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(Black) Slidell man gets 70 years for killing (white) woman, setting house on fire
  COVINGTON, La. -- A 24-year-old man was sentenced to 70 years in prison for stabbing a woman to death and torching her apartment in attempt to cover up the crime. Devin Baham, of Slidell, was sentenced for the 2012 murder of Ashley King. Judge Allison Penzato sentenced Baham, a multiple offender, to 55 years at hard labor on the manslaughter conviction, 15 years for aggravated arson and 10 years for obstruction of justice. The arson and obstruction of justice sentences are to run concurrently, but they will begin after the manslaughter sentence ends. Baham was convicted in May.
King was stabbed 13 times and her home set on fire in the early morning hours of Feb. 23, 2012. Two other defendants had already pleaded guilty for their roles in the crime. Andrew Sumner, 22, of Slidell, who pled guilty March 9 to manslaughter, aggravated arson, and obstruction of justice, is set for sentencing on Aug. 29. Sumner's "wife", Katelyn Lusich, 21, who pled guilty in November 2014 to obstruction of justice, has been sentenced to 40 years in prison. The murder of King stemmed from a plan to rob her of prenoscription pills and money by Baham and Sumner.
When they got to the apartment, King who had sold pills to Sumner multiple times, grew suspicious and began asking questions soon after the men entered her apartment. Baham then punched her, grabbed her from behind, and began stabbing her, and Sumner took pills and cash from the apartment, fleeing with Lusich, who at the time was 17 years old, pregnant, and waiting in the car. Sumner and Lusich stashed the pills and cash in a safe at the home of Sumner's mother, where they had been living. "Sumner went back to pick up Baham from a park near King's apartment, and both of them returned to Sumner's house, where they siphoned gasoline from a boat in the yard. They backtracked to King's apartment about 4 a.m., and Baham set it on fire." Firefighters determined that an accelerant had been used at the fire, and phone records led police investigators to Sumner, who later implicated Baham. - (Black-on-white) |
TROY - Two Troy Police officers are recovering after they were shot by a would-be carjacker in the area of 112th St. and 5th Ave. Saturday night around 10:30. Police say they received a call for an attempted carjacking with a denoscription of the would-be carjacker. An officer who was in the area went to that intersection and saw a person who fit the denoscription and followed him while he waited for backup. When another officer joined him, they approached the man and he fired on them with a handgun. The officers fired back, hitting the man. Officer Joshua Comitale, a 7 year veteran of the force, was injured in both legs. Officer Chad Klien, 9 years on the force, was shot point blank in the shoulder when he responded. The officers were taken to Albany Medical Center. The man they shot was later identified as Thaddeus Faison, 39, from Albany. He was taken to St. Mary's Hospital and was later pronounced dead. Troy Police say Faison was a convicted felon with a lengthy criminal past. Investigators believe that around 20 rounds were exchanged in the shootout, they are also investigating cameras that were in the area. - (Black-on-white) - (Blue lives matter)
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A woman whose Queens home was allegedly stolen by a scheming squatter says her nightmare never would have happened if bone-headed city bureaucrats hadn’t given him a fraudulent deed — and now she wants the city to pay up, court papers show. 
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Update from Whitney's dad: Friends - we have great news! The Atlanta Police Department has arrested the shooter that attacked our daughter and son-in-law's family last Sunday evening. Although the other criminals involved remain at large, Mike and Whitney continue to heal and are thankful for the progress that law enforcement is making. On behalf of our family, thank you again for your love, prayers, and support during this difficult time. 
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Patrick Chavis, one of five black students whose admission to a medical school in California 30 years ago provoked a Supreme Court battle over affirmative action, died on July 23 in Hawthorne, Calif. He was 50. Mr. Chavis, whose medical license was revoked five years ago for malpractice, was fatally shot as he returned to his car after buying an ice cream cone in Hawthorne, a suburb of Los Angeles, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said. Investigators theorized that three men had tried to hijack Mr. Chavis's car but fled without it. Mr. Chavis lived in Inglewood, Calif. In 1973, Mr. Chavis was admitted to the University of California at Davis medical school in a program to increase black enrollment. 
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A Wayne County judge found two Taylor men guilty of misdemeanor aggravated assault Tuesday in a gas station beating that left a Lincoln Park man hospitalized for a month. Wayne County Circuit Judge Shannon Walker rejected felony charges of assault with intent to murder and assault with intent to commit great bodily harm against Anthony Clark, 23, and his brother, Deangelo Clark, 22. Walker heard testimony on several days over the past two months, as the Clarks waived their right to a jury trial. Walker said she looked at the credibility of all the witnesses and considered the Clarks’ intent when they punched and kicked 
St. Louis police arrested nine people and deployed tear gas to break up protests that followed the police killing of an 18-year-old man who authorities say pointed a gun at two officers. Protesters threw glass bottles and bricks at officers and refused to clear the roadway. On Wednesday afternoon, two officers were executing a search warrant at a home in a crime-plagued neighborhood when two armed men fled out the back. The officers shot Mansur Ball-Bey, 18, after he turned and pointed a gun at them, police said. The second suspect fled, they said. 
Darrius Stewart, a black 19-year-old, was fatally shot July 17 by 
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Lonna Barton, mother of missing 21-month-old toddler 
MERIWETHER COUNTY, GA - Meriwether County Sheriff Chuck Smith reports an arrest has been made in the murder investigation of 
