National Roundup

Oregon
Judge dismisses naked Portland violinist's claims

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A federal judge has dismissed a nude protester's claim that police violated his rights by arresting him while he played violin stark-naked outside the federal courthouse in Portland.

Matthew T. Mglej of Hillsboro, Oregon, sued the Portland police and the county last January, seeking $1.1 million in damages. The 26-year-old was arrested for indecent exposure in May 2014.

According to The Oregonian, the judge said Mglej's nudity didn't advance a specific message, so it wasn't protected by either the First Amendment or the state constitution.

The judge allowed one allegation of excessive force against Multnomah County to proceed to trial. Mglej claimed jail deputies cut his wrists by jerking on his handcuffs.

County attorneys argued Mglej refused to follow directions once in jail and he didn't complain of injuries at the time.

Pennsylvania
Couple struggles to sell 'Silence of the Lambs' house

PERRYOPOLIS, Pa. (AP) - A Pennsylvania couple is struggling to sell a house used as the home of psychotic killer Buffalo Bill in the 1991 film "The Silence of the Lambs."

Scott and Barbara Lloyd listed the house last summer, but they've dropped the asking price from $300,000 to $250,000.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says the three-story Victorian in Layton has been the second-most clicked home on realtor.com last year.

Scott Lloyd says the publicity has attracted curiosity but no serious buyers.

Experts say the home's location in a tiny village an hour south of Pittsburgh works against it. It also has only one bathroom to go with its four bedrooms.

The foyer and dining room were depicted in the film, but no, there's no pit in the basement. Those scenes were filmed on a soundstage.

Florida
Saudi prisoner at Guantanamo released by U.S.

MIAMI (AP) - A Saudi prisoner at the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who authorities said was a recruiter and fighter for al-Qaida has been sent back to his homeland, the Pentagon said Monday amid a wave of releases from the detention center.

Muhammed Abd Al-Rahman Al-Shamrani was among the first prisoners taken to the U.S. base in Cuba when it opened in January 2002 to hold suspected enemy combatants. He had long been deemed too dangerous to release even as most of the prisoners from Saudi Arabia were sent home.

A profile of al-Shamrani first released by the Pentagon in 2014 said he "almost certainly remains committed to supporting extremist causes, and has continued to incite other detainees against the detention staff at Guantanamo." His attorney, Martha Rayner, had said that the allegations against him were no more serious than prisoners who had already been released.

His case was reviewed again last year by a government board amid an effort by President Barack Obama to reduce the Guantanamo prison population and move the remainder to the U.S. The board concluded that the Saudi security measures and rehabilitation program for militants are adequate to minimize the risk of him taking part in extremist activities.

"Mr. al-Shamrani looks forward to participating in the Saudi reintegration program, reuniting with his family and establishing a peaceful and productive life in his home country," said Rayner, professor at Fordham University School of Law in New York.

Al-Shamrani is the fourth of 17 prisoners expected to be released this month from Guantanamo. The prison now holds 103 men, including more than 40 cleared for release.

California
Dismembered foot found at transit station
BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - Officials believe a dismembered foot found at a Berkeley, California, transit station belongs to a woman who fell on the tracks last month.

KNTV in San Jose reports the foot was found Monday morning at the Bay Area Rapid Transit station.

The woman survived being hit by a BART train on Dec. 20, but lost her lower right leg. Her name and age were not released.

Crews found the foot while out on the tracks.

BART spokesman Jim Allison says no foul play is suspected. Service was halted briefly Monday morning.

Kentucky
Group calls for hate crime investigation
OWENSBORO, Ky. (AP) - A mosque in western Kentucky has been vandalized, but officials don't think it was a hate crime.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a statement on Sunday that it was calling on law enforcement to investigate red markings at the Islamic Center of Owensboro as a possible hate crime. The statement said officials at the mosque believe the vandalism was motivated by bias.

CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper noted an increase in anti-mosque incidents across the nation.

Daviess County Sheriff's Department Sgt. Scott Wedding said deputies were called to the mosque on Friday afternoon to investigate markings that turned out to be smeared ketchup.

He said officials are not treating it as a possible hate crime because the vandals left no words or symbols to indicate hate as a motivation.

California
Chief supports charges for cop in fatal shooting

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck has recommended criminal charges against an officer who killed an unarmed homeless man in Venice.

Beck tells the Los Angeles Times investigators concluded that Brendon Glenn was on his stomach, attempting to push himself off the ground, when Officer Clifford Proctor fired twice, hitting the 29-year-old in the back last May.

Beck says he made his recommendation last month to Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, who will ultimately decide whether to file charges.

Proctor's attorney says the officer saw Glenn reaching for his partner's gun.

Beck says after reviewing video, witness accounts and other evidence, investigators determined Glenn was not trying to take either Proctor's gun or his partner's weapon at the time of the shooting. Proctor's partner told investigators he did not know why the officer opened fire.

Published: Tue, Jan 12, 2016