the "book" i'm working on

My journey as a Mormon By Jackie Tzou Chapter 1 So, I was walking around and then someone said they’d show me around the next time I was free, which was on my birthday I was like ok. When I 1st came I was super nervous. Now I’m ok with going to church on a regular basis. It’s also to the point now that I don’t mind taking breaks from certain wards for a month at a time if necessary. My friends from a singles ward are super happy whenever I “come back” or “am invited and show up”. I find it torture as I’m like I’m just another person who isn’t super special in any way shape or form as I’m just a friendly face in the crowd. Even if they know where I am, they’re always happy to “have me back” after going somewhere else for a little bit. An example of this would be me getting my eyes checked and coming back after 3 weeks “away” (transferred to my old ward closer to my glasses place). Everyone commented on my new glasses and my matching accessories/ outfit. I said, “it was so weird being back” but everyone loved me being back as they missed me. It’s super annoying but it’s super sweet. Other times people seem to understand me “switching”. Like when I was in the kentlands ward for a few weeks to take care of a family who had lost the mom, who was a dear friend to me. My friends understood and let me switch and come back as needed. I said, “hey. Just got back from the funeral. Didn’t do much as I’m totally numb to the whole thing.” Everyone was sad for me. When I came back for 1 weekend and then went back after game night, I’m like, “idea.” My idea was making the youngest and only girl a crocheted hat and scarf as a pick me up. It was also in harry potter style colors as well as she likes that series. When I was going back after being back in the ward 1 weekend he joked, “buh buh buh I need you.” I shot back, “buh buh buh they need me.” I’d run into an acquaintance who said we hadn’t seen each other in a while. I was too embarrassed to explain where I’d run off to and why especially as I wasn’t super close with that person at that time. During the month of December last year, I’d “taken a break” to take care of the family who had lost the mom 2 months prior and someone had made a point of making sure I knew I was welcome to come to a party. I explained I’d try coming but I was mostly focusing on my friends’ family who had lost the mom 2 months prior and would see them when and if I could. When I started going to the singles ward, I was super nervous. I only knew the leader. As time passed, I’d started making friends and being included even if I was still going to a “family” ward. My 1st activity, I’d ran into someone I’d met on my 1st day at the ward. The 2nd time I’d gone to the singles ward I was still super nervous and wanted to be a fly on the wall rather than join in as I was still nervous. Someone had told me to sit with them. I’m like ok. There are still times I’d rather be a fly on the wall and not say much during church but I’m there for the head count. I wasn’t unfriendly I was just super nervous. I’m not on pins and needles around the singles ward any more. I might be a little nervous around them but not on pins and needles like I was my 1st few times I was there. I’ve done a few “video diaries” at the singles ward. Many people have “guest starred” in those videos. Once I was like hi brother so and so. I’d explained what I was doing. That was a fun thing to do. I’m still occasionally still nervous around my friends from the singles ward. It’s whenever I’m put on the spot or am invited and I’m taking a break for whatever reason. I’m grateful to be included when I’m taking a break. The 1st time I’d taken a significant break someone from the singles ward reminded me about break the fast and offered me a ride. I’m like thanks but I’m out of town and wouldn’t be in church. After that break I was welcomed back, and people asked where I’d ran off to. Also, I’d met missionaries who weren’t there prior to me “leaving”. A friend from the singles ward who converted to the faith was very excited to tell me he knew my brother. Hunter (my brother) said this Michael kid, the one who said he knew my brother, knew me. He didn’t say the dude’s last name, so I wasn’t sure who the kid was. I thought I knew but Hunter had said the kid wasn’t LDS. I’m like yes, he is. He’s a convert, weirdo. Another guy from the singles ward knew my brother. I’m like wow this world is getting smaller and smaller by the moment. I didn’t realize I’d known the person until my brother has said the dude’s name. I’m like I know him. Some of the people from my home ward have checked on me when I’d lost my grandfather and I was granted space as needed but also encouraged to ask for help as needed from anyone in the ward. I was happy for that as well as my friends helping me out with my move back and checking on me from time to time. Even among all the parties, pizza and fun I’ve had the church has helped me in ways I could never have imagined. I’m able to do public speaking because of the church. It’s provided comfort to me and my family when I’d lost my last grandparent. I’m able to mission trips and help others. When I lost my grandfather in December 2017 my brother had begged me to offer him a posthumous baptism. At first, I was like no because I didn’t want to get in trouble because of my family’s rejection of my faith. I eventually relented and asked if I could do it and the offer was rejected. I was stunned my brother had asked me to do that. I hadn’t known at that point that he’d been meeting with missionaries and had accepted a book of Mormon on his own. I’m like, wow as I was my family’s only exposure to my faith. When I’d finally lost my grandfather, all I wanted to do was cry my eyes out on the couch until I had to go back to school in a couple days. I still did that, but I wasn’t myself at church. My mom had dragged me there saying I needed to go and get some relief. I’m like, “ok” while crying. Everyone was super nice about me losing my grandfather and asked if there was anything, they could do for me. I’m like no not yet. When I’d lost my grandfather, a friend offered a blessing or just t be there to talk. I’m like thanks but right now I need tons of space. I was super grateful for everyone’s support and that’s how I was able to support my friends who I felt needed my attention when they lost the mom and I’d lost a friend. I was able to give them a sympathetic pierced ear and acted Christ like. Also, apparently me bring there to support my friends was a blessing to them and the entire ward as well. I’m like sure was. I’m happy to keep an eye on anyone who needs me. When I was at the funeral, I was able to talk with the family and help a friend who needed her hand held during the viewing. I was completely numb during the thing. It was like that during the whole time I knew about her passing. When I found out she’d passed I was, “hey, what’s that? Oh my gosh Elizabeth.” Luckily, I could still text people (meaning I wasn’t out of my mind grief that I had SOME sense of doing things). It was then my mom said I could transfer back. I needed to grieve myself as well as help my friends from the home ward. I even gave the closing prayer and was asked to do that while giving them a card. I called it “mission Mansfield” to take care of that family when they needed it. My friends from the singles ward were happy I was helping the family who lost the mom to caner and were willing to share me with those who needed me more. Most didn’t know I’d lost my grandfather 10.5 months prior to “mission Mansfield” starting but they understood I’d needed to help them grieve and because of my own understanding of losing a serious loved one I could empathize with them. Many people randomly checked on me, prayed for me and wanted me to feel our heavenly father’s love for my family. I’m happy I’d get some love. When I was going to my grandfather’s graveside service we’d passed where the temple was and I’m inside screaming yay. Chapter 2 So, I wanted to a full-time mission but because of mitigating factors I’m unable to do so. Many people who know me know about my energy. From knowing about American sign language to my working knowledge of criminal justice and forensic science. I’m a little disappointed since I’m unable to do a full-time proselyting mission but whatever I can do to help my faith grow in any way it can is good enough for me. Since I’m only doing a service mission, I’d be able to help in interfaith workings. My brother told me last night that thru his church there were ways I could serve others. I’m like, “wow that’s nice of him.” I’m assuming my mom told him about my inability to serve a full-time mission and am instead doing a “local” (service) mission. My friend said it’s not my mom’s business to tell my brother about my service mission. I’m like but he wants to help and can give me ideas on how to help with community outreach. That is what my mom likely told my brother and he told me something to help me out. The former mission president’s wife said I’d be great wherever I serve. That’s sweet. My mom originally tried to meet with her and her husband, but she said the bishop decided these things. She knows my energy too. She’d seen it in my 4 years of knowing me. She also noted it during my baptism saying I had an infectious laugh as I was laughing about something likely stupid. I have TONS of passion for things. Not just a mission trip but other things as well so maybe community outreach will be good for me to do. There are tons of “missionary moments” found in life. I’ve had a couple. One was me accidentally leaving out my standard works and my brother had mistaken it as a dictionary. Another was me being an example to my classmates when I had drunken some caffeinated beverage before dancing. I had bad muscle spasms those days and showed that if you’re an epileptic be careful around caffeine and sports as you might have an episode after consuming a large amount of caffeine. Another major “missionary moment” I’d had was bumping the dad who’d lost his wife a couple months ago. I wasn’t fully paying attention but had said hi to him and asked him how he was. Apparently, the family had gotten back from New Mexico or something in that area from visiting family. They are also possibly smaller like witnessing to other people and being a good friend to others are good examples. My friends all want me to help even if I’m not going on a traditional mission. They say small missionary moments and having things out will be my part in sharing the gospel. I’m like that’s great but I’d rather be on a mission rather than helping. Not to say service missionaries aren’t great. Especially if I can do community outreach and share the gospel in my own way that’s awesome. Many people could help the missionaries who are ON missions. I was roped in unwillingly to try convincing my brother to become a Mormon twice as “my testimony would have more weight than theirs would” as they put it. The 2nd pair of elders asked him to watch general conference (an idea I might’ve floated) but he declined. Both times I wasn’t all gung-ho about it. I was ok with helping them out as the buffer and all but once they got ahold OF my brother and he agreed to meet with them the guys asked me instead of being the buffer to help them by bearing my testimony and helping them convert him. They’d explained to me why they needed my help. They wanted to use me as more manpower. I was like, “gah fine I’ll help.” When I’d asked him to watch general conference with me, he cut me off by saying no before I could finish the sentence. The next day he’d explained that general conference wasn’t his thing and that’s why he’d declined watching it with me. I’d asked the guys if they’d managed at all to get ahold of Hunter and they said yes but he’d rejected the offer. I met some missionaries when I started going to church. Many of them are nice. One was uptight during his 1st part of his mission but relaxed by the end. I’m assuming that was because the guy was nervous and likely needed to relax and once, he did he was fine. A few of the guys have had attractions to me. As nice as some are, I’m not interested in a few. One said his highlight of the day was giving me a blessing. My mom and I were like aw. Another was like ooh yay she mentioned me despite me “mentioning” him by saying things like “his last name is weirder than mine.” Cute on both but mainly friendly to people. Once I was running with my dog and bumped into a couple missionaries. They’d asked if I’d read the book of Mormon and I’d explained yes, I had as I was 1. They said they’d love to meet with me but many a time the meetings have continually dropped. I told my brother and his friend that if 2 missionaries came up the driveway to slam the door in their faces. Mainly as they’ve met me, they’d skip my driveway. I would’ve done it for them given the chance as they already met me. I’d seen a couple when I was running off to the calendar place at the outlets. I would’ve said hi if I hadn’t been running off to get to the place on time. I also would’ve offered to buy them a snack from somewhere if I’d had time as well. Once when I was traveling in Hawaii, I went to church. I’m like can you help me? He’d gotten me 2 elders to help me out. He was busy looking for someone to help me. I was like oh yay. They were over nice to me. I’m like ugh too much kindness. They introduced me to everyone and got me stuff. They told me to take the message home when I did the LDS institute. I was like ok as I was grabbing my flashlight out of my bag and shoving my phone back into it. I’d said I’d see the guy in heaven. He said the top level of heaven? I said yes. Mainly as I’m terrified of him. Those missionary moments are often a way for people to have spiritual experiences in their lives. I don’t often connect them to my faith but I’m like ok. My friends do. Like “mission Mansfield” they linked wit me serving them. All I did was keep and eye on them. Chapter 3 Visiting and home teachers are an integral part of the church. Many people in the church often check on each other. My 1st set of home and visiting teachers left. They were a husband and wife; the husband being my home teacher and the wife my visiting teacher. They came over with dinner when I was house sitting once. I’m like ok. This wasn’t something I was opposed to, but my mom didn’t care for it at first. I loved my 1st set of home and visiting teachers but love my other ones similarly. When my 1st set left they gave me chocolate. I shared a small amount with my brother as he’d corralled Rosie into the other room. They’d given me macadamia nut cookies on special occasions. My 2nd home teacher I knew by sitting near them when I 1st converted. My 3rd home teacher I’m getting to know better but I’m not close to. My visiting teachers are friends of mine when I converted and enjoy talking to on occasion. My mom was again opposed to help the church occasionally gives but has come to accept it if I help too, which I do as needed. Once I arrived so early, I had to help opening the building multiple times over. Another time I was waiting for my dad to arrive and help by cleaning the place. I’m like let me help. I am so glad I could help when and if I am needed. I’m often telling them, “give me something to do unless you want me sitting on my butt playing on my phone.” My visiting teacher often gives me rides and sometimes with her herd of kids. It’s awesome and very sweet. Too sweet sometimes as she’s been offering me rides every time of late. If I’d needed her that much, I’d set up an uber account. I’m not saying that she can’t offer just be aware of the times you offer. My favorite thing they’d done was give me a birthday present when I wasn’t expecting it. I love it since it was unexpected. Visiting teachers often give me things and my home teacher checks in on me occasionally. He’s asked me about my birthday and helped with my last blessing I’d requested. He hoped my back would ease up the pain once the weather warmed up, which I think so too and was happy I’d cut back on my pain killers as that can-do real damage to me. I told him I’m happy too as I’m in less pain and much better. Chapter 4 When I gave my talk, my mom dragged everyone to the kentlands ward. I loved it but was absolutely terrified to give the talk. My mom was nervous for my talk and so was I. My mom and brother voted during church business despite them not being Mormons. I had a great time giving my talk. Afterward everyone was telling me what a great job I’d done. I’m like yay, I did it. I successfully gave a talk, albeit a slightly short talk. Was I nervous throughout the whole talk? Kind of but once I got my bearings, I was fine. Afterwards I kicked my whole family out as they didn’t want to be there. They were invited back multiple times, but no one has ever come back in. I’m like ok that’s fine. Everyone gets it that religion might not be their thing. I was able to make it realistic by scaring people by telling a true, but still nerve wracking, story. It was related to a talk given by a speaker at general conference. I usually don’t watch that type of thing, but I had time and I figure, why not? When I was writing my talk, many people jumped at the chance to help me. They offered to correct my grammatical errors, give me notes and ideas for talk ideas. I’m like that’s nice since 3 people from church helped me out as well as my mom and aunt. After (and even before as I’d mentioned getting my bearings) giving my talk everyone was like yay and all excited about my talk. After that sacrament meeting many people were flocking to my family’s seats trying to introduce themselves. My mom was trying to talk with everyone. I’d ran over as fast as I could. I was thanked for my words by the bishop. I said your welcome, but I’d better get to my family showing him how many people were trying to say hi to them and introduce themselves. Other times my mom wouldn’t come in, but people came to her. Take the Christmas party I’d gone to last December. My mom knew a woman and I’d re-introduced them. When I walked up, I’d stretched my neck muscles beforehand, grabbed my talk and then I went up. Everyone cheered as I’d come up. I was a cat being baptized. I’d walked up a second time and then had to yank down the microphone twice. Everyone loved my talk from the amount of people telling me how many people telling me I’d done a great job. So many people said great job I nearly reverted to my old mode of high school annoyance in saying, “gah why me?” I loved the talk. I’m sorry my family didn’t get as much out of the service as my mom was worried about my talk, my brothers seemed bored and my dad wasn’t fully paying attention. I wished I could’ve sat with my family before my talk and then go up for it, but I had to sit in the pulpit area. What’s hilarious was I was listening to cold case files and no one had noticed I’d listened to that as well as it didn’t come into the talk for some reason. That I find amazing that I didn’t write any forensic science into the talk when previously I had done that. I’d invited a friend to hear me give my talk and was ultra-nervous about it. He’d arrived in Sunday school. I was like yay but stopped as I didn’t want to interrupt Sunday school. Luckily that teacher was super nice about it. Apparently, my friends are blessed to be my friends I’m guessing because of my energy and my passion for doing certain things. That was awesome that he’d come to support me as well as meeting some of my friends from my home ward. Chapter 5 My conversion to the church is simple. I met someone who would show me around I liked the church and converted 15 months after I 1st came. What ultimately convinced me was when I was trying to correct the inaccuracies of my faith to others, I’m like, fine let’s take this run with the idea and see where I go with the idea. Ultimately, I was baptized after that. Many times, while studying with them I was often told by the current bishop’s wife (he wasn’t bishop at the time) told me I was always welcome back. I always said ok before turning around to refresh my make-up. That was nice but I told her, and she stopped. I didn’t start really think about converting until I started having to tell my friends from English class the misconceptions and tried to correct them. I’m like fine by the end of the semester. Others have had more intricate conversions than mine. I’d gotten my witness before becoming a full-fledged member. I love seeing all the new converts. There seem to be more newer converts and transfers into the singles ward than a family ward but I’m a convert and I’m a member of a family ward. I was asked how I became a Mormon and explained I’d defended the faith and then decided screw it let’s do this thing. When I was converting, I was a nervous wreck. Not only did I have to try passing my exams but also trying to get ready for a baptism. Nervous nelly. My family accepted it eventually. My mom gave me new earrings as a baptism gift. I was like ok. I wore them the day of my interview and passed. The day of my baptism I was so nervous. I tried relaxing but was super excited and nervous. I LOVED being baptized but hated being the center of attention. I found out my “adoptive dad” (the family who functioned as my guardians) was dunking me I was like yay. I was more like, “oh he’s doing it? Ok.” When I found out he was doing it I was in the library and was reading there. I was excited. I checked out a book on Etan Patz. I’m like ok I have a book I can read as I’m super into forensic science and am able to share that knowledge in the area. When I said “my adoptive family” I mean the family I’d become close with and they’d helped me during my conversion to the church and helping me with my testimony. I’d mentioned going to a family reunion and the dad who’d functioned as my guardian dad “let me off” I’d not seen my family in 4 years. I was encouraged to give up caffeine during my conversion. I’d tried a science experiment where I completely gave up caffeine for 3 days. When I said I gave up caffeine completely I mean I went without any caffeine for 3 days. That included: coffee, tea, soda, chocolate, pain killers and other medication that had caffeine in it. That was tough as my body had become accustomed to tons of caffeinated things on a regular basis. By the end of day 1 I was ok. My body had an uneasy fog before I’d eaten but as soon as I’d gotten something nutritious in my system, I was ok. Later that day I’d not gotten the crash I’d become accustomed to after years of abusing my body with caffeine. By day 3 I’d realized I’d had little to no anxiety and all the health problems I’m having were nil during the experiment. I was shocked and thought, huh what if I’d continued with this? I realized I can cut back as necessary as I’m not as dependent on it as I can survive on little to no caffeine for 3 days. When I told my “adoptive family” the mom said I can cut back as needed. Also, when you kick caffeine you likely have a “fog” on day 2 and would be craving it depending on how much caffeine you had been drinking and how long you’d been drinking it. Some people understand it depending on medications you have and amounts of caffeine and types you had been taking. Chapter 6 Many guys have noticed me once I became a Mormon. Often, it’s while I’m not looking, I find them. Once I was sitting on a couch in the lobby of a ward, I was listening to a Playaway and I met a guy. Granted as I was immersed in a story, I wasn’t fully paying attention to what was going on around me. The woman couldn’t likely tell I wasn’t paying attention as my hair was down and covering my ears indicating I was listening to a book on tape in iPod form. Once the chapter ended, I snapped out of the story and asked, “can I help you?” I followed the woman’s arm and saw a guy. I’m like, “hello” before putting everything away and then introduced myself. A day later he and I friended each other on Facebook and a week after he and I met he asked me to go mini golfing with his family. I was happy to make a new friend, but I was out of town and needed to focus on finding a new swim suit as my then current one was getting old. I was creeped out he found my number behind my back. Flattered but creeped out all at the same time. A friend gave me my number to him behind my back. I’m like ok but please warn me next time, will you? I also explained to my mom that the singles ward I go to is for finding people who are the same faith as you and can date as well as meet people who are like minded. She and I were talking about that when discussing my ex-boyfriend. She said he should stay my ex-boyfriend and not date again. Amen to that. He and I are barely on texting terms now but it’s better. Once I’d found out a guy had sweetly picked up a headband I’d dropped and put it back near my stuff. He’d sat next to me in Sunday school and talked to me despite me playing air drums and listening to music. He’d frequently smiled at me that day. I smiled back once mainly as I’d accidentally bumped into his while helping to clean up the chairs and, on my way, to grabbing my stuff. He seems like a boyfriend possibility. Either that or he’s a nice guy who is equally as flirtatious as I am. Another possible guy I’d might want to date is a guy who threw a party in October. He was sweet to me. He asked if he could get me anything and included me in the party. He’d also walked me out when my ride was at the door. Such a sweet guy. He also randomly sent me gifs that often could be “lovey dovey.” I’m thinking like, “aw that guy is super sweet and loves me potentially.” He hasn’t come right out and said it but I’m guessing he might. He's very sweet and kind to me. His sister is nice to me as well. I could be reading too much into it or I might not. We’ll see how this goes. A friend from the kentlands ward asks when I’m getting married. I’m like not now. That same friend prays for me to get married. I’m like that’s nice but I’m not ready for marriage quite yet. Maybe in a year or 2. Or if I’ve dated someone for a couple years. I’m not sure when I’ll ever be ready for marriage. I hope I will marry eventually. Of course, you can’t control how your life turns out as I’ve found out the hard way. I think I’m on a way I can be myself. Maybe I’ll find the man of my dreams in the future but for now I’m just enjoying my life as a single girl. She nearly found a boyfriend for me. I’m like ha. I’d mentioned it to my parents. They’re like aw. My dad said to go out for coffee with the guy. I’m like sure if I can find the time to do that I will. That seems like a low-key thing to meet someone. Chapter 7 So, something I’d mentioned earlier but didn’t explain was my inability to do my inability to serve a full-time proselyting mission. That’s due to several thing such as: my mild autism and scoliosis. I have a theory that the real reason is because of my inability to drive because of my muscle spasms. My family understand and I’m hoping I can get a modified car to help with that. Either that or I’d want something where I can drive with 1 side of my body in case of an emergency. My friends are super understanding about my medical issues though confused about my reluctance to accept help from them. My friends at the singles ward haven’t seen me spaz and freak out if they did. They also might help me but if they pushed me wrong, I’d collapse, which doesn’t happen often these days. I know a guy who came home from his mission and couldn’t complete his 2-year mission fully. There’s no shame in not completing a mission fully. You can do many other things to help the faith. He’s the acquaintance I’d mentioned earlier who said I didn’t tell him where I’d run off to. I wasn’t close with that guy at that point. 1 of my “adopted sisters” (and I use that ultra-super loosely as the parents functioned as my guardians) likely will do a service mission as she has some issues. Like I said there’s no shame in doing a service mission as I want to help others understand religion as best as we all can. Service missions are “local” part time missions. You don’t go away and don’t speak foreign languages. You help the faith in your area. In my case I might be doing several things such as: doing interfaith work, helping in a storehouse or church operated thrift store, temple or visitor center work or something else as needed. I’d love to do temple stuff as I haven’t been there often. My standards aren’t as strict as full-time missionaries who go away and speak foreign languages. Especially if I’m: part time, living at home/ with a roommate/ on my own, if I’m not with a companion 24/7, not set apart. I’m able to do what I’m doing now essentially but I’d be doing certain things such as a missionary such as: temple work or working in a store. Hopefully I’m going to get some life skills I can use. I would’ve used CPR on my mission but maybe I will use it on my service mission. Many people have life skills such as CPR. It would be helpful things since I have my own kids and many people in my life. I love helping others. I would’ve been superhero Jackie if I knew CPR and was a full time missionary. I’m still going to be superhero Jackie just on a smaller scale as I’m not going to be a full time missionary. I might hang out with the acquaintance who is an early returned missionary to 1) get to know him and 2) see what he’s doing in the faith after his mission. I’ll let him set the pace of the conversation. Chapter 8 There were things I’d do to “prepare” for sacrament. I’d grab a snack and walk over to “prepare”. I was offered ride occasionally, but I like walking. I loved it. Many times, now a days I’d walk to church. My way of “preparing for sacrament” is laughing and getting it out of my system. Although, reading and having a snack before sacrament are by far my favorite things to do, I love to laugh at stupid things. My favorite thing to laugh at is the amazing atheist. He’s awesome. His views are known throughout the internet. My main reason for laughing at him was because of him being anti-religion and yet prayed to god saying he was real now’s the time to show it. Of course, he didn’t as why would god show up and save his dad’s life if he cared enough to kill the dad. I understand why he did that. When I lost Mrs. Mansfield and my grandfather within 10.5 months of each other why would he care to give them back if he’s there to test us? I was super upset and didn’t want to come back to church once I lost them. I was sad and upset and I’d wanted to stay at home and cry for months on end. Other things I do during sacrament is read when it’s being passed out. I love reading. Sometimes I can’t read and instead watch the sacrament being passed out. That’s when the priesthood will occasionally “screw up” or as we call it “be all discombobulated.” That’s funny. My favorite thing to read is criminal justice and forensic science. I like reading that. Many people know of my love of forensic science and laughed when I made jokes about studying things simultaneously. Namely my criminal justice notes and the book of Mormon and joked “I hope I didn’t mix them up.” Once, I’d listened to a book on Gary Ridgway on the way to sacrament meeting. I loved it as I could be listening to a book I love and prepare for the sacrament. I sometimes walk to and from church in shoes that aren’t meant to be walking as they’re for dress. I can do it usually. My mom loves me wearing cute things to church if they’re comfortable. I do too. I’m in things that’s tomboyish anyways. My friends understand I have back and joint problems, so I must modify things because of that issues. Although, I have anti-freeze in my veins, so I’ll wear long sleeve things and cooler things in the winter since I don’t cold as easily. My visiting teacher, mom and neighbors say I’m the crazy tank top girl. When I went to a party in October, I didn’t need my heavy jacket and Ugg boots despite me wearing my Ugg’s and bringing my jacket. Many people asked why I didn’t wear my Ugg’s indoors during winter. Because my house is usually heated, duh. Chapter 9 So, I joined about 2 years ago. I started fellowshipping 15 months prior. I once asked my dad if he wanted me to go to an LDS event and he said yes. I decided to go since I don’t go out much and he rarely asks me to go do stuff. It helped me with public speaking with me baring my testimony and giving a talk. It was awesome. I’ve made so many friends from the church. I’ve had so much fun with the parties and game nights and hanging out with other people. I’ve hung out with other people and gotten sushi and stuff I love. What’s interesting is that I got a blessing and then the next night I found out my grandfather was in the hospital. I’d gotten another 1 a few weeks ago for my anxiety (the last 2 have been for anxiety over exams) and I was grateful for them. Once I went to game night and laughed until I nearly puked. I was in the group picture. I had to go to another ward because of my mom being out of state. So, a weekend after that the elders were happy, I’m at the singles ward. The other day I went to the ward my dad takes me to and I was able to help since I was there. It was nice to be of help. I usually tell them, “give me something to do unless you want me playing on my phone on my iTunes app store.” I opened the door several times, made sure it works and was happy to help. So, I gave a talk in November. It was awesome since my family was there. Once I walked up everyone cheered. I was happy and should’ve said, “Do you feel the spirit in here?” It was awesome. When I finished, I took a bow since I had to in order to finish. Everyone said, “Great job” and tons of people were killing me with kindness when it came to finish the talk. Many people were helping me: my mom, my aunt Jacquie (my mom’s sister and who I am named after) and 3 people from church including 1 from the bishopric. It was kind of torturous since my family didn’t WANT to be there, but my mom dragged them all there. Once a mom of a returned missionary came up to me and introduced her son who had returned a few days prior. She said this was her son. I’d blankly stared at her until the chapter ended on the audio book I was reading (really, I was listening to the book). I snapped out of it, met her son and nearly hung out with my friend. He got my number behind my back which freaked me out. It was flattering someone wanted my number and asked me out but could’ve warned me since I was completely blind sighted. I have 3 brothers. They’re annoying but I usually mention them at church. My parents nearly gave me a sister until I had a 3rd brother. What’s hilarious is when I mention my brothers, I never say my brother’s name. Also, whenever I mention my family at church, I usually mention my brothers 85% more than my parents and the rest of my family (uncles, cousins, aunts etc.). I find it funny when I mention my brother and say, “my brother, my brother, my brother, my brother, my brother, my brother, my brother, my brother, my mom, my dad, my aunt Jacquie.” It’s kind of funny how many times I mention my brothers but never say their names. My grandpa passed away unexpectedly last December. He fell in the shower and he fell into a coma. My family was devastated. I had gotten a blessing the night before and I was still devastated. The day he passed away I was forced to go to church my mom saying, “I needed this,” and then being forced to watch the Christmas devotional since I needed it as well. Though I was still crying afterwards I told my mom, “Thanks for making me do this.” The day before my grandfather passed away, I’d argued with my brother about doing a posthumous baptism for my grandfather. I said not since I didn’t want to offend my family but then caved in saying, “I’d see.” As I expected when I asked my uncle, who was on the lawyer’s contact list, so I figured he’d know best, so I asked him. My uncle declined the offer for me to submit my grandfather’s name to the church’s genealogy and the posthumous baptism records. I don’t know how I knew they wouldn’t go for it, but I guessed. Sometimes I scream since I’m usually loud. Once I screamed since I had the Holy Spirit with me leading me to read something I wasn’t expecting. My mom had done something in Florida for my grandfather and read the Lord’s Prayer. Later I read it in the book of Mormon I had on me. I didn’t tell my mom and haven’t to this day since I’m not sure how it’ll go down. That’s not the only time the Holy Spirit was with me. Once I was suggested not to get a henna tattoo because I’d get interrupted. 10 minutes later I was being dragged away because my brother called saying we were going out and to come home.

weight loss

i'm hoping losing weight because of my vegetarianism

bad gas

I have bad gas because of my vegetarianism

2017 Fresno shootings

On April 18, 2017, a shooting spree occurred in Fresno, California, leaving three men dead. The prime suspect, identified as Kori Ali Muhammad, was then arrested by police and charged with murder and assault with a deadly weapon. Muhammad, who was believed to have been motivated by racial hatred directed towards white people, was already wanted in connection with the murder of a security guard at a local Motel 6 that had occurred five days earlier. Timeline of events- Motel 6 shooting: At about 11:00 p.m. on April 13, an unarmed security guard working at a Motel 6 in central Fresno observed a man visiting a woman who had checked into one of the rooms. Since motel policy mandated all visitors to provide identification at the office, the guard went to the room, with an armed coworker, to inform the pair of this. As the guard was escorting the two to the motel office, an argument erupted between the guard and the woman. The man then pulled out a handgun and fired multiple rounds, killing the guard at close range. He also fired several shots toward the motel and at another security guard before fleeing. That guard was uninjured. Manhunt: The woman, who had fled back to the room, was taken into custody on a felony accessory charge after attempting to take evidence from the crime scene and refusing to identify the gunman to police. According to investigators, the gunman escaped police detection at the motel by fleeing south to a nearby 7-Eleven and hiding out on the store rooftop, where he watched officers interview witnesses and waited for them to leave. Once they did the next morning, he got off the rooftop, went to a nearby elementary school, and hid by a dumpster. He then traveled around Fresno over the weekend, changing his appearance by cutting his hair. On April 18, Fresno police identified one suspect in the shooting, 39-year-old Kori Ali Muhammad. He was a friend of the daughter of the woman at the hotel. On the same morning, Muhammad went to a Starbucks coffee shop while out to purchase items for use in voodoo rituals. He used the shop's Wi-Fi to watch a broadcast by Fresno ABC affiliate KFSN-TV, which identified him as a suspect in the security guard's murder. Downtown shootings: Hours after the identification, several shootings were reported in downtown Fresno. The gunman first approached a Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) utility truck at about 10:45 a.m. and fired four shots into it, critically wounding an employee seated in the passenger seat. The driver of that truck was spared from injury, since he was Hispanic. That man managed to drive away unharmed, and took the passenger to the Fresno Police Department headquarters, where he alerted officers. The passenger was taken to Community Regional Medical Center, where he later died. Seconds after shooting four rounds into the PG&E truck on N. Van Ness, the gunman proceeded south to Mildreda turning west. The gunman fired two more shots at a 59-year-old man coming out of his house, but missed. The second shot hit a residential dwelling on the other side of the street. The gunman reloaded his revolver in the alley between Van Ness and Fulton. The gunman stated he thought about pursuing the 59 - year-old man believing he had gone back inside his house but changed his mind. The gunman then turned onto N Fulton St heading south, where he fired once at a vehicle containing a woman, her adult daughter, and her four-year-old granddaughter, but stopped shooting after realizing they were Latino. No one in the vehicle suffered any gunshot wounds. The gunman then walked down the opposite direction, where he spotted a man walking out of a Catholic Charities USA building. He shot the man once in the chest, then killed him with two more shots after the victim had fallen to the ground. He then reloaded at a bus stop and fired at three men. Two of them escaped unharmed, but the gunman chased the third, who was the heaviest and oldest, into the parking lot of a Catholic Charities USA building. There, he fired six shots: two that killed the man, two that struck parked vehicles, one that struck a nearby building, and a sixth that has yet to be recovered. Witnesses said that the gunman cursed as he fired. Officers responding to shotspotter reports found Muhammad running down the street, and managed to arrest him. During the arrest, Muhammad shouted, "Allahu Akbar!" Several bullets and speedloaders for a .357 Magnum revolver were recovered from his person, but no firearm was found. According to Chief Jerry Dyer, the gun was wrapped in clothing and picked up by a Hispanic male who had met up with Muhammad shortly after the shootings and then fled the scene. Dyer also said a total of seventeen shots were fired in 90 seconds during these shootings. Four minutes had passed between the first shots and Muhammad's arrest. Several streets and county government buildings were put on lockdown during the shootings, with people being ordered to shelter in place. Aftermath: The FBI and ATF were notified of the shootings. Agents from the Department of Homeland Security also responded to the Fresno Police Department headquarters. Chief Dyer said that the incident was "a random act of violence" and that the gunman acted alone, adding that it was "too soon" to determine whether the shootings were acts of terrorism. A federal law enforcement official said the shootings did not bear the hallmarks of a terrorist attack and appeared to be more of a "local, criminal matter". Local authorities said they will investigate the shootings as a hate crime. Chief Dyer said that the suspect, who is black, told police he decided to become infamous for killing many white people after realizing he was wanted in the Motel 6 shooting. The suspect led investigators through the murder scenes and described exactly how he committed the shooting rampage, laughing all the while. All of the victims killed in the shootings were white males. The Motel 6 security guard was identified as 25-year-old Carl Williams. The victims of the April 18 shootings were identified the next day as PG&E employee Zackary David Randalls, 34, of Clovis; and Mark James Gassett, 37, and David Martin Jackson, 58, both of Fresno. Mayor Lee Brand offered his condolences to the victims' families and called April 18 "a sad day for us all". PG&E expressed its own condolences to all those involved, including the family of the slain employee. Suspect: Kori Ali Muhammad (born March 21, 1978) was identified as the prime suspect in all of the shootings. He was homeless at the time, and had some association with gangs, but wasn't a member of one himself. He has three children. Personal background: Born as Cory Allen Taylor, and also previously known as Kori Taylor, Muhammad changed his name to his present one as a teenager. His grandmother said that Muhammad had been drawn to Islam at a young age. Muhammad's aunt said that her nephew also attended a Baptist church when he was younger. Muhammad was a resident of both Fresno and Sacramento, California. According to Muhammad's Facebook page, he studied multimedia at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento. A spokesman for the Los Rios Community College District identified a student named Kori McWallace—with the same date of birth as Muhammad—who attended Cosumnes, American River College, and Sacramento City College at various times from 1996 to 2004. However, no details were immediately offered about his studies or if he graduated. Muhammad also attended classes at Fresno City College, but according to a classmate, he would often not show up for weeks at a time and accuse his instructors of being racist. Previous criminal history: Muhammad had a criminal history dated from 1997 to 2004, consisting of arrests on weapons, drugs, forgery, and false imprisonment charges, as well as making terrorist threats. Court documents also indicated that he "suffered auditory hallucinations and had at least two prior mental health hospitalizations." Two of his earliest arrests occurred when he was still a teenager; on both occasions, he allegedly brought a gun to school. In 2004, Muhammad was arrested in Washington state for allegedly firing a gun outside his apartment. He left the state and the case was dismissed after prosecutors declined to extradite him to a federal prison. According to court records filed in February 2005, he was arrested and indicted in federal court on charges of "possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm for drug trafficking and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon". In September, Muhammad sought an insanity defense and underwent a psychiatric evaluation after his lawyer claimed his client was "suffering from hallucinations, paranoia and psychosis." A judge ruled that he was incompetent to stand trial and had him committed to a facility for up to four months. He was deemed competent in August 2006, after which he pleaded guilty to two of seven counts in the indictment. Muhammad was sentenced to over nine years in prison, though the sentence was downgraded to over seven years in 2008. He was released from prison early in September 2016. Muhammad claimed to have shot a person at the age of twelve, but the claim was not confirmed by police. Views and statements: Muhammad maintained two Facebook profiles and a Twitter account, all in which he paid homage to black pride and black nationalism. His profile depicted images of a Black Power salute and a flag associated with the Pan-Africanism movement. According to police, he "expressed hatred of whites" and the government. Muhammad made posts about the murders of five Dallas police officers, in which he praised the shooter Micah Xavier Johnson. He also consistently used the hashtag "#LetBlackPeopleGo" and encouraged "black warriors" to "mount up". Muhammad's father described his son's belief that there was an ongoing war between whites and blacks, and that "a battle was about to take place." He later said that he attempted to warn Muhammad's probation officer about his son's hatred of white people and his plans of killing them, but believes no one followed up on his report. According to The Daily Beast, Muhammad's posts indicated a support of the Moorish Science Temple of America, an African American organization associated with the sovereign citizen movement, which advocated few beliefs similar to those of mainstream Islam. Brian Levin, director of Cal State San Bernardino's Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, said that Muhammad's posts made multiple references to terms used by the Nation of Islam (NOI), a black supremacist organization labeled as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Muhammad's relatives said that he "became involved" with the NOI when he was younger, but did not clarify what kind of role the group played in his life during his imprisonment and after his release. In February, Muhammad released two hip-hop albums on iTunes and YouTube under the name of B-God MacSun. The Los Angeles Times noted that Muhammad sang that he was an "Asiatic black god", and that the album's contents "repeatedly references violence between black and white people." In addition, Muhammad produced a music-themed talk show at the Community Media Access Collaborative, a nonprofit organization specializing in promoting people and companies through the use of media. Muhammad's talk show ran for four episodes, which were produced between May 12, 2015, and October 10, 2016. In that talk show, he claimed that he had joined a Sacramento gang at the age of nine, the "black liberation movement" at the age of fourteen, and the NOI later on in his teens. The organization's director of operations described Muhammad, a frequenter at the facility, as "kind and curious" to the staff. However, a former friend who met Muhammad at the facility, but later removed him from his friended list on Facebook, described him as "intense and unnerving". An imam at a local mosque said that Muhammad was not a member of his congregation. Following his arrest, Muhammad affirmed to officers that he is Muslim, but that he had not been to a mosque in 25 years and that he prays to a total of seven different deities. He also told officers that he was not officially affiliated with any terrorist groups. Legal proceedings: Following his arrest, Muhammad was charged with four counts of murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon. On April 21, he made his first court appearance for the first-degree murder of Carl Williams and the attempted murder of the second security guard at the Motel 6. During the hearing, he shouted on two different occasions, saying "Let black people go" and a phrase similar to "in reparations" that was not clearly enunciated. He also warned that natural disasters striking the U.S. will increase. As a result, criminal proceedings were suspended and the judge ordered a psychiatric evaluation for Muhammad, setting bail at $2.6 million. Muhammad faces the death penalty if convicted of all four murders. His next court appearance was scheduled on May 12, but postponed to June 1 to give psychologists more time to prepare Muhammad's mental health report. On October 13, 2017 the judge set a trial date for January 8, 2018. The initial hearings will focus on Muhammad's mental competency. During the hearings Muhammad shouted demands for slavery reparations and also yelled "Allahu akbar." Muhammad's lawyer says he continues to gather evidence that he is incompetent to be held criminally responsible. Two psychiatrists have determined that he is incompetent but another says that he is not. On January 22, 2018, Judge Jonathan Conklin ruled that Muhammad is competent to stand trial.

Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood shooting

On November 27, 2015, a mass shooting occurred in a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, Colorado, resulting in the deaths of three people and injuries to nine. A police officer and two civilians were killed; five police officers and four civilians were injured. After a standoff that lasted five hours, police SWAT teams crashed armored vehicles into the lobby and the attacker surrendered. The attacker, Robert Lewis Dear Jr., was taken into custody and charged three days later with first-degree murder and ordered held without bond. At a December 9 court appearance, Dear repeatedly interrupted proceedings, made statements affirming his guilt (although he did not enter a formal plea), and expressed anti-abortion and anti-Planned Parenthood views, calling himself "a warrior for the babies." He also asserted his desire to act as his own attorney in the criminal case against him. Subsequent court-ordered mental competency evaluations determined Dear to be delusional, and the judge presiding over the case ruled in May 2016 that Dear was incompetent to stand trial and ordered him indefinitely confined to a Colorado state mental hospital. In 2018, the court ruled that Dear remains incompetent to stand trial. The incident drew comments from the anti-abortion and abortion-rights movements, as well as political leaders. Event- Shooting: Law enforcement responded to a report of an active shooter inside the Planned Parenthood clinic at approximately 11:38 a.m. MST. Staff inside the clinic said they heard the gunfire outside and then moved people out of the waiting room and locked a security door. As responding officers approached the building, the suspect fired at them, hitting several and killing one. Police returned fire and a five-hour standoff then ensued. Initial reports described the gunman as being armed with a long gun and wearing hunting gear. Authorities later identified the weapon as a semi-automatic rifle. An eyewitness in the parking lot described a man with a "cold, stone face" as he began firing and pursued a crawling man through the parking lot and into the clinic. Another described a man with "holes in his chest" stagger into a nearby grocery store a few minutes later, saying he had been shot in the parking lot between Planned Parenthood and the store. As many as twenty gunshots were fired within five minutes. Police swarmed the area, and nearby stores were put on lockdown. Standoff and arrest: During the standoff, officers who made it inside the clinic traded fire with the suspect. Police SWAT teams crashed a Bear armored vehicle into the lobby, smashing two sets of doors and rescuing some of those trapped inside. The gunman subsequently surrendered and was taken into custody at 4:52 p.m. Following the apprehension of the gunman, law enforcement began searching the building, as well as the gunman's car, for possible explosives. Multiple propane tanks were found near the suspect's car, and authorities said they believed that he planned to fire on the tanks to trigger an explosion. At 9:10 p.m. the gunman was identified as Robert Lewis Dear Jr., a 57-year-old man from North Carolina. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to assist in the investigation, and President Barack Obama was briefed on the incident. As a precautionary response to the shooting, additional law enforcement personnel were assigned to Planned Parenthood clinics in New York City and Denver. Victims: Three individuals were killed in the shooting: University of Colorado Colorado Springs police officer Garrett Swasey, 44, who responded to the shooting; Ke'Arre M. Stewart, 29, who ran back to the clinic to warn others after being shot; and Jennifer Markovsky, 35, who was accompanying a friend to the clinic. Nine other victims—five police officers and four civilians—were shot and admitted to local hospitals. Perpetrator: Robert Lewis Dear Jr., aged 57 at the time of his arrest, was born in Charleston, South Carolina and grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. Dear spent most of his life in the Carolinas. He worked as an independent art dealer and lived in a succession of trailers and cabins before moving to Colorado in 2014. He was living in a trailer in Hartsel at the time of the shooting. In May 1991, Dear was arrested and convicted in Charleston, for the unlawful carrying of a "long blade knife" and illegal possession of a loaded gun. A woman who was married to Dear from 1985 to 1993 told NBC News that Dear had targeted a Planned Parenthood clinic before, by putting glue on its locks, and had a history of violent behavior. In the court document for their 1993 divorce, his ex-wife said, "He claims to be a Christian and is extremely evangelistic, but does not follow the Bible in his actions. He says that as long as he believes he will be saved, he can do whatever he pleases. He is obsessed with the world coming to an end." Dear wrote on a marijuana Internet forum: "Turn to JESUS or burn in hell WAKE UP SINNERS U CANT SAVE YOURSELF U WILL DIE AN WORMS SHALL EAT YOUR FLESH, NOW YOUR SOUL IS GOING SOMEWHERE." He also posted notes on the same forum describing his own marijuana usage and stating that he was looking for women to "party" with. The New York Times also reported that "a number of people who knew Mr. Dear said he was a staunch abortion opponent", that "one person who spoke with him extensively about his religious views said that Mr. Dear had praised people who attacked abortion providers, saying they were doing 'God's work'", and that "in 2009, Mr. Dear described as 'heroes' members of the Army of God, a loosely organized group of anti-abortion extremists that has claimed responsibility for a number of killings and bombings." Dear's former wife said he was deeply religious, but conflicted, and that he likely targeted the clinic because of its abortion-related activities. Investigation: Police said on November 29 that the warrants related to the case against Dear have been sealed because the investigation was active, and that consequently information about the timeline of events, the suspect's motive, and the weapon used would not be released "at this time." According to an unnamed senior law enforcement official, first quoted by NBC News, Dear gave a "rambling" interview after his arrest in which he said at one point, "No more baby parts"—a statement that has been seen as a reference to the Planned Parenthood 2015 undercover videos controversy. The unnamed official added that Dear "said a lot of things" in his police interview indicating that the shootings were "definitely politically motivated," and that in the interview Dear had expressed anti-abortion and anti-government views. Dear is also alleged to have made statements about President Barack Obama in the course of events, prompting the U.S. Secret Service to dispatch agents to evaluate the remarks and interview him. According to an official close to the investigation, Dear asked at least one person for directions to the Planned Parenthood facility before the shooting, which, according to NBC News offered "the clearest suggestion yet that he was targeting the reproductive health organization." Legal proceedings: On November 30, 2015, Dear was charged with first-degree murder and appeared in court (via video from the El Paso County Jail) and was ordered held without bond. If convicted, he would face either life in prison or the death penalty. Dear was appointed a public defender: Daniel King, the same attorney who represented James Eagan Holmes, the convicted perpetrator of the 2012 Aurora shooting. At the request of prosecutors, the judge ordered the sealing of court documents related to the investigation. The case was brought in Colorado's Fourth Judicial District before Judge Gilbert Anthony Martinez. Appearing in court on December 9 to be formally charged with 179 felony counts, including first-degree murder, Dear interrupted proceedings more than a dozen times, yelling: "I am guilty, there's no trial. I'm a warrior for the babies," later adding "Protect the babies!" Dear stated "Kill the babies, that's what Planned Parenthood does" and accused his public defenders of conspiring with Planned Parenthood against him. The New York Times reported that Dear's "angry outbursts, declarations of guilt and expressions of anti-abortion politics ... seemed to remove any doubt about his motivation." At the hearing, Dear also said: "You're not my lawyer" and "I will not meet with him again" and said "I'm not going to agree to mental health evaluations so they can't put me on psychotropic drugs so I can't talk like the Batman guy"—a reference to Holmes. At a hearing in December 2015, Dear attempted to fire his public defender, telling the court: "I invoke my constitutional right to defend myself." Judge Martinez ordered Dear to undergo a mental competency evaluation at a state mental hospital to determine whether he is sufficiently competent to make the decision to represent himself. At a hearing in March 2016, Judge Martinez set a competency hearing for the following month, and Dear's counsel the judge to send his client to the Colorado Mental Health Institute at Pueblo, the state mental hospital where the evaluation was done. In May 2016, Judge Martinez ruled that Dear was incompetent to stand trial, citing experts' finding that Dear suffers from "delusional disorder, persecutory type." Martinez ordered Dear to be indefinitely confined to a Colorado state mental hospital. In February 2018, following further evaluations by state psychiatrists, the judge ruled that Dear remains incompetent to stand trial, meaning that the prosecution remains on hold indefinitely. Reaction: Vicki Cowart, president of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains, decried the incident as a form of domestic terrorism. While the shooting was still ongoing, Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger demanded that Cowart apologize if the perpetrator was not anti-abortion. U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch called the shooting "...not only a crime against the Colorado Springs community, but a crime against women receiving healthcare services at Planned Parenthood, law enforcement seeking to protect and serve, and other innocent people." President Barack Obama released a statement on November 28, 2015 that stressed stricter gun control legislation. Some U.S. politicians and groups described the shooting as domestic terrorism, including Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers, NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, and former Republican Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper said the shooting was "a form of terrorism" and said that it and other violent incidents may be the result of the "inflammatory rhetoric we see on all levels"—referring to heated debate over abortion in the U.S. Vicki Saporta, president of the National Abortion Federation, drew particular attention to the undercover Planned Parenthood videos, two of which were shot at a clinic in Denver, 75 miles north of Colorado Springs; these videos resulted in a number of threats against one doctor featured in the videos. The FBI issued a statement to law enforcement agencies in September 2015 warning that Planned Parenthood facilities may require protection from arson attacks from "the pro-life extremist movement." After the shooting, some police departments placed emergency response vehicles in the vicinity of Planned Parenthood clinics.

long hair

my hair is super long and got my hair slightly wet in heat therapy

Right on Crime

Right on Crime is a U.S. criminal justice reform initiative that aims to gain support for criminal justice reforms within the American conservative movement by sharing research and policy ideas, mobilizing conservative leaders, and by raising public awareness. Right On Crime reforms are focused on "reducing crime, lowering costs and restoring victims." The initiative primarily focuses on eight issues: over-criminalization, juvenile justice, substance abuse, adult probation, parole and re-entry, law enforcement, prisons and victims. Right on Crime is a project of the Center for Effective Justice at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, and Prison Fellowship. Background: The Right on Crime initiative began its public affairs campaign in December 2010, in Washington, D.C. According to a January 2011 article in the Washington Post by former U.S. Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and former California Speaker of the House Pat Nolan, "The Right on Crime Campaign represents a seismic shift in the legislative landscape. And it opens the way for a common-sense left-right agreement on an issue that has kept the parties apart for decades." The New York Times' Charlie Savage noted the conservative movement's growing support for Right on Crime in a Times editorial in October 2011, writing "The [corrections overhaul] movement has attracted the support of several prominent conservatives, including Edwin R. Meese III, the attorney general during the Reagan administration. He is part of a campaign, called 'Right on Crime,' which was begun last December to lend weight to what it calls the 'conservative case for reform.'" Beginning in 2011, Right on Crime expanded its campaign into individual states, including Texas, Georgia, Oklahoma and Florida. The Los Angeles Times explained the initiative is "setting the pace in states such as Texas," in a November 2011 editorial. In 2014, the BBC reported that in Texas, rather than building new prisons, Right on Crime has led to the closure of three prisons. Statement of Principles signatories- Right On Crime's Statement of Principles has been signed by the following individuals: -David Barton, WallBuilders -William J. Bennett, former Secretary of Education and Federal "Drug Czar" -Allan Bense, former Speaker of the Florida House -Matthew Brouillette, Commonwealth Foundation (PA) -Jeb Bush, Former Governor of Florida -Chuck Colson, former President and CEO of Prison Fellowship -Ward Connerly, American Civil Rights Institute and former Regent of University of California -Craig DeRoche, former Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives and Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy at Prison Fellowship -John J. DiIulio, Jr., University of Pennsylvania -Viet Dinh, Georgetown University Law Center and former U.S. Assistant Attorney General -Richard Doran, former Florida Attorney General -Newt Gingrich, American Solutions for Winning the Future -B. Wayne Hughes, Jr., Businessman/philanthropist -Asa Hutchinson, former U.S. Attorney and Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration -Henry Juszkiewicz, CEO of Gibson Guitar -David Keene, American Conservative Union -George Kelling, Manhattan Institute -Rabbi Daniel Lapin, American Alliance of Jews and Christians -Edwin Meese III, former U.S. Attorney General -B.J. Nikkel, former Republican House Majority Whip, Colorado House of Representatives -Pat Nolan, Justice Fellowship -Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform -Tony Perkins, Family Research Council -Ralph Reed, Founder of the Faith and Freedom Coalition -Brooke Rollins, Texas Public Policy Foundation -Tom Slade, former Chairman of the Florida Republican Party -Larry Thompson, former U.S. Deputy Attorney General -Richard Viguerie, ConservativeHQ.com -J. C. Watts, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District -Joe Whitley, former Acting U.S. Associate Attorney General and U.S. Attorney

Heat therapy

So heat therapy is awesome. Especially since I can now drink hot cocoa and read in the tub.

Manpower

Apparently, my testimony would've been more effective than the missionaries alone so they needed me.

bare foot

i'm barefooted. it's because i'm in my house

long sleeves

I love my long sleeved shirts as I love my modesty.

midterms

i'm super excited for midterms as I can come to enjoy a little break. my mom will be happy as I can do it for fun

skater

i'm more of a skateboarder. I love it. my clothes are loose skateboarder styled

blush

what the elder who liked staring at me made me do.

Murder of Margaret Ann Pahl

On May 11, 2006, retired Roman Catholic priest Gerald Robinson was convicted of the murder of Sister Margaret Ann Pahl, a Sister of Mercy, a Catholic religious order of women on Holy Saturday, April 5, 1980. Robinson repeatedly appealed, but without success. On July 4, 2014, Robinson died in prison. Murder, investigation, and trial: In 1980 Robinson was the chaplain at Toledo Mercy Hospital, Toledo, Ohio, United States, where he ministered to the sick and terminally ill. Sister Margaret Ann was the caretaker of the chapel. Robinson was convicted of strangling and stabbing Pahl, who was 71 at the time, in the sacristy of a chapel of the hospital where they worked together. The priest presided at her funeral Mass four days after her death. Pahl was stabbed 31 times, including nine times in the shape of an inverted cross. Prosecutors considered this shape was deliberate and intended to humiliate Pahl in death. Pahl was found covered in an altar cloth, her clothes and body arranged to suggest she had been sexually assaulted, although it was not clear she had been. Robinson was questioned about the crime in 1980, but was not charged. Dean Mandros, the chief of the criminal division in the Lucas County prosecutor's office said as the priest was being questioned by detectives two weeks after the killing, Deputy Police Chief Ray Vetter, who later testified he was a practicing Catholic, interrupted the interview (which is not normal procedure) and allowed a monsignor to escort Father Robinson out of Police Headquarters, which "upset the detectives to no end". Mandros also said Vetter asked detectives to give him their reports on the case, and some of those reports were never seen again. A cover-up was alleged. The case remained unsolved, with no new leads, until 2003 when police received a letter from a woman who claimed that Robinson had sexually abused her when she was a child in a series of Satanic ritual abuse that also involved human sacrifice. The woman, using the name "Survivor Doe", also filed a civil lawsuit against Robinson seeking financial damages for having been a victim of ritual abuse by Robinson and other adults dressed as nuns. The case was dismissed in 2011 due to having been filed too late. The accusations were sent to the prosecutor's cold case unit. Forensic tests indicated a sword-shaped letter opener that had been found in Robinson's apartment and stored without detailed examination was consistent with the weapon that inflicted the wounds; in the words of the prosecutor's expert, it could "not be ruled out". The tip of the opener fitted a wound in the jaw of the nun's exhumed body "like a key in a lock" according to prosecutors. Prosecutors also found three witnesses who said they had seen the priest near the chapel around the time of the killing. The case against Robinson went to trial on April 24, 2006. He was found guilty on all counts on May 11, 2006. This was the second conviction for homicide of a Catholic priest in the United States; Hans Schmidt, executed in 1916, was the first. On July 11, 2008, Ohio's Sixth District Court of Appeals reaffirmed his conviction, and in December 2008 the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear his appeal. In April 2012 he again applied for his conviction to be quashed, but in February 2013 the Ohio 6th District Court of Appeals confirmed the denial of Robinson’s petition for post-conviction relief. Robinson's attorney said the decision would shortly be appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court, and once state appeals were exhausted, the case could move to U.S. District Court. On July 4, 2014, Robinson died in prison, after a judge refused a request for him to be released to Toledo to die. The case is described in the book Sin, Shame, And Secrets: The Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and Cover-up in the Catholic Church by Toledo journalist David Yonke. The case was also re-examined in the A&E television show Dead Again where the original verdict was found to be consistent with the findings although one investigator did conclude there appeared to be enough uncertainty to not validate a verdict. Robinson died on July 4, 2014, at the Columbus, Ohio, hospice unit of Franklin Medical Center, a prison operated by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections, after a heart attack in May. Further in depth information is available on a programme named 'on the case'.

Raymond Washington

Raymond Lee Washington was an American gangster, known as the founder of the Crips gang in Los Angeles, California. Washington formed the Crips as a minor street gang in the late 1960s in Los Angeles' South Central area, becoming a prominent local crime boss. In 1971, Washington formed an alliance with Stanley "Tookie" Williams, establishing the Crips as the first major African-American street gang in Los Angeles, and served as one of the co-leaders. In 1974, Washington was convicted of robbery and received a five-year prison sentence, during which his leadership and influence in the Crips declined. On August 9, 1979, Washington was assassinated in a drive-by shooting shortly after his release from prison. Biography- Early life: Raymond Lee Washington was born in Los Angeles, California, on August 14, 1953, the youngest of four sons to Violet Samuel and Reginald Washington. His parents separated when he was two years old, and he was raised by his mother and stepfather. He grew up on East 76th Street, between Wadsworth Avenue and Central Avenues in Los Angeles' South Central. Washington had a half-brother, Derard S. Barton, from his mother's second marriage. According to neighbours of Washington, he developed an affinity for fist fighting as an adolescent, and was constantly in trouble with the Los Angeles Police Department for various offenses. Washington's mother is quoted as saying, "Raymond was a good kid when he was a boy. Raymond didn't go out of his way to fight or do anything bad, but if someone came to him, he would protect himself. And he was well built. He tried to protect the community and keep the bad guys out. But after a while, every time I looked up, the police were coming to the house looking for Raymond." Some neighbors remembered Washington differently: Lorrie Griffin Moss, who resided across the street from Washington on E 76th Street, said, "I don't have a whole lot of good to say about Raymond. Raymond was a bully. A muscular bully. He wouldn't let anybody from outside our neighborhood bother us. He would bother us. Raymond could be very mean." A friend stated that Washington was a good football player, but never participated as a member of school sports team due to his poor grades. Washington was repeatedly expelled from schools resulting in frequent transfers, attending Locke High School, John C. Fremont High School, an alternative school attached to Washington Preparatory High School, and Fairfax High School in the Fairfax District near West Hollywood. Gang involvement: In the late 1960s, there was a dramatic increase in youth crime in Los Angeles, particularly in and around South Central's Watts neighborhood. Crime was especially prevalent in the three housing projects located in Watts, known as "the Bricks": Imperial Courts, Nickerson Gardens, and Jordan Downs, where violent street robberies were common among adolescent criminals. Older African-American street gangs in South Central like the Slausons, the Businessmen, and the Gladiators, had been ended by activist groups such as the Black Panther Party and the US Organization. The absence of the old gangs saw numerous new youth gangs begin to form in their place, including the Sportsmans Park, New House Boys, Acey Duecy, and Chain Gang, on West Side. Washington, a native of the East Side in his early teens during the rise of the gangs, joined a local street gang called The Avenues, led by another teenager named Craig Munson. At age 15, Washington beat up Munson's younger brother in fist fight after discovering Munson had put a gun to his older brother, Reggie Washington. After the fight, Washington and one of his other older brothers, Ronald Joe, confronted Munson on the corner of E 81st Street and Avalon Boulevard. According to former gang members who knew Washington at the time, he was subsequently beaten up by Craig Munson in retaliation for his younger brother's beating, and Washington left The Avenues. In late 1969, Washington organized his own gang called the Baby Avenues, recruiting a group of other neighborhood youths in South Central. The Baby Avenues wanted to emulate a gang of older youths called The Avenue Boys, which had been active since 1964 on Central Avenue. The Crips: By 1969, the Baby Avenues had re-branded themselves as The Crips, derived from Reggie Washington's nickname, and the size of the gang had grown rapidly. Fist fighting was the primary method of combat used by street gangs in Los Angeles at the time, and Washington developed a reputation as one of the best fist fighters in South Central's East Side. Washington used his fighting prowess to gain respect and fear from other gang members in the East Side, establishing himself as the natural leader of Crips, and used his reputation to influence smaller African-American youth gangs to join. This resulted in a network of Crip sets (subgroups) across the East Side, including the Avalon Gardens Crips, the Eastside Crips, the Inglewood Crips, under Washington's ultimate control. Unification of South Central gangs: In 1971, Washington approached Stanley "Tookie" Williams, a similar gang leader from South Central's West Side who used his reputation as a fist fighter to unite gangs under his control, at Washington Preparatory High School where both were attending. Washington had heard of Williams through a mutual friend, who had informed Washington of Williams' toughness and his willingness to fight members of larger, more established street gangs such as the L.A. Brims and the Chain Gang. According to Williams' account of the meeting, what struck him about Washington was that, besides being incredibly muscular, he and his cohort were dressed similar to Williams and his clique, wearing leather jackets with starched Levi's jeans and suspenders. Washington proposed to Williams they form a confederation of the gangs under their influence in their respective areas along with another teenage gang leader called Mac Thomas in Compton, to form a single large street gang. The proposal would see Williams' gangs adopt the Crip branding and would be allied with other Crip gangs outside of the West Side, but would retain ultimate leadership in the East Side. Williams accepted Washington's proposal, uniting the West Side gangs under his influence as the West Side Crips. The Crips quickly established themselves as the largest street gang in Los Angeles, with increasing numbers and territory as their influence spread across low-income black neighborhoods. Washington, Williams and Thomas effectively held a monopoly on criminal activity in these areas, and became the dominant crime bosses. Street gangs that had resisted being absorbed into the Crips soon formed their own confederate alliance, the Bloods, to protect their independence and their interests in the criminal market. The founding of the Bloods sparked an instant rivalry between the new large gangs that saw a surge in violent crime in Los Angeles, as neighboring Crip and Blood sets began using increasing violence to fight over territory and personal feuds. With the rise of media coverage, which put these new violent gangs on the front page, soon many disaffected black youths were running to join the Crips, many without ever being contacted by gang leaders. One story at the time stated: One of the gangs, in the area is known as the Crips/ which started out at Washington High School as an extortion and terror organization and spread to other schools where the gang members enrolled after being expelled from Washington, the police said. The Police also said that this gang has been spreading "like an octopus" and now has members throughout South-Central Los Angeles, Inglewood, Gardena, Compton, Lynwood, Lancaster, Palmdale, the Firestone unincorporated area and the San Fernando Valley. Gang members, to identify themselves, wear black gloves on their left hands and gold-colored earrings in their left ears, which are pierced, according to police. They sometimes carry canes, which they use as weapons. There are two stories circulating on the derivation of the word Crips. One is that it stands for a cripple, because some of the founders were injured and had to carry canes for a time. The other is that the founders once wore Afro-style hairdos and their parents made them "crip it." Within a few years, much of the original Crip leadership were either imprisoned or dead. On February 23, 1973, Curtis "Buddha" Morrow, a close friend of Tookie Williams and a high-ranking Crip enforcer, was shot to death in South Central following a petty argument. Mac Thomas was murdered under mysterious circumstances in the mid-1970s. Robbery conviction: In 1974, 21-year-old Washington was arrested for second-degree robbery and sentenced to five years' imprisonment at the Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, becoming the first Crip to be incarcerated there. Washington was unpopular among the prison population as he began to recruit young African-American inmates into the Crips, much to the disapproval of established black prison groups like the Black Muslims and the Black Guerrilla Family. According to a former inmate who was housed at Deuel with Washington, the Black Muslims and the Black Guerrilla Family were aware of the spread of the Crips in Los Angeles, and warned Washington that they would not tolerate the formation of Crips in the prison. Washington faced another problem while serving time at Deuel: as the Crips murdered rival gang members on the streets of Los Angeles, inmates at Deuel who were relatives of victims held Washington responsible for their deaths. Greg "Batman" Davis, a friend of Washington and an original Crips member, stated "People in the prisons was losing their loved ones on the streets and because Raymond was the founder of the Crips, they blamed him for it. And since Raymond was the only Crip up there (at Deuel) at the time, they were trying to kill him." In the 1979, Washington was released from prison after serving his sentence and returned to Los Angeles. Reportedly, Washington was shocked to discover that the violent war between the Crips, Bloods, and Hispanic gangs had escalated to the point that fighting using firearms, as opposed to fist fighting, was now normal. Over the next few months, Washington became disillusioned with the Crips as the gang committed more violent and senseless crimes, with new recruits seeking to build their reputations. Since Washington's imprisonment, the organization had totally broken down into loosely-affiliated decentralized sets that often fought each other, as the Crips' original leadership had disappeared. Tookie Williams, the last remaining original Crips leader, served as the de facto leader during Washington's imprisonment. Williams had been injured in a drive-by shooting in 1976, and developed a growing addiction to PCP that caused his authority to wane until he was arrested for four counts of homicide shortly before Washington was released. According to law enforcement, former gang members and close friends, Washington had decided that the Crips needed to be brought back under one umbrella organization to stop infighting, and then to work towards a truce with the Bloods. Upon realizing he no longer held influence in the gang, Washington started to distance himself from the Crips. Death: At around 10:00 p.m. on August 9, 1979, twenty-five-year-old Washington was murdered in a drive-by shooting on the corner of E 64th Street and S San Pedro Street in South Central Los Angeles, and was rushed to Morningside Hospital where he died while undergoing emergency surgery. No suspects have been arrested, and Washington's murder remains unsolved. It was reported that Washington was hanging out on the corner when a car pulled up and the unidentified occupants called him over to the car. Washington's associates, as well as the police, were aware he would never walk up to cars of people that he did not know, and most likely knew the occupants of the vehicle as he told an acquaintance that he knew them. Washington engaged in a brief conversation with them before the occupant in the passenger seat drew a sawed-off shotgun and shot him in the abdomen.

Gerald and Charlene Gallego

Gerald Armond Gallego and Charlene Adell (Williams) Gallego are two American serial killers who terrorized Sacramento, California between 1978 and 1980. They murdered ten victims, mostly teenagers, most of whom they kept as sex slaves before killing them. Perpetrators- Gerald Armond Gallego: Gerald Armond Gallego (a.k.a. "Stephen Feil" or "Stephen Styles") was born on 17 July 1946 in Sacramento, California. His mother was a prostitute, while his estranged father was a criminal who in 1955 became the first man executed in the Mississippi gas chamber, for the killing of a police officer during a prison escape. Gallego began his criminal career at age thirteen, when he sexually abused a six-year-old girl. He had 23 arrests and served time after being convicted of robbery prior to his murder spree. Gallego worked as a bartender and truck driver. He was married a total of seven times, including two marriages to the same woman. He was still married to a previous wife when he married Charlene Williams. Charlene Adell (Williams) Gallego: Charlene Adell Williams was born on 10 October 1956 in Stockton, California. She was a smart, shy child from a supportive home. The trajectory of her life began to change when, as a young adult, she started using drugs and alcohol. She was married twice before meeting Gallego. Victims- Rhonda Scheffler and Kippi Vaught: On 11 September 1978, two teenagers – Rhonda Scheffler and Kippi Vaught – disappeared from a mall in Sacramento. Charlene lured them to a nearby van, leading to their abduction by the couple. Gerald used a handgun to threaten the girls and tied them up. They drove to Baxter, where Gerald raped and then executed the girls, each with a single shot to the back of their heads. Brenda Judd and Sandra Colley: On 24 June 1979, Brenda Judd and Sandra Colley were abducted from the Washoe County Fair in Reno, Nevada. Charlene later testified that Gerald beat the girls to death with a shovel or hammer.[ Their remains were not found and identified until twenty years later. Stacy Ann Redican and Karen Chipman-Twiggs: Similarly, on 24 April 1980, Stacy Ann Redican and Karen Chipman-Twiggs went missing from a Sacramento mall. They were found in July, sexually abused and bludgeoned to death. Linda Teresa Aguilar: While hitchhiking on 6 June 1980, Linda Teresa Aguilar – who was pregnant – was abducted, murdered with a blunt object, and buried in a shallow grave. Virginia Mochel: On July 17, 1980, 34-year-old Virginia Mochel was abducted from the parking lot of a West Sacramento tavern, where she worked as a bartender. Her skeletal remains, still bound with nylon fishing line, were found three months later outside of Clarksburg. Loops of cord from the victim's neck were admitted as proof of death by strangulation. Craig Miller and Mary Elizabeth Sowers: While leaving a fraternity party on 1 November 1980, Craig Miller and Mary Elizabeth Sowers were forced into the Gallego's car at gunpoint. Miller was ordered out of the car and shot; his body was found near Bass Lake, California. The couple returned to their apartment with Sowers, where Gerald sexually abused her before taking her to a field in Placer County, California, where he then executed her. Capture and trial: A friend of Miller and Sowers witnessed their abduction and reported the car's license plate number. Police used this information to track down and arrest the Gallegos at a Western Union office. Charlene's parents were in the process of wiring her money. Gerald and Charlene pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping and murder. However, Charlene's attorneys were eventually able to convince prosecutors in several states/counties to allow Charlene to testify against Gerald for a plea deal that reduced her prison sentence to 16 years and eight months. In June 1983 Gerald was found guilty of murdering Miller and Sowers and sentenced to death by gas chamber at San Quentin State Prison. In June 1984 in less than four hours Gerald was found guilty of murder and aggravated kidnapping in the case of Karen Twiggs and Stacey Redican in Nevada. He was subsequently sentenced to death. In July 1997, Charlene completed her sentence and was released. While in prison, she extensively studied psychology, business and Icelandic literature. During an interview, Charlene claimed that she was also a victim when she said, "There were victims who died, and there were victims who lived. It's taken me a hell of a long time to realize that I'm one of the ones who lived." She also claimed that she "tried to save some of their lives." In 2002, Gallego died of cancer in a Nevada prison medical center while awaiting execution.

I wonder

I wonder if the guy who sends me lovey gifs likes me.

Preference

My mom has preferences in terms of the ward I go to as does my dad. I don't and would be ok with anything

Earrings

I have way too many earrings

Toss this for me?

What I asked someone to throw away for me as I wasn't going anywhere soon

Excited

I'm super excited for break so I can relax a little. My mom might not want me to but I'll take a small break

Taken in

I'm taking in my medical bracelet as my wrist is tiny

Missionary work

Apparently I was involved in missionary work by nearly fellowshipping my brother. Also reaching out to people in need is also missionary work.

Run off to

I didn't explain where I'd "run off to" to people who don't want to know

Yay

I'm happy to do interfaith work with my brother

Harry potter

I'm reading Harry Potter

Ran into

I just ran into a couple kids from high school. That was nice

Annoying

So I got my glasses fixed.... After my mom gave the people at the glasses place an earful.

Meet up

I might meet up with an acquaintance to talk

Hate

I hate public speaking. I'm able to do it but I still hate it

almond milk mocha

my favorite flavor of almond milk is chocolate so I'd add that to my coffee and make a "mocha".

almond milk latte

I've made an almond milk latte. i love those. my family mocks my love of vegan milks but some people have dairy allergies and can use them for that reason.

funny

when i was showing off SOME of my French knowledge i forgot i'd had my phone case on my wrist and showed it off to everyone

french knowlege

I can remember certain things from French culture from when I'd taken French in school. like a Baguette is like a stick of break

vegan protiens

I mentioned this before as I'm relying on SOME vegan proteins to "bulk up". it's also to help me lose weight

go big or go home

in Kuai they were so "go big or go home" as i was a visitor. it was nice. i wonder if that's why they were super nice

healthy

as my hair is long it's also super healthy

headbands

i love headbands. my mom gives me them periodically (although less frequently as earrings).

shoes

i want new boat shoes. the ones i threw out were cute

why me?

what i'd frequently asked myself if I asked when I was roped into helping my brother TWICE try converting him

new clothes

if I do my service mission I might want some newer clothes for my mission. my standards are more lax but i'm happy for it

Death of Latasha Harlins

Latasha Harlins was a 15-year-old African-American girl who was shot in the head by Soon Ja Du, a 51-year-old Korean-born female convenience store owner who was tried and convicted of voluntary manslaughter in Harlins' death. Harlins was a student at Westchester High School in Los Angeles. Harlins' death came 13 days after the videotaped beating of Rodney King. Du was fined $500 and sentenced to five years of probation and 400 hours of community service but no prison time for her crime. Some have cited the shooting of Latasha Harlins as one of the causes of the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Background- Death of Latasha Harlins: Du's store, Empire Liquor, located in the intersection of 91st St. and Figueroa Ave. Vermont Vista, Los Angeles, was normally staffed by Du's husband and son. However, on the morning of the shooting, Du was working behind the counter, and her husband was outside resting in the family van. Du observed Harlins putting a bottle of orange juice in her backpack. Du concluded Harlins was attempting to steal, and did not see the money Harlins held in her hand. Du claimed to have asked Harlins if she intended to pay for the orange juice, to which Du claimed Harlins responded, "What orange juice?" Two eyewitnesses disputed that claim, saying that Du called Harlins a "bitch" and accused her of trying to steal, to which they claimed Harlins replied that she intended to pay for the orange juice. After speaking with the two eyewitnesses present and viewing the videotape of the incident, recorded by a store security camera, the police concluded that Harlins intended to pay for the beverage. The videotape showed that Du grabbed Harlins by her sweater and snatched her backpack. Harlins then struck Du with her fist three times, knocking Du to the ground. After Harlins backed away, Du threw a stool at her. Harlins then picked up the orange juice bottle that dropped during the scuffle, Du snatched the bottle from her, and Harlins turned to leave. Du reached under the counter, retrieved a handgun, and fired at Harlins from behind at a distance of about three feet (one meter). The gunshot struck Harlins in the back of the head, killing her instantly. Du's husband, Billy Heung Ki Du, heard the gunshot and rushed into the store. After speaking to his wife, who asked for the whereabouts of Harlins before fainting, he dialed 9-1-1 to report an attempted holdup. Trial: Du testified on her own behalf, claiming that the shooting was in self-defense and that she believed her life was in danger. But her testimony was contradicted by the statements of the two witnesses present at the time, as well as the store's security camera video, which showed Du shooting Harlins in the back of the head as the teenager turned away from Du and attempted to leave the store. The Los Angeles Police Department ballistics report also found that the handgun Du used was altered in such a way that it required much less pressure on the trigger to fire than an ordinary handgun. Decision and sentence: On November 15, 1991 a jury found that Du's decision to fire the gun was fully within her control and that she fired the gun voluntarily. The jury found Du guilty of voluntary manslaughter, an offense that carries a maximum prison sentence of 16 years. The jury recommended the maximum sentence for Du. However, the trial judge, Joyce Karlin, did not accept the jury's sentencing recommendation and instead sentenced Du to five years of probation, 400 hours of community service, and a $500 fine. Judge Karlin suggested that there were mitigating circumstances in Harlins's death. She stated, "Did Mrs. Du react inappropriately? Absolutely. But was that reaction understandable? I think that it was." Karlin added, "this is not a time for revenge...and no matter what sentence this court imposes Mrs. Du will be punished every day for the rest of her life." The court also stated that Du shot Harlins under extreme provocation and duress and deemed it unlikely that Du would ever commit a serious crime again. Furthermore, Karlin deemed that Du's capacity to act rationally in the situation was undermined by her experience with past robberies. Court of Appeals of California: A state appeals court later unanimously upheld Judge Karlin's sentencing decision in April 1992, a week before the riots. Impact: The incident and reduced sentencing by the court exacerbated the existing tensions between African-American residents and Asian-American merchants in South Central Los Angeles. Those tensions were later interpreted by some members of the public and activists as being one of the catalysts for the 1992 Los Angeles riots. The Los Angeles mayor's office estimated that 65 percent of all businesses vandalized during the riots were Korean-owned. On August 17, 1991, while Du was awaiting trial, a small fire occurred at her store. During the 1992 riots, Du's store was looted and burned down, and it never reopened. The property later became a market under different ownership. Tupac Shakur: Hip-hop artist Tupac Shakur took particular note of Harlins's death and in 1993 released a song entitled "Keep Ya Head Up" which was dedicated to Latasha Harlins. Thereafter, Shakur made frequent mention of Harlins in his songs, including in tracks like "Something 2 Die 4 (Interlude)" ("Latasha Harlins, remember that name... 'Cause a bottle of juice is not something to die for"), "Thugz Mansion" ("Little Latasha, sho' grown/Tell the lady in the liquor store that she’s forgiven/So come home"), "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto" ("Tell me what's a black life worth/A bottle of juice is no excuse, the truth hurts/And even when you take the shit/Move counties get a lawyer, you can shake the shit/Ask Rodney, Latasha, and many more"), "White Mans World" ("Rest in Peace to Latasha, Little Yummy, and Cato") and "Hellrazor" ("Dear Lord if ya hear me, tell me why/Little girl like Latasha, had to die") Ice Cube: Rapper Ice Cube composed a song about the incident for his album Death Certificate entitled "Black Korea". Gabriel Kahane: Gabriel Kahane composed a song about the incident entitled "Empire Liquor Mart (9127 S. Figueroa St.)". Joyce Karlin: Karlin's rulings in the case prompted District Attorney Ira Reiner to instruct his deputies to effectively bar Judge Karlin from trying cases by invoking a statute to remove a judge for any reason. In justifying his directive, he said "this was such a stunning miscarriage of justice that Judge Karlin cannot continue to hear criminal cases with any public credibility". Karlin became the target of protests and an unsuccessful recall campaign. Denise Harlins, Latasha Harlins's aunt, lead protests outside Karlin's home and the Compton courthouse. Protesters noted that a week after Latasha Harlins's death, a Glendale man received a more severe sentence than Du for kicking a dog. After the Los Angeles Times endorsed one of her opponents in her re-election campaign, she wrote a letter to the newspaper, saying "If judges have to look over their shoulders as they decide a case; if they have to test the political winds in order to arrive at a politically correct verdict--then the judicial system and the freedoms it guarantees will be destroyed". The Harlins family held vigils outside the Du residence every year on the anniversary of her sentencing. Denise Harlins interrupted an awards ceremony at the Biltmore Hotel for Du defense attorney Charles Lloyd. Karlin and Du's son also attended that ceremony. "All you people sitting, applauding over a child killer," Harlins yelled. "Latasha was defenseless. She didn't do nothing!" Karlin was re-elected to the Superior Court bench. She then moved to Juvenile Dependency Court, a transfer she had requested before the Du case. "I have been honored to spend the last 20 years serving the public but now I want to devote time to my family," Karlin wrote. Karlin resigned from the bench in 1997. Upon hearing of retirement, Harlins's aunt Denise stated, "I'm glad to hear that she's removed herself from the bench and that she's retired. But she didn't belong on the bench anyway."

Disappearance of Adam, Trevor, and Mitchell O'Brien

Adam, Trevor, and Mitchell O'Brien are missing brothers from Torbay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada who were allegedly abducted by their father Gary O'Brien on November 9, 1996. Their kidnapping made both national and international headlines. Gary O'Brien is wanted by Interpol for their abduction. Although various tips have come in from both Canada and the United States and a $50,000 reward has been offered, police have never been able to locate the O'Brien brothers or their father. Disappearance: On November 9, 1996, Adam, Trevor, and Mitchell O'Brien went to visit their father and non-custodial parent, Gary O'Brien, at his home in Torbay, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. At 8:30pm that night, Gary called Diana Boland, his ex-wife and the boys' mother and custodial parent, and told her that he was not going to return the boys to her and had rigged his house so that it would explode if anyone entered it. When Diana asked to speak to the boys, Gary told her "later" and hung up. Diana's sister, who was with Diana at the time, immediately called the police. Investigation: When police first arrived at Gary's house, they discovered that Gary had set up a makeshift bomb using two 400-pound propane tanks that would have exploded and destroyed both his home and the surrounding houses if anyone had tried to get inside. Diana believes that this was done in order to create a diversion. Gary has a history of violence, suicidal tendencies, and psychiatric problems, and is described by Diana as "introverted" and "resourceful". In October 1997, almost a year after the disappearance, the engine assembly of Gary's car, a 1989 Ford Tempo, was discovered in the ocean near Flatrock, approximately ten kilometres from where the boys disappeared. No bodies were recovered from that location. Diana suspects that Gary dumped the engine of his car over the cliffs and into the ocean in order to deliberately mislead police. The following year, police in Thunder Bay, Ontario received an anonymous tip from a woman who stated that she'd recognized pictures of the brothers. The woman said that she'd babysat for them, and knew the nicknames of one of the boys. Police attempted to locate the woman until 1999, but were unsuccessful. Although Gary's sister suspects that her brother and her nephews are dead, Diana firmly believes that her sons are still alive, stating that Gary may have taken them to a religious commune and raised them in an environment with no access to technology or the outside world. She believes that being cut off from the outside world may have allowed Gary to brainwash Adam, Trevor, and Mitchell, which could be why they have never tried to contact her. In order to aid the search for the O'Brien brothers, the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children has created multiple age-progressed photos of the boys over the past two decades, with the most recent ones having been released in early 2017. The case remains open, with tips coming in as recently as December 2016, twenty years on from the disappearance.

Confused

I was confused as to how my brother knew about an ordinance my church offered when I hadn't told him. After the shock of my grandfather's passing wore off I'm like wait how did he know about that. A month later the 2 who taught him reached out to me

Ugh

I'm not feeling too hot. Likely its a combination of poorly prepared pre-made dinner and massage therapy which makes me sick

back issues

my back is getting better but if I'm sitting too long my back hurts like crazy

vegan dinner

i'm eating rice and beans for dinner. it's awesome as i'm able to be vegan and healthy. I don't want to push my vegetarianism and health onto my family but if I sometimes eating that my brothers have to do it

Murder of Randi Boothe-Wilson

Randi Stacey Boothe-Wilson, formerly known as Jacksonville Jane Doe and Jane Doe 95-7000 was a formerly unidentified murder victim discovered in Jacksonville, Onslow County, North Carolina on December 6, 1995. Disappearance: Boothe-Wilson, a mother of three, was last seen in Greenburgh, New York on October 26, 1994. Her empty vehicle was found a few days after she disappeared while planning to drive to Queens to visit her sister. Her estranged husband, who was in the area the day she vanished had previously received a call from Boothe-Wilson asking for a ride. Letters to her children were discovered that indicated she planned on leaving them. Her credit cards were later mailed to her husband. Discovery: The body was found in a field in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The remains were believed to have been disposed around two years before. She stood at approximately between 5'5" and 5'8" tall and her weight could not be estimated due to the condition of her body. The victim's age range was estimated to have been between the early and late 30s, although The Doe Network reports that the age range was as large as 25 to 40. She was thought to be a white woman, despite that she was black. Near the skeleton was a strand of reddish hair that may have belonged to her. She had various evidence of dental work on her teeth, although some had protruded from her mouth. Examination of her body also indicated she had a divided rib. Items such as a Nike shoe, gold jewelry, hoop earrings, red, black and yellow clothing, a hotel key, and subway tokens were also present at the scene. No evidence of foul play was found on her bones, although it is believed that she was murdered. Investigation: The case remaiains unsolved, although in 2012 police had a suspect in Matt Adler, who had a possible connection with her death. He was imprisoned in 1995 for the rape and murder of Lisa Gipson. In 2013, he pleaded guilty to the murder of Wanda Musk. He currently is serving a life sentence for his crimes. The Jane Doe's case was featured on the website for America's Most Wanted but did not lead to her identification. Her face was reconstructed, in 2D as well as 3D, as an attempt to show what she may have looked like when she was alive. It was announced in February 2019 that the remains were identified as Boothe-Wilson after DNA was matched between the unidentified remains and her DNA profile in January.

are you Jackie?

what my mom asked when she finds out my brothers are watching the same stuff i am

gah

i can't believe my brothers watch Mr. Nightmare and Ted Bundy stuff. wow that's super

wait till april

what i should've told a teacher when he asked if it's summer to me when i'm wearing a sleeveless tank top

belated birthday thing

my visiting teachers are taking me out to a belated birthday thing. i can't wait.

aw

when i said i'd mentioned a couple elders 1 was like yay she mentioned me. that was cute

stared at

1 elder liked staring at me once i mentioned getting my eyes checked. he said he'd likely have to as well

fried rice

I made vegan fried rice for tomorrow and made a video of it. I also showed my flexitarianism lunch and lifestyle. I'd accidentally made a little too much for tomorrow so I ate the leftovers. it's awesome and something i'll make again

Biggby Coffee

Biggby Coffee (pronounced Big-Bee) is a privately owned coffee franchise business based in East Lansing, Michigan. Founded March 1995 as Beaner's by Bob Fish and Mary Roszel, the company changed its name to Biggby Coffee in late 2007. Biggby began franchising in 1999. The company headquarters is located at 2501 Coolidge Road, East Lansing, Michigan. History- Beaner's: The first Beaner's Coffee opened in March 1995 in a converted Arby's restaurant on Grand River Avenue in East Lansing, Michigan. Fish, Roszel and Michael McFall (who was originally hired by Roszel as a barista in the first store) decided to franchise the company and founded Global Orange Development, LLC in June 1998. In August 1999 the first franchise location was opened in Okemos, Michigan and in October of the same year, another location was opened in East Lansing. In the following four years, nine more locations were opened throughout Michigan and Ohio. Biggby: Originally unaware that "beaner" is an ethnic slur for Mexicans, in late 2007, the chain decided to change its name from Beaner's to Biggby Coffee. Biggby was chosen as it was a vocalization of the logo, a "big B", which was a "fun" name. The first store opened under the name Biggby Coffee on October 29, 2007, in Westland, Michigan. The change in name was completed in all stores by January 31, 2008. In December 2007, BIGGBY was awarded MBC Global’s 3rd Quarter Multicultural Achievement Award for completing the name change on a completely voluntary basis. In that same year, the company was named to Entrepreneur Magazine's Annual Franchise 500(R) list, ranked 289 out of the 500 companies profiled. In 2008, Biggby moved up 34 spots to number 255, the second among coffee retailers on the list. Awards and recognition: In September 2011, the company was named the fastest growing coffee chain in America by CNBC, which ranked the chain number one, based on their growth percentage from the previous year. Biggby was ranked above other popular brands such as Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts and Caribou Coffee. Biggby was also named a top 30 food franchise in the United States by Franchise Business Review in both 2011 and 2012. The report compiled results based on surveys from franchisees in the food sector, representing more than 75 brands and 20,500 franchised businesses. For the year of 2012, Biggby was ranked as number 268 on Entrepreneur Magazine's Annual Franchise 500(R) list, and as a top 500 franchise by Franchise Times Magazine. In 2013, Biggby moved up 67 spots on Entrepreneur Magazine's Annual Franchise list to number 201. In August 2012, Mary Roszel announced her retirement from the company after 17 years. “Words cannot express the gratitude that I, along with the rest of the company, hold for Mary,” Bob Fish said. “She has spent countless hours getting us where we are today, and is one of the most driven and talented people I have ever had the pleasure to work with." In November 2012, Mary was inducted by her Alma mater into Michigan State University's School of Hospitality Business Hall of Fame for her success with Biggby and the inspiration she brings to students at the university today. Expansion: Biggby Coffee had planned to have more than 250 stores by 2010.[14] “We’re aggressively expanding in the Midwest and the Southeast, and we do have a growth plan to continue to double our units every two years,” Biggby President Michael McFall said in July 2008. In March 2011, Biggby listed 122 franchise locations on its website, which had grown to 172 by November 2013. It had stores in at least 8 states: Michigan, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin. In July 2011, the company officially released a "new store footprint" that reduced the cost of opening a franchise location by approximately 40 percent. McFall said that despite the economic slow down that limited growth in Michigan and beyond, the new store footprint allows potential franchisees the opportunity to experience both a faster and higher return on capital and can expand current franchisees’ ability to open additional stores. “By streamlining our utilization of resources, including simplifying the contractor process, material sourcing and delivery, we were able to reduce overall costs by $70,000-$80,000 per location. The overall look and feel of the new stores remains the same as stores open prior to the redesign,” McFall said in July 2011. Advertising: Biggby Coffee uses the statement: "B Happy, Have Fun, Make Friends, Love People and Drink Great Coffee" and the slogan: "Biggby Coffee is my happy place" in their advertising. Michigan artist, Wally Pleasant is the voice behind the jingle in the company's radio and television commercials, which he won an Emmy for in 2011.

glasses

i hope i can take my glasses in and not use my back up pair longer than i have to

dancing

something I love doing and frequently do anyways.

good day

today is a good day. it's what my communication teacher would say on a day of class. it's also good if I can get done 6 chapters in 1 day

awesome

i'm happy to be able to be done with writing down 6 chapters full of side notes and can finally goof off.

loose ponytail

I pulled my hair back into a semi-loose ponytail in order to clearly see my notes. now i'ts up in order to keep it out of the way

done

i'm finally done writing down 6 chapters of side notes. i'm not 100% sure what will be on my quiz tomorrow but i'm writing down all the side notes in order to be safe.

Vegan lunch

I veganize my lunch for tomorrow. I love vegan food if its tasty and tastes ok