Police Officer Arrested for being the Victim of a sick Joke

By The Associated Press



WOODLAND PARK — A Passaic County police officer sent a 12-year-old girl explicit photos of himself in uniform and tried to set up a sexual encounter with her, days after meeting the girl while assisting her family in an unrelated police matter, authorities said today.

Woodland Park Police Officer Steven Vigorito Jr. pleaded not guilty in Superior Court in Paterson to charges ranging from attempted aggravated sexual assault to luring and enticing a child.

He was being held in lieu of $250,000 bail following his arrest while on duty Tuesday night. A message left after-hours for the public defender who represented him at the arraignment was not returned.

Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes said the girl’s mother complained to the police department Monday that the officer had made inappropriate comments to her daughter, had given her his private cell phone number and had asked her to text him.

Woodland Park Police Chief Anthony Galietti said they immediately contacted the prosecutor’s office, whose detectives posed as the girl and started exchanging texts with Vigorito.

The texts became increasingly explicit over the course of several days, prosecutors said. Vigorito eventually texted the girl photographs in which he was exposing himself while wearing his police uniform and arranged to meet her for a sexual encounter, prosecutors alleged.

The girl was never in harm’s way, and never exchanged texts with the officer, Valdes said.

"What is so disturbing about this, is the person who was to assist the family, ends up preying on the family," Valdes said.

The 39-year-old Vigorito has been with the police department for 12 years in Woodland Park, a small suburb about 15 miles from Manhattan. The town, known until a recent voter-approved name change as West Paterson, is a bucolic, leafy borough of neatly landscaped homes adjacent to Paterson, a grittier, more industrialized urban neighbor.

Vigorito, who New York television station WABC-7 reported is a married father of two, was arrested Tuesday night in the police station while on the night shift,

according to Galietti, who said the patrolman was suspended without pay pending the outcome of the investigation.

The arrest of one of the 25 officers on the force has shaken the small department, Galietti said.

"It’s very upsetting, when you have one of your own do something like this. It’s very upsetting," he said. Galietti added that department officials had acted immediately upon receiving the family’s complaint about the officer, and had no hesitation in alerting the prosecutor’s office.

"When this came to light we went into it head-on. We didn’t care if it was one of our own," he said. "I’m the father of five kids, and this is wrong. It’s a very inappropriate situation. Unfortunately, he (Vigorito) had a badge at the time."

Lunch No Longer Required for CA employees

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that employers are under no obligation to ensure that workers take legally mandated lunch breaks in a case that affects thousands of businesses and millions of workers.
The unanimous opinion came after workers' attorneys argued that abuses are routine and widespread when companies aren't required to issue direct orders to take the breaks. They claimed employers take advantage of workers who don't want to leave colleagues during busy times.

The case was initially filed nine years ago against Dallas-based Brinker International, the parent company of Chili's and other eateries, by restaurant workers complaining of missed breaks in violation of California labor law.

But the high court sided with businesses when it ruled that requiring companies to order breaks is unmanageable and that those decisions should be left to workers. The decision provided clarity that businesses had sought regarding the law.

The opinion written by Associate Justice Kathryn Werdegar explained that state law does not compel an employer to ensure employees cease all work during meal periods. It stated that while employers are required to free workers of job duties for a 30-minute meal break, the employee is at liberty to use the time as they choose even if it's to work, she wrote.

"The employer is not obligated to police meal breaks and ensure no work thereafter is performed," Werdegar wrote.

Tracee Lorens, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, said she believed the court's decision still allowed some wiggle room for the case to get class-action certification on the meal break claims. Lorens said she was pleased the court did allow a separate claim regarding the plaintiffs' receiving proper rest breaks to proceed as a class-action.

Class-action lawsuits are brought by one or more plaintiffs on behalf of themselves and others facing the same circumstances, and can
include thousands of people in some cases.

Adam Hohnbaum, a former Chili's bartender and server in Encinitas, Calif., who worked for the chain for about six years, said he was pleased with the court's decision allowing at least the rest break aspect of the suit to move forward.

"Most of the time you didn't get a break or a rest period at all, it just wasn't a part of the daily operation," Hohnbaum said.

Hohnbaum hoped the attention paid to the issue would improve working conditions for current employees.

It was unclear whether the opinion would reduce or increase future class-action lawsuits on the issue because the court did not dismiss the meal break violation claim by workers but instead sent it back to be reargued in trial courts.

Lorens said she will argue to the lower court that Brinker's company meal break policies still violate state wage-and-hour laws, even though the court said employers do not have to police when those breaks are taken.

Roger Thomson, executive vice president and general counsel of Brinker, applauded the court's decision on what he thought was the key issue: whether employers must ensure workers take their breaks.

"That was the biggest issue to us," Thomson said. "It has been allowed for our team members to work through lunch if they want or take the time off instead, and this ruling allows our team members that flexibility," he said.

Finish reading @ yahoo!

LAST NIGHT RON PAUL WAS IN BERKELEY, CA!

UNPRECEDENTED CROWD OF SUPPORTERS AND UNDECIDED VOTERS GREETS DR. PAUL AT FINAL OF THREE CALIFORNIA EVENTS HELD DURING THIS VISIT

LAKE JACKSON, Texas – 2012 Republican Presidential candidate Ron Paul attracted a peculiar 8,500-plus voters to the third of three town hall meetings he held in California this week, this time at UC-Berkeley. In drawing such a huge crowd to Berkeley, the 12-term Congressman from Texas shattered his unrivaled town hall meeting attendance record.

At similar events held yesterday and Tuesday, respectively, Dr. Paul drew remarkable crowds of 6,200-plus voters to Cal State – Chico, and 6,000-plus at UCLA.

Ron Paul’s college campus town hall meeting took place at 7:00 p.m. PST at UC-Berkeley’s Memorial Glade, where he addressed the crowd from atop the steps of Doe Library, Berkeley, CA 94720.

Dr. Paul spoke about his platform of constitutionally-limited government, the enduring bonds between economic and civil liberties, and elements of his ‘Plan to Restore America,’ a fiscal blueprint the cuts Washington spending, shrinks the national debt, and reverses the federal government’s harmful growth and intrusiveness.

Ron Paul’s town hall meetings in California were organized by ‘Youth for Ron Paul’ (YFP). YFP, an initiative of the Ron Paul 2012 Presidential campaign, launched in September 2011, and since its inception, students nationwide have organized 591 chapters and recruited more than 53,600 people. To learn more about ‘Youth for Ron Paul,’ including how to sign-up and establish a local chapter, visit the YFP website by clicking here.

Photographs of Ron Paul’s UC – Berkeley town hall meeting with 8,500-plus voters follow.

MIND MASTERY

What if???

People made choices by the masses, all who are present, cast their vote, and Tally the Votes.

There's The Phone, Hey Mom!

Amazing how he's Not winning any States, or is he?

San Jose meth bust: 750 lbs

A Palo Alto police investigation into stolen iPads has led to one of the largest methamphetamine busts in the country's history, federal investigators said Saturday.

Police and federal agents seized 750 pounds of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of $34 million, from a San Jose apartment Thursday after Palo Alto investigators spotted the drugs while following up on stolen iPads, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

The bust "is one of the largest we are aware of," DEA Special Agent Casey Rettig said.

Investigators found "boxes and boxes and boxes containing bags and bags and bags of methamphetamine" inside the apartment, Rettig said.

The 750 pounds, or 340 kilograms, of methamphetamine confiscated in San Jose is equal to about 16 percent of all methamphetamine seized across the country last year, according to figures on the U.S. Department of Justice website.

Three people were arrested on state drug violations after the raid on an apartment in the 4400 block of Woods Drive, authorities said. They have not released their identities. Rettig described the investigation as "very fluid" and said "there is definitely the potential for more arrests."

The home is part of the Woods, a subdivision in south San Jose that its website highlights as a "park-like setting of mature trees, formal landscaped gardens, greenbelts and tranquil ponds maintained to award-winning standards."

Palo Alto detectives pursuing the electronics theft conducted a preliminary search of the apartment and saw "a large quantity of methamphetamine," according to the DEA. They then called in help from San Jose police and the Santa Clara County district attorney, who called the DEA.

Investigators believe the home was being used both as a residence and as a laboratory where powdered methamphetamine was converted into a crystal form, also referred to as "ice." Such methamphetamine has an appearance often described as that of broken glass or shattered ice and is ingested by smoking, federal officials said.

Rettig said it was too early in the investigation to link the lab to known drug cartels or trafficking networks, but she indicated that the trend in large methamphetamine busts in Central and Northern California involves ice conversion labs for drugs primarily smuggled in from Mexico.

Last month, the Mexican army seized 15 tons of pure methamphetamine with an estimated U.S. street value of $4 billion. The sheer size of the haul from that raid in western Mexico "could potentially put a huge dent in the supply chain in the U.S," DEA spokesman Rusty Payne said at the time.

Investigators in the San Jose raid also found stolen items that had initially led Palo Alto police there, Rettig said, including iPads.

Chronicle news services and San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Jill Tucker contributed to this report.

John Coté is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.

Eight Reasons Why Romney Won't Receive Nomination

There’s a good a chance Mitt Romney will win the primaries in Arizona and Michigan tonight, drawing that much closer to the Republican nomination. But the media’s portrayal of him has been anything but that of a champion—it has been downright withering. Take last week’s economic speech, billed as a major address by his campaign. The coverage was scornful, all but ignoring the news (his proposing a 20 percent income tax cut) and focusing mainly on the empty stadium where the event took place and his latest rich-guy gaffe, when Romney bragged toward the end of his speech about owning four cars, including two Cadillacs—his “fleet of personal vehicles,” as the New York Times drily put it. Romney’s advisers are furious. What’s going on? Here are eight reasons why he’s getting pasted—and why his struggles will likely continue:

1) He’s Hiding: Romney views the press with aspersion, engaging with reporters much less often than Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich. That was a viable strategy back when his winning the nomination seemed a lock, but Romney’s ahead by an inch, not a mile, and he’s getting punished for pretending otherwise. Denied access or real news, reporters will write about optics and gaffes—and do so with relish.

2) He’s Trying to Run Out the Clock: Romney’s stump speech is a collection of platitudes and the strange ritual recitation of the lyrics to America the Beautiful. As one of his fundraisers put it to John Heilemann of New York magazine: “I have never seen anything more ridiculous or belittling.” This creates the impression that Romney has nothing to say—or worse, has chosen not to say anything substantive—and is trying to coast to the nomination. Reporters feel duty-bound to push back.

3) He’ll Say Anything: Romney has a reputation as someone who will say anything to get ahead. Lately, he’s been struggling, and now—presto!—he has rolled out a new tax cut. Romney isn’t granted the benefit of the doubt, so the assumption is that this is a political ploy, not a bold policy choice.

4) He Wants to Have It Both Ways: Romney’s advisers fault the media for focusing on trivialities, such as the empty stadium, rather than the size of his proposed cut. A big reason why his tax cut wasn’t treated more seriously is that he won’t say how he’ll pay for it—he wants to take credit for the tax cut but avoid the responsibility of funding it.

5) He’s Awkward: It’s hard to recall a likely major-party nominee who was less of a natural politician than Romney. The constant references to his wealth—the $10,000 bet with Rick Perry, the Cadillacs, his quip yesterday about not being an “ardent” Nascar fan but being friends with several team owners—have become a bizarre-but-captivating spectacle, what James Fallows has aptly dubbed “Romney’s gaffe-Tourette’s.”

6) He’s Underperforming: Turnout and enthusiasm in GOP primaries and caucuses are both way down this year. That’s certainly not Romney’s fault alone. But his candidacy in particular is based on the idea that he’s an electable alternative to Barack Obama—yet his own party has obvious qualms about him.

7) He Has Forfeited His Right to Complain: Last November the Romney campaign rolled out its first ad, an attack on President Obama built around a quote taken entirely out of context. In the ad, Obama is heard to say, “if we keep talking about the economy, we’re going to lose.” But Obama was quoting a Republican, John McCain. Oddly, the Romney campaign bragged about having done this “intentionally.” This cost them a large measure of credibility with the press, which became much less receptive to the campaign’s subsequent complaints.

8) He’s a Mystery: Romney has been running for President for six years. He’s highly accomplished in business and government. He has money, good looks, a beautiful family—yet most political insiders feel they don’t understand what makes him tick. That doesn’t appear likely to change, because Romney is so guarded and press averse, yet at the same time he apparently is incapable on his own of making a strong case for his candidacy. Still, Romney supporters can take solace in this fact: Practically nobody believes he won’t wind up as the nominee.

Starved Wisconsin Girl's Statements Detail Her Life

MILWAUKEE (AP) — When the malnourished 15-year-old awoke each morning, she could hear her family eating and getting ready for the day. If she felt especially brave or desperate she would call to her stepmother and beg for food, but usually she just went back to bed and hoped her hunger pangs went away.

The girl was 70 pounds when she was rescued. She told investigators during lengthy interviews at the hospital that most of the food she ate was scraps she found on the floor or in the garbage. She had spent most of five years in the basement of her family's Madison home, where she was beaten and sexually assaulted.

The girl's statements, contained in court documents, paint a troubling picture of physical, mental and sexual abuse. The girl describes running away, only to be found, brought home and threatened. Confined to the basement, she had no one to ask for help. She wasn't allowed to go to school or church, have visitors or talk on the phone.

Dane County officials say the girl is getting help now. She gained 17 pounds after about a week under doctors' care, a criminal complaint said. She has been placed in foster care, and child welfare officials say there's been an outpouring of support from people across the nation, who sent cards and letters.

Her father and stepmother have been charged with child abuse, child neglect and reckless endangerment. The charges carry a maximum combined prison sentence of 11 years, 3 months. The girl's 18-year-old stepbrother is charged with child abuse and child sexual assault and faces 68 years behind bars if convicted.

The three have preliminary hearings set for Thursday morning, and prosecutors say more charges are likely. The Associated Press isn't naming them to avoid identifying the girl. The AP does not usually name victims of sexual assault.

The defendants and their relatives have declined to comment on the charges. The stepbrother's attorney did not immediately return a phone message Monday, and the father and stepmother are still applying for public defenders.

The girl told investigators the abuse started the month she turned 10. Her stepmother beat her, and her stepbrother repeatedly forced her to perform oral sex on him. That's also when the family began keeping her in the basement.

Because it had no bathroom, she said she often bathed in a basement sink that had no hot water and relieved herself in boxes or containers. If she made a mess while doing so, "they will make me eat it. Or drink it or rub it on my face," she said.

She said she was forced to do chores naked and had to call upstairs for permission to eat. She was often told her stepmother was too busy to feed her.

"I know it's a lie," the teen told police. "She's playing with my brother upstairs. I can hear her upstairs watching TV."

She wasted away to 70 pounds. In contrast, police records say her father weighs 240 pounds and her stepmother 370 pounds. The girl implied she could unlock the basement door but said there were motion sensors and an alarm that would draw her stepmother's wrath. Still, she said she fled a couple times, but her parents always found her and threatened to report her to police as a runaway.

Neighbors expressed concern. One called authorities after watching the parents scream at the girl as she was forced to push cement blocks from one side of the yard to the other for no apparent reason. However, the parents blocked county workers from speaking with the girl.

While there might have been more chances to seek help, the girl said she didn't until Feb. 6, when her stepmother threatened to throw her down the stairs. Terrified, barefoot and lightly dressed, the girl bolted through the door and into the cold, wandering aimlessly until a motorist stopped to check on her and eventually contacted police.

"The human brain can only tolerate so much trauma, so much fear," said Ernie Allen, the president of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. "What children in captivity tend to do is figure out whatever they have to do to survive. So we should never be surprised when children don't do heroic things, when they don't try to escape. It's pretty clear that this girl was in a situation in which she had no power, in which every aspect of her life was controlled."

This is a horrific story, hopefully she can begin living a REAL NICE life soon. May God be with her every guiding step, and grant her serenity. This just isn't meant to happen, especially to an innocent little girl. Starvation, her Guardians deserve to be beaten and starved, to teach those sickos Right from Wrong!

Oh Zee

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Military Tanks Spotted in California

Today's Quote

"If the only person could change the world cannot be elected, I guess we can no longer ask for change." Oh Zee - 2012

Feds Say CA Medical Pot Dispensaries are to be shut down

Wait a minute?  The Federal Government is now able to police its citizens?  How growing medical Marijuana for Patients is a Federal Matter?  Don't the FEDS realize they are just going to absolutely Cripple Our Economy, if they remove the 2 Billion dollars a year industry.  Our State Troopers and Local  Police should do their part in defending its Citizens, proctect us from Federal Officers infringing on our State Laws, which is Our Police's Duty to serve and protect our way of life/!!!