A race for mayor in a suburban Cleveland community has become a national story as allegations of cross-dressing, criminal activity and police corruption hit the airwaves of a nationally syndicated news program.

On Tuesday, East Cleveland Mayor Eric Brewer appeared on Inside Edition to discuss allegations he levied against his opponent, Gary Norton, the East Cleveland Police Department and other city employees for “stealing” and disseminating photos of him in drag days before the election.

Brewer lost the Primary Election to Norton by a 2-1 margin.

Brewer, who admits taking to posing in several several pictures wearing bras, panties, hosiery, make-up and wigs wants the Ohio State Police to investigate who stole the photographs and is suing news organizations who broadcast the photos.

Another Whole Family Shot to Death
For the second time in less than a week, an entire family has been found shot to death, apparently the victims of a murder-suicide by a distraught father. Whitehall, Ohio, Police responded to a call around 2 p.m. Wednesday and found the bodies of Mark Meeks, 51; his wife, Jennifer Dallas-Meeks, 40; and children Jimmy, 5, and Abbigail, 8. “We’re confirming all four victims had gunshot wounds, and a gun was found at the scene,” Sgt. Dan Kelso said. As in the Los Angeles murder-suicide case, authorities say this incident also involved a suicide note. They declined, however, to reveal the contents of the letter. Police believe that Meeks shot his wife and two children and then himself, Kelso said. “Out of respect for the family, detectives are not releasing the actual motive, but it’s not financial, and he was employed,” he said. Officials at Immke Northwest Honda, where Meeks was a service manager, confirmed that he was a current employee. “We as a dealership decline to comment on this devastating tragedy, except to say that all of us here at Immke Northwest Honda are very sad and our condolences go out to the family,” Tom Spicer, vice president of operations, said. On Tuesday, the bodies of Ervin Antonio Lupoe, his wife and five children were found in their Los Angeles-area home after Lupoe faxed a letter to a local television station explaining that he and his wife had lost their jobs and felt it was better to end their lives.

Rev. Al Urges Folks to Speak Out on Crime
The Rev. Al Sharpton, who has been urging communities to stand strong against the bullies and thugs who terrorize neighborhoods, has launched a nationwide campaign against the “stop-snitching” mindset. All too often, says the president of the National Action Network, the people most likely to be victimized are the ones who fail to speak up about known suspects. Sharpton will join the families of two slain teenagers, 16-year-old Brandon Mills and 18-year-old Derrick ”Termite” Gloster. He will appear with Bishop Victory Curry and Rev. Gaston Smith at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Miami. The Harlem based Sharpton will add to a fund that was established to find Mills and Gaston’s killers. The “Stop Snitchin” slogan gained popularity in 2004, when producers Rodney Bethea and Ronnie “Skinny Suge” Thomas released a DVD by the same title, which featured drug dealers exposing various Baltimore, Maryland informants. The DVD also helped expose corrupt police in Baltimore, leading to the drug-dealing conviction of Baltimore PD officers William King and Antonio Murray, who were sentenced to 34 years in prison. Ironically, Thomas was also later sentenced to 15 years in prison for an alleged assault, drug conspiracy and extortion plot. Rap groups and their fans began sporting the “Stop Snitchin’” slogan on apparel. In a now infamous TV news segment, rapper Cam’ron appeared on 60 Minutes in April of 2007, where he explained his reasoning behind supporting the slogan. This is the type of mindset that keeps dangerous criminals on the streets, Sharpton says.  In the case of Mills and Gloster, police believe one or multiple gunmen sprayed a crowd of up to 50 people with an AK-47 assault rifle, leaving two dead and seriously wounding seven others. ”We are all hurting,” said Gloster’s grandmother, Caron Dixon, AP reports. “We are just so tired of these guns.”

Cabbie Catches Alleged Crook 

When Toledo, Ohio cab driver Harold Webb picked up the man taking several flat-screen TVs from an establishment at 7:30 a.m., he thought it was a little odd, but not necessarily suspicious. The man claimed he was transporting the sets and other valuables to help the owner of a restaurant this week. But when Webb reached the passenger’s destination and was told the man had only $9 worth of fare, things looked shady: The passenger offered Webb one of the flat screens to make up the difference. That’s when Webb called the police, and – surprise – the passenger had attempted to steal the TVs. Webb is being praised as the cabbie crime-stopper.

  Colin Powll Pushes Volunteerism 

The former secretary of state under President George Bush is calling on Americans to give back to their communities. To buttress the economic recovery strategies being proposed by the federal government, Gen. Colin Powell wants able-bodied folks of all backgrounds to give of their valuable time. Powell asked on Friday that citizens commit a minimum of two hours per week volunteering their help at schools and in neighborhood programs. “Volunteering is something you give to our community and to our society,” Powell said at a news conference. “It comes back to you…” The pitch was delivered at a news conference in D.C. Though officially retired from government service Powell has publicly stated his willingness to serve again if called upon. Among the merits of volunteerism, Powell mentioned a sense personal fulfillment. He cited frequent comments by volunteers who say they get more out of their experiences than they give to particular causes.

Ohio Veterans group to honor Black soldiers. The Dayton African American Legacy Institute will for the first time honor Black soldiers at an Armistice Day memorial  program. The program honors local Blacks who died while serving their country, reports The Dayton Daily News. “Each year, I see celebrations for our veterans, but I never see observances for the Black soldiers who sacrificed for us,” said Bill C. Littlejohn, Dayton Municipal Court Judge and board president of the institute. “African-Americans fought in every war from the Revolution to the present day. The group recognizes that for decades Black soldiers returning from war were ostracized.  “We want to honor their heroism and their perseverance,” Littlejohn said. The group will hold a reception and program this evening called “African-American Veterans: A History of Service and Sacrifice.” They will present medals they received from the government posthumously to families of deceased veterans and to living veterans, Littlejohn said.  . 

Laura Bush and Michelle Obama meet. First lady Laura Bush shared some tips with Michelle Obama on how to survive in the White House – particularly with young daughters, according to Reuters. As she gave Michelle Obama a tour of the mansion that will soon be her home. “It was a bit of a momentous day,” Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters on a flight from Washington to Chicago about the Obamas visit to the White House Monday, less than one week after Barack Obama won a historic election to succeed President George W. Bush.  “I don’t know that I would characterize him as awestruck.” Read the rest here.
The High Court upholds “victims’-impact” evidence. By a slight majority the Supreme Court said on Monday that the lives of the victim can be weighed as evidence in determining the fate of the accusers. The justices turned down appeals from two Los Angeles convicted murderers who said it was unfair that videotapes of the victims’ lives were played for jurors before they decided the killers should die.  Defense lawyers had argued that this “cinematic evidence . . . designed to play on the jury’s emotions” should be excluded from a sentencing hearing in a capital case. In the first case, the justices rejected an appeal from Douglas Kelly, who was sentenced to death for the 1993 rape, robbery and murder of Sara Weir. She was found dead in a North Hollywood apartment after being stabbed 29 times. The justices turned down a similar appeal from Samuel Zamudio, who was convicted in 1997 of murdering an elderly couple in South Gate. In both cases, video of the victims were played for their jurors. However, Stevens wrote, “the videos added nothing relevant to the jury’s deliberations.”  Justices David H. Souter and Stephen G. Breyer agreed the court should take up the issue, but it takes four votes in the high court to grant an appeal.

Ohio community braces for an economic punch. A southern Ohio community is bracing for possible layoffs as DHL Express – the largest employer in the area – planned to announce its quarterly earnings report and restructuring details on Monday, according to CNN. DHL’s parent company, German-based Deutsche Post World Net, refused to comment on published reports that the international courier company is planning to lay off as many as 8,000 people. However, it does plan to announce plans for its U.S. operations to investors Monday, said spokesman Jonathan Baker.  The Deutsche Post has reported that the company ordered roughly 8,000 layoffs at DHL’s Wilmington hub. In the meantime, Ohio officials scramble over the weekend to offset possible job cuts to the community. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) sent a letter Friday to DHL Chief Executive Officer John Mullen asking for immediate information about layoffs in the Wilmington area. According to a statement from his office, Brown also called U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor Howard Radzely plans “to seek immediate attention to a state of Ohio’s request for emergency funds to assist workers and communities affected by DHL’s loss in business since announcing a proposed outsourcing agreement with UPS.” Both local and federal officials say cuts that heavy would have a devastating economic impact on the community. 
D.C. Police arrest a Secret Service agent for solicitation. D.C. police Inspector Brian Bray says his squad arrested a secret service agent for solicitation while conducting a prostitution in northwest Washington early Saturday, WUSA-TV reports. The inspector says a marked Secret Service Uniformed Division patrol car pulled up to speak with an undercover female officer posing as a prostitute. The Secret Service sergeant, who was in uniform, allegedly asked what sex acts the undercover officer would perform. They agreed on a price of $20, and he drove to meet her. Then D.C. police arrested and charged him with solicitation for prostitution. Darrin Blackford, a Secret Service spokesman, says the agency’s internal affairs division is investigating the matter. He says the officer, whose name was not released, has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Democrats claim the state of Ohio with Obama at the top of the ticket.

Cheers, tears and hugs are the only way I can describe the crowd’s reaction to the news the freshman Illinois Sen. Barack Obama had won Ohio. Read more at Pamela on Politics.

The state has set a time and date to execute Troy Anthony Davis, even as his advocates continue to insist Georgia is about to execute an innocent man, reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Davis’ case drew international attention after seven of nine key prosecution witnesses against him recanted their testimony. They claimed they had been pressured to say they saw Davis shoot MacPhail in a Burger King parking lot. On Wednesday  the Department of Corrections said on Oct. 27^th, Davis will be put to death for killing off-duty police officer Mark Allen MacPhail. This is Davis’ third execution date in little more than a year. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles stopped the first one the day before Davis was to die by lethal injection on July 17, 2007. The U.S. Supreme Court stopped Davis’ second execution two hours before he was to die on Sept. 23 so the justices could decide if they would hear Davis’ case. Tuesday, the high court declined to step into the contentious debate over whether Davis is the real killer. Read the rest at BET.com.

J.L. Chestnut Jr., the first Black lawyer in Selma and a prominent attorney in civil rights cases across a half century, has died at age 77, The Associated Press reports A Selma native who got his law degree at Howard University, Chestnut returned to his hometown in 1958 and became a key legal figure in the civil rights battles in Selma. Later, he defended Blacks in major voter fraud prosecutions and helped Black farmers make financial claims against the U.S. Agriculture Department. Read the rest at BET.com.

Ohio is ordered to verify eligible voters. A federal appeals court on Tuesday ordered Ohio’s top elections official to set up a system by Friday to verify the eligibility of newly registered voters and make the information available to the state’s 88 county election boards. Democrats see the move as a way of denying thousands of new voters, many of who are Black, their right to vote. Read more of what the stakeholders have to say here.

The Ohio Democratic lawmaker was revered by her constituents

Colleagues, friends and family of Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio) are mourning her death. As a avid supporter of Sen. Hillary Clinton, the Cleveland-based congresswoman seemed to have lost considerable clout among her Barack Obama-loving constituents. But she will be remembered as loyal, progressive and productive. Read more about what her fellow Congress members had to say at Pamela On Politics. More about how brain aneurysms affect Blacks and women more at Vital Signs. Send your condolences below.

Lima, Ohio, chief says the community needs to assist officers.

The head of the Lima, Ohio, Police Department acknowledged that there may be some lessons to be learned in the shooting death of a Black woman while she held her baby, an incident that widened the racial rift between cops and the Black community. Chief Greg Garlock, pressed by Lima’s African-American preachers, released a statement saying that the department will review the findings of the various investigations into the practices of the S.W.A.T. team and its member, Sgt. Joe Chavalia, who killed Tarika Wilson on Jan. 4. The officer was acquitted by a jury earlier this month. “It is my intent to take the information derived from all those investigations, along with an examination of ‘best practices’ of other SWAT teams in the United States, to determine what we can do to enhance our internal practices,” Garlock said in his statement. He said that the community plays a crucial role in helping police solve crimes. Speaking for the ministers’ group, Coalition for Change, the Rev. H. Frank Taylor, described Garlock’s actions as “a good step. It’s good we have gotten such a quick response. …I believe police are here to serve and protect citizens of this community. If there is a perceived high-risk threat to apprehend a person, police move that mission to secure and apprehend. Under no circumstances do police move to a search and destroy mission,” Taylor said.

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College presidents: Let young people drink earlier

The presidents of many of America’s most prominent universities say it’s time to lower the drinking age a few years. The campus honchos, who hail from such institutions as Colgate, Duke, Dartmouth, Kenyon, Morehouse, Ohio State, Syracuse and Tufts, say that banning young people from drinking only encourages them to binge drink on campus, which the contend is much more dangerous. “This is a law that is routinely evaded,” said John McCardell, former president of Middlebury College in Vermont. “It is a law that the people at whom it is directed believe is unjust and unfair and discriminatory.” But not everybody agrees. The activist anti-drinking group Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) says that it only stands to reason that dropping the drinking from 21 to 18, as the 100 college presidents are pushing for, would only mean more automobile deaths. “It’s very clear the 21-year-old drinking age will not be enforced at those campuses,” said Laura Dean-Mooney, national president of MADD. The Associated Press cites statistics showing that more than 40 percent of college students reported at least one symptom of alcohol abuse or dependence. “One study has estimated more than 500,000 full-time students at four-year colleges suffer injuries each year related in some way to drinking, and about 1,700 die in such accidents,” the news agency reports.

Georgia man is jailed for beating dog

DeKalb County Police in Georgia say that Lawrence Peterson is one mean sucker. He’s so mean, they say, that he grabbed a broken table leg and pummeled his roommate’s puppy to a pulp … because it wouldn’t stop barking. In fact, the 58-year-old Peterson beat the 6-week-old pit bull so badly that the dog had to be put to sleep. As of Monday afternoon, Peterson was in the DeKalb County Jail. He was charged with one count of animal cruelty, definitely the wrong crime to commit in Michael Vick country.