Prisoners in police cells will be asked to fill in questionnaires with 41 questions about issues such as comfort and quality of food
DailyMail Reports
It was once considered something of a punishment.
But a night in the cells is now followed by a 'customer satisfaction' survey, with those detained in custody asked to rate the 'services' on offer behind bars.
The hotel-style questionnaire asks their views on the brightness of the cells and the quality of the food on offer.
The survey will be given to 1,000 detainees as part of a pilot scheme by Devon and Cornwall Constabulary. Detainees will be invited to judge the quality of a variety of aspects of their incarceration, including the food, how 'safe' they felt, cleanliness, lighting and air temperature, and the provision of towels.
The questionnaire begins by stating: 'Devon & Cornwall are committed to providing the best possible service to people who are detained in custody.
'We would be grateful if you could complete the following survey and return it to the custody centre.'
Recipients of the questionnaire are asked a total of 41 questions, the results of which will eventually be entered into a database for analysis by senior officers.
One officer in the force, who did not wish to be named, said: 'It is a bit rich really. These people are in the cell for a reason, it's not like
they've come here on holiday. They are starting to treat the emergency cell buzzer like a room service hotline.'
He added: 'We are getting asked all sorts - to get them celebrity magazines, to put aircon on, to bring them a salad. It's not funny after a while.'
But Chief Inspector Ivan Trethewey, the force's head of custody, who is behind the project, told Police Review magazine yesterday: 'It does not mean we will be providing steak dinners as a result. There could be some valuable learning points, however.
'I wanted a reality check: what I think the service is that we are providing versus what detainees tell us we are giving them.'
The survey is being given to those currently in custody across the force and posted to others detained in June and July.
Dave James, secretary of Devon and Cornwall Police Federation, said: 'You would not get a questionnaire that detailed in a Holiday Inn.
'However, if it is being done as a one-off to identify best practice and to enable people to learn from areas of concern, I can understand it.'
Chief Inspector Trethewey said the scheme, which started on August 1, would cost 'a couple of hundred pounds at most'.
Superintendent Chris Brown, head of the force's criminal justice unit, said: 'We must also be mindful that not all those in our custody are charged with a crime, and indeed for some the custody centre is used as a place where members of the public, not guilty of any crime, can be assessed under the Mental Health Act.'
But Tory MP and former prisons minister Ann Widdecombe - who moved to Devon last year - added: 'This is a nonsense. If cells are not cleaned properly then you know they will be dirty.
'You don't need a prisoner to tell you that - or anything else for that matter.'
The questions in full:
Q1 What Police station were you held at recently?
Q2 How old are you?
Q3 Are you? Male/Female
Q4 Have you ever been held in police custody before?
Q5 How long were you held at the police station?
Q6 Were you given information about your arrest and your entitlements when you arrived there?
Q7 Were you told about the Police and Criminal Evidence (PACE) Codes of Practice (the rule book)?
Q8 If your clothes were taken away, were you offered different clothing to wear?
Q9 If you used the toilet, were the following things provided on request? Toilet paper/Sanitary wear/soap/water/towel
Q10 How would you rate the condition of your cell for Cleanliness/ Ventilation/ Temperature/ Lighting
Q11 Did staff explain to you the correct use of the bell/buzzer?
Q12 If you were held over night, were you given bedding?
Q13 If you requested a shower, was this allowed?
Q14 If you requested outside exercise was this provided?
Q15 Were you offered anything to eat or drink?
Q16 Was the food/drink suitable for your dietary requirements?
Q17 If requested were you given reading material?
Q18 Was someone informed of your arrest?
Q19 If requesting a phone call, was this allowed?
Q20 If you were denied a free phone call, was a reason for this given?
Q21 Do you think you were treated fairly?
Q22 Were you interviewed by police officials about your case?
Q23 Were you kept updated as to the progress of your stay in custody?
Q24 How long did you have to wait for your solicitor to attend?
Q25 Were you officially charged?
Q26 Did you feel safe in the Custody Suite?
Q27 Were you handcuffed or restrained whilst in the custody suite?
Q28 Were you told how to make a complaint about your treatment, if you needed to?
Q29 Do you have any other comments to add about safety in the custody suite?
Q30 When you were in police custody were you on any medication?
Q31 Were you able to continue taking your medication whilst there?
Q32 Did someone explain your entitlement to see a health care professional, if required?
Q33 Were you seen by any of the following healthcare professionals during your time there? Doctor/Nurse/Paramedic/Psychiatrist
Q34 If requested were you able to see a healthcare professional of your own gender?
Q35 Did you have any drug or alcohol problems during your time in custody?
Q36 Did you see, or were you offered the chance to see a drug or alcohol worker?
Q37 Were you offered relief or medication for your immediate symptoms?
Q38 Please rate the quality of your healthcare whilst in police custody - Very good, good, bad, very bad.
Q39 Did you have any specific physical healthcare needs?
Q40 Did you have any specific mental healthcare needs?
Q41 Do you have any other comments to add about your time in police custody?
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Stacey Jordan in her Crown Heights apartment. Her landlord received federal bail-out funds but has not fixed violations in apartments.
NY Daily News Reports
Some of New York city's worst landlords are sharing in $81 million in federal stimulus money - even though their buildings are riddled with housing code violations.
Since March, millions of dollars have been doled out to buildings where tenants have repeatedly complained of rats, roaches, faulty elevators, lack of heat and flaking lead paint.
Including such glaring problems as a broken front door lock.
Millions more will follow.
The problem is that the Recovery Act distribution makes no distinction between good landlords and bad ones.
As a result, landlords - regardless of the number of serious housing code violations they've racked up - are allowed to pocket stimulus money without being forced to make repairs.
Seven properties that have received - or been promised - taxpayer dollars would qualify for a Slumlord Watch List proposed by City Councilman Bill de Blasio, a Daily News review found.
"There's something really wrong with landlords that make it on this list. ... They certainly shouldn't be getting stimulus money," said de Blasio, who is running for public advocate.
"The stimulus is supposed to create jobs. I'm concerned that we're going to have to watch [this] very closely."
The seven properties that would make his list are slated to get more than $1.5 million in federal stimulus money this year.
To make de Blasio's list, properties with 35 units or more must average at least two "hazardous" or "immediately hazardous" housing code violations per unit.
One property that qualified was 234 Herkimer St. in Bedford-Stuyvesant Brooklyn.
The 138-unit building had 374violations, including mold, water leaks, missing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, broken floors, mice and lead-based paint. The building's owner, Restore Housing Development, is to get $270,602 in stimulus cash.
The owner of an apartment building on Morningside Ave. in Manhattan got a boost of $630,000 in Recovery Act funds despite 132 violations. Problems included an inadequate supply of heat, peeling paint, exposed electrical wires and roaches.
That building fell just short of making de Blasio's list, with 104 of the most serious violations in 53 units - slightly less than two dangerous violations per unit, records show.
So did a Bronx apartment building that is getting $1,514,016 despite 110 violations - 90 of them tagged dangerous.
The 49-unit building was cited for a leaky roof, roach and mice infestations, moldy ceilings, and broken toilets and tubs, records show.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defends giving stimulus money to properties with housing code problems.
Regional spokesman Adam Glantz said without Recovery Act money, HUD would have to cut back on housing subsidies under a program called Section8.
To qualify for stimulus money, landlords had to be in "immediate or potentially serious financial difficulty," HUD said.
The agency said the Recovery Act includes measures to "protect those in greatest need," along with promoting job creation and economic growth.
HUD was unable to say how many jobs have been saved or created with the emergency distribution of this taxpayer money.
Real estate mogul Naftali Frankel got $465,312 in Recovery Act funds for his properties, including $39,782 for a building at 1569-1583 Prospect Place in Crown Heights.
The city has 203 open violations against Frankel at that property - 170 deemed "hazardous." After two unsatisfactory HUD reviews, Frankel was forced to hire a new management company.
"I am the owner, and I take good care," Frankel, 83, said in an interview. He insisted he and the new managers are addressing issues such as upgrading security cameras and replacing the broken front door.
He said tenants often made it difficult to make repairs by not being home for appointments. Of the stimulus dollars, Frankel said, "Whatever has to be fixed will be fixed."
One of Frankel's Prospect Place tenants has her doubts.
Stacey Jordan said she cried in April when her kitchen ceiling collapsed because of plumbing problems in units above hers.
A section of the floor became soggy because of flooding in the basement. About a dozen floor tiles are missing, and the area feels soft enough to put a foot through.
The management company installed Sheetrock over the collapsed ceiling after she called repeatedly, but hasn't returned to sand and paint, records show.
The city gave Frankel 12 violations for a "broken or defective wood floor," a ceiling in need of further repair, mold and mice.
As Jordan spoke, her son, JJ, bounded past like any exuberant 10-year-old on summer break.
"Be careful!" Jordan yelled out. "I'm afraid he's going to fall through the kitchen floor," she said. "It's real weak. I don't want to live like this. I pay my rent."
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer wants landlords to use stimulus cash to fix violations.
"That's how you create jobs, that's how you make the building worth more," he said. "That's how you stimulate the economy."
Read more…
NY Times Reports
FORT WORTH — Onstage before thousands of believers weighed down by debt and economic insecurity, Kenneth and Gloria Copeland and their all-star lineup of “prosperity gospel” preachers delighted the crowd with anecdotes about the luxurious lives they had attained by following the Word of God
Private airplanes and boats. A motorcycle sent by an anonymous supporter. Vacations in Hawaii and cruises in Alaska. Designer handbags. A ring of emeralds and diamonds.
“God knows where the money is, and he knows how to get the money to you,” preached Mrs. Copeland, dressed in a crisp pants ensemble like those worn by C.E.O.’s.
Even in an economic downturn, preachers in the “prosperity gospel” movement are drawing sizable, adoring audiences. Their message — that if you have sufficient faith in God and the Bible and donate generously, God will multiply your offerings a hundredfold — is reassuring to many in hard times.
The preachers barely acknowledged the recession, though they did say it was no excuse to curtail giving. “Fear will make you stingy,” Mr. Copeland said.
But the offering buckets came up emptier than in some previous years, said those who have attended before.
Many in this flock do not trust banks, the news media or Washington, where the Senate Finance Committee is investigating whether the Copelands and other prosperity evangelists used donations to enrich themselves and abused their tax-exempt status. But they trust the Copelands, the movement’s current patriarch and matriarch, who seem to embody prosperity with their robust health and abundance of children and grandchildren who have followed them into the ministry.
“If God did it for them, he will do it for us,” said Edwige Ndoudi, who traveled with her husband and three children from Canada for the Southwest Believers’ Convention this month, where the Copelands and three of their friends took turns preaching for five days, 10 hours a day at the Fort Worth Convention Center.
The crowd of more than 9,000 was multiracial, from 48 states and 27 countries. There was no fee to attend. There were bikers in leather vests, pastors, blue-collar workers, professionals and plenty of families with children.
A large contingent came in wheelchairs, hoping for miraculous healings. The audience sat with Bibles open, flipping to passages cited by the preachers, taking notes on pads and laptop computers.
“The folks who are coming aren’t poor,” said Jonathan L. Walton, a professor of religion at the University of California, Riverside, who has written about the movement and was there doing research. “They reside in that nebulous category between the working and the middle class.”
Sitting in Section 316, eight rows up, making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on a Bible at lunch time, was a family who could explain the enduring loyalty the prosperity preachers inspire.
Stephen Biellier, a long-distance trucker from Mount Vernon, Mo., said he and his wife, Millie, came to the convention praying that this would be “the overcoming year.” They are $102,000 in debt, and the bank has cut off their credit line, Mrs. Biellier said.
They say the Copelands rescued them from financial failure 23 years ago, when they bought their first truck at 22 percent interest and had to rebuild the engine twice in a year.
Around that time, Mrs. Biellier first saw Mr. Copeland on television and began sending him 50 cents a week.
Others who bought trucks from the same dealer in Joplin that year went under, the Bielliers said, but they did not.
“We would have failed if Copeland hadn’t been praying for us every day,” Mrs. Biellier said.
The Bielliers are now among 386,000 people worldwide whom the Copelands call their “partners,” most of whom send regular contributions and merit special prayers from the Copelands.
A call center at the ministry’s 481-employee headquarters in Newark, Tex., takes in 60,000 prayer requests a month, a publicist said.
The Copelands’ broadcast reaches 134 countries, and the ministry’s income is about $100 million annually.
The Bielliers were at the convention a few years ago when a supporter made a pitch for people to join an “Elite CX Team” to raise money to buy the ministry a Citation X airplane. (Mr. Copeland is an airplane aficionado who got his start in ministry as a pilot for Oral Roberts.) At that moment, Mrs. Biellier said she heard the voice of the Holy Spirit telling her, “You were born to support this man.”
She gave $2,000 for the plane, and recently sent $1,800 for the team’s latest project: buying high-definition television equipment to upgrade the ministry’s international broadcasts.
Mrs. Biellier said some friends and relatives would say the preacher just wanted their money. She explained that the Copelands did not need the money for themselves; it is for their ministry. And besides, even “trashy people like Hugh Hefner” have private airplanes.
“I remember Copeland had to once fly halfway around the world to talk to one person,” she said. “Because we’re partners with Kenneth Copeland, for every soul that gets saved, we get credit for that in heaven.”
But while a band primed the crowd, Professor Walton called the prosperity preachers “spiritual pickpockets.”
“To dismiss and ignore the harsh realities of this economic crisis,” he said. “is beyond irresponsible, to the point of reprehensible.”
The Copelands refused an interview request, but one of their daughters, Kellie Copeland Swisher, and her husband, Steve Swisher, who both work in the ministry, spoke for them.
Mrs. Swisher said the ministry gave away “a minimum of 10 percent of what comes in” to other charities. Her father’s current favorite, she said, is a Roman Catholic orphanage in Mexico.
The ministry has resisted providing the Senate investigation with all the documents requested, she said, because the Copelands did not want to publicly reveal the names of the “partners.” The investigation, which could result in new laws, is continuing, a committee spokeswoman said. Among those being investigated is Creflo Dollar, one of the ministers at the Copelands’ convention.
Mr. Swisher said that even in the economic downturn, the ministry’s income going into the convention was up 3 percent over last year. Asked if they had adjusted the message for the economy, Mrs. Swisher patted the worn Bible in her lap and said: “The message they preach is the Word of God. The Word doesn’t change.”
At the convention, the preachers — who also included Jesse Duplantis and Jerry Savelle — sprinkled their sermons with put-downs of the government, an overhaul of health care, public schools, the news media and other churches, many of which condemn prosperity preaching.
But mostly the preachers were working mightily to remind the crowd that they are God’s elect. “While everybody else is having a famine,” said Mr. Savelle, a Texas televangelist, “his covenant people will be having the best of times.”
“Any time a worried thought about money pops up in your mind,” Mr. Savelle continued, “the next thing you do is sow”: drop money, like seeds, in “good ground” like the preachers’ ministries. “Stop worrying, start sowing,” he added, his voice rising. “That’s God’s stimulus package for you.”
At that, hundreds streamed down the aisles to the stage, laying envelopes, cash and coins on the carpeted steps.
Read more…
KansasCity.Com Reports
Oh no he didn't just sign on to play football in MY hometown!
Pink is steamin' mad that the Philadelphia Eagles have signed Michael Vick to play for them. So (of course) she's using Twitter to unleash.
"wow. michael vick in MY hometown, Philly. of all the places. I hope the fans tear him to pieces like his beloved dogs."
Pink's not the only one doggone ticked off about this, but we don't know if she plans to join any of the protests already being planned.
Here's what PETA says: "PETA and millions of decent football fans around the world are disappointed that the Philadelphia Eagles have chosen to sign a man who hanged dogs from trees, electrocuted them with jumper cables, held them underwater until they drowned in his swimming pool, and even threw his own family dogs into the fighting pit to be torn to shreds while he laughed.”
And Phil Sheridan, sports columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer: "As much as Vick has the right to get on with his life, the rest of us have the right to remind him of what he did.”
What do you think?
Read more…
NY Daily News Reports
Biloxi,Miss. - When Jeff Lacy was promoting his first boxing card in Tampa back in April, he invited Roy Jones Jr. to the show. Jones accepted the invitation, but he knew why Lacy wanted him ringside.
"I knew he was going to challenge me to a fight," Jones said. "I can't say no to a challenge."
The result is a 12-round light-heavyweight match between Jones and Lacy at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum tonight.
Lacy, the former IBF super middleweight champion, will be fighting at 175 pounds for the first time in his career.
"I actually feel my best at 172-173 pounds," said Lacy, who weighed in at 172 Thursday. "I'm stronger. I feel really good."
Lacy (25-2, 17 KOs) is co-promoting the show with Jones, though he isn't handling any of the nuts and bolts. His contribution has been minimal, but Lacy plans to close the show in spectacular fashion.
"This fight isn't going the distance, because I know that Roy is going to come to fight," Lacy said. "And when you come forward and stay in front of me, the fight won't go the distance."
Jones and Lacy are actually in the same boat as far as their careers are concerned. They are considered washed up as far as competing at the elite level. Both suffered lopsided losses to top opponents last November. Jones lost to Joe Calzaghe, Lacy to Jermain Taylor. The winner could remain relevant in the light-heavyweight division. The loser becomes an also-ran.
"My hands are still five times faster than Jeff Lacy's," Jones said. "And they're five times faster than everybody else on this card."
Lacy, 32, has just two losses in his career, but they have been devastating. He took a brutal beating at the hands of Calzaghe in 2006, which may have damaged his career beyond repair. He has not logged a single KO in the five fights since that loss. Part of that may have come from the fact that he had to have reconstructive surgery on his shoulder and missed a year in the ring. Lacy said that was not his problem against Taylor, his 2000 U.S. Olympic teammate.
"We were roommates in the Olympics," Lacy said. "I attended his wedding. The aggressive side of me didn't come out in the fight. I didn't feel like I was taking that many shots and I felt like I was landing a lot of my shots. But I lost the decision."
Lacy doesn't expect to have any motivational problems once he steps into the ring against Jones (53-5, 39 KOs). He has built-in motivation because he realizes that his career is on the line.
"When you're building up your career you're put in against guys who aren't that good and you know you can just go in and take care of them quickly," Lacy said. "But when you're fighting someone like Roy Jones you know he's coming to fight. ... I've been up for this fight from the day he said yes."
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
Queen Latifah will be releasing her new album Persona on August 25th. The album has been described as a blend of Hip Hop and Pop creating a new sound for the Queen. Persona is executive produced by Cool and Dre and features production from Pharrell Williams.
The lead single off of the new album, “Cue the Rain” combines Latifah's melodic voice with a fun club beat and was first debuted on the season finale of 'American Idol.” With all of Latifah success, she also opens up some personal issues from her past that caused her to be the go-getter she is today. On the track “The Light,” she opens up about her upbringing in New Jersey and how through various obstacles she has "made it to the light." This song is a throw back to her rapping days when all hailed the queen.
The Queen also rocks out with the “Queen Of Hip-Hop/Soul” Mary J. Blige on the track “People” as the two examine the nature of personal interactions and relationships. Persona will also feature collaborations with Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliot, and Serani.
On the acting tip, The Queen is currently shooting two films. Valentine's Day will feature her Jamie Foxx, Ashton Kutcher and Julia Roberts while Just Wright will star Latifah and Common.
Also in the works to feature La is the musically inspired feature film Stories I've Heard to be directed by Chris Robinson who also lensed the T.I. starring vehicle ATL. Written by Robinson and writing partner Neal Feldman, the film unfolds to reveal five separate stories that intersect under extraordinary circumstances.
According to Robinson, “Stories I've Heard is just that... Narratives inspired by conversations I've had over the years. Extraordinary tales from normal everyday people."
Varying from the harrowing to the mysterious, each story is based on some kind of real-life event. The five separate storylines eventually intersect, revealing just how involved we all are in each other's lives without even knowing it.
Read more…
HipHopWired Reports
Longevity and relevance are too hard things to come by when speaking about Hip-Hop. Artist that emerged in the early 90's are either holding onto a strand of hope or have disappeared in the darkness of obscurity.
Memphis group Three Six Mafia has spent close to twenty years in the rap world and although they have gone through their trials and the group has drastically downsized, they are still intact. On November 10, the Grammy award-winning group will bless audiences with their latest project, "Laws of Power".
The album will feature DJ Paul and Juicy J holding it down as they have for a while. The group recently went on their solo tips as both released their own project with Paul's Scale-A-Thon in May, and Juicy's Hustle Till I Die in June.
“Lil Freak (Ugh Ugh Ugh)” will be a track that is featured on the upcoming project and will feature artist Webbie. Another notable cut will be “Shake My” which will feature Laenna and will be produced by Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins and Osinachi Nwaneri. The musical effort is set to be released through Hypnotize Minds/Columbia Records.
Laws Of Power will also find the Tear The Club Of Thugs venturing into techno as they collaborate with Flo-Rida and Sean Kingston over the production of Tiesto.
Read more…
There's a long list a beautiful female stars fighting for different causes by baring it all. Here's a few of them
"Third Watch" star Nia Long shows how to beat the morning commute...by riding the rails in the buff!
Of her decision to join the PETA "I'd rather go naked than wear fur" campaign, Long says, "When I became a mother I started to really understand the importance of all living creatures in a way that I didn't ever think about before."
But she's not the only sexy star to take it all off for the animal rights organization ...
... PETA definitely knows how to turn heads. Actress Eva Mendes gave fans a view to remember for the benefit of PETA...
Vegan actress Alicia Silverstone took it all off for a 2007 print ad to promote vegetarianism.
'Girls Next Door' star Holly Madison showed off her curves in this ad, released in April 2007.
Reality TV star Khloe Kardashian spurred airbrush rumors after flaunting her exposed figure in an ad for PETA
'NYPD Blue' star Charlotte Ross revealed (nearly) everything in a 2002 PETA ad next to the tagline, "I'd Rather Show My Buns Than Wear Fur."
The ladies of Danity Kane fight fur with ... nudity.
Sarah Michelle Gellar took it all off in photos for Vaseline, and auctioned off nude photos to benefit the Coalition of Skin Diseaes in America, The Insider reports.Read More About The Charity Here
Kimora Lee Simmons posed with her pooch Zoe alongside the slogan, "Be an angel for dogs," in this January 2008 ad.
Former 'Baywatch' babe Traci Bingham showed her love for animals in an anti-meat campaign for PETA.
For More Pics Of Celebs Fighting For A Cause Sans Clothes. Check Out The NY Daily News Gallery HereRead more…
AllHipHop Reports
Rap star Corey “C-Murder” Miller was officially sentenced to life in prison today (August 14) for killing a 16-year-old teenager inside a Jefferson Parish nightclub.
On Tuesday (August 11) a jury found Miller guilty of shooting and killing Steven Thomas inside of the club, after an altercation with Miller and several other men in January of 2002.
Miller’s attorney Ron Rakosky asked Judge Jans Liljeberg for a retrial, but the judge refused the request yet again, paving the way for Miller, 38, to be sentenced to life in prison, without the possibility of parole.
The rapper was originally found guilty of the shooting in 2002, but the verdict was overturned when it was learned that prosecutors hid the criminal records of several witnesses from the defense.
Miller appeared in court today chained and shackled.
He sat quietly as Rakosky filed a motion to withdraw as Miller’s attorney, because Miller had not paid him for his services. Miller plans to appeal the guilty verdict.
C. Murder helped usher New Orleans Hip-Hop into the mainstream with brothers Percy “Master P.” Miller and Vyshonn “Silkk the Shocker” Miller as part of No Limit Records.
He is also the uncle of teen actor/rapper Romeo Miller, star of the series Romeo! on Nickelodeon.
Read more…
AllHipHop Reports
Rapping preacher Mason “Mase” Betha continues to promote his ministry as he also revives his career as a Hip-Hop artist.
Mase, who released an first official single earlier this month titled “Shut the City Down,” will host “The Millionaires Meeting” later this month in Athens, Georgia.
The rapper and his Mason Betha Ministries will host the event, which aims to teach those who attend how to “overcome during these economic times and achieve financial freedom.”
Mase’s “Millionaires Meeting” takes place at the University of Georgia’s Tate Center on August 23, beginning at 6:00 PM.
Meanwhile Mase recently shot down rumors that his new single “Shut the City Down” was sending a diss to Roc-A-Fella boss, Jay-Z, who is name checked on the track.
“I’m not about dissin anyone on STCD,” Mase said via his Twitter page. “Neither am I dissin or making subliminal quotes! That's wack and weak. Jay & I respect each other.”
Mase was recently spotted in New York, where he was reportedly meeting with Bad Boy CEO Sean “Diddy” Combs and shopping for a record deal.
Read more…
AllHipHop Reports
With former T.I. protégé vehemently denying accusations that he was a late 90’s informant, the website Smoking Gun has released further damning evidence against the Georgia rapper.
In May, the Smoking Gun first published reports that Alfamega, real name Cedric Zellars, testified in 1996 against Georgia drug dealer Ali Baaqar in exchange for receiving 18 months off his 9 year prison sentence.
When the information was verified, T.I. promptly kicked his former close friend out of his Grand Hustle camp via a written letter.
Since then, Alfamega has broke his leg in police chase, and launched a diss track and letter at T.I. over his dismissal.
In the intro to the new 25 page document, the Smoking Gun states that Zellars forced them to resurface the information after he accused them of forging documents.
“We hate to pile on poor Cedric "Alfamega" Zellars,” the site explained. “But when the rapper recently surfaced to claim that a TSG story about his previous work as an informant was wrong (and maybe even based on fabricated documents), we decided to revisit his days as a government snitch.”
The records reveal that Alfamega approached the federal government himself to initiate his testimony, and agreed to identify a “big drug dealer” that he worked for and purchased large keys of cocaine from.
During a cross-examination, Alfamega also admitted to fathering 13 children by 13 different women.
Aside from Baaqar, the documents quote Alfamega as stating there were several other men he gave information on, but failed to secure convictions to further lower his sentence.
“I had people calling, and I was writing,” explained Cellars in regard to reaching out to the FBI and DEA.
“I been asked for information. They picked some of the guys up, but it didn’t do nothing to help me. I just gave it because they asked me.”
At press time, Alfamega has not addressed the latest allegations against him.
Smoking Gun Docs HereRead more…
HipHopWired Reports
Rockstar Games has partnered with producer Timbaland to release the video game “Beaterator” on September 29th and October 2nd respectively in North America and Europe. Available for PSP and PlayStation systems, the game will allow users to create their own beats using production from Timbaland.
Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games whose franchise includes the highly successful “Grand Theft Auto” series, stated, “Beaterator is a very natural progression for us. Music is incredibly important to us here at Rockstar, and we believe that there are many people out there who share that passion and will be excited about creating music of their own.”
Initially created in 2005 as a Flash application on the Rockstar website, Beaterator quickly took on a life of its own. Featuring thousands of loops and sounds made by both Timbaland and Rockstar, Beaterator puts the power to make professional-level music at your fingertips in a format that's portable, accessible and fun as anyone can now create great-sounding music. Timbaland added, “I've worked closely with Rockstar Games to make something completely unique. Beaterator is like taking my music studio and turning it into a suite of tools anyone can use. We can't wait to hear the beats people make and share with the world.”
In related news, Timbaland's production is also slated to appear on Jay-Z's highly anticipated Blueprint III alongside the likes of No I.D. and Kanye West. The Blueprint III is scheduled to be released on September 11th.
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