"Militarized Law Enforcement" - Police Using 'Dog Kennel-Like' Holding Cells On Dakota Pipeline Protesters

Story out of Standing Rock, North Dakota:

Local law enforcement in North Dakota today defended their use of what protesters have described as dog kennel-like holding cells following a tense weekend of demonstrations over the Dakota Access pipeline that resulted in mass arrests and calls from tribal leaders for federal intervention over what they say is the militarization of police.

"Temporary holding cells (chain link fences) have been installed into the Morton County Correctional Center and are used for 'mass arrest' situations only," the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (DOCR) said in a statement, adding that the "holding cells" were 10 feet by 14 feet.

Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault II called on the Department of Justice to intervene over the "militarized law enforcement," and to "send overseers immediately to ensure the protection of First Amendment rights and the safety of thousands here at Standing Rock."

"We have repeatedly seen a disproportionate response from law enforcement to water protectors’ nonviolent exercise of their constitutional rights. Today we have witnessed people praying in peace, yet attacked with pepper spray, rubber bullets, sound and concussion cannons," Archambault said in a statement Thursday evening following a clash between police and demonstrators.

 After a weekend of heightened tensions between law enforcement and protesters, many sympathetic to the plight to block the pipeline turned to social media to show their solidarity with the protesters. Cont. (Video/Autoplay)

Story from - CBS News

141 Arrested As Protesters Continue To Oppose Dakota Pipeline

Story out of Bismarck, North Dakota:

The standoff over the Dakota Access Pipeline is heating up, and protesters say they won't back down.

Long-brewing tensions over the controversial project boiled over Thursday, as police in riot gear faced off with protesters on horseback. After hours of clashes, law enforcement officials arrested 141 people.

A court decision allowing construction of the $3.7 billion pipeline across four states hasn't dampened demonstrators' furor over the project. The developer calls it an economic boon that will make the US less dependent on imported oil. But protesters say it threatens the environment and will destroy Native American burial sites, prayer sites and artifacts.

Police deployed bean bags, pepper spray gas and unleashed a high-pitched siren as they tried to disperse the crowd. Protesters lit debris on fire and threw Molotov cocktails, North Dakota Department of Emergency Services spokeswoman Cecily Fong said.

Authorities accused most of the arrested demonstrators of trespassing on private property. Supporters of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe had earlier set up tents and teepees on the land, which they said belongs to the tribe under a 19th-century treaty. Cont. (Video)

Story from - CNN

Grandmother Arrested For Covering Up Daughter's Murder Of Her Son Over Potty Training

Well, shit. Story out of Bismarck, North Dakota:

Federal authorities have arrested and charged the grandmother of a 2-year-old boy who was allegedly killed by his mother due to potty-training issues on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

Sonya Dubray, 47, is accused of hindering the investigation by altering or destroying evidence and giving false and misleading information to investigators, court documents show. She allegedly laundered the dead boy’s clothes, cleaned the crime scene, misled investigators about alleged abuse against the boy and falsely told a Bureau of Indian Affairs special agent that the child was potty-trained.

Dubray faces charges, including accessory to murder and tampering with evidence, and could face up to 43 years in prison if convicted. She was arrested Monday and is due to make her initial appearance Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Rapid City.

Dubray’s daughter is Katrina Shangreaux, 28, who has pleaded not guilty to murder and child abuse in the death of her son Kylen on July 28.

The boy was in his mother’s custody and living at his grandmother’s home in Porcupine when he died. He had bruises, bite marks and other injuries, and evidence suggests a potty-training issue triggered the killing, FBI Special Agent Mark Lucas said in an affidavit. Cont.

Story from - 10 TV

University Of North Dakota Facing Second Controversy After More Racist Students Post Sickening Photos

Story out of Grand Forks, North Dakota:

The University of North Dakota is investigating another racially-charged photo that was posted to social media. This time, the photo contains four white people wearing black facial masks with the caption "Black Lives Matter".

A facebook user posted the picture on her page, tagging UND saying "the problem is growing worse here at UND."

UND spokesperson tells Valley News Live that police and administration were notified Wednesday about the picture and they are investigating. The spokesperson tells us the students in the picture attend UND.

This picture comes just 24 hours after another one. The first picture was posted on snapchat. It showed three white students smiling and holding up a peace sign with the caption of "locked the black b*tch out."

UND President Mark Kennedy sent out statement on Thursday saying he is appalled that within 48 hours two photos have been taken and that the university has much work to do.

The following statement is from UND President Mark Kennedy:

I am appalled that within 48 hours two photos with racially-charged messages have been posted on social media and associated with the UND campus community. It is abundantly clear that we have much work to do at the University of North Dakota in educating our students, and the entire University community on issues related to diversity, inclusion, and respect for others. Cont.

Story from - KFYRT

Violent Protest Erupts After Construction Crews Destroy Native American Burial Sites

Story out of Standing Rock Sioux reservation, North Dakota:

A protest against a four-state, $3.8billion oil pipeline turned violent on Saturday after tribal officials say construction crews destroyed Native American burial and cultural sites on private land in southern North Dakota.

Morton County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Donnell Preskey said four private security guards and two guard dogs were injured after several hundred protesters confronted construction crews at the site just outside the Standing Rock Sioux reservation.

Tribe spokesman Steve Sitting Bear said protesters reported that six people had been bitten by security dogs, including a young child. At least 30 people were pepper-sprayed, he said.

The tribe is challenging the Army Corps of Engineers' decision to grant permits for Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners' Dakota Access pipeline, which crosses the Dakotas and Iowa into Illinois, including near the reservation in southern North Dakota. Cont.

Story from - The Daily Mail

Kids With Water Guns Put Out Fire

Story out of West Fargo, North Dakota:

Neighborhood kids with water guns are credited with saving a homebound West Fargo resident from a fire Tuesday.

According to a release from West Fargo Fire Chief Daniel Fuller:

Firefighters were called to a deck fire at an apartment unit in the 3400 block of Fifth Street West.

When firefighters arrived, they found the remains of a planter that had caught fire. The flames had extended into the siding and wood decking adjacent to the planter.

The fire was already out, however, and it was later determined that five neighborhood kids saw the fire, alerted the occupant, and then used their water guns to control the blaze before firefighters arrived. Cont.

Story from - TwinCities Pioneer Press

Father Threatens Daughter With Loaded Gun After Coming Out As Lesbian

Ah, religion, that calming influence in our society that makes us all better people. Story out of Fargo, North Dakota: 

A man has been arrested in West Fargo, North Dakota for aiming a loaded gun at his teenage daughter after she came out as a lesbian.

Kamiran Bakir, 47, was arraigned Wednesday (24 February) on a felony charge of terrorizing.

Police responded to a phone call at about 6.45pm Sunday from Bakir’s daughter, who said he was going to ‘blow her head off.’

Bakir had pointed a gun at his daughter, who is 16 or 17, and relatives who were in the back seat of his car while at a gas station.

Bakir’s daughter told police that, earlier that evening, he told her ‘she was lucky that she’s not 18 because he would have put a bullet in her head.’ Cont.

Story from - Gay Star News