The 'Milky' Way

Can't help it, but I have quite a soft spot for fighter girls like this :-)
Drink you milk kids!

Story ("Milk-do" - or 'The Way Of The Milk'):
Massachusetts -- A 14-year-old Fairhaven girl fought off a man who first offered her a ride in his truck and then tried to grab her near a boat ramp early yesterday afternoon.

The girl said she was walking when a man in his early 30s pulled up and asked if she needed a ride. She refused, but the man allegedly began following her in his truck. As she neared the parking lot of the Pease Park boat ramp, he pulled in front of her, blocking her way, police said.

The teenager told police the man then got out of his truck and walked up behind her. He grabbed her by the back of the arm, trying to get her to stop, and said, "Come on and get in my car."

The girl struck her attacker in the face with a container of milk she was carrying, causing him to let go. When he tried to grab her arm a second time, she kneed him in the groin.

The man (wisely) gave up and the girl ran home to report the incident.

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False reports

In New South Wales, Australia, about 30 people faked their own kidnappings in the past year.

Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research figures show that NSW has the highest recorded kidnapping rate in the country, with 6.9 abductions per 100,000 people.

However, the bureau's report found that of the 238 cases of alleged abduction reviewed by researchers, only 57 per cent involved an actual abduction.

About one-third of victims experienced an attempted abduction and 4 per cent of cases did not fall into the legal description of abduction. In 7 per cent of cases, either no abduction took place or a false report was given to police.

There were 422 recorded abductions between October 2005 and September 2006. That would suggest about 30 people falsified kidnappings last year.

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'Mall-Wart'?

Quite alarming statistics regarding Wal-Mart ...

Story:
Wal-Mart complexes experience a significant number of police incidents, more so than at other shopping complexes. This is according to a national study published less than a year ago by United Food and Commercial Workers International Union at WakeUpWalMart.com.

The study examined police reports associated with 551 Wal-Mart stores across the country. It collected data from 404 police departments from 434 cities and towns.

The study demonstrates that nationally, Wal-Mart stores cost local taxpayers an estimated $77 million in increased police costs in 2004.

What the report calls "magnet for crime" is not limited to merely in-store crimes like shoplifting and check forgery. Included is also violent and serious crimes including rape, attempted rape, aggravated assault, burglary, auto-theft, arson, narcotics, kidnapping and murder.

The report shows that there were 1,024 auto thefts reported at Wal-Mart stores, 154 sex crimes, 23 kidnappings or attempted kidnappings and 1,145 assaults with a deadly weapon.

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Stockholm stats

A recent report from the 'Center for Public Health' shows that there was 6800 cases of assault on women reported to police in Stockholm during 2006 (in average 19 cases per day). There was 1178 rapes, on average 3 reports per day.

Two thirds of the women was subject to assault indoor, often by a spouse or family member. Karen Leander (who wrote the report) criticise the media for giving a false image of violence towards women. Media tend to spread the idea that women are being assaulted and raped by strangers, outside in the dark, she says.

She goes on to state that even rapes and assaults outdoors are, for a major part, being carried out by someone the victim knows.

Another washroom incident

Florida -- A man in his 20s was spotted lurking inside a clubhouse in Miramar.

According to detectives, the man grabbed a female housekeeper in the men's room, bent her arm behind her back and raised her skirt, tearing it.

"The subject entered the bathroom and basically tried to pin her into one of the stalls," a police spokesman said.

"At that point, there was a confrontation and the subject tried to lift her dress, tried to reach in under her dress and she was able, at that point, to fight him off."

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Alcohol

I may enjoy a drink or two now and then - more and more seldom I might add. Still I have no problem seeing the potential dangers connected with alcohol consumption.

Story:
Guam -- Alcohol is the number one drug of choice among Guam's adolescents, and used by more young adults than any other illicit drug.

According to recent studies published in the medical journal, The Lancet, alcohol ranks among the five most dangerous drugs in our society. It has been ranked as being more dangerous than illegal drugs like marijuana or ecstasy.

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A target

A brilliant conclusion by the police: "Investigators believe the would-be robbers had figured out that the victim was depositing a large amount of money and waited for her to arrive at the bank."
Nooo! Really? Wow ... Do you mean it wasn't random?

Story:
California -- An employee at a Starbucks in El Segundo, was attempting to deposit money from the business when the assailants approached her at 11:50 a.m. in Manhattan Beach.

The woman was struck several times, but refused to let go of her backpack as a suspect tried to grab it from her. She held on real tight, and yelled 'help' as loud as she could. She continued screaming as she fought off the men, prompting people in the parking lot to call police.

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(No rest) restaurant restroom

California -- A 26-year-old man entered a restaurant south of St. Helena, Napa Valley by the side door. This was on March 26. He then went straight to the women's bathroom and entered the back stall and removed his clothes.

A woman came into the bathroom and saw the suspect standing there naked. The attacker grabbed her and tried to pull her inside the back stall. The woman spun around and was able to break loose from his grip.

Her sweater got torn in the process. The woman ran from the bathroom.

Just as that was happening, a woman in another stall came out and the assailant grabbed her and tried to pull her into the back stall.

She was fighting him off when some men, who had heard the noise, came in and wrestled the man to the ground.

The woman who was in the stall heard the commotion between the man and the first woman, but thought it was just some girls playing around.

Both women had visible injuries to their arms, according to the report.

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(Not too) cleaver clever

Pretending to be an express courier, a 24-year-old robber was permitted entry in a trading company in Hong Kong.

He then tried to attack the receptionist with a stun gun but she fought back. The stun gun dropped to the ground in the scuffle.

When the "stunner" bent to pick it up, a sharp cleaver he hid in his trousers pierced an artery in his thigh. The man tried to flee but collapsed in a pool of blood. He died of major blood loss.

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Mobile theft capital

UK -- A survey has revealed that Glasgow is the mobile phone theft capital of the British Isles.

With one in five cases involving phones being snatched from bags, almost a third of people living in the city have had their mobile stolen.

The study also shows phone thieves are most likely to strike in the evenings; the months April and August had the highest rates of phone theft in the city, and one in five admitted falling victim while on night out.

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Usually been drinking

You must be kidding; Consuming alcohol and walking alone through a secluded area at night "may increase the chances of being attacked". Wow, that is a huge surprise...

Story:
Edinburgh, Scotland -- Every week, according to police, one person is assaulted in the Meadows and Bruntsfield Links. The total number of (recorded) crimes in the area has soared from 68 in 2003-4 to 166 in 2006-7 according to police.

The majority of victims of serious assaults and hold-ups have usually been drinking, and they are white males aged between 21 and 25. They are mostly attacked by gangs of youths aged under 20 - many culprits in their mid teens.

"Pedestrians walking through the area at night after consuming alcohol may be increasing their chances of being attacked as they are less aware of their surroundings and therefore more vulnerable (...)"

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Internet predators

The (Australian) federal government body NetAlert, along with ninemsn, have done a survey, showing that boys were more willing to share information and more trusting of people they met online than girls.

Subsequently they have warned parents their sons are just as likely to be preyed on by internet predators as their daughters.

A NetAlert spokesperson have stated that "(...) boys are just as much at risk from online dangers, including predators, as girls."

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Hotel rooms

In the eyes of a perpetrator, a hotel room is a "perfect" place for criminal activities - it's secluded and you can lock the door. Plus, people are used to a certain level of noise. In a sense it is "private" - kind of like domestic disturbances coming form a neighbor.

Story:
A female guest reported a male maid sexually assaulted her at a hotel in Middletown. She said the man came into her room around noon Saturday and fondled her in the bathroom.

When she tried to make him leave, he pushed her into a corner and attempted to kiss her, according to a police report.

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Hazards at work, 42

Jamaica -- Three male students allegedly attempted to rape a female teacher at a Kingston high School yesterday.

A source said the teacher was taking a Grade 10 class in a building to the back of the school, called 'the temple', when the boys - the only ones who had turned up for the class - reportedly started saying things which made the teacher feel uncomfortable.

The teacher reportedly set the afternoon's work on the board and started to leave, but was allegedly blocked by the boys.

"One of them held her hands behind her and another held her around her waist, she literally had to fight her way from them," the source said, adding that the teacher was so distraught, she had been crying all afternoon.

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A discovery

My kind of woman completely - this is one smart and tough mama :-)

Story:
Canada -- A Moose Jaw woman credits the Discovery Channel with saving her life after tips she learned on a program about shark attacks helped her fend off an intruder who broke into her apartment in Medicine Hat.

The 27-year-old female was alone in her home around 4:30 p.m. March 25 when she was confronted by a man armed with a crowbar, duct tape and handcuffs.

"I poked him in the eye like you do to a shark that’s attacking you," she said. "I was also trying to fish-hook my fingers inside his lips because I know that hurts. I scratched his hands really good and got as much of my blood on him as possible because I knew he’d have to have my DNA on him and I’d have to have his DNA on me for there to be any evidence."

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Snatch and run

Snatch and run - almost sounds like a slogan: Thieves-R-Us.
Seriously, why does women A. keep all their important things - house keys, credit cards, ID, etc. - inside a purse, and B. leave the purse on the seat beside them? How about making it just a tiny bit harder for the criminals? Why not put the important items in the glove department, and leave a "decoy purse" on the seat?

Story:
Four women have become victims of snatch and run thefts in Istanbul following an attack on Republican People's Party deputy Zeynep Damla Gürel.

Thieves who take advantage of traffic jams that occur on the streets specifically target the lone female drivers of luxury vehicles. The assailants flee after breaking car windows, typically with a spark plug, and taking the victims' purses.

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Fighting food

Some people seems to belong on the inside of a prison - and no, they're not the ones working there ...

Story:
Turkey -- On the day he was released from prison in Izmir after serving time for purse snatching, a 24-year-old man was taken into custody for trying to snatch the purse of 54-year-old woman.

The incident occurred Saturday evening in Izmir. The newly released purse-snatcher chose the woman, who was on her way out of the mall, as a victim.

After sneaking up from behind her, he tried to snatch her purse by pulling on it; however, the woman resisted so he tried to take her down.

The woman hit the purse-snatcher on his head with the grocery she had and began yelling for help. The man panicked and tried to escape.

He was captured by police teams patrolling the area shortly after the police was notified of his purse-snatching attempt.

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Hazards at work, 41

And of course any teacher who lay hands on these "poor kids" would find themselves in trouble, right?

Story:
Yet another teacher was assaulted at violence-plagued West Philadelphia High School - the seventh in two weeks and at least the 18th this school year.

Around 11 a.m., a trash fire was set in an unoccupied classroom, one in a series of small blazes set by students in protest of the removal of the principal this week.

Students were evacuated and when one teacher tried to tell students to get off a car, a ninth-grade girl punched him in the jaw, police said. Another girl and a boy also tried to hit the 53-year-old teacher, a long-term substitute.

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A high price

I find it really strange that such an initiative should be so hard to implement - this includes Norway, where I come from. If something obviously is funded by criminal activities, then just let the state confiscate it! You say its yours? Well then, prove it ...

Story:
UK -- Criminals who think they can cash in on their crimes are being warned to think again.

The force-wide initiative is a major push to seize the assets of lawbreakers, whether they are low-level offenders or the Mr Bigs of the criminal world.

Under the Proceeds of Crime Act, police can seize cash or goods if they are believed to be criminal property or used to commit crime. Already, £3m has been seized by Northumbria Police since the operation started last April.

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Restrooms

Sweden - A woman has reported to police that she was raped by an acquaintance at a public restroom in Stockholm Monday evening.

This was the second rape committed in a public restroom during a period of just two days in the Swedish capital.

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Hazards at work, 40

Norway -- A social service client in Vaaler went berserk during a meeting there on February 23.

The man threw furniture around the room and assaulted a female employee who came to see what was going on.

Wandering around the office, the enraged man threatened to kill three members of the staff.

Police later arrested the man.

A kid will remember

It could be wise to reflect on this story, next time an adult wonders if a child simply makes up a story. We may begin to wonder since a child seemingly remembers so many details.
Yes, a few kids make up a story to get attention, or cover up something else. Most however, do not.

Story:
On a Monday night in January, Mitchell Hults received a phone call from his friend's dad. "He called me and asked if I'd seen Ben or if Ben had been on the bus," says Mitchell, 15, of Beaufort, Mo.

Mitchell had seen Ben Ownby on the school bus. He also saw something unusual when Ben got off the bus -- a strange white pickup truck.

"I know pretty much all the cars that come down here," Mitchell says of the rural area in which he lives.

Mitchell told Ben's dad, and then the police, about the white pickup. He remembered it was a Nissan, and even knew the places where the truck had dents and rust. He also remembered what his friend was wearing when he disappeared.

Ben, 13, had been kidnapped, but was found by police four days after his abduction, along with Shawn Hornbeck, 15, who vanished four years ago. Michael Devlin was arrested for kidnapping Ben and Shawn, and is in jail awaiting trial. Mitchell's description was a huge help, and two officers recalled it when they saw Devlin's truck.

It may seem surprising that a kid could remember so many details. But safety instructor Tom Patire wasn't surprised. "Adults have so much going through their minds, they get mixed up in the description," Patire says, whereas a kid will remember.

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Hazards at work, 39

Australia -- A 48-year-old woman punched a 26-year-old male nurse in the face and repeatedly struck him with her walking stick on December 8, 2003 because she was irate about having to wait for hospital treatment, a court has heard.

The hostile woman wanted to be seen "immediately" when she arrived at the Royal Brisbane Hospital's psychiatric ward about 2:40pm.

However, the woman was left to wait and as the nurse emerged from one of the wards she yelled out "you Scottish bastard". "The complainant had an Irish accent," the prosecutor told the court.

The accused then struck the nurse's face with a clenched fist before repeatedly hitting him with her black walking cane as if it were a baseball bat. She was yelling obscenities ... he was walking backwards trying to stop the blows, calling for security.

He was fearful because she wouldn't stop. She was eventually brought to the ground before others helped restrain her.

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