Accused Serial Killer Returned From Iraq ‘Totally Changed’

Staff / Truthdig Jan 17, 2012 Friends tell the Los Angeles Times that Itzcoatl "Izzy" Ocampo returned from Iraq a changed man. The ex-Marine from Orange County, Calif., is accused of killing four homeless men, each stabbed more than 40 times. "He's a veteran who did not get the help he needed," said a fellow Marine, adding that she had trusted Ocampo with her life. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Jury Finds Muslim Student Heckling Is Not Free Speech

Staff / Truthdig Sep 23, 2011 Ten Muslim students from UC Irvine who heckled Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren during an on-campus appearance last year were found guilty Friday of two misdemeanors to conspire and to disrupt the speech, despite their arguments citing free speech. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

When Protest Becomes a Crime

Bill Boyarsky / Truthdig Feb 16, 2011 Is rudeness a crime, punishable by prison? Yes, says a district attorney as he pursues the prosecution of 11 Muslim students who disrupted a speech by the Israeli ambassador.Is rudeness a crime, punishable by prison? Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

McCain Not in Church’s ‘Cone of Silence’ During Obama Q&A

Staff / Truthdig Aug 19, 2008 A mini-kerfuffle has erupted over the fact that John McCain did not wait his turn in the Saddleback Church's "cone of silence," the soundproofed space backstage at the California church where he was to have waited while Barack Obama answered the Rev. Rick Warren's questions during Saturday's Q&A session. According to Warren, McCain was in a Secret Service motorcade, not at the church, during most of his rival's turn on the hot seat. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

An Unlikely Pair Fight the Death Penalty

BLANK Jul 26, 2008 A now-retired California judge who sentenced nine men to death, Donald A. McCartin, and actor-activist Mike Farrell make "an unlikely pair," as they put it in this co-authored article. McCartin was once known as "the hanging judge of Orange County," while Farrell has long opposed the death penalty, but today they see eye to eye. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

‘Nonlethal’ Stun Gun Claims Another Life

Staff / Truthdig Apr 2, 2008 In what seems to be an all too common occurrence across the U.S., an inmate has died in California after being shocked with a taser by sheriff's deputies. Jason Jesus Gomez is the latest casualty at the hands of the infamous Orange County Sheriff's Department. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )