Feds Probe SC Highway Cops for Bias

'Massive' crosses violate separation of church, state

(NEWSER) - Erecting roadside crosses for fallen members of Utah's Highway Patrol is unconstitutional, a federal appeals court has decided. The 10th US Circuit Court of Appeals, addressing a lawsuit launched by an atheist group, said the memorials—which typically stand twelve feet high and include photographs and biographical information—constitute government endorsement of Christianity, reports the Christian Science Monitor . More»

Young black woman faces 15 years in dust-up at Wal-Mart

(NEWSER) - Trial is set to begin in a case of Wal-Mart line-cutting that has turned into a racially charged media circus. Heather Ellis was arrested almost three years ago after an incident that began when she switched checkout lines at a Missouri store—to join her cousin in a faster queue, she says. Witnesses and police say the young black woman shoved other shoppers’ merchandise out of the way and then, when confronted, became belligerent. She gave one cop a kick in the chin and another a split lip, they say. She says she was called racial slurs and "jumped on" even though she wasn't resisting. More»

They reject his 'legitimacy as president'

(NEWSER) - Jimmy Carter was right when he said racism fuels some of President Obama's critics, Eugene Robinson writes for the Washington Post. Carter may have overstated it—plenty of naysayers have legit policy concerns over issues such as health reform—but "the most vitriolic attacks" reject Obama's "legitimacy as president," Robinson writes. "I can't find any explanation for it other than race." More»

(NEWSER) - The Boston police officer suspended for referring to Henry Louis Gates as a “banana-eating jungle monkey” is suing the city and the department for violating his civil rights, the Globe reports. The BPD, police commissioner, and mayor are “conspiring to intentionally inflict emotional distress” and interfering with Justin Barrett’s “property rights, due process rights, and civil rights,” the suit claims. More»

(NEWSER) - Every time a cop pulls someone over, he or she is liable to hear an excuse. And every so often, a driver manages to surprise even the most jaded ticket-writer, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Like the pair of Frenchmen one officer caught speeding on Highway 101. They’d studied US driving laws and were sure speed limits were posted on white signs with black numbers—like the one reading “101.” The cop let them off. More»