McDonalds Thief Gets Burned

A thief trying to rob a McDonalds restaurant in Surrey, B.C., gets more than he bargained for. He gets doused with a liter of boiling cooking oil!

Police said just before midnight Wednesday, the man walked up to the drive-thru window of the restaurant at 96th Avenue and 160th Street.

With his face partially covered by his shirt, the man pulled a knife and ordered the cashier to hand over some money. He then reached in through the window with his arms and head to grab money from the cash register.

When the cashier started yelling, it prompted a fellow worker to act, said Sgt. Roger Morrow of the Surrey RCMP.

"One of the other staffers ... in the restaurant grabbed some kind of a container ... I don't have the specifics to what type, and ends up throwing what we estimate to be about a litre of boiling oil onto the robber's face, his head and neck," said Morrow.

The man then fled, leaving most, but not all of the cash behind. It's thought he may have suffered second-degree burns. Police are now looking for a South Asian male, about six feet tall, 20 to 25 years old, with burns on his hands, neck and face.

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R.I.P. Dexter Hammond

So often we forget what it is we are really asking our law enforcement officers to do. We are asking them to protect each and every one of us, to keep us safe, to keep the peace and to uphold the law.....even if it means that they have to pay the ultimate sacrifice.

In the year 2008, 133 officers lost their lives in the line of duty. As of April 29 2009, 44 have done the same. They are all heroes.

Dexter Hammond is a hero. He was 38 years old when he paid the ultimate price on Friday, April 24, 2009. The 16-year veteran ex-police chief, husband, father, son and friend was laid to rest on April 28, 2009. The event was witnessed by a crowd of over 1,000 people including about 400 police officers.

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"There continue to be men as brave as Dexter Hammond who are willing to step in harms way to make sure we are safe. My prayers go out to his family, may God bless them and console them." said Alabama Attorney General Troy King.

"As I visited with Chrissy and Cody and as I look at this headland police badge, it reminds me of the terrible cost at which our safety comes. We are not safe in this state because of an accident; our safety has been paid for by the blood of heroes like Dexter Hammond"

After the service, officers formed a gauntlet as the flag-draped casket was carried out of the building. A friend on Hammond's Harley Davidson led the procession of more than 200 cars to the graveside at the Memorial Garden Cemetery in Eufaula. His leather vest rested on the motorcycle's Plexiglas shield.

Click here for scenes from the funeral. To read and/or contribute reflections on Dexter Hammond click here. To visit the Officers Down Memorial Page click here.

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Couple Charged in Baby's Death

On Thursday, April 23rd 2009, 11-month-old Anany Nitay Sanchez of Newburgh, New York died. An autopsy revealed that she died of "blunt force trauma to her liver".

On Friday police arrested Christian F. Lujan, 29, on a charge of second-degree manslaughter for recklessly causing the death of the baby. Lujan is not the baby's father. His bail was set at $250,000. Judge Peter Kulkin said he wouldn’t base the bail amount on any speculation of future charges although, “the facts may very well result in a higher charge.”

On Monday police also arrested Desiree Miranda, 20, the baby's mother, on charges she assaulted her baby daughter in October 2008, six months before the little girl’s death. Her bail was set at $50,000.

On Tuesday they both appeared in court in an investigation that involved the City of Newburgh Police, Orange County Child Abuse Task Force, the State Police and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.

Desiree Miranda had taken her daughter, little Anany Nitay Sanchez, to St. Luke's Hospital on Thursday evening because her baby had been sick for a couple of days and was having trouble breathing. While being examined at the hospital, the staff noticed that the baby had prior injuries that were still healing.

The hospital called the police and the baby was transferred to Westchester Medical Center, where she underwent an emergency operation. The doctors were not able to save Anany's life. An autopsy the following day revealed that blunt force trauma to Anany’s liver killed her.

While in court on Tuesday, Desiree Miranda appeared on the verge of collapse. Her attorney, Doug Jones, said there was no proof she’d done anything wrong in October and she had taken the baby to see the doctor several times since then. She most recently saw a doctor in March when the baby was spitting blood. The doctor attributed it to a cold or infection. According to Jones, Anany went home with her mother after each visit.

City Judge Peter Kulkin noted Miranda’s inconsolable condition Tuesday but said she “didn’t seem to have a care in the world” when he arraigned her Monday, before she knew she would be incarcerated. He set her bail at $50,000.

The baby's father, 20-year-old Armando Sanchez, is serving time in prison on drug-related charges. He was incarcerated before his daughter was born. He is due to be released in November.

His brother, Wilfredo Sanchez, said Armando was told about his daughter in prison and he was hysterical when they told him. Anany would have been a year old on Sunday.

“He never held her,” Wilfredo said. “He never kissed her. He never saw her.”

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Shooting at Hampton University

Three unnamed persons were in hospital, recovering from gunshot wounds they received on the grounds of Hampton University on Sunday (4/26/09). They include the 18-year-old gunman himself and his two victims - a 43-year-old pizza deliveryman and the 62-year-old night manager of the dormitory, Harkness Hall, at Hampton University. All three are expected to recover fully. No students were involved in the incident.

Hampton President William R. Harvey said he arrived within 15 minutes of the shooting and a lock down was already in place. Harkness Hall had been evacuated. He told a news conference the campus shooting could have been much worse.

"I think we are very, very fortunate. This could have been another — you fill in the blank," Harvey said. "The Hampton University community is praying for those injured in this tragic incident."

See the complete statement from President William R. Harvey here.

Per university policy, all students, faculty and staff were notified about the situation via text message and e-mail. David Wilkins, a freshman from Germantown, Md., said when he and his fellow dorm mates left Harkness they were instructed to go to other dorms.

"A lot of people didn't know what was going on in Harkness," Wilkins said of other students on campus. He said the first alert wasn't issued until 2:30 a.m.

Hampton officials said the first alert was issued at 2 a.m. They defended the timing of the alerts but Harvey said: "We'll go over every aspect of this."

The incident began around 1 am Sunday morning when a 18-year-old former student, armed with three guns, apparently parked his car off campus to avoid a vehicle checkpoint at Hampton's main gate. He followed the pizza delivery man on foot to Harkness Hall, the freshman dormitory. Once inside, he shot the pizza man and entered the monitor's office and fired three shots at him. He then shot himself, Hampton University Police Chief Leroy Crosby said.

The monitor was hit three times - twice in the arms and once in the leg. He was taken to hospital where he was treated and released.

"He feels, as I do, that he was extremely lucky and blessed," Harvey said of the monitor.

Jelani Holland, 18, a freshman from Los Angeles, said he and other students were playing music and video games in the all-male freshman dormitory when they heard a fire alarm sound early Sunday. As they left their rooms, they saw the delivery man shot in the neck and stomach outside the monitor's office. Police were applying pressure to his wounds, he said. "He was shaking a lot and talking with police," Holland said.

The pizza delivery man and the gunman were taken to hospital where they remain in stable condition. Hampton police Cpl. Paula Ensley said Sunday afternoon the suspect had not yet been charged but no other details in the case were being released. No motive was given for the gunman's attack.

Hampton University is a private school in southeastern Virginia with about 5,700 students. It was founded in 1868 during Reconstruction to educate black leaders for the newly freed slaves.

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Ex-Police Chief Killed in Shootout

Headland Police Officer and Chief Investigator Dexter Hammond was killed with a single shot from a high-power rifle by 53-year-old Fred Davis who also shot and seriously wounded Henry County Sheriff Deputy Ted Yost. Davis himself was shot and killed by responding police officers.

Dexter Hammond was the Midland City police chief for years, just recently leaving the position last November. Read more details on the shootout here.

Ted Yost, who was shot three times in the head and face, remains in Intensive Care at Southeast Alabama Medical Center. Officials fear he may be blind in both eyes.

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No-one knows exactly what caused Fred Davis to go berserk on Friday (4/24/09) but according to neighbors and witnesses, the Granberry Crossroads resident suffered from severe mood swings.

"He just snapped," says Henry County Sheriff Will Maddox referring to Davis. "We have been here numerous times over the year and he always complied with officers. But this time he ambushed the officers."

Gerald Granberry who has lived across County Road 55 from Fred Davis for the past 8 years has a different story to tell. Granberry says Davis was retired as a maintenance worker from Wallace Community College. He says Davis has driven him out of town to the doctor multiple times. He also helped Granberry build a shed outside his home. Granberry and Davis spoke "just about every day."

"He was as good as gold and I will miss him," says Granberry. "I couldn't of had a better neighbor."

However that "good neighbor" wreaked havoc on the lives of two police officers, their families and their friends and shocked an entire community. When the call went out at 4:55 pm on Friday concerning gunshots being fired at 5501 Co. Rd 55, Dexter and his colleagues did not hesitate to respond.

"Usually when you get gunshots or something bad going on, the average person runs the other way," says Chief Jones. "Law enforcement runs to it. And that's Dexter. The shots came out with officer down and he didn't hesitate."

"The city is in shock," adds Mayor of Headland Ray Marler. "We are a close knit family. Dexter was not only a great employee but a good friend."

Dexter Hammond was well-liked by everyone and had a reputation for joking around.

"Everybody loved him, and he was always joking and kidding around," says Chief Jones. "In the office everyone would run from him taking pictures because he would turn them into cartoons up on the wall. That was Dexter. He never had a hard heart for anyone."

Condolences on the death of Dexter Hammond have been pouring in from friends, loved ones and well-wishers. You can read what others are saying and send your own thoughts in this special online tribute by clicking here.

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