Tag Archive for: Serving

Navy Petty Officer Jamica Ballard: From Maryland to Norfolk, Serving with Pride Aboard USS Kearsarge


Credit: Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Patricia Elkins, Navy Office of Community Outreach

NORFOLK, Va.Petty Officer 1st Class Jamica Ballard, hailing from Fort Washington, Maryland, is a dedicated member of the United States Navy, stationed aboard a warship docked in Norfolk, Virginia. Ballard’s journey from Friendly High School in 2008 to the USS Kearsarge today is a testament to her unwavering commitment to serve her country.

Ballard’s experiences in Fort Washington have played a significant role in shaping her outlook on her Navy career. She shared a valuable lesson she learned from her mother, saying, “The main lesson I carry with me is from my mom. She always told me to never take things personally when I’m doing a job. That lesson helps me adapt to various environments and work with people with different personalities because I may not always get along with everyone, but I can’t take it to heart.”

Joining the Navy 14 years ago, Ballard’s journey began during the throes of the economic recession. She reflected on her decision, stating, “I was working at Blockbuster when the recession started. The economy was going through a hard time, and Blockbuster got phased out, so I lost my job. My older brother was interested in joining the Navy, and I went with him when he was being recruited. I ended up going, but he didn’t.”

Today, Ballard serves as a mass communication specialist aboard the USS Kearsarge, a formidable vessel with a crew of approximately 1,200 members capable of accommodating up to 1,800 Marines. USS Kearsarge is part of the Wasp class of multipurpose amphibious assault ships, carrying out critical missions that involve the transfer of Marines, equipment, supplies, and air support capabilities.

The role of the Navy and sailors like Ballard in America’s defense strategy cannot be understated. As the nation focuses on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances, and reforming business practices in line with the National Defense Strategy, Ballard emphasizes the Navy’s significance. “I think the Navy is important to national defense, especially for what we represent…

Source…

Local siblings serving together in U.S. Navy


Photo: Gadsden natives Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric Lowe (left) and Seaman Recruit Evan Lowe (right) serve at Information Warfare Training Command (IWTC) at Corry Station in Pensacola, Fla. (Courtesy of U.S. Navy) 

By Lt. Omari Faulkner/U.S. Navy Office of Community Outreach

Petty Officer 2nd Class Eric Lowe and Seaman Recruit Evan Lowe of Gadsden currently serving at Information Warfare Training Command (IWTC) at Corry Station in Pensacola, Florida.
Eric is an instructor and Evan is a student at IWTC. Both serve among the future generation of information warfighters. IWTC instructors are experts in the subject matter they teach, providing cutting-edge technical training that transforms students into mission-ready U.S. Navy sailors. Students at IWTC are taught the requirements and skills needed to be successful in their new careers.
Eric, who joined the U.S. Navy six years ago, currently serves as an information systems technician.
“I wanted to be in the military,” he said Eric. “My older brother was a U.S. Marine, and I knew I wanted to serve as well.”
Evan joined the U.S. Navy three months ago.
“After not living a very stable life, I decided to follow in my big brother’s footsteps and join the navy,” he said.
According to the Lowe brothers, the values required to succeed in the U.S. Navy are similar to those found in Gadsden.
“Growing up, I learned to be tolerant and understanding of people from all walks of life,” said Eric.
“I learned that responsibility comes from managing your time effectively, which are all foundational pillars for the U.S. Navy,” added Evan.
As one of Center for Information Warfare Training’s four training commands, IWTC provides schooling for the U.S. Navy and joint services in cryptologic, information systems and cyber functions, enabling optimal performance of information warfare across the full spectrum of military operations.
The Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) delivers trained information warfare professionals to the U.S. Navy and joint services, enabling optimal performance of information warfare across the full spectrum of military operations. CIWT trains enlisted personnel and officers in all functions of…

Source…

South Carolina Drug Warriors Routinely Serving Regular Warrants Like No-Knock Warrants

Radley Balko is uncovering more rights violations and more law enforcement falsehoods with his coverage of South Carolina resident Julian Betton’s lawsuit against the Myrtle Beach-area drug task force. Betton’s house was raided by the drug unit after a confidential informant made two pot purchases for a total of $ 100. The police didn’t have a no-knock warrant, but they acted like they did, going from zero to hail-of-gunfire in mere seconds. (via FourthAmendment.com)

On April 16, 2015, the task force battered Betton’s door open with a ram, then almost immediately opened fire, releasing at least 29 bullets, nine of which hit Betton. One bullet pierced a back wall in the building, sped across a nearby basketball court and landed in the wall of another house. (This was a multi-family building.)

Betton was hit several times. He didn’t die, but he doesn’t have much left in working order. He lost part of his gallbladder, colon, and rectum. His liver, pancreas and small intestine all suffered damage. His left leg was broken along with one of his vertebrae.

The cops immediately set about justifying their extreme tactics. First, they claimed Betton fired at them, but ballistics tests showed Betton’s gun hadn’t been fired. Then they claimed he pointed a gun at them, but did not fire it. This could have easily been proven if any of the task force had bothered to activate their body cameras before breaking Betton’s door down. But the footage shows no cameras were activated until after the task force stopped firing.

The task force used a regular search warrant, meaning the officers were supposed to knock and announce their presence. Nearly all of them said they followed these stipulations. Video from Betton’s home security camera (which can be seen at the Washington Post) caught all these officers in a lie.

These 11 seconds of footage from that camera show that no member of the task force knocked on Betton’s door.

The video lacks audio, but both the Myrtle Beach police chief and a federal magistrate have since concluded that the video also strongly suggests there was no announcement. None of the officers’ lips appear to be moving, and it all happens very quickly. At best, they announced themselves simultaneously or nearly simultaneously, with the battering ram hitting the door.

A neighbor who was on Betton’s sidewalk (and was told to lie on the ground by the task force on their way to Betton’s door) backs up the camera footage. No announcement was made before the door was breached.

This is apparently standard operating procedure in Myrtle Beach. Only in rare cases does the task force seek no-knock warrants. (Task force officials say no-knocks are only “1-2%” of warrants obtained.) But they apparently serve plenty of normal warrants without knocking or announcing their presence.

It seems clear from the testimony in depositions that the 15th Circuit Drug Enforcement Unit doesn’t know any of this. Officer Christopher Dennis, for example, said that the “reasonable” waiting period for someone to answer the door begins the moment police arrive on the scene, not after they knock and announce themselves. This is false. Officer Chad Guess — who, remember, planned the Betton raid — said in a deposition that it’s “not the law to knock and announce. You know, it’s just not. It’s the officer’s discretion, each dictate determines itself.” This, again, is wrong. Officer Belue said under oath that he had no idea how long officers are supposed to wait before forcing entry, and that no one had trained him on the matter.

It’s a convenient misunderstanding of the law. It’s made even more convenient by the task force’s lack of clearly-written policies on serving warrants. Since everyone of the task force remains as ignorant as possible, they’re more likely to be granted immunity when victims of unconstitutional drug raids take them to court.

But these officers may not get off so lightly. Their reports and testimony have been disproven by the 11 seconds of video captured by Betton’s security camera. Officers who swore they knocked and announced their presence now have to explain how those both occurred with zero officers knocking on Betton’s door or even moving their lips.

More lies can be found elsewhere in the report. Officers stated in police reports they heard the sound of Betton’s gun firing. Ballistics testing has shown Betton never fired his handgun, so everyone making that same claim about gunfire is either mistaken about what they heard or, more likely, aligning themselves with the narrative they created in the aftermath of the shooting.

Maybe these officers are hoping their professional ignorance will outweigh their bogus reports. The task force has made it incredibly easy for members to write their own rules when executing warrants. As Balko points, the single most invasive and dangerous thing the task force participates in (~150 times a year) — warrant service — has zero official policies dictating how task force members serve warrants. Apparently, all that time and effort went into creating a cool skull-and-crossbones logo for members to stitch on their not-very-coplike raid gear.

In any event, the court system is the last stop for justice. If any of these officers are ever going to be held accountable for their actions in the Betton raid, it will be here. Every level of oversight task force members answer to has already offered their official blessings for the knock-and-announce warrant that was carried out without knocks or announcements.

What happened to Julian Betton is an entirely predictable product of the failures, culture and mindset of the 15th Circuit Drug Enforcement Unit. And yet to date, state officials won’t even concede that this was a bad outcome, much less do anything to prevent it from happening again. Citing the SLED investigation, South Carolina solicitor Kevin Bracket cleared the officers of any wrongdoing within just a few months. In the three years since the raid, no officer involved has been disciplined, even internally. Nor has any officer has been asked to undergo additional training. No policies have been changed. The DEU never bothered with its own investigation, or even an after-action examination to determine what went wrong.

The police clear themselves of wrongdoing and a pending civil lawsuit has zero motivation effect on the drug unit. The task force is operating outside Constitutional boundaries with no internal guidance or effective oversight. Myrtle Beach-area drug warriors have no desire to clean up their act, and a large settlement paid by taxpayers is unlikely to result in a change of heart.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Techdirt.

Security education outfit EC Council serving Angler exploit kit – The Register


The Register

Security education outfit EC Council serving Angler exploit kit
The Register
Senior threat intelligence man Yonathan Klijnsma says the web site of the EC-Council, the organisation responsible for the Ethical Hacker certification, is serving the dangerous Angler exploit kit. Klijnsma of Dutch firm Fox-IT says the website was

and more »

“exploit kit” – read more