddings, but not even the judge is capable of enforcing, what he thinks is best for some people in his court." The judge hasn't commented publicly on the sentencing. Bundy and Jaynes say that they plan to have a bigger wedding in the future when they can save enough money.
With news video.
Man faces jail after fraudulently selling dirty socks as marijuana
A couple looking to buy a pound of marijuana gave up $2,800 for a backpack stuffed with dirty socks. The police will apparently end up with the money while a man from Ypsilanti, Michigan, loses his laundry and freedom.
The July 8 fraudulent marijuana sale in Raisin Township was described on Wednesday in Lenawee County Circuit Court when Michael Rafael Suarez pleaded guilty to false pretenses between $1,000-$20,000.
Suarez faces up to a 7½ year prison term with a habitual offender count added to his fraud conviction. He admitted having two prior felony convictions.
A Ypsilanti couple who admitted accompanying Suarez on the early morning trip to Lee Villa mobile home park in Raisin Township also pleaded guilty to reduced charges. They were released on personal recognizance bonds pending their sentencing hearings next month. The three were stopped by a Raisin Township police officer as they sped away from the mobile home park and ran a stop sign at about 1:30am. During the traffic stop, a man pulled up in a car and told the officer his girlfriend was just robbed by the people in the vehicle. Suarez said the whole thing started with a telephone call from a friend who told him to bring a pound of marijuana.
The friend had some people waiting to buy. “I didn’t bring any weed,” Suarez said. “I brought a bag of dirty socks.” Public defender John Glaser told the court that is the fraud Suarez is admitting in the plea bargain. “He brought socks instead of marijuana. That’s the false pretenses,” Glaser said. A purse containing $2,800 cash taken from the would-be marijuana buyers was found in the car with Suarez, Joshua Wayne Cope, 37, and Rebecca Sue Sharp, 34, also of Ypsilanti. Cope and Sharp, who are married, both pleaded guilty to attempted possession of marijuana with intent to deliver.
Suarez said he tricked the couple into driving him to the mobile home park. “I actually lied to them about what we were going there for,” he told Judge Anna Marie Anzalone. During her plea hearing, Sharp said she believed Suarez had a bag of marijuana in their car when they drove to Raisin Township. Her attorney asked for a personal recognizance bond so Sharp can return to her job as a manager at a McDonald’s restaurant in Ann Arbor and to care for her four children, left in the care of Cope’s parents. The $2,800 impounded as evidence will now be subject to a civil drug seizure claim, said Raisin Township Police Chief Kevin Grayer.
A Ypsilanti couple who admitted accompanying Suarez on the early morning trip to Lee Villa mobile home park in Raisin Township also pleaded guilty to reduced charges. They were released on personal recognizance bonds pending their sentencing hearings next month. The three were stopped by a Raisin Township police officer as they sped away from the mobile home park and ran a stop sign at about 1:30am. During the traffic stop, a man pulled up in a car and told the officer his girlfriend was just robbed by the people in the vehicle. Suarez said the whole thing started with a telephone call from a friend who told him to bring a pound of marijuana.
The friend had some people waiting to buy. “I didn’t bring any weed,” Suarez said. “I brought a bag of dirty socks.” Public defender John Glaser told the court that is the fraud Suarez is admitting in the plea bargain. “He brought socks instead of marijuana. That’s the false pretenses,” Glaser said. A purse containing $2,800 cash taken from the would-be marijuana buyers was found in the car with Suarez, Joshua Wayne Cope, 37, and Rebecca Sue Sharp, 34, also of Ypsilanti. Cope and Sharp, who are married, both pleaded guilty to attempted possession of marijuana with intent to deliver.
Suarez said he tricked the couple into driving him to the mobile home park. “I actually lied to them about what we were going there for,” he told Judge Anna Marie Anzalone. During her plea hearing, Sharp said she believed Suarez had a bag of marijuana in their car when they drove to Raisin Township. Her attorney asked for a personal recognizance bond so Sharp can return to her job as a manager at a McDonald’s restaurant in Ann Arbor and to care for her four children, left in the care of Cope’s parents. The $2,800 impounded as evidence will now be subject to a civil drug seizure claim, said Raisin Township Police Chief Kevin Grayer.
Unmarried couples picked up from hotel rooms and charged with indecent behaviour in public
Consenting adults who had checked into various hotels in the Madh Island and Aksa area of Mumbai, India, to get some privacy were shocked to find the police knocking on the doors of their rooms on Thursday. More than 40 couples were rounded up and taken to the police station, where they were insulted and some of them, especially college students, were made to call their parents.
They were then charged with 'indecent behaviour in public', even though they were in private hotel rooms when they were 'caught', and fined Rs. 1,200 (£12, $19) before being let out nearly five hours later.
Traumatised by the incident, a 19-year-old girl said that she is contemplating committing suicide because of the stigma and because her parents aren't talking to her anymore. Another 21-year-old girl, who had gone to a hotel with her fiance, whom she is supposed to marry next month, says she was slapped by a female constable for daring to protest against the action. According to officials, a team from the Malwani police, under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner (Zone XI) Vikram Deshpande, conducted the raid at around 3pm in several lodges, resorts and two-star hotels in the vicinity of Madh Island and Aksa. They said officials knocked on the doors of rooms and rounded up nearly 40 couples and took them to the police station.
A youngster (name withheld) caught in the raid said, "The police first insulted all of us in front of all the officers and the other couples and then forced us to call our parents and insulted and disgraced us in front of them. They also made the parents feel guilty as if their children had committed some heinous crime." He added that they were taken to the police station at around 5pm and many of them were allowed to go only by 10pm. "I am literally contemplating ending my life because of the trauma and the stigma from the raid. I haven't been able to step out of the house and my parents have also not spoken a single word to me since this morning," a 19-year-old girl said. Another 21-year-old woman was slapped by a female police constable when she refused to pay the fine.
"I am not a prostitute. I am an adult who was out with my fiancé, who I am supposed to marry next month, to find some privacy. I had entered my name in the hotel register with my identity proof and also handed over the relevant documents when asked by the cops. But, when I tried to tell a female constable all of this, she slapped me," said the girl. "Do we have freedom as citizens of India? How can you fine and demean us and intrude into our privacy. If you want to take legal action, fine the hotels or lodges if any of them allow immoral activities like prostitution to go on in their premises. Making love to the person of my choice in a private room doesn't amount to indecent behaviour in public. You can't just harass us because a DCP (Deputy Commissioner of Police) orders a raid," she added. Senior Inspector Milind Khetale confirmed the raid and said that the couples were fined under Section 110 (Indecent behaviour in public) of the Bombay Police Act and three cases were also registered under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act.
Traumatised by the incident, a 19-year-old girl said that she is contemplating committing suicide because of the stigma and because her parents aren't talking to her anymore. Another 21-year-old girl, who had gone to a hotel with her fiance, whom she is supposed to marry next month, says she was slapped by a female constable for daring to protest against the action. According to officials, a team from the Malwani police, under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner (Zone XI) Vikram Deshpande, conducted the raid at around 3pm in several lodges, resorts and two-star hotels in the vicinity of Madh Island and Aksa. They said officials knocked on the doors of rooms and rounded up nearly 40 couples and took them to the police station.
A youngster (name withheld) caught in the raid said, "The police first insulted all of us in front of all the officers and the other couples and then forced us to call our parents and insulted and disgraced us in front of them. They also made the parents feel guilty as if their children had committed some heinous crime." He added that they were taken to the police station at around 5pm and many of them were allowed to go only by 10pm. "I am literally contemplating ending my life because of the trauma and the stigma from the raid. I haven't been able to step out of the house and my parents have also not spoken a single word to me since this morning," a 19-year-old girl said. Another 21-year-old woman was slapped by a female police constable when she refused to pay the fine.
"I am not a prostitute. I am an adult who was out with my fiancé, who I am supposed to marry next month, to find some privacy. I had entered my name in the hotel register with my identity proof and also handed over the relevant documents when asked by the cops. But, when I tried to tell a female constable all of this, she slapped me," said the girl. "Do we have freedom as citizens of India? How can you fine and demean us and intrude into our privacy. If you want to take legal action, fine the hotels or lodges if any of them allow immoral activities like prostitution to go on in their premises. Making love to the person of my choice in a private room doesn't amount to indecent behaviour in public. You can't just harass us because a DCP (Deputy Commissioner of Police) orders a raid," she added. Senior Inspector Milind Khetale confirmed the raid and said that the couples were fined under Section 110 (Indecent behaviour in public) of the Bombay Police Act and three cases were also registered under the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act.
Woman caught at airport with $38,500 hidden inside her body
A fashion designer was arrested at an airport in Colombia with at least $38,500 hidden in latex-covered capsules inside her body.
The unnamed 39-year-old arrived at the capital’s El Dorado airport on a flight from Mexico on Wednesday with 46 of the capsules in her stomach and 14 in her vagina. She had also hidden some cash inside sanitary pads in her suitcase.
Scanners picked up the capsules and she was taken to a hospital, where she remains because she has been unable to expel the final six capsules, General Gustavo Moreno, head of the customs police, said.
Colombia supplies around 90% of the cocaine consumed in the US and drug mules often swallow small capsules of cocaine. However, it is much rarer to find people using the tactic to smuggle cash in excess of the $10,000 legal limit. Moreno said instances have increased recently because the strength of the US dollar encourages drug criminals to repatriate profits.
There's a short video here.
The unnamed 39-year-old arrived at the capital’s El Dorado airport on a flight from Mexico on Wednesday with 46 of the capsules in her stomach and 14 in her vagina. She had also hidden some cash inside sanitary pads in her suitcase.
Scanners picked up the capsules and she was taken to a hospital, where she remains because she has been unable to expel the final six capsules, General Gustavo Moreno, head of the customs police, said.
Colombia supplies around 90% of the cocaine consumed in the US and drug mules often swallow small capsules of cocaine. However, it is much rarer to find people using the tactic to smuggle cash in excess of the $10,000 legal limit. Moreno said instances have increased recently because the strength of the US dollar encourages drug criminals to repatriate profits.
There's a short video here.
Garden gnome and toy gun used in robbery
Police are appealing for assistance following the report of a motorist being robbed in Sydney, Australia, early on Saturday morning.
At about 2.30am a 33-year-old man was sitting alone in his car parked in Smithfield.
The man told police he heard footsteps approaching and then the sound of windows smashing. He turned to see four males next to his car and one of the men was smashing the car windows with a garden gnome.
One of the men then punched the driver several times in the face before he produced what was believed was a black-coloured gun. The driver was punched again by the man before cash was taken from the driver’s wallet. The four men then ran from the scene. The driver returned to his house and contacted police who attended a short time later.
Officers from Fairfield Local Area Command established a crime scene at the location and secured the victim’s car. A garden gnome and a toy black pistol were found nearby and secured for forensic examination. Fairfield detectives are conducting investigations into the robbery and are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed the robbery to contact police.
There's a news video here.
The man told police he heard footsteps approaching and then the sound of windows smashing. He turned to see four males next to his car and one of the men was smashing the car windows with a garden gnome.
One of the men then punched the driver several times in the face before he produced what was believed was a black-coloured gun. The driver was punched again by the man before cash was taken from the driver’s wallet. The four men then ran from the scene. The driver returned to his house and contacted police who attended a short time later.
Officers from Fairfield Local Area Command established a crime scene at the location and secured the victim’s car. A garden gnome and a toy black pistol were found nearby and secured for forensic examination. Fairfield detectives are conducting investigations into the robbery and are appealing for anyone who may have witnessed the robbery to contact police.
There's a news video here.
Welsh mountain downgraded to hill after experts say it is 23mm too short
A mountain has been officially downgraded to a hill after missing out on the title by 23 millimetres.
Surveyors ruled that Moelwyn Mawr in the Snowdonia range is no longer a mountain after it failed to measure up to the guidelines set out for summits.
A survey team comprised of John Barnard, Graham Jackson and Myrddyn Phillips followed the criteria set out in the definitive guide The Mountains of England & Wales and used the latest GPS technology to measure the mountain. However, under the guidelines, a peak needs to be 2,000ft high and have a 15m height difference between the summit and the land that connects it to the next higher hill.
Moelwyn Mawr was 23 millimetres short of the 15m height difference needed to be officially called a mountain. Mr Barnard said: "The science worked on this one and we have been quite successful. We haven't had one as close as this. But we now have four sets of data - the most data we've had on any hill. The locals are not going to be pleased with us. This wasn't my idea!" He said the testing process was tricky thanks to the Welsh weather.
Mr Jackson said: "When up high in cold and windy weather, doing high staff measurements you have to wait to catch your moment to get a decent reading, those are the difficulties involved. As soon as you step up from sheltered areas you get gusts of 30 to 40 miles per hour. We needed three matching results with three different sets of modern equipment to be definitive, as measuring this marginal nuttall." The downgrading of Moelwyn Mawr means that Wales now only has 189 official mountains, instead of the previous 190.
A survey team comprised of John Barnard, Graham Jackson and Myrddyn Phillips followed the criteria set out in the definitive guide The Mountains of England & Wales and used the latest GPS technology to measure the mountain. However, under the guidelines, a peak needs to be 2,000ft high and have a 15m height difference between the summit and the land that connects it to the next higher hill.
Moelwyn Mawr was 23 millimetres short of the 15m height difference needed to be officially called a mountain. Mr Barnard said: "The science worked on this one and we have been quite successful. We haven't had one as close as this. But we now have four sets of data - the most data we've had on any hill. The locals are not going to be pleased with us. This wasn't my idea!" He said the testing process was tricky thanks to the Welsh weather.
Mr Jackson said: "When up high in cold and windy weather, doing high staff measurements you have to wait to catch your moment to get a decent reading, those are the difficulties involved. As soon as you step up from sheltered areas you get gusts of 30 to 40 miles per hour. We needed three matching results with three different sets of modern equipment to be definitive, as measuring this marginal nuttall." The downgrading of Moelwyn Mawr means that Wales now only has 189 official mountains, instead of the previous 190.
Vet saved woman's life after stress of having family dog put down gave her a cardiac arrest
A woman has been reunited with the vet who saved her life when the stress of having the family dog put down gave her a cardiac arrest.
Lizzie Bevis "turned blue" after Matthew Fry fatally injected Daisy the dog at the vets in Lincolnshire.
The vet performed CPR on her while veterinary nurse Sarah Mainwaring dialled 999.
She later discovered she had long QT syndrome, a heart condition where stress can bring on cardiac arrest. "I'm very lucky," the 30-year-old said. "It's amazing that a vet saved my life. It's usually doctors and paramedics. Obviously they helped of course, without the paramedics I wouldn't be here either." Vets are trained in CPR because they have to perform it on animals, but Mr Fry had never given CPR to a human.
Ms Bevis was also given oxygen, using a mask usually used on cats and dogs. She had taken Daisy the Jack Russell to the vets on 13 July with her mother, who owned the dog, and her sister. She was unable to remember what happened to her. "They said that I sat on the floor because I felt faint," said Ms Bevis. "And the next thing my sister told me is that I was starting to breathe funny and making rasping sounds and I started turning blue."
YouTube link.
Mr Fry, who works at Quarrington Veterinary Surgery in Sleaford, said it was 'the most stressful Monday morning I've ever had'. "It's nice to have you back, quite literally to have you back," he told Ms Bevan when they were reunited. "Given the stress, I had considered banning you from the surgery. I thought we can't do that again but we'll make an exception, particularly as you bought us a very nice cake."
She later discovered she had long QT syndrome, a heart condition where stress can bring on cardiac arrest. "I'm very lucky," the 30-year-old said. "It's amazing that a vet saved my life. It's usually doctors and paramedics. Obviously they helped of course, without the paramedics I wouldn't be here either." Vets are trained in CPR because they have to perform it on animals, but Mr Fry had never given CPR to a human.
Ms Bevis was also given oxygen, using a mask usually used on cats and dogs. She had taken Daisy the Jack Russell to the vets on 13 July with her mother, who owned the dog, and her sister. She was unable to remember what happened to her. "They said that I sat on the floor because I felt faint," said Ms Bevis. "And the next thing my sister told me is that I was starting to breathe funny and making rasping sounds and I started turning blue."
YouTube link.
Mr Fry, who works at Quarrington Veterinary Surgery in Sleaford, said it was 'the most stressful Monday morning I've ever had'. "It's nice to have you back, quite literally to have you back," he told Ms Bevan when they were reunited. "Given the stress, I had considered banning you from the surgery. I thought we can't do that again but we'll make an exception, particularly as you bought us a very nice cake."
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