Florida Sentinel Bulletin

WASHINGTON — The federal trial over South Carolina’s voter identification law got under way Monday with a state senator insisting his work on the law was aimed at fighting fraud and instilling public confidence in the election system.

During morning testimony, state Sen. George “Chip” Campsen, III cited examples of fraud that he took into consideration while drafting early versions of South Carolina’s law.

These included vote buying, voter rolls indicating a woman who showed up at the polls had already voted, and press reports of voters being registered in both South Carolina and North Carolina.

But under questioning from Justice Department attorney Anna Baldwin, Campsen, a Republican, said the examples he gave did not involve the type of fraud that requiring photo identification would address.

“None of the examples you gave in your testimony involved incidents of impersonation?” Baldwin asked.

“Correct,” Campsen answered. He also said he could not find cases of voter impersonation in South Carolina, but added that the state lacks the tools to root them out.

The Justice Department rejected South Carolina’s law, passed last year, which requires specific photo identification be shown in order to vote. The department decided the law violates Section 5 of the federal Voting Rights Act, which protects minority voters. South Carolina’s voter photo ID law was subject to approval from the Justice Department because of its history of racial discrimination.

Ernest Osel Addo was arrested at his home in Austell, Ga., for allegedly posing as a doctor in South Carolina for more than six months, according to the newspaper The State.

Authorities say that Addo, 48, was employed by Agape Senior, a company that operates 23 assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehab and hospice facilities in the state. When he was hired in February of 2012, Addo allegedly provided Agape Senior the credentials of an Orangeburg, S.C., man who was licensed to practice medicine in the state.

For more than six months, Addo allegedly treated more than 500 patients at five Agape Senior facilities in South Carolina. He came under the authorities’ radar when the Orangeburg doctor reported that Addo stole his identity to practice medicine and used his name for credit card purchases.

A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll illustrates a racial polarization in the electorate that poses challenges for both candidates.

The poll showed Mitt Romney earning zero percent among blacks, compared to Obama’s 94 percent. And Romney trails among Hispanics by a margin of 63 to 28 to the president.

But Obama, who earned 43 percent of the white vote in 2008, is down to 40 percent now, according to the survey. And other polls have shown him hovering in the 38 percent range, a number that would make it very hard for him to win reelection.

These numbers explain both campaigns’ strategies. The Democrats’ intense focus on the controversial abortion comments of Rep. Todd Akin, the GOP’s candidate for the Senate seat in Missouri, could help them win white women, who favor Republicans slightly in most polls but are in some ways the swing voters of this election. The NBC poll showed Romney ahead by 19 points among white men, but only 8 among white women. (In 2010, when Republicans made huge gains, they won the white vote by 23 points, including white women by 19.)

Romney, on the other hand, has spent little time or money courting blacks or Hispanics after taking strongly anti-illegal immigration stands during the GOP primary.

George Zimmerman’s Facebook page is no more. Mike O’Mara, the 28-year-old’s lawyer, has disabled the page on the social networking site, which was used to update the public on the case—from the side of the defense.

Instead of being an outlet for reaching out to supporters, the page turned into a forum to blast Zimmerman for the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, O’Mara announced Wednesday (Aug.22).

According to O’Mara the page gave Zimmerman a social media presence for three months, but was riddled with “diminishing returns” resulting in debates over the former neighborhood watch captain’s guilt or innocence.

After seeking out a “stand your ground” hearing in hopes of having his second-degree murder charge dismissed, Zimmerman’s defense team is now objecting to the state of Florida’s request for additional medical records because “there as been no showing of relevance, or that these records would lead to discoverable, relevant information.”

ATLANTA — One of the nation’s oldest black colleges is facing foreclosure next month, and an auction of assets is set for Sept. 4.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that enrollment at Morris Brown College in Atlanta is down to about 50 students. In the past, the university has served more than 3,000 students.

Officials said the college is facing foreclosure after investors called $13 million worth of bonds tied to the college.

Former Atlanta City Councilman and Morris Brown graduate Derrick Boazman called the development “heartbreaking.”

The school is planning a prayer vigil Saturday, where plans to move the school forward will be discussed.

Benjamin Harrison is a spokesman for the 6th District African Methodist Episcopal Church, which oversees the school. He says officials will talk about reorganizing and restructuring as well as finances.

Deanna Cook lost her life, as she begged for help via 911, and now police in Dallas are investigating the matter, after taking two days to find her body. Cook was killed last Friday (Aug. 17), and phoned the emergency number to get help. She was on the phone with 911 for 11 minutes, yet it took nine minutes for them to locate her address.

Once at the location, police knocked on the door and left when they got no response. Authorities were never informed that Cook spoke on the attack during the call, and were only told they were going to the residence over a domestic dispute.

Cook’s body was found in a bathtub by her teen daughter, after  she and other family members broke down the door to her home, when she didn’t show up to church. Once at her home, the family called 911 after seeing water leaking from Cook’s residence, but was instructed to call a local hospital to uncover her possible whereabouts before police could be sent out.

Her husband, Delvecchio Patrick, has been charged with her murder.

According to the Daily Mail, Casey Dickerson, 31, was arrested on federal sex charges for being the alleged ringleader in the gang rape of a 15-year-old girl. The girl claims Dickerson raped her on a Carnival Sensation cruise ship traveling from Florida to the Bahamas, and then encouraged four teenage boys to force themselves on her as well.

Dickerson denies the accusations, but admits to buying alcohol for a group of teens. The girl said the rape occurred in an extra cabin that Dickerson had a key to. Officials confirm Dickerson was given access to a spare room by the ship’s crew because his wife complained about excess noise.

The girl, whose identity hasn’t been revealed, told authorities that she entered the cabin where Dickinson and the teenage boys were partying with a friend. After being given some alcohol, one teenager held the victim’s friend in the bathroom as she was being sexually assaulted in the room.

The girls claim Dickerson and the group of teenage boys each took turns raping her while she was being pinned down. According to reports, after the attack she was allowed to get dressed and leave the room where she was treated for injuries and was provided with a rape kit aboard the ship’s medical center.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A man police say shot himself in the head while his hands were cuffed behind him in the back of an Arkansas patrol car tested positive for methamphetamine, anti-anxiety medication and other drugs, according to an autopsy report released Monday that listed his death as a suicide.

The state crime lab report said the muzzle of a handgun that Chavis Carter apparently concealed from arresting officers was placed against his right temple when it was fired. The report, signed by three medical examiners, included a drug analysis showing Carter’s urine and blood indicated methamphetamine and other drug use.

The report, released to The Associated Press and other news organizations under a Freedom of Information Act request, said Carter’s blood also tested positive for at least trace amounts of the anti-anxiety medication diazepam and the painkiller oxycodone. His urine test also returned a positive result for marijuana.

The report said Carter’s death was ruled a suicide based on autopsy findings and investigative conclusions from the Jonesboro Police Department, which has faced questions from Carter’s family and community members about the circumstances surrounding the July 28 shooting.

“He was cuffed and placed into a police car, where apparently he produced a weapon, and despite being handcuffed, shot himself in the head,” the report said.

Benjamin Irwin, a Memphis, Tenn., lawyer representing Carter’s family, declined to comment on the specifics of the toxicology report, calling instead for police to release details of any gunpowder residue or other such tests.

“If those tests were taken … what were the results?” Irwin asked.

On Monday night dozens of Carter family supporters gathered outside the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tenn., for a candlelight vigil.

Carter’s mother, Teresa Carter, wiped her eyes as people spoke about her late son. “My heart is so heavy,” she said.

SEATTLE — George Hickman, one of the original Tuskegee airmen and a longtime usher at University of Washington and Seattle Seahawks game, has died at age 88.

His wife, Doris, confirmed Monday that he died early Sunday morning in Seattle.

Hickman was one of the country’s first Black military pilots and ground crew members who fought in World War II.

In 2007, he and other Tuskegee airmen traveled to Washington, D.C., to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian honor. In 2009, he attended President Barack Obama‘s inauguration as a special guest.

Hickman was a fixture at Seattle sporting events and greeted fans at Seahawks and Huskies games.

Doris Hickman says her husband was “just a wonderful man.”