John Zawahri Identified As Santa Monica, CA Shooter
Shooting rampage killed four — he was angry at parents divorce
SANTA MONICA, CA – The gunman who killed four people in a shooting rampage in Santa Monica before he was slain by police at a community college in the California seaside town was once a student there and had a brush with the law several years ago as a teenager, police said on Saturday. Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks also revealed that several students at the college survived Friday’s shootings by hiding in an interior room of the library and piling up heavy objects against the door as the gunman fired through the walls at them. Seabrooks detailed how the gunman, after killing two people identified by a law enforcement source as his father and brother and apparently setting their house on fire, went on to carjack a woman’s automobile, ordering her at gunpoint to drive him from place to place as he fired at other individuals. READ MORE HERE
The Dodge City Police Department is asking for the public’s help in locating a man wanted for the rape of a child. Officers are searching for 50-year-old Hugo Baeza for rape and aggravated indecent liberties with a child. Baeza is described as a Hispanic man, 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighs approximately 225 pounds and has brown eyes and gray hair. He may be driving a black 1991 Dodge truck with Kansas tag 774CLR or a green 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan with Kansas tag 328BNX. Anyone with information on Baeza’s whereabouts is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (620) 227-STOP or (877) 424-4414, or call the Dodge City Police Department at (620) 225-8128. READ MORE HERE
In the United States alone, 20 percent of parents never supervise their child’s online activities, according to the District Attorney Report in San Diego County. After the age of 14, a reported 71% of parents stop monitoring their child’s Internet use entirely. These numbers are alarming, considering the Internet commonly exposes children to sexual predators and cyber-bullying. It’s time to understand how the world has changed and why parents must adapt their parenting techniques in order to protect their families.
Many of us were taught from a young age not to talk to strangers. We learned that men in uniforms could be trusted intrinsically and our teachers were our friends. The rules of safety were clear and defined. With the advent of the Internet, however, the line between strangers and friends has blurred. Online friendship is as simple as clicking a ubiquitous thumbs up “Like” button. On websites such as Facebook and MySpace, this opens up a link so that strangers you have “Liked” can view personal information and photographs, see your other online friends and make comments.
Kids Today
By opting into these social circles with just a click of a mouse, teenagers and pre-teens will typically freely share personal information about themselves to online strangers. A Carnegie Mellon University publication reports that these “shares” include real names, addresses (6 percent), phone numbers (5 percent), and names of schools (6 percent) -especially among students in middle school. It’s unclear why they would share these private facts, but researchers stress that this lack of discrepancy makes it very simple for online sexual predators to gain your child’s trust and take full advantage of them.
Resources and Support
In response to this assault on the most vulnerable of our society – our children – companies like Lifelock and government organizations like the U.S. Department of Justice have developed tools for us to fight back. Among other services, Lifelock can provide your family with advanced Internet surveillance, making sure that strangers do not have access to your private information. The U.S. Department of Justice takes a strong stance against sexual predators and prosecutes offenders to the full extent of the law. The National Sex Offender Public Website will disclose to you a full list of registered sex offenders in your area. Take some time to educate yourself on the dangers associated with sharing personal information on the internet.
Lessons Learned
On October 7, 2003, Ryan Halligan committed suicide at the tender age of 13. After years of physical bullying and a final bout of malicious cyber-bullying involving purposeful ridicule, Ryan felt he could fight no longer. His parents have aligned themselves with isafe.org to speak out about the crime of cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullying is the practice of bullying online, usually among youngsters. Megan Meier was another young person who experienced cyber-bullying on MySpace. The mother of another teen had created a fake account for the sole purpose of humiliating Megan. After the postings, Megan took her own life shortly before her fourteenth birthday. New Jersey has created an anti-bullying law that is a good step in preventing online bullying. However, the first step has to happen in every parent’s home. Careful online monitoring and making use of the services of companies like Lifelock can help prevent cyber-bullying before it starts. Nearly 43 percent of kids have been bullied online. Don’t let it happen to your child.
Left unguided, our children could become victims of the Internet, rather masters. Install virtual boundaries in your home by considering protective measures. Most importantly, maintain the flow of communication between you and your children. For more advice on creating a safe communicative environment at home, try the websites of family professionals like Dr. Phil. Try to be nonjudgmental and accepting while steering them toward the better paths in life. When talking to your kids, try to listen more than speak. You might be surprised at what you hear.
Jackie Moore
Jackie is a financial manager at an independent bank in Alabama. She shares advice on budgeting and finance for small businesses and homeowners.
147 of them are missing in El Paso County, TX alone
Texas currently has 4,400 active missing-children cases, and 147 of them are in El Paso County, Robert R. Almonte, U.S. marshal for the Western District of Texas, said Thursday. Almonte provided other statistics during a news conference on missing children at the federal courthouse in Downtown El Paso. “Each year, about 800,000 children are abducted nationally, and some 97 percent of them are recovered,” he said. “About 56,000 of the abductions are non-family abductions. And in Texas about 46,000 children are abducted each year.” READ MORE HERE
The FBI is looking for two unidentified women who may have information in an ongoing child sexual abuse case in Southern California. The women appeared in digital images but were not seen “actively engaged” in sexually abusing the child, the FBI said. The pair, dubbed by the FBI as Jane Doe 25 and Jane 26, may be able to help investigators determine the identity of the victim, federal authorities said. READ MORE HERE
Predatory pedophile from Portugal groomed and raped British girl, 12, before going on the run
A predatory Portuguese child rapist has gone on the run after he was granted bail and allowed to keep his passport while awaiting trial. Antonio Pedro De Alves attacked a 12-year-old girl in a supermarket car park after grooming her for six months on the internet while posing as a 15-year-old boy. De Alves, 41, skipped bail before he was due to stand trial in Stafford last week. READ MORE HERE
DreamCatchers for Abused Children – Top 3 sites dedicated to ending child abuse and neglect
Herbert Ward’s profound statement “Child abuse casts a shadow the length of a lifetime” truly embraces the impact that child abuse has on our society. According to Childhelp, a leading national non-profit organization dedicated to helping victims of child abuse and neglect, every year 3.3 million reports of child abuse are made in the United States involving nearly 6 million children .The United States has the worst record in the industrialized nation, losing five children every day due to abuse-related deaths. Now is the time to advocate, educate, and work towards ending this epidemic by joining the cause and fighting to change policies, legislation, beliefs, and laws that are continuing to destroy our society’s most vulnerable. Thankfully, there are several organizations, campaigns, and social network groups made up of dedicated, passionate, and educated individuals working around the clock to fight this war. The following is a list of 3 child abuse sites that should be recognized and celebrated for their up-to-date information and statistics, news stories, educational resources, and hard work. READ MORE HERE View the list
We hope you will decide to report your attack to the police. While there’s no way to change what happened to you, you can seek justice while helping to stop it from happening to someone else. Reporting to the police is the key to preventing sexual assault: every time we lock up a rapist, we’re preventing him or her from committing another attack. It’s the most effective tool that exists to prevent future rapes. In the end, though, whether or not to report is your decision to make. READ MORE HERE
A 15-year-old girl has been abducted in Iowa, and police say the suspect in the case was found dead from apparently self-inflicted injuries before they could question him. Kathlynn Shepard and a 12-year-old friend disappeared soon after exiting their school bus in Dayton, Iowa on Monday afternoon, according to the Iowa Department of Public Safety. Around 4:30 p.m., the 12-year-old girl ran to a rural residence about five miles away in Pilot Mound and asked for help. READ MORE HERE
Kevin Bacon, Dylan McDermott, Gabrielle Union and Christina Ricci headline innovative RAINN campaign to help survivors of child sexual abuse. Nearly half of all victims of sexual assault are under the age of 18. It’s never too late for anyone – – adult survivors or children – – to get help. Contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE or online @ rainn.org to talk to someone who understands what you’re going through.
ROSWELL, N.M – Police are looking for a man who is wanted on numerous child abuse charges. Taylor Adams, 20, is wanted in Roswell for 15 counts of sexual assault on a child and nine counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. If you have any information on his whereabouts you are asked to call Roswell police. READ MORE HERE
SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA – Investigators with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department need help finding a man who grabbed a 7-year-old girl while she was out for a walk with her mom in south Sacramento on Saturday. The girl managed to escape and is OK. Witnesses described the abductor as between 25 and 35 years old with light-brown skin, between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall, with black, shoulder-length hair worn either in braids or dreadlocks. READ MORE HERE
WANTED FOR ALLEGEDLY MURDERING HIS WIFE AND TWO YOUNG DAUGHTERS
The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is currently seeking Shane Franklin Miller on a warrant charging him with a triple murder. Deputies report that Miller allegedly murdered his wife, Sandy, 34, and daughters, Shelby, 8, and Shasta, 5 in Shingletown, California. He then fled the scene and deputies found his pickup truck abandoned about 200 miles away near Petrolia, California. READ MORE HERE
UPDATE: Police believe body is that of 18-month-old Kansas girl
(CNN) — The body of an 18-month-old girl whose mother was found dead last week along with two others may have been discovered Saturday, police in Kansas said. Authorities are conducting a forensic identification on the remains, a written statement said. “It is with great sadness that I report a body found in Osage County, Kansas, is believed to be the remains of 18-month-old Lana Bailey,” Franklin County Sheriff Jeff Richards said, adding that he was confident it was the missing toddler. READ MORE HERE
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Amber Alert Issued for Toddler
Family Murdered, 18-MO Toddler Missing
FRANKLIN COUNTY, KS – A missing mother was among the three found dead inside a Franklin County farmhouse as authorities issued an alert for the woman’s missing 18-month-old daughter. Authorities and family members have confirmed the identities of the three killed. Confusion exists among law enforcement agencies about the status of a man in custody in connection with the slayings and the alert for Lana-Leigh Bailey, who turned 18 months old on Tuesday. READ MORE HERE
DREAMCATCHERS FOR ABUSED CHILDREN, INC. is an official non-profit 501(c)3 child abuse & neglect organization. Our mission is to educate the public on all aspects of child abuse such as symptoms, intervention, prevention, statistics, reporting, and helping victims locate the proper resources necessary to achieve a full recovery. We also cover areas such as bullying, teen suicide & prevention, children\'s rights, child trafficking, missing & exploited children, online safety, and pedophiles/sex offenders.
SANTA MONICA, CA – The gunman who killed four people in a shooting rampage in Santa Monica before he was slain by police at a community college in the California seaside town was once a student there and had a brush with the law several years ago as a teenager, police said on Saturday. Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks also revealed that several students at the college survived Friday’s shootings by hiding in an interior room of the library and piling up heavy objects against the door as the gunman fired through the walls at them. Seabrooks detailed how the gunman, after killing two people identified by a law enforcement source as his father and brother and apparently setting their house on fire, went on to carjack a woman’s automobile, ordering her at gunpoint to drive him from place to place as he fired at other individuals. READ MORE HERE
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