The number of law enforcement officers who were killed while in the line of duty increased by 13% in 2011, leaving 173 officers dead through December 28.

The rise in officer deaths comes after 2009 say a 50-year-low in officer related killings according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

The report found that gunfire claimed the lives of 68 officers, marking the first time since 1997 that more law enforcement officers were killed by gunshots rather than traffic accidents.

The 2011 officer related shootings is still less than half of the highest total set in 1973 when 156 officers were shot and killed.

Speaking about the rise in deaths the chairman of the memorial fund blamed budget cuts, revealing that more than 10,000 police officers and sheriff deputies had been laid off in 2011.

“Our officers are facing a more brazen, cold-blooded element, and fighting a war on terror, and we’re giving them less training and less equipment than they need to do their jobs safely.”

Turning to the rise in illegal firearms Attorney General Eric Holder said the ”devastating and unacceptable” rise in police officer murders could be blamed for the increase while promising that the Justice Department is doing everything in its power to keep police officers safe.

What do you blame for the increase in law enforcement deaths by gunfire?

Line Of Duty Police Officer Deaths Increase By 13% In 2011 is a post from: The Inquisitr

The 2011 Global Burden of Armed Violence report has revealed that more people are killed each year by armed violence than war.

According to the study of the 526,000 people who die violenty every year 55,000 are killed during warfare while 396,000 are murdered outside of armed conflict. A remaining 54,000 people also die due to “unintentional violence” while 21,000 are killed by police operations.

The study also found that Latin American and several other middle African regions are the hardest hit by street violence and unintentional violence.

In a scary statistic the study revealed that  El Salvador, Iraq and Jamaica account for more than a quarter of all global violent deaths despite housing less than 5 percent of the world’s population.

One of the hardest hit areas was Mexico’s Chihuahua state which witnessed 129 violent deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in 2010, largely due to armed drug gangs that have been competing to expand their territory.

The study also revealed that while most violent deaths happen to men there are still approximately 66,000 women killed each year. Interesting in the most violent countries there tends to actually be less female deaths when compared to less violent regions.

Does the 2011 Global Burden of Armed Violence report surprise you? With the number of people engaged in war compared to non-war participants the numbers in many ways make sense but still show a scary number of violent deaths internationally.

Violent Crimes Kill More People Than War [Study] is a post from: The Inquisitr

In 1979 the U.S. Government began tracking drug-related deaths and for the first time those deaths have surpassed the number of traffic fatalities on an annual basis.

The most recent statistics which were taken in 2009 shows that 37,485 people died in traffic related accidents while 36,284 people died from drug related activities in a one year period.

Surprisingly the main culprit of those deaths were not street illegal drugs but rather prescription options including Xanax, OxyContin and the main culprit Vicodin which killed more people than cocaine and heroin combined.

Speaking to the Los Angeles Times a Santa Barbara sheriff said:

“The problem is right here under our noses in our medicine cabinets.”

The study also revealed that traffic related fatalities have actually fallen by a third since the 1970s even as the number of drivers using American roadways continues to increase, while drug related deaths have doubled in the last decade. Deaths among the 50-year-old to 69-year-old crowd have been even worse, tripling during the same time period.

Not all deaths have been related to drug overdoses from drug abuse, in many cases accidental double dosing by adults has been the culprit.

When asked how drug related deaths can be reduced one researcher said:

“What’s really scary is we don’t know a lot about how to reduce prescription deaths,” while adding, “It’s a wonderful medical advancement that we can treat pain, but we haven’t figured out the safety belt yet.”

In the meantime parents are urged to speak with their kids not just about street illegal drugs but also the medications found in medicine cabinets which can be just as addictive and just as deadly.

Drug Use Now Kills More People Than Traffic Accidents [Study] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Canadian actor and comedian Leslie Nielsen is reported to have passed away after a battle with pneumonia at the age of 84.

Nephew Doug Nielsen told the CJOB talk radio station in Canada that “Just in this last 48 hours, the infection has gotten too much and today at 5.30, with his friends and his wife by his side, he just fell asleep and passed away.”

Nielsen began his career on television in the 1950′s, before making the switch to the big screen in the 1956 movie The Vagabond King. That role led to a contract with MGM, where Nielsen landed lead roles in movies including Forbidden Planet, Ransom!, The Opposite Sex, and Hot Summer Night. In 1957 he starred opposite Debbie Reynolds in the romantic comedy Tammy and the Bachelor.

After a variety of parts on television and movies, Nielsen switched to comedy in 1980, establishing him as one of the foremost comedic actors of the age. After Airplane!, he went on to star in the television series Police Squad, The Naked Gun movies, and a variety of other parts both on television and the big screen.

Although his career diminished in later years, his appearances on movies including Scary Movie 3 were well received.

Nielsen is survived by his fourth wife, and two children from his second marriage.

Leslie Nielsen Dead At 84 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Fess Parker, best known for his roles playing Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone has died at the age of 85.

After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps at the end of World War II, he started his career in the play Mister Roberts in 1951.

After signing with Disney and appearing in a number of small roles, Parker was thrust into the spotlight when in 1954 when he was personally picked by Walt Disney to play the role of Davy Crockett in a miniseries shown between 1954-1955.

After his success as Crockett, Parker became a star for Disney appearing in a range of films such as The Great Locomotive Chase, Old Yeller, and Westward Ho, The Wagons!

In the 1960′s he returned to television, reprising his talent of playing American frontier figures in the NBC series Daniel Boone from 1964 to 1970.

After a short term stint in the sitcom The Fess Parker Show in 1974, Parker retired from showbiz. In later years, he established and ran the successful Fess Parker Family Winery and Vineyards in Los Olivos, California.

Fess Parker is survived by his wife, two children, 11 grandchildren, and one great grandchild.

Fess Parker Dies Aged 85 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Pernell Roberts, best remembered for his roles in Bonanza and Trapper John, M.D. has died of cancer at his Malibu home aged 81.

Pernell Roberts started his career in high school, singing in a local USO show before serving two years in the United States Marine Corps. After a period of study, he performed off-Broadway, winning a Drama Desk award in 1955 for his performance in Macbeth.

He first appeared on TV as a guest star in the series Northwest Passage, and made his film debut a year later co-starring in the film Ride Lonesome.

Robert’s big break came playing Ben Cartwright’s eldest son in the TV series Bonanza for six seasons. During this period he also recorded a solo album, and sang extensively on a separate Bonanza related album.

After appearing on a range of television shows, he found fame again in the early 80′s playing Trapper John M.D., in the show of the same name from 1979-1986. He last appeared on television in 2001.

Pernell Roberts Dead At 81 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Over the last several years LED lights have been hailed as a must have for going green, they put out much less power and burn cooler than traditional incadescent lights, unfortunately for engineers that efficiency is causing problems in one specific area, traffic lights.

It turns out that several cold weather states that installed the LED lights didn’t realize that the cool burning bulbs wouldn’t melt snow like their older counterparts did.  This fact has led drivers in areas with snow to encounter stoplights that they couldn’t see thanks to snow mounting inside the lights canister.

Several drivers have been injured and one death has resulted from the LED installations. Tech experts are currently working on a fix, but in the meantime most drivers say they treat obstructed stoplights as they would stop signs, making them a little more safe for most drivers. [Gizmodo]

LED Traffic Lights Are Efficiently Inefficient During Snow Falls is a post from: The Inquisitr

Comedian, actor, and radio-TV personality Soupy Sales has died of a “series of ailments” in New York at the age of 83.

Born in Franklinton, North Carolina, Soupy Sales served in the Navy in the final years of World War 2, before studying journalism at college and starting his career on radio, then later television.

Soupy Sales was best known in the United States for his long-running local and network children’s television show, Lunch with Soupy Sales. A series of comedy sketches ending with Sales receiving a pie in the face became his trademark.

From 1968 to 1975, he was a panelist on What’s My Line? and appeared on several other TV game shows. During the 1980s Sales hosted a show on WNBC-AM in New York City.

He is survived by his wife, two sons and four grandchildren.

Soupy Sales Dead At 83 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Mr. Magic, an influential NYC DJ who has been namechecked on tracks by Nas, Biggie and Tupac, has died of a heart attack.

Alongside Marley Marl, Mr. Magic began hosting the first all hip-hop radio show (“Rap Attack”) in New York in 1983. For the next six years, Mr. Magic was a instrumental in bringing hip-hop to listeners, feuding with fellow area radio host DJ Red Alert. He also made an appearance as himself in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Hot 97′s resident gossipmonger Miss Info posted a letter this morning from DJ Premier confirming Mr. Magic’s death and eulogizing him:

I WANT TO SEND OUT THE UTMOST RESPECT AND CONDOLENCES TO THE MEMORY OF JOHN RIVAS—-aka MR. MAGIC

HE PASSED AWAY THIS MORNING OF A HEART ATTACK…..

TRUE HIP HOP HEADS KNOW THAT HIS HISTORY IS SO LONG
DUE TO HIM BEING THE FIRST RAP MIXSHOW TO EVER BE ON COMMERCIAL RADIO ON NEW YORK’S WBLS–(107.5) WITH MARLEY MARL AND FLY TY IN 1982-1984…….THEN WENT ON TO WHBI IN OCTOBER OF 1984 AND THEN
BACK TO WBLS in 1985 and WDAS in Philly SIMULTANEOUSLY

HE PAVED THE WAY FOR ALL RADIO STATIONS THAT EVER DID MIXSHOWS AND ALSO SPARKED THE CAREER OF BOOGIE DOWN PRODUCTIONS DUE TO THE DISS HE SHOWED WHEN THEY CAME TO SHOP THEIR DEMO TO HIM AND WAS TURNED AWAY WHICH THEN SPARKED “SOUTH BRONX” AND “THE BRIDGE IS OVER”…….

HE WAS KNOWN FOR HIS DIRECT AND SARCASTIC ATTITUDE ON THE AIR AND EVERY ARTIST WANTED HIS APPROVAL WHEN IT CAME TO BREAKING NEW RECORDS……..HE EVEN HAD SONGS DEDICATED TO HIM BY THE LEGENDARY WHODINI–(”MR. MAGIC’S WAND”) WHICH WAS SURPRISINGLY PRODUCED BY ONE OF MY FAVORITE ARTISTS THOMAS DOLBY…….

SHOUTS OUT TO MARLEY MARL AND FLY TY FOR THE CORRECT INFORMATION ON THIS……

REST IN PEACE MR. MAGIC………….DJ PREMIER

[Source: Gawker]

NYC-area DJ Mr. Magic dies of heart attack is a post from: The Inquisitr

Amy Farris, a fiddler with the Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women was found dead from suspected suicide in her Los Angeles home over the weekend aged 40.

Farris, an Austin Texas native, had performed extensively with Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women, and had also produced her own EP in 2003. A seasoned fiddler, Farris had performed previously on Late Night with David Letterman and Conan O’Brien and her television recording credits include King of the Hill, CSI: Miami and Mad Men.

Dave Alvin wrote on his Facebook account “Mourning the loss of my friend and musical compatriot, Amy Farris. The words sad and sorrowful are too weak to express what I’m feeling. Rest in Peace, Amy.”

Austin 360 notes that “In lieu of flowers, the family encourages you to send a donation in her honor to Hungry For Music, Inc, a nonprofit effort to provide musical instruments to at risk children.”

Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women Fiddler Amy Farris Dead is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ex-CEO of Beneficial Corp. Finn H.W. Casperson was found dead in an apparent suicide behind an office building in Westerly, Rhode Island.

Casperson, 67, was discovered dead of what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound on September 7th, after police were asked to “check on” him. Casperson came from a wealthy family and moved with powerful people, and he was known for his political influence, fundraising and philanthropy.

Family members, including his son, Bedminster Township Committeeman Finn M.W. Caspersen Jr., declined to comment on the death of Casperson, Sr. or the circumstances surrounding his demise. In addition to philanthropic ventures, Casperson was an accomplished equestrian, and fellow movers and shakers have commented to press on his legacy:

“Finn was always a gentleman and always made his resources available,” said Rhode Island state Senator Dennis Algiere, who represents the seaside region, just across the state line from Connecticut. “He was a very charitable individual. He donated a lot of time and money to various organizations in our community over the years.”

“I don’t think you could find someone more philanthropic or caring,” said Tucker Johnson, an equestrian and a friend of Caspersen’s, according to a statement on an equestrian Web site.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Financier Finn Casperson dead in apparent suicide is a post from: The Inquisitr

Although a conservative through and through, Novak battled all sides of politics through a career that spanned over 50 years, describing himself as a “stirrer up of strife.”

Over his career, Novak became well-known as a columnist (writing Inside Report since 1963) and as a television personality, appearing on many shows for CNN, most notably on three former programs, The Capital Gang, Crossfire, and Evans, Novak, Hunt, & Shields.

Despite opposing the Iraq war, Novak’s links to the White House resulted in him publicly identifying CIA operative Valerie Plame in 2003. The scandal that followed saw an investigation into the leaking of the information, resulting in the conviction of Lewis “Scooter” Libby for perjury and obstruction of justice in 2007.

His brain tumor came to light after he hit a pedestrian then left the scene while driving his Corvette in Washington DC in July 2008. Days later he was admitted to hospital, where a scan picked up the brain tumor.

Robert Novak is survived by his wife and two children.

Robert Novak dead at 78 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Naomi Sims, regarded as the first African American supermodel, has died aged 61 after a long battle with cancer.

Sims became one of the first really successful African American models, becoming the first African American to grace the cover of Ladies Home Journal in 1967. She went on to gain worldwide recognition in the late 1960s into the early 1970s, modeling for Fernando Sánchez, Teal Traina, and Giorgio di Sant’Angelo, and appearing on the covers of prestigious fashion and popular magazines including the cover of Life magazine in 1969.

Discovering that wigs were designed primarily for white people, Sims launched her own beauty and wig company in 1973. Her designs, produced by the Metropa Company, had annual sales of $5 million by 1978. The company is still trading today, and includes designer clothes sold in department stores.

In later years, Sims became a successful author, writing books on modeling, health, and beauty, including “All About Health and Beauty for the Black Woman,” “How to Be a Top Model” and “All About Success for the Black Woman.”

Naomi Sims dead at 61 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Titus Glover, also known as Baatin, founder of acclaimed rap act Slum Village has died.

Baatin’s death was confirmed by the Detroit Free Press. No details are available as to when or how the rapper died. News of his death came a day after Hip Hop Wired reported his return to the group for their upcoming album Villa Manifesto, which drops on September 22nd. Baatin suffered from health problems prior to his death.

Baatin, aka Titus Glover, was 35.

Baatin of Slum Village has died is a post from: The Inquisitr

Mellow was critically harshed at this weekend’s “Gathering of the Vibes” concert in Bridgeport, CT when a 29-year-old male concertgoer was found dead near a large communal campsite.

The body was uncovered early Sunday morning at the location of the concert, Seaside Park. Police have indicated that demise of the man appears to be “medical and not criminal,” although witnesses may have seen the body being dumped out of a vehicle shortly before police were called. From the Connecticut Post:

A camper at the site, who asked to be identified only as Matt B., said when he woke up at 5:30 a.m. the campsite was abuzz with rumors. When he wandered out of his camping area, he said he saw the dead body. “Somebody found his body as the sun was coming up,” he said.

Matt B. said the body, which had been covered in a tarp, was swollen and appeared purple and bruised.

One festivalgoer, who would not give his name, said he saw a green Saturn with Pennsylvania license plates dump the body and drive off, which Gaudett would neither confirm nor deny.

An autopsy on the man is scheduled, but his name has not been released pending notification of his next of kin. He was said by police to have been carrying ID from several states, all in the same name (presumably his), none of which are Connecticut.

The incident is the first fatality to occur in the festival’s 14-year history.

CT Hippie “Gathering of the Vibes” turns deadly is a post from: The Inquisitr

African-American author E. Lynn Harris, best known for introducing the concept of ‘on the down-low” to the wider community has died in Los Angeles at the age of 54.

Originally a salesman for IBM, Harris was unable to find a publisher for his first novel, 1991′s Invisible Life, and instead took to selling the book directly from his car to saloons and African-American bookstores. The book became an underground hit and went on to find a formal publisher in 1994, the begging of Harris’ successful career.

Harris went on to write a further 10 books, with four million copies of his work being sold. Five of his books became New York Times best sellers, and his writing also appeared in a variety of publications, including Essence, the Washington Post Sunday Magazine, and Sports Illustrated.

Harris was found unconscious at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills, and was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles shortly thereafter. His cause of death is not known, but he was believed to have been ill recently.

Author E. Lynn Harris dead at 54 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Reports are surfacing that a young Chinese worked has killed himself after losing track of a next-generation iPhone prototype.

25-year-old Sun Danyong reportedly leapt to his death last Thursday from his 12th floor apartment. The young man was tasked with shipping 16 super secret fourth generation iPhones to Cupertino. Somewhere along the line, one of the sixteen phones vanished. From VentureBeat:

On Thursday, July 9th, Sun got 16 prototype phones from the assembly line at a local Foxconn factory. At some point in the next few days, he discovered that one of the phones was missing. He suspected that it had been left at the factory, but couldn’t find it. On Monday, July 13, he reported the missing phone to his boss. Then, that Wednesday, three Foxconn employees searched his apartment — illegally, according to Chinese law. Accusations are flying that Sun was detained and physically abused during the investigation, although this has not been substantiated (possible evidence: there’s this somewhat garbled and potentially faked instant message exchange from Sun shortly before his death).

What is known: On Thursday — a little after 3 a.m. according to surveillance videos in the apartment building — he jumped out of a window in his apartment building to his death.

Foxconn has come under scrutiny in the past for worker treatment. And competition to retain Apple manufacturing contracts in China is fierce- an early leak such as this could severely compromise Foxconn’s ability to continue working with Apple. Commentators in China, however, are fingering Apple’s famed policies of secrecy as pressuring Sun Danyong into a very early grave.

iPhone prototype loss prompts worker suicide is a post from: The Inquisitr

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt has died after a long battle with malignant melanoma with meningeal involvement at the age of 78.

McCourt, a former New York school teacher started his writing career late in life, penning his memoir Angela’s Ashes in 1996. Angela’s Ashes was a world wide sensation, selling 4 million copies in 20 languages, and earning McCourt the National Book Critics Circle Award in 1996 and the Pulitzer Prize in 1997. The book was also turned into a movie of the same name in 1999.

His three follow up works, Tis (19990, Teacher Man (2005) and Angela and the Baby Jesus (2007) sold well, selling a combined 6 million copies. In 2002 he was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Western Ontario and won the Action Against Hunger Humanitarian Award. Frank McCourt was a member of the National Arts Club and was a recipient of The International Center in New York’s Award of Excellence.

Frank McCourt is survived by his wife Ellen, daughter and several grandchildren.

(img: Wikipedia)

Author Frank McCourt dies aged 78 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Notable NYC scenester Dash Snow has died of a heroin overdose, Gawker is reporting.

A somewhat prominent, subversive artist known for working in his own ejaculate, Snow was profiled a few years back in New York Magazine.

If you were going to hate these guys, here’s how you would do it: You could hate them for using the word artist so frequently and so shamelessly. Or you could hate Snow for coming from money—mountains of it!—and being a cop-taunting, Saddam Hussein–fetishizing petty criminal. If you are an aging punk, you could hate Snow in particular for going over old ground and thinking it’s something new. (Iggy Pop puked on his audiences a long time ago.) Or you could hate all three of them for being so enamored with penises and what comes out of them. How much talent does it really take to come on the New York Post, anyway?

Besides graffiti and bukkake-art, Snow was also known for being born into a relatively prominent artsy family (Uma Thurman is his aunt) but eschewing his connections to live like a street punk.

News that he had overdosed on heroin and died last night at a lower Manhattan hotel hit Twitter early this morning. The New York Times confirmed his death via his grandmother, art collector and philanthropist Christophe de Menil. Snow was 27.

NYC Hipster/artist Dash Snow dies of heroin overdose is a post from: The Inquisitr

Details are scant at present, but local Nashville press is reporting that Titans ex-QB Steve McNair has been killed in an apparent double homicide.

McNair was found with a fatal gunshot wound to the head alongside an unidentified woman. No further information has been released either about the crime or a possible motive.

McNair played eleven seasons for the Tennessee Titans, starting when the team was still known as the Houston Oilers. McNair played two seasons for the Baltimore Ravens before retiring after the 2007 season. He was 36.

Breaking: Titans ex-QB Steve McNair killed is a post from: The Inquisitr