Necklace with a machine gun pendant LILY ALLEN condemned

LILY ALLEN has been condemned for glamorising guns by wearing a necklace with a machine gun pendant. The Smile hitmaker - who previously met with London mayor Boris Johnson to outline proposals to reduce knife crime - was photographed wearing the gold pendant on Friday (26Sep08). But the choice of jewellery has outraged anti-violence groups, who have branded Allen "irresponsible".Lyn Costello, from anti-violence group MAMAA, says: "She is glamorising the use of guns. It's totally irresponsible. "She's a role model and people look up to her. The last thing we want is people looking at her and thinking guns are fashionable. "I'm really disappointed in her. She had a meeting with the Mayor saying she's worried about knife crime but is she not worried about gun crime too. "If she's really worried about violent crime then she shouldn't wear a necklace that

Guns are back with a vengeance on Bronx streets

Guns are back with a vengeance on Bronx streets - gun arrests are down in the double digits. In some precincts, gun arrests are down as much as 50% or more, while shootings there are up in the 30% range. The percentages are high, but the numbers are nowhere near as bad as the bad old days of the early '90s, when crack cocaine drug wars were littering the streets with bodies and emergency rooms with shooting victims. As of Oct. 5, there were 100 murders in the Bronx so far this year, compared to 88 for the same period last year - a 13.6% jump. Two years ago, murders were down 13%. Citywide, the numbers were 400 homicides versus 359 in 2007, up 11.4%. Two years ago, they were down 8.6%. Some 383 people have been shot in the borough, compared to 359 last year - a 6.6% jump. Citywide, shootings are up 7.2%, with 1,420 victims compared to 1,324 last year. Gun arrests are down 20.2% in the Bronx, and 12.3% citywide. That compares to a 25.6% Bronx decline, and a 16% citywide drop two years ago. "There was a time when the heat was on, and you'd leave your gun at home," said one veteran Bronx detective. "If you got into a beef, at least you couldn't pull it out right there on the street." One of the key questions police have to answer, experts say, is whether crime-fighting strategies have pushed crime as low as it can go, or if there may be a new trend, such as a rising youth population, that calls for new tactics. Hard economic times ahead, in a borough with a quarter of the population already living below the federal poverty line, could also create a whole set of crime problems. Robberies have already started creeping up in the borough, rising 5.6% so far this year, compared to a .3% increase two years ago. One possible police response could be to resurrect or bolster some crimefighting methods, such as the citywide street crime unit that focused on getting guns off the streets. One thing for certain, in police stationhouses and squadrooms across the Bronx, the general talk is that shootings are way out of hand, with guns now commonplace on the streets, particularly among youths and young men.
"These young kids are out of control," said one Bronx homicide detective. "It seems to be a trend every few years where you have younger kids involved, teenagers that are running the streets."

loud music gave way to gunfire on East Chase Street in front of the Belvedere, leaving two people wounded by bullets, a third person stabbed

loud music gave way to gunfire on East Chase Street in front of the Belvedere, leaving two people wounded by bullets, a third person stabbed and a bartender using a towel to try and stop the flow of blood. City authorities said an argument led to a fight that led to the shootings, and that it involved patrons of Ultralounge.As city homicides decline, special police team gets most of the credit The establishment, which recently made a comeback from a police raid and criminal charges filed against the owner two years ago, has long been able to skirt scrutiny by city officials because of an odd zoning designation and its status as a "bottle club," which until just four months ago allowed it to operate outside the reach of the liquor board.A bottle club, explained liquor board Chairman Stephan Fogleman, "is a strange legal creature," essentially a BYOB bar. The only requirement was that the owner had to send a letter to the liquor board to register. "We had no oversight, nothing," Fogleman said.
But that has since changed. On June 1, a new state law took effect putting bottle clubs - the one at the Belvedere is the only one in the city - under the same liquor rules that govern bars. That means the owner can be held accountable for the actions of his patrons."This is just tragic, and I can't believe our worst-case scenario is coming together so fast," Fogleman said of the violence. "I don't know if this incident will lead to calls for the club's closing, but obviously if the people at the Belvedere sign a petition, we would accommodate a hearing."
Sammy Hyun Paik bought the Ultralounge's 6,000-foot space in the same way a resident buys a house. And the condo association cannot enforce rules that contradict existing city laws or prohibit uses allowed under zoning regulations.
The city managed to shut Paik's bottle club two years ago after city police raided the business and hauled out bottles of beer, brandy and wine and took Paik and his associate away in handcuffs. Paik was charged with liquor infractions, such as failing to register the bottle club and selling alcohol without a license. His associate, Louis L. Wood, was charged with liquor violations and a gun violation.
Prosecutors put the criminal charges on the inactive docket, and civil and criminal charges related to zoning violations have all but gone away. Explanations for this varied yesterday, but with city and state offices closed for Columbus Day, it was not possible to obtain court records and other documents. But the closure of the case and reopening of the club has angered Ken Pippin, the former head of the Belvedere's condo board."The guy caters to thugs; that's his basic clientele," he said of Paik. "If everyone had done what they were supposed to do, this place would be closed up as any kind of nightclub. It's frustrating because now it almost seems like we're starting all over again. And now it's worse. We've had people beaten up. We had a stabbing. We had people get mad at getting thrown out and come back and shoot a hole through the door."Wood, the manager of Ultralounge, said there was a verbal altercation before the club closed early Saturday and that the "aggressor was removed from the premises." A short time later, there was a shooting outside. "What happened, to me, was an isolated incident on public property that no one can foresee or stop," Wood said.The manager called descriptions of Ultralounge as a hip-hop club false, and he said the club fits in at the condominium complex. "From my understanding, the point in 2006 was not whether we belonged at the Belvedere, but over permits," Wood said, adding that the club is now in compliance. "Our establishment does not promote or advertise for one demographic versus another. We have held Sweet 16 parties. We have held 40th-birthday parties. ... We are not a hip-hop club or an urban club."Wood said the club even holds monthly Christian events.
The Ultralounge is not the Owl Bar. Variety is good, but violence isn't, and owners of bars and bottle clubs alike have to keep their establishments safe and civil for their patrons and their neighbors. The club attracted the people involved in the shooting; it can't take all the blame, and it can't shirk all the responsibility.
Breaking the law is part of the Belvedere's lore, its mystique - that long mahogany bar once served as a speak-easy during Prohibition. The Ultralounge is in the basement where casks of illegal whiskey were once stored, but that doesn't mean its owner doesn't need to keep an eye out for more modern transgressions."It's a very well-known building," Wood said of the Belvedere. "It's a very nice building. We're happy to be where we are."

Chinese authorities say they dealt with 4,666 gun cases last year

Chinese authorities say they dealt with 4,666 gun cases last year. Officials often respond to sensational gun crimes in the U.S. and elsewhere by affirming the need to maintain tough laws.With guns often hard to buy, some criminals forge them instead. Late last year, Shanghai police responded to a call about a robbery in progress at a gritty scrap yard. According to a police spokesman, officers spotted a man fleeing the scene and yelled "freeze," but he pulled a crude homemade pistol from a bag.
Witnesses say the suspect was brought down after a gunfight that had shots echoing all around the neighborhood. A police spokesman said the suspect, identified as Tang Qingjie, was shot in the leg by an officer. He said Mr. Tang had never managed to fire his weapon, which in a police photo appeared to have been soldered together.
The handling of Mr. Tang's case also offers a possible indication of why gun crimes in China seem so rare. They sometimes aren't highlighted when criminal charges are made public. When Shanghai prosecutors formally arraigned Mr. Tang in September, they alleged he committed robbery -- a serious charge but not one that automatically suggests use of a weapon.Speaking generally about Chinese law, a court spokesman said evidence of a gun can be introduced during a robbery trial. But criminal trials in China aren't always open to the public, and evidence can be suppressed.The Communist Party lauds marksmanship enough to give freshmen college students basic training in it. Shooting produced a national hero for China in 1984, when Xu Haifeng became the country's first Olympic gold medalist by winning the 50-meter pistol event in Los Angeles. At this year's Beijing Games, China won five of its 51 gold medals in shooting events.Beijing's support for the sport has helped spur a rise of hobby enthusiasts. The government has sanctioned businesses such as the Shanghai East Shooting Club, a former bomb shelter where customers can have a drink and fire a variety of weapons. Owner Zhang Jiewei says his clients are looking to relax.
But increasingly, gun fans are gaining access to guns -- and hunting illegally. In rural Anhui province last year, a group of wealthy businessmen, gun-club owners and former army officers organized wild-fowl shoots. Feasting on game cooked in a spicy brown sauce, one of them toasted, "Guns have brought us together."Gun buffs can turn to Small Arms, a twice-monthly glossy magazine that claims 60,000 subscribers. The Beretta M9 semiautomatic pistol "is classic," said Zheng Zhoujian, an 18-year-old reader. "I envy people in other countries where guns are legal."

Hassan J. Peters multiple gunshots were fired at Peters by the occupants of a passing vehicle.

Homicide detectives last night were still investigating the circumstances surrounding the slaying on Bellevue Avenue of Hassan J. Peters, but Detective Capt. Joseph Ju niak said preliminary information gathered from witnesses suggest that multiple gunshots were fired at Peters by the occupants of a passing vehicle.
No descriptions were available, however, of that vehicle or its two male occupants.
Juniak said last night that it is too early to tell if there is any gang connection to the killing. He said detectives will be looking into Pet ers' background and speaking to his family to learn more about why he might have been targeted.
It was about 6:15 p.m. when police received reports of a shooting on Bellevue Avenue, between Fowler and Calhoun streets. Officers and emergency medical personnel arrived on the scene within minutes to find Peters -- shot in the upper body -- in critical condition. Juniak said an autopsy will determine precisely how many times Peters was shot. Peters, a resident of nearby Fairway Drive, was rushed by am bulance to Capital Health System at Fuld hospital and pronounced dead a short time later, Juniak said. Immediately after they arrived, police shut down Bellevue Avenue and cordoned off the area sur rounding the shooting -- just a stone's thrown from the rear parking lot of Shiloh Baptist Church -- with crime scene tape.
"This is crazy. It don't make no sense. They're killing each other for nothing," one bystander said aloud, to no one in particular, as he watched detectives scan the street with flashlights in search of evi dence. On Feb. 19, 2002, a teenage Peters was injured in a freak accident involving a police car. According to The Times' archive, a police car traveling on Calhoun Street was struck by another car. The police car then jumped a sidewalk and stuck Peters, then 16, breaking his pelvis.
Yesterday's slaying was Trenton's 18th homicide of the year.

Four teens were arrested Saturday evening in DeKalb County after a drive-by shooting

Four teens were arrested Saturday evening in DeKalb County after a drive-by shooting near a skating rink, police said.A 16-year-old boy was shot in the leg and taken to a nearby hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, police said.
The teens were riding in a black Honda Civic just after 6 p.m. when they pulled up to a bus stop in the 2700 block of Wesley Chapel Road, DeKalb police spokeswoman Keisha Williams said.They shot at another group of teens — including the victim — and then drove off, Williams said.Officers in a police helicopter soon spotted the car in the Autumn Lake neighborhood and saw four persons fleeing the vehicle, police said.Within an hour, Williams said, police captured two of the suspects on a nearby road. The other two were arrested in a house.The four youths, all juveniles, were charged with aggravated assault, Williams said. Police discovered their car had been stolen from the Virginia Highlands area, she said.The victim’s name was not released. The four suspects were not identified because they are minors. The case remained under investigation late Saturday night, but police believe the assailants knew the victim and the other teens at the bus stop, Williams said.

Police in Avondale were searching for suspects in a drive-by shooting that left two men injured Saturday night.

Police in Avondale were searching for suspects in a drive-by shooting that left two men injured Saturday night.It happened near 111th Avenue and Lower Buckeye Road.
Police say a car drove past a home and two or three suspects inside fired several rounds.Two adult men were hit but are expected to be OK.Police say the car was involved in another shooting a few blocks away a few minutes before. No one at that location was injured.Police say they don't have a very good description of the vehicle.

Salinas police arrested Pedro Coyt and recovered evidence, including a gun believed to have been used in the shooting.

Salinas police arrested Pedro Coyt, 34, in the 600 block of Countryside Drive at 11:22 p.m. and recovered evidence, including a gun believed to have been used in the shooting. Coyt was charged with shooting at an inhabited dwelling and possession of a loaded and concealed firearm. Search leads to man's arrest for drugs, guns
A search of a Salinas residence in the 700 block of Archer Street led to the arrest of the resident on suspicion of drug and firearm violations. Salinas police went to the house looking for Gerardo Yanez, 23, who was wanted on outstanding warrants. When officers searched the residence they found cocaine, gang indicia and several thousand dollars in cash. Yanez was lodged in Monterey County Jail on a variety of gang-related drug and firearms charges.

Danielle Calbrese was taken to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore where she died a short time later.

The Suffolk County Police Department Homicide Squad is investigating the shooting of an Islip Terrace woman.Police were called to 1755 Stein Drive in Brentwood on Friday, October 10 at 10:45 p.m. after a 911 caller told police a woman had been shot.When police arrived, they found Danielle Calbrese, 20, of 11 Karp Drive, Islip Terrace, had been shot in the face. She was taken to Southside Hospital in Bay Shore where she died a short time later.Witnesses told police a group of friends was standing on the sidewalk when a number of shots came from a passing vehicle, which fled the scene.Danielle Calabrese stood with a group of friends on a Brentwood sidewalk in the warm autumn air Friday night, making plans to go out, police and friends said Saturday.Around 10:45 p.m., eyewitnesses said, a white, older model Jeep Cherokee with tinted windows slowly drove south past the group that was gathered across the street from a house on Stein Drive where Calabrese's boyfriend lives -- and then shots rang out."It just opened fire," said one friend of Calabrese's who saw the shooting and declined to give his name. As the group ducked for cover, the bullets seemed to last forever, he said. "They just kept shooting."
Calabrese, 20, of Islip Terrace, was shot multiple times and died from her injuries at Southside Hospital in Bay Shore shortly afterward, police said.One of her friends in the group, a man in his 20s, was shot in the leg, police said. The friend, who police did not identify, was treated at Southside Hospital and released.
Calabrese, a Suffolk County Community College student who wanted to be a nurse, was "young and beautiful and had a lot going for her," said former neighbor Lori LoCricchio, while gazing at the Islip Terrace house where she lived with her parents and younger brother. Her family declined to comment.Friends gathered Saturday at the Stein Drive house where Calabrese spent much of her free time, they said. Photos of a smiling Calabrese and a small bouquet of roses were laid against a light pole where she fell.The shooter or shooters did not say a word, said the witness. "Nobody said anything," he said. "Then they drove away slowly."The Jeep even paused at a red light at Candlewood Road, mere yards from the crime scene, before speeding away, according to the witness."The way they did it was just so cruel," said friend Matthew Ramos, 22.Police have no immediate suspects or descriptions of people they are seeking, authorities said, though they do not believe Calabrese was the target.
Calabrese was a "sweet, sweet girl" who worked two jobs while going to school, said Zoraida Fanduiz, who lives on Stein Drive.When she heard the shots Friday night, Fanduiz ran out of the house to aid Calabrese who was lying on the ground. Calabrese began choking on blood, so Fanduiz gently tilted her head so she could breathe, Fanduiz said.She was sick of the neighborhood's violence, Fanduiz said Saturday.

Drive-by shooting at Eighteen Mile,Baryulgil on the weekend that left one man injured.

Police are hunting for four people involved in a drive-by shooting and car chase at Baryulgil on the weekend that left one man injured.
Police were called to the shooting at Eighteen Mile, near Baryulgil on Saturday around 4.30pm, following reports a white Ford Laser had allegedly pulled up outside a house on Eighteen Mile Road and its occupants opened fire on the home. A male and a female, believed to be inside the house at the time, escaped injury. After shots were fired, the white Laser was driven off. Police said a 49-year-old man left the house and jumped into a Holden ute and followed the Laser. Police believe there were four people in the white Laser, three male and one female, all of Aboriginal appearance. During the chase, shots were allegedly fired at the Holden ute.
The 49-year old man received an injury to an arm. When police arrived, they found the Holden ute abandoned on the road with bullet holes in it, and the 49-year-old man at the house on Eighteen Mile Road. Police said the man's injury was superficial and did not require treatment at hospital. Police were unable to confirm if the injury was sustained from shotgun fire or splintered glass from bullets shattering the ute's window. Last night police were searching for the white Ford Laser and the four people believed to be involved in the shooting. The ute, driven by the man from Eighteen Mile, has been impounded at the Grafton Police Station.
It will be checked for evidence, police said. A crime scene has been established at the house on Eighteen Mile Road. Police said investigations will continue today into the drive-by shooting incident.

William Leslie Baptiste, 20, was arrested and charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon

William Leslie Baptiste, 20, was arrested and charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon and placed on a $40,000 secured bond, according to police spokeswoman Lucy Crockett and the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office. Baptiste was convicted on several counts of larceny, credit card theft and fraud earlier this year, according to the N.C. Offender Database.Baptiste is now accused of robbing a male victim at gunpoint at the Krispy Kreme at 2822 S. College Road, Crockett said. The incident happened shortly before 1 a.m. Saturday, and “before calling for help, the victim followed the robber’s vehicle, a white van, to an apartment complex in the 4500 block of Staffordshire Drive,” the police spokeswoman said. The victim left, and Wilmington police officers responded to the scene, she added.“Officers located the parked van, engine still warm, and spotted a handgun in plain view between the driver and front passenger seats,” Crockett said, adding that the handgun they recovered had been reported stolen in New Hanover County in 2004.

Martin Ceaser brandished a handgun while driving in Cedar Rapids after earlier threatening an acquaintance.

Martin Ceaser was arrested on Friday night. Police say he brandished a handgun while driving in Cedar Rapids after earlier threatening an acquaintance.Police say they attempted to pull Ceaser over but he did not stop, instead bumping the driver's side of the police car with his car's front bumper. According to police, he then stopped his car and ran from officers who caught him a few blocks later.Police found a handgun in the front of Ceaser's car.He is charged with two counts of assault or display of a dangerous weapon, driving while barred, interference with official acts, and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle

Antoine Armour was shot inside the club 2301 sending three others to the hospital

Club 2301 is a public nuisance, and soon may be shut down.Today at Club 2301, everything is quiet. showed up, employees inside the club locked the doors.
Around two this morning, three people were shot: Antoine Armour was shot inside the club -- a bullet piercing his head, arm and shoulder. Two others were wounded in the club's parking lot.Despite this, no one bothered to call authorities.
Jerri Weary of the Chattanooga Police Department related the details to Eyewitness News:"In this particular situation we had an officer who was responding to a call and overheard the gunfire and was able to respond as it unfolded. So I don't know if they had an opportunity to call in and report the situation, but even if they didn't call and report it after the fact, it's still a violation."Moments after the shooting, officers arrested three people. Investigators believe two of the arrested are directly connected to the shooting. One of them is a juvenile, and the other has been in trouble with the law before: Michael Owens-- who has five outstanding warrants. Chattanooga Police Department Public Information Officer Jerri Weary told us, "Quite honestly, we're wondering how was a gun brought into the establishment. They have security that works the club and were wondering how that gun was brought in if security was there."Investigators later found the gun across the street at a funeral home.Now that a shooting has happened inside, Club 2301 could be shut down for good. Chattanooga police tell us this club is now under investigation.
Jerri Weary commented on the final result of the actions of last night, saying, "That's a strong possibility. Like I said, they'll have to look into the violations -- if there are any. But quite certainly it will be looked at as a public nuisance.

Steven Munoz 11-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man were shot dead at the Staples Center, victims of a drive-by shooting

11-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man were fatally wounded Sunday evening a few blocks from Staples Center, victims of a drive-by shooting that police said may have been gang-related.The victims were sitting on a lawn with others about 6:30 p.m. near Valencia and Connecticut streets when someone fired at the group multiple times from a passing gray Honda, police said.The group scattered. The 11-year-old, whom police identified as Steven Munoz, ran around the corner to an apartment building in the 1400 block of West 11th Street, where a police spokeswoman said she believed he lived. The 19-year-old, whom the spokeswoman did not identify pending notification of next of kin, collapsed in an alley.Both were taken to a local hospital where they died later Sunday.

Two men who opened fire on a pair of people at an apartment complex Friday were shot at in retaliation as they fled

Two men who opened fire on a pair of people at an apartment complex Friday were shot at in retaliation as they fled, but police believe no one was struck by the gunfire, police said. Police received a call about the shootout around 9:30 p.m. in the 1100 block of Post Street. The victims, a man and woman, were standing in a carport when two men approached and shot at them, but missed, said Redlands spokesman Carl Baker. The shooters then fled the scene. A witness told police he saw a man fire a gun at the shooters while they were running. Police are investigating the incident as a gang-related shooting because the man who was shot at first is a documented Redlands gang member, Baker said.

Jason Cardoza,Ronald Montoya two stolen guns were recovered

Two stolen guns were recovered over the weekend at the end of a short chase in which police arrested two suspected gang members.
Officers were called just before midnight Saturday because of a suspicious car parked in an alley behind Domino's Pizza at 345 W. Pearl Ave.
The brown 2001 Chevrolet Malibu was pulling out as police arrived and the driver refused to stop, instead leading officers through a shopping center parking lot on Orange Street. A passenger threw a loaded semiautomatic handgun that had been stolen from Yucaipa out the window during the chase, according to a police news release.
Jason Cardoza, a 31-year-old San Bernardino man, was arrested on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of stolen property.
The driver, Ronald Montoya, 35, of Bloomington, was arrested on suspicion of evading police and being a felon in possession of ammunition. Jose Ramirez, 36, of San Bernardino was arrested on suspicion of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Police said they found a loaded semiautomatic handgun stolen from San Bernardino on him.

The fourth passenger, a suspected Redlands gang member, was not arrested.

Jose Arreola, 20, Bryan Padilla, 18, and Omar Vargas, 18 wounded in a gang-related shooting

Three Fontana men were wounded in a gang-related shooting outside a house party Sunday, police said. Paramedics took Jose Arreola, 20, Bryan Padilla, 18, and Omar Vargas, 18, to an area hospital for treatment. Police received several reports of shots fired in the 1400 block of Altissimo Lane at 12:43 a.m. Officers said the shooting occurred following a party in the neighborhood. Members of two gangs got into an argument in the street, and a 17-year-old boy shot at the victims, police said. The boy, whose name wasn't released because of his age, was arrested and booked into juvenile hall.

Ramon Guerra was shot multiple times in the head and then his car crashed into a tree

Ramon Guerra was shot multiple times in the head and then his car crashed into a tree around 10 p.m. in the 15000 block of Rose Avenue, said police Sgt. Jeff Decker.
26-year-old Fontana man was shot and killed Sunday night inside his Jaguar.
A witness saw a dark Chevrolet Tahoe or similar vehicle drive away from the scene, Decker said. He said a motive was not known but that investigators thought it was not an accident. "It sounds like an intended target," he said. Guerra was the only person in the car and was pronounced dead at the scene.