The Blackwell Brief

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Police release new '50 Most Wanted' fugitive list for Denver area

9NEWS.com Denver Colorado's Online News Leader Police release new '50 Most Wanted' fugitive list

Real Tea Partyers - Tea Party groups

Tea Party groups aim to storm caucuses, shake up system - The Denver Post

Monday, March 8, 2010

"Big Brother" out-of-control in Colorado?

Red-light cameras gain popularity, but whether they improve safety is debatable - The Denver Post

Since 1970s, ID-theft victim has been dogged by someone else's "criminal" past

Since 1970s, ID-theft victim has been dogged by someone else's "criminal" past - The Denver Post

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Arizona Bill to criminalize illegal immigrants

Bill to criminalize presence of illegal immigrants in Arizona

Gov. Paterson, Spitzer, Alan Hevesi, Charles Rangel - New York gone wild

New York gone wild - Ben Smith and Glenn Thrush - POLITICO.com

I will write again soon. I've been extremely busy with new contracts and haven't had the time to do any writing. Thank you to those that have sent kind messages. --Brian Blackwell

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Legalizing Chinese espionage?

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Tim Masters gets $4.1 million settlement

9NEWS.com Denver Colorado's Online News Leader Tim Masters gets multi-million dollar settlement

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Brian Blackwell Tim Masters reader comment

I just read your beautifully written account of the Tim Masters and Dr. Richard Hammond story. I have read multiple accounts of the story, but your style is the best in its accuracy, detail, and enjoyment in reading.

I was friends with the Hammonds and lived in the neighborhood where the murder of Peggy Hettrick took place, and where the Hammonds lived (The Landings) in Fort Collins. In fact, I could see the pool of blood when I walked to my mailbox. Both events traumatized me, to say the least.

Richard Hammond had us over for dinner and when I had to go to the bathroom, he asked me to use the guest bathroom downstairs (where the hidden camera was). I still think Hammond could have committed the murder.

Pam H.

The Brutal Murder of Peggy Hettrick
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Tim Masters served nearly 10 years in prison for the murder of Peggy Hettrick. A murder he did not commit. Masters was cleared of the crime by DNA testing.

Read about Tim Masters, Dr. Hammond, and the murder of Peggy Hettrick by using the search box in the top left corner of this blog. Search: Tim Masters and Peggy Hettrick

Brian Blackwell QI Investigations Denver Colorado

Friday, January 29, 2010

No Parole for 'Onion Field' Cop Killer

For the 11th time, a California parole board has denied parole to Gregory Ulas Powell, the infamous 'Onion Field' cop killer whose 1963 crime was chronicled in former LAPD Detective Sergeant Joseph Wambaugh's best-selling book The Onion Field.

The parole board's decision announced Wednesday was praised by the Los Angeles Police Protective League.

Gregory Powell is 76 and among the longest-serving inmates in California's prison system.

Powell and co-defendant, Jimmy Lee Smith, were convicted of killing LAPD officer Ian Campbell in an onion field near Bakersfield in March 1963. Their death sentences were commuted to life in prison after the death penalty was briefly outlawed in the 1970's. Smith died in prison in 2007.

On the night of

March 9, 1963, officer Ian Campbell and his partner officer Karl Hettinger pulled over a car containing two suspicious-looking men on a Hollywood street. The pieces of crap, Gregory Powell and Jimmy Lee Smith, were driving around Hollywood looking for a liquor store to rob. Powell and Smith had recently committed a string of robberies.

Powell, the driver, who was ordered out of the car by officer Campbell, pointed a gun at Campbell's head and ordered officer Hettinger to surrender his gun to Smith. Powell and Smith forced both officers into Powell's car and drove them to a remote onion field near Bakersfield.

The officers we

re forced out of the car and ordered to stand with their hands above their heads. Powell said to them, ""We told you we were going to let you go, but have you ever heard of the little Lindbergh Law?"

"Yes," Campbell replied. Powell then shot him to death. Hettinger escaped, running to a farmhouse. Hettinger was haunted the rest of his life by his partner's murder.

Powell and Smith were sentenced to death in November 1963, but their sentences were commuted to life in prison with the possibility of parole in the early 1970's when the death penalty was declared unconstitutional. Powell and Smith were allowed several appeals. Smith died in prison in 2007.

A statement from the slain officer's daughter, Valerie Campbell Moniz, who was 3 when her father was murdered, was read at Wednesday's parole hearing.

"There has not been one day that has passed that I have not thought about and dreamed about my dad. Growing up without him has been devastating, but what torments me is the manner in which my father died," Moniz wrote.

Speaking of Powell, she said, "He willfully shot my father with a cold and callous heart. He had no regard for human life. His act was even more despicable because he showed no compassion or mercy. To this day he has shown no regret for murdering my dad.

"Gregory Powell must spend the rest of his life in prison. To release him dishonors the memory of my father, law enforcement, and the Los Angeles Police Department. To release him only sends the message to criminals that the taking of a human life, especially that of a law enforcement officer, is acceptable."

Powell is housed at California Men's Colony, a minimum and medium security detention facility. According to records, Powell has had several rules violations. He can seek parole again in three years.

The Little Lindbergh Law makes a kidnapping with California a capital offense even if the victim is unharmed. It followed a federal law, nicknamed the Lindbergh Law, that made taking a kidnapped person across state lines a federal crime. That law was passed after the kidnapping and murder of the baby son of Charles Lindbergh in 1932.

Movie: The Onion Field (1979) Starring James Woods and John Savage
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Brian Blackwell QI Investigations BrianBlackwell.com Denver Colorado Blackwell investigations
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onion field killing onion field murder ian campbell la police officer murdered onion field cop killer

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Colorado medical marijuana proposal passes

The first statewide attempt to try to regulate Colorado's rapidly growing medical marijuana industry passed at the State Capitol Wednesday.

Colorado's Senate Health and Human Services Committee held a hearing on the bill aimed at preventing doctors from issuing medical marijuana recommendations to recreational users, which has become a problem throughout the state. The bill passed at around 1:30 p.m. in a 6-1 vote and is expected to go to the Senate floor by Friday.

Under the proposal, doctors have to give medical marijuana patients a physical exam and provide follow up care. Those under the age of 21 need to get the approval of two doctors.

Some doctors, particularly in Denver, Littleton, Fort Collins, Windsor and Colorado Springs, have been recommending people for medical marijuana use without seeing any medical records documenting that the individual has the required medical condition needed to be eligible for the Colorado medical marijuana card.

Medical marijuana advocates were divded on Colorado state Senator Chris Romer's proposal. Many dispensary operators say they are on board with regulations if the state gives them uniformed guidelines and avert a more severe crackdown like one approved this week in Los Angeles.

Hundreds of Los Angeles pot shops face closure after the City Council voted Tuesday to cap the number of dispensaries in the city at 70. The rapid growth of the Colorado medical marijuana industry is due in large part to California dispensary operators setting up operations in Colorado.

Colorado currently has very few rules in place for medical marijuana dispensaries. Prohibiting dispensaries within 1000 feet of schools, day cares and other dispensaries, and felons convicted within the last five years are barred from opening dispensaries are the current rules for opening a medical marijuana dispensary in Colorado.

Under the bill proposed by Sen. Romer, Dispensary owners would have to be licensed, pass a criminal background check and pay a $2,000 application fee along with $3,000 a year to renew licenses.

The rules are set to take effect March 1, although they could change depending on what state lawmakers decide to do.

Brian Blackwell QI Security and Investigations Denver Colorado BrianBlackwell.com

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