Broken Honduras

A father crusades to get justice for his slain son_and fix a profoundly broken Honduras

 In a capital so dangerous that only the "walking dead" are said to venture out after dark, nothing could draw an obedient son from the safety of his parents' suburban home into the deserted night.
Nothing, that is, but a girl.
Ebed Yanes had friended her on Facebook. They had chatted and the studious 15-year-old was desperate to meet her. "My parents are still awake," he wrote her that Saturday night in May. "I'll shower while they go to bed and I'll get the keys to the motorcycle."
What do homicide statistics mean to a high school freshman in the grip of a young crush? A murder rate of 91 per 100,000 residents may make Honduras the most violent country in the world, but to Ebed those odds weren't grim enough to keep him home.
He crept downstairs, climbed onto his father's motorcycle and disappeared into the dark in search of the girl.
He never found her. "I don't know where you are," he texted. "I've been looking for 45 minutes but now I better get back before the soldiers catch me."
Police are so chronically outgunned by the criminals that the government had declared a state of emergency, allowing the army to patrol the streets. At this late hour, soldiers would have set up a roadblock. Ebed wasn't carrying the motorcycle registration, and he didn't want to be stopped, caught sneaking out of the house despite everything his father had taught him.
Honduras is a broken country. The political system is so weak that just three years ago the president was ousted in a coup carried out by the army and endorsed by the Supreme Court. Poverty is second only to Haiti's in the Western Hemisphere. An estimated three quarters of the cocaine flown from South America to the United States passes through this Central American country, the epicenter of the U.S. government's war on drug trafficking. The violence, according to the World Health Organization, is "epidemic."
Ebed knew he lived in a perilous country. But there was this lovely girl, and he so wanted to meet her. It was just one night. It was spring. He was young.
And by 1:30 a.m., he was dead, slumped over his father's motorcycle with a bullet to the back of his head.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/11/12/father-crusades-to-get-justice-for-slain-teenage-son-and-fix-profoundly-broken/#ixzz2C8crEriD

Radical Islamist Cleric

 A radical Islamist cleric described by prosecutors as a key AL-Qaida operative in Europe was jeered by protesters Tuesday after he was freed from prison following a court ruling that he cannot be deported to Jordan to face terrorism charges.
Abu Qatada was seen smiling as he was driven away from Long Lartin maximum security jail in Worcestershire, central England, in a black MPV.
As the Palestinian-born Jordanian cleric arrived at his home in London, a small number of demonstrators gathered to demand his expulsion from Britain, holding aloft a banner that read: "Get rid of Abu Qatada."
Britain's government has attempted since 2001 to remove Abu Qatada, who was convicted in his absence in Jordan over terror plots in 1999 and 2000, but has been repeatedly thwarted by European and British courts.
The cleric won bail at a hearing Monday, when the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, which handles major terrorism and deportation cases, upheld his challenge to Britain's decision to send him to Jordan.
Judge John Mitting said he was not convinced the cleric would receive a fair trial, despite the government's insistence that it has won assurances from Jordan over how Abu Qatada's case would be handled — including from Jordan's King Abdullah II. Cameron's office said Abdullah would visit Britain next week.
Mitting said there remained a real risk that evidence obtained through torture would be used against Abu Qatada, which would be a breach of his human rights.
Jordan's acting Information Minister Nayef al-Fayez said Tuesday that the kingdom's constitution and a constitutional court "guarantee a fair trial" for Abu Qatada.
Under the terms of his bail, Mitting said, the cleric must observe a 16-hour curfew, wear an electronic anklet, cannot use the Internet and is barred from contacting certain people.
Britain's government has said it will appeal against Mitting's ruling, arguing that he applied the wrong criteria in making his decision.
"We are going to challenge it, we are going to take it to appeal. We are absolutely determined to see this man get on a plane and go back to Jordan. He does not belong here," Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg told ITV television Tuesday.
Abu Qatada has previously been described in courts in Britain and Spain as a senior al-Qaida figure in Europe who had close ties to the late Osama bin Laden.
He is accused by Britain of links with Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person charged in the United States over the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and with shoe bomber Richard Reid. Audio recordings of some of the cleric's sermons were found in an apartment in Hamburg, Germany, used by some of the Sept. 11 hijackers.
Authorities first tried to deport Abu Qatada in 2001, then detained him in 2002 under anti-terrorism laws, which at the time allowed suspected terrorists to be jailed without charge.
Though he was released in 2005 when the unpopular law was overturned, the cleric was kept under close surveillance. He was most recently arrested in April, to be held in custody pending his planned deportation to Jordan.

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico (CNN) -- Attorneys for the Honolulu bounty hunter arrested in the capture of fugitive rapist Andrew Luster told CNN that Duane "Dog" Chapman and four others were on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, when they spotted the suspect.
They said the five -- who have been charged with illegal deprivation of freedom and criminal association -- weren't in Mexico for the purpose of arresting Luster.
The five are Chapman, his son, his brother and two members of a TV crew , ostensibly on hand to tape Luster's capture.
The men have been free on $1,500 bond each but have been ordered to stay in Puerto Vallarta and check in with authorities every week.
Mexican police took Luster, Chapman and the other four men into custody Tuesday night after stopping two SUVs in which they were riding.
The bounty hunter and his team allegedly had subdued Luster outside a Puerto Vallarta nightclub after a struggle, put him in a vehicle and left the scene, police said.
Chapman's attorneys said the five happened to be out one night dining when they spotted and recognized Luster. They then decided to apprehend him.
Previously, Chapman told police his objective was to capture Luster and return him to the United States, and the TV crew was on hand to record the capture of the wealthy fugitive.
In a Court TV interview, Chapman earlier said that his pursuit of Luster had become "personal."
"I'm a bounty hunter, this is the No. 1 fugitive in America, and I'm on his ass," Chapman said. "This one has become personal. If one of the victims comes up to me and says, 'Dog, thank you,' that's it. I'm paid."
A Jalisco state judicial source confirmed that the attorneys filed a written declaration to the court saying that capturing Luster was an incidental aside to Chapman's vacation.

Andrew Luster arrives in Los Angeles last week.

The source said the claim contradicts an earlier statement to police from the TV crew contending the five purposely went to Mexico to apprehend Luster.
Luster, the great-grandson of cosmetics tycoon Max Factor, fled California in January in the middle of his trial on 86 counts stemming from the rapes of three women who were apparently incapacitated with GHB, the "date rape" drug. At the time, he was free on $1 million bond.
After his disappearance, the jury convicted him in absentia, and he was sentenced to 124 years in prison. He was returned to California Thursday and taken to a state prison to begin serving that sentence.
Chapman, who claims to have captured more than 6,000 fugitives, began tracking Luster the day after he disappeared, hoping to claim some of the proceeds from the forfeited bond. But Mexican officials said he was not authorized to track Luster and take him into custody in Mexico. The Jalisco source said bounty hunting is illegal in Mexico.

Duane Chapman

(CNN) -- Duane "Dog" Chapman, the self-proclaimed world's most-famous bounty hunter who achieved notoriety nabbing thousands of bail jumpers was arrested Thursday for allegedly jumping bail in Mexico.
U.S. marshals arrested the star of the A&E reality show "Dog the Bounty Hunter" at his home in Hawaii at the request of the Mexican government.
Chapman was wanted in connection with his highly publicized 2003 capture of Max Factor cosmetics heir Andrew Luster, who fled to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, after skipping out on a $1 million bail. (Watch how the bounty hunter landed in the doghouse -- 2:05)
Luster was later convicted in-absentia on 86 charges involving drugging three women with the date-rape drug, GHB, and raping them. Luster is serving a 124-year sentence. (Full story)
Chapman's son, Leland, also was arrested Thursday, as was colleague Tim Chapman, who is unrelated but considered a "blood brother" by Dog, according to the reality show's Web site.
Marshals knocked on the door of Chapman's home just after 6 a.m., and they entered the home after the unlatched door came open, said Deputy U.S. Marshal Jay Bieber.
Chapman was cooperative, Bieber said. He was handcuffed and placed in the back of a government vehicle.
Chapman's wife, Beth, told MSNBC her husband was being held in a federal detention center in Honolulu.
The arrest warrant is under seal, and charges are expected to be announced Friday when Chapman is scheduled to appear before a magistrate's court in Honolulu.
Larry Butrick, chief of the criminal division of the U.S. attorney's office in Hawaii, said Chapman was arrested by Mexican authorities in June 2003 on charges of illegal detention and conspiracy.
The magistrate will determine whether Chapman can be extradited to Mexico, and the final decision will be made by the U.S. secretary of state, according to the U.S. attorney's office in Hawaii.
Mexican police said that the three men subdued Luster outside a nightclub, put him in an SUV and drove off June 18, 2003. Police stopped the vehicles soon afterward and took the men into custody.
Chapman and his crew were not authorized to track Luster and take him into custody in Mexico, Mexican officials said at the time, adding that bounty hunting is illegal in Mexico.
Judge Jose de Jesus Pineda ordered the three men to stand trial on charges of unlawful detention and deprivation of freedom, charges which carry sentences of up to four years in prison.
Pineda granted the men bail -- $1,500 each -- but the three were supposed to check in regularly with police and get Pineda's permission before traveling outside the Mexican state of Jalisco, a prosecutor said.
The men did not, supervising prosecutor Marco Roberto Suarez said in July 2003, threatening to have the men arrested and returned to Mexico if they missed their scheduled appearance before Pineda.
The following month, Superior Court Judge Edward Brodie in Ventura County, California, ruled that Chapman was not entitled to any of the $1 million in bail money forfeited by Luster when he fled to Mexico. (Full story)
"I cannot do vigilante justice," Brodie said. "In my view, you violated state statutes and Mexican statutes. Therefore you are not entitled to any restitution."
Chapman later said he was proud that he had captured Luster, but regretted doing it "in the wrong way."
"Dog the Bounty Hunter," in which Chapman and his family chase down bail jumpers and other fugitives, is one of A&E's most popular series. It is in its third season.

Bryan Stow

Los Angeles (CNN) -- The man alleged to be the "primary aggressor" in the brutal beating of a San Francisco Giants fan at Dodgers Stadium was arrested Sunday and ordered held on $1 million bail, Los Angeles police said.
Police said Giovanni Ramirez, 31, was taken into custody shortly after 7 a.m. after police served warrants at a home and an apartment building in connection with the assault that put Bryan Stow, a 42-year-old father of two from Santa Cruz, California, into a coma.
Stow was attacked in the stadium parking lot following the first game of the Dodgers' and Giants' seasons on March 31. His mother, Ann Stow, told HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell last week that it "was a random act of violence against somebody who was wearing Giants' colors."
For most of Sunday, police withheld Ramirez's identity until his booking Sunday evening on an assault with a deadly weapon charge. In addition to Ramirez's arrest in East Hollywood, police seized evidence and detained several others -- all of whom Los Angeles police said they expected to release after they were questioned.
"This investigation is in its very early stages," Police Chief Charlie Beck said Sunday afternoon outside the stadium. "There are at least two other suspects who we are actively looking for."

Arrest made in Giants fan beating

Giants president: 'Comforting'

RELATED TOPICS

• Bryan Stow
• Los Angeles Dodgers
• Dodger Stadium
• San Francisco Giants
• Brain and Nerve Health

Stow's assault galvanized law enforcement and other authorities in Los Angeles, and security was clamped down at the park in the Chavez Ravine section of Los Angeles.
More than 300 billboards -- which advertise "Wanted" and "Attempted Murder at Dodger Stadium" -- sprung up around the Southern California city, featuring composite sketches of the suspects. Meanwhile, a $250,000 reward including money from the Dodgers, Giants' ace pitcher Tim Lincecum and others was offered for information that led to the beating suspects' arrest.
Police make use of billboards

Beck assigned 20 detectives to work full-time on the case, saying that as of Sunday afternoon they'd cumulatively worked more than 6,000 hours -- about 1,000 of those hours on overtime.
He added that police had pursued more than 630 leads from the public and law enforcement. That included a tip from a parole officer that Beck said led to Sunday morning's arrest.
"No matter how small or insignificant it may have seemed at the time, each fact was a critical piece," Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said of the tips. "And hard work, around the clock, brought us to this (moment) today."
Like Beck, Los Angeles City Council member Ed Reyes urged the two remaining suspects to turn themselves in.
"We're not going to stop," Reyes said. "Let's end this."
Dodgers spokesman Howard Sunkin, reading a statement from owner Frank McCourt, applauded the Los Angeles police force, pledged the team's full commitment to the probe and promised to make Dodgers Stadium "the safest sports venue in the United States."
Giants President Laurence Baer told CNN affiliate KGO that the arrest was "comforting" for the team and its fans, adding his best hope is that the incident might spur more civility at sporting events.
"It's been sort of a cloud over the organization," Baer said, adding that he expected Giants' players will likely visit the ailing Stow. "That there's an arrest (and) they can bring someone to justice is ... meaningful."
Stow, a paramedic by training, had gone to the game with friends in celebration of the Giants' World Series victory last season, a relative said.
After the game, the two men came up to him in the parking lot and -- unprovoked -- began kicking and punching him while yelling profanities about the Giants, police said.
Ann Stow said her son was first hit from behind, at which point he fell and his head hit the concrete.
Mother is angry at those who just stood by

"It was just a brutal attack," she said. "Whatever that guy hit my son with, Bryan was unconscious before he hit the ground, so he had no way to protect his head."
The attackers fled in a light-colored sedan driven by a woman with a young boy -- believed to be about 10 years old -- inside, said police.
Stow was taken out of a medically induced coma over a week ago, and has since shown signs of some cognitive function, Los Angeles neurosurgeon Dr. Gabriel Zada said. Stow also has "some movement" in his arms and legs, the doctor said.
He was transferred last week from Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center to San Francisco General and Trauma Center, bringing him closer to his home, Zada said.
Stow has been able to open his eyes in recent days -- a positive sign, said his mother, even though he still can't focus and is not looking around.
His children know about their father's condition, but still haven't seen him in the hospital, Stow's sister, Bonnie Stow, told HLN. The whole family, she said, is pulling for his recovery and hoping that any brain damage is minimal.

"I don't think it's a matter of him surviving," said Bonnie Stow. "It's just a matter of what he'll be, if and when he wakes up."