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The “Grim Sleeper” case, which managed to continue between 1985 and 2007 has finally come to a conclusion. Lonnie Franklin Jr. was arrested Wednesday for the murder of 10 people and the attempted murder of another individual.

The case had detectives spinning for more than 2 decades, when finally a break came in. Franklin’s son was arrested, DNA tested, and out of coincidental luck, his DNA matched to the DNA found at the scenes of the Grim Sleeper murder crimes. That’s when police strategically began to plan their arrest of 57-year-old, Lonnie Franklin Jr.

Franklin was arrested and charged with 10 counts of murder and 1 count of attempted murder. Huffington Post reports that Franklin could be eligible for the death penalty.

Prior to Franklin’s arrest, police had a description and DNA of the killer, and even with a $500,000 reward, Franklin managed to stay low. And although it’s taken sometime for the police to finally close this 25-year-long case, Donnell Alexander, brother of victim Monique Alexander, is simply happy with the case finally being closed. “Today is a good day,” said Alexander (Huffington Post).

The “Grim Sleeper” received his name after he stopped committing his crimes between the years of 1988 and 2002. Between 1985 and 1987 and between 2002 and 2007, Franklin committed 10 murders. Neighbors said Franklin was “friendly” and “quiet.” Currently, no other information is available.

Today is June 19th, and although many may not know it, it’s the holiday Juneteenth, in around 36 US States. Juneteenth was created in Texas, to celebrate the day that General Granger made the announcement that all slaves were free. In actuality, slaves around the United States were actually freed 2.5 years before Granger’s announcement, but the freedom didn’t reach Texas until June 19th. [Gather.com News]

More and more ever year, Juneteenth is becoming more and more of a popular holiday. Juneteenth.us is a website that’s campaigning for the holiday to become a national holiday. In 2009, both Wisconsin, Mississippi, and a handful other other states added Juneteenth to their list of state holidays.

If I am 100% honest, I have never heard of Juneteenth until today, when it received hot rankings on Google’s popular tool, Google Trends. If you’re interested in making Juneteenth a holiday in your state, be sure to check out the JuneTeenth.us official website. Also, feel free to take the poll and leave your comments below.

Dozens of tornadoes tore through Minnesota yesterday. Citizen Tube reports as many as 60 tornadoes ripped through Minnesota, while My Fox Twin Cities reports 36 tornadoes hit. The number, according to Fox Twin Cities, regardless, is a record, beating the previous state record of 27 tornadoes in a single day.

Sadly, 3 people were killed in the tornadoes. A NW elderly woman, a gas station owner in Mentor, and a farmer in Alber Lea, didn’t survive the storm. Albert Lea and Wadena were the hardest hit towns. Update: We have just received two of the names of those who died, from My Fox Twin Cities.

Kathy Woodside, 66, died after her farmhouse and barn were destoryed. Sources say that she had no basement.

Margie Schulke, 79, also died when her house in Almora, Minnesota was struck by the tornado.

Gas Station - the man who was killed at the gas station has not yet been identified.

Currently, officals are meeting in Wadena to discuss the town’s next move. In the mean time, NWS crews are surveying damages, and will later announce official reports. Police and National Guard forces are currently blocking all entries to neighborhoods that were hit by tornadoes. If you’re in the area, don’t be surprised if you’re denied access into certain locations.

Video footage of the tornadoe can be seen around the net. I managed to go ahead and pull both videos in this post from my associated network, the Voxant News Room.

After struggling with two shouting women and a large crowd of small crowd of shouting individuals, a Seattle cop struck a woman with his right hand, right in her face. The viral video  has since then been posted on several media websites. It’s also been seen on the news and shown around the world.

Officer Ian P. Walsh is shown in the video footage, attempting to arrest 19-year-old, Marilyn Levias, when things begin to go sour. According to the Top Paying Ideas, police reports show that Levias was jaywalking with some of her friends, when the officer approached her and said, “You have jaywalked and you are required to identify yourself so that I can issue a citation, if you refuse you will be arrested for obstruction.” According to witnesses, Levias kept walking, and that’s when another individual began shooting the video.

Levias says “Get the **** off me,” to the officer several times, as he attempts to restrain her. Another 17-year-old woman then steps in and attempts to free Levias, and that’s where things get extremely ugly. As the young woman attempts to free Levias, she’s socked in the face, by officer P. Walsh.

Nick Metz of the Seattle Police Department believes that the tape was worth looking into:

“You obviously have to take into context everything that occurred from the point that the officer did make contact with the individuals until the situation ended. As I said before, we have some concerns about the tactics the officer used and employed at the time. Again, we did feel what occurred did deserve a review by the Office of Professional Accountability.”

Many people have been sharing their thoughts. Here are a few comments from Mediaite.com’s post: Captured On Video: Seattle Cop Punches Woman In The Face For Jaywalking.

Sarainitaly said, “Sorry, but they attacked him. He will probably get in trouble for punching her, but he was fighting off two people, they were struggling, the second one shoved the cop, and he retaliated. He was also surrounded by a large group of people, and he was alone.

You do not attack the police. You take your ticket, and move on. You do not swear at them, fight them, and shove them. They risk their lives every day to protect and serve. They don’t deserve to be attacked for doing their job. And yes, giving someone a ticket for jaywalking is part of their job.”

Paulmdoro said, “I think punching her in the face may have been a little excessive, but she was resisting arrest and that is against the law for good reason and I can’t begin to imagine what it’s like to be a cop.”

Now that you’ve seen both sides of the story, what’s your opinion? Do you believe that Officer Walsh had the right to punch the 17-year-old woman in the face, or do you think his actions were out of line? Feel free to take the poll below. If you would like to voice your opinion a little more, feel free to put any comments you have at the end of the article.

On Monday, Touchdown Jesus burned down, after being struck by lightning. The statue, which was built out of styrofoam and fiberglass, back in 2004, was located on the grounds of Solid Rock Chuch, in Monroe, Ohio. Now, all that’s left of the statue is the metal frame.

The statue has become extremely popular over the years, and especially since the news of its burn-down, earlier this morning. Many people have called the statue “Touchdown Jesus” because of the way Jesus holds his arms in the air, as if to signal a touchdown in a football game.

Although the statue was originally named “Touchdown Jesus,” Snark News reports that it’s also been called several other names throughout the past 6 years. These names include 8-Ball Jesus, Giant Jesus, Super Jesus, MC 62-Foot Jesus, Big J, Drowning Jesus, Quicksand Jesus, and Swamp Jesus.

The story has been causing quite a stir, as people find it interesting that lightning, seen as an act of God, by some, burned down the statue of Jesus. Many people are having a fun time with this story, but the Wall Street Journal Blog says that the creator of the 65-Foot-Tall Jesus statue, would like the piece to be reconstructed.

In a recent interview, Lynch told the press that he was “shocked and saddened to begin with.” Soon after, he noted that the church should make a newer version of the statue that’s “bigger and better.” Currently, no news about a rebuild has been posted.

Earlier today, we reported Bob Etheridge Attacks Students: VIDEO! Just as we had predicted, the video went viral. The original article written on the Huffington Post currently has around 7060 comments.

A recent update on Huffington Post’s website says that Bob Etheridge has apologized for his actions. “I deeply and profoundly regret my reaction and I apologize to all involved. Throughout my many years of service to the people of North Carolina, I have always tried to treat people from all viewpoints with respect. No matter how intrusive and partisan our politics can become, this does not justify a poor response. I have and I will always work to promote a civil public discourse.”

If you haven’t already seen the viral Youtube video, which already has 60,000 views and counting, Etheridge is seen being approached by students who ask him, “Hi, Congressman. How are you? Do you fully support the Obama agenda?” The next thing you know, Etheridge knocks the camera away from one of the students and grabs his arm. News by the People was one of the first sources to cover the news, which broke loose earlier this morning.

If it’s one thing that you should never do when you’re a congressman, attacking a student interviewer is probably in the list of the top 10. North Carolina Congressman, Bob Etheridge likely didn’t receive this memo.

In a recent attempt to get an interview, an individual who identified himself as a “student,” asked the Etheridge if he “fully supported the Obama agenda.”

“Hi, Congressman. How are you? Do you fully support the Obama agenda?”

Etheridge didn’t answer the question. Instead he knocked the interviewers camera to the ground, and replied:

“Who are you?”

Etheridge followed by grabbing the student’s wrist, and continued to ask him, who he was.

The student said,

“We’re just here for a project…we’re just students.”

The student asked Etheridge to let go of his wrist several times, with no avail. Let it be known that both of the students continued to keep themselves composed, even when the congressman was visibly irritated, and totally out of line. They continued to address him as “sir,” and he continued to rudely ask them who they were, while clinching the boy’s wrist. At one point, the congressman even put his arm completely around the boy.

The news just broke of this incident early this morning, but currently, the Youtube video, posted on the Huffington Posts website: Bob Etheridge Attacks Student: North Carolina Congressman Gets Rough With Interviewer (VIDEO), has not gone viral.

Currently, no other information is available. We’re unsure of if any charges will be pressed, but if we do know one thing, Etheridge will definitely have some explaining to do. Update: Bob Etheridge Apology Update!

This story is definitely worthy of a poll. Do you guys think Etheridge was out of line, or do you believe he had a right to do what he did? Be sure to take the poll below, and leave all comments at the end of this article, in the commenting section.

If you’re interested in seeing the video yourself, be sure to check it out on Youtube: Congressman Assaults Student on Washington Sidewalk.

Although many may not know it, today is National Flag Day, 2010. Today is the day the people of the United States of America remember the history of their country, and the flag that was built to represent it.

In a recent comment over at Michelle Malkin, Savage24 wrote:

“For me, everyday is flag day. As long as I can still move these old bones the flag goes up every morning and down every night. God bless America and help us save it from the fools that want to destroy it.”

Fun History Facts – On June 17th, 1777, the first American Flag was approved by Continental Congress. Today, 27 official versions of the US flags have been produced. The current version of the flag was announced on July 4th, 1960, after Hawaii had become the 50th state in America on August 21st, 1959.

One representation of the United States flag can be seen in the destruction of the picture at the beginning of this post. You may remember the severe thunderstorms that blasted through Ohio only a week ago. (Ohio Tornado: Pictures and Video). Although this tornado has destoryed the lives of many, including the houses that they lived in, the community will work together to rebuild, until they can live somewhat of a normal life again.

Factual information for this post was obtained from ABC News: Fly Old Glory on Flag Day.

Originally, there were 12 reported dead, but that number has risen to 16. ABC News reports that the Albert Pike Campground had flash floods last night, and that those camping near the river, were engulfed in water, after the water level rose 20 feet.

Police Spokesman, Bill Sadler said,

“The primary mission of the Arkansas State Police working with local authorities right now is to get the living out of the area and locate the dead.”

He also noted that the remote area is hard to reach and extremely rugged. Even today, the area is still flooded.

Matt DeCample, a spokesman for governor Mike Beebe recently told ABC News:

“It’s a terrible tragedy and we’re doing all we can to hopefully find some folks and bring some people back who are stranded out there.”

It’s currently estimated that 3 dozen campers are still missing. The death tolls in this tragedy are sadly expected to rise. More information will be posted as this story breaks. Our prayers go out to all of those who were involved in the tragedy.

Summer tornadoes and storms ripped through the Midwest over this past weekend, including a level 3 / 5 tornado, which tore through Ohio, killing 7 and leaving many more injured. 2 videos via the Voxant News Room can be seen above.

The tornado, which was the strongest Ohio had in 8 years, had wind gusts between 136 and 165 mph. In 2002, Ohio had a tornado with winds that topped 200 miles per hour.

Currently, crews are working on cleaning up and repairing what could reach $100+ million dollars in damages. The worst physical destruction could be seen just southeast of Toledo. It’s measured at 300-yard-wide and 10-mile-long devastation zone. In all, it’s estimated that 50 homes were destroyed and many more were damaged.

As you could imagine, Youtube videos have been being posted like crazy, today. If you’re looking to see the tornado in action, check out this amateur video, by Russia Today.

Although the physical damage can and will be repaired over time, the emotional damage is done, and unrepairable. 7 people lost their lives on this tragic day, just before a high school graduation, which was supposed to be held tomorrow. Sadly, the valedictorian’s father was amongst those who died in the tragic and devastating event. From News by the People, we send our prayers out to all of those who were involved in the event.

The information in this article was obtained from the Associated Press. Feel free to take a look at our small photo gallery of the devastation, below: