(DCNF)—Noted attorney Alan Dershowitz raised questions Monday about one detail in the arrest of a suspect in the killing of UnitedHealth Group CEO Brian Thompson.
On Monday, police in Altoona, Pa. arrested Luigi Mangione, a person of interest in the fatal Dec. 4 shooting of Thompson, following an extensive manhunt. Dershowitz, a former Harvard law school professor, said that police may have violated Mangione’s rights in their search after the arrest, potentially endangering a conviction for the killing.
“I’m a little nervous about one aspect of the arrest. According to newspaper reports… when they arrested him, they found in his possession a series of documents relating to insurance companies. I don’t think that was based on a constitutional search,” Dershowitz said. “Get mad at me, but I believe in the Constitution. Look, I want this guy to be convicted if he did it, and obviously, it seems 99.999999% certain that he did it, notwithstanding the presumption of innocence, but I insist every I be dotted, every T be crossed when it comes to the Constitution.”
“Now the rules are this: When you arrest somebody, you can conduct a search that is consistent with the arrest and you can make sure you he has no guns, you can make sure he has no knives, no weapons, nothing like that, no means of escape, that’s all legitimate,” Dershowitz added. “But if you find in his pocket, you know a series of documents, there are cases, it’s not clear, that suggest before you read the documents, let’s assume… they were enclosed in an envelope, or they weren’t, there was more than one page, before you go inside the document, you may very well need a search warrant.”
The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits unreasonable search and seizure. Failure to obtain a search warrant outside certain exceptions can result in a judge excluding evidence obtained in the search, according to Findlaw.
“It would have been easily obtainable, and you know, maybe no harm no foul, but the police should have obtained a search warrant,” Dershowitz said. “Maybe they did… But particularly when you have a case that’s so obvious and so apparent, police should do everything in their power to avoid giving the defense any arguments at all, the same thing happened in the O.J. Simpson case, they so clearly climbed over the fence, made up a story that that they were there to protect him.”
“I don’t want to see anything endangering a potential conviction in this case,” Dershowitz said later.
(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/Rumble/TheDershow)
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Five Things New “Preppers” Forget When Getting Ready for Bad Times Ahead
The preparedness community is growing faster than it has in decades. Even during peak times such as Y2K, the economic downturn of 2008, and Covid, the vast majority of Americans made sure they had plenty of toilet paper but didn’t really stockpile anything else.
Things have changed. There’s a growing anxiety in this presidential election year that has prompted more Americans to get prepared for crazy events in the future. Some of it is being driven by fearmongers, but there are valid concerns with the economy, food supply, pharmaceuticals, the energy grid, and mass rioting that have pushed average Americans into “prepper” mode.
There are degrees of preparedness. One does not have to be a full-blown “doomsday prepper” living off-grid in a secure Montana bunker in order to be ahead of the curve. In many ways, preparedness isn’t about being able to perfectly handle every conceivable situation. It’s about being less dependent on government for as long as possible. Those who have proper “preps” will not be waiting for FEMA to distribute emergency supplies to the desperate masses.
Below are five things people new to preparedness (and sometimes even those with experience) often forget as they get ready. All five are common sense notions that do not rely on doomsday in order to be useful. It may be nice to own a tank during the apocalypse but there’s not much you can do with it until things get really crazy. The recommendations below can have places in the lives of average Americans whether doomsday comes or not.
Note: The information provided by this publication or any related communications is for informational purposes only and should not be considered as financial advice. We do not provide personalized investment, financial, or legal advice.
Secured Wealth
Whether in the bank or held in a retirement account, most Americans feel that their life’s savings is relatively secure. At least they did until the last couple of years when de-banking, geopolitical turmoil, and the threat of Central Bank Digital Currencies reared their ugly heads.
It behooves Americans to diversify their holdings. If there’s a triggering event or series of events that cripple the financial systems or devalue the U.S. Dollar, wealth can evaporate quickly. To hedge against potential turmoil, many Americans are looking in two directions: Crypto and physical precious metals.
There are huge advantages to cryptocurrencies, but there are also inherent risks because “virtual” money can become challenging to spend. Add in the push by central banks and governments to regulate or even replace cryptocurrencies with their own versions they control and the risks amplify. There’s nothing wrong with cryptocurrencies today but things can change rapidly.
As for physical precious metals, many Americans pay cash to keep plenty on hand in their safe. Rolling over or transferring retirement accounts into self-directed IRAs is also a popular option, but there are caveats. It can often take weeks or even months to get the gold and silver shipped if the owner chooses to close their account. This is why Genesis Gold Group stands out. Their relationship with the depositories allows for rapid closure and shipping, often in less than 10 days from the time the account holder makes their move. This can come in handy if things appear to be heading south.
Lots of Potable Water
One of the biggest shocks that hit new preppers is understanding how much potable water they need in order to survive. Experts claim one gallon of water per person per day is necessary. Even the most conservative estimates put it at over half-a-gallon. That means that for a family of four, they’ll need around 120 gallons of water to survive for a month if the taps turn off and the stores empty out.
Being near a fresh water source, whether it’s a river, lake, or well, is a best practice among experienced preppers. It’s necessary to have a water filter as well, even if the taps are still working. Many refuse to drink tap water even when there is no emergency. Berkey was our previous favorite but they’re under attack from regulators so the Alexapure systems are solid replacements.
For those in the city or away from fresh water sources, storage is the best option. This can be challenging because proper water storage containers take up a lot of room and are difficult to move if the need arises. For “bug in” situations, having a larger container that stores hundreds or even thousands of gallons is better than stacking 1-5 gallon containers. Unfortunately, they won’t be easily transportable and they can cost a lot to install.
Water is critical. If chaos erupts and water infrastructure is compromised, having a large backup supply can be lifesaving.
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Supplies
There are multiple threats specific to the medical supply chain. With Chinese and Indian imports accounting for over 90% of pharmaceutical ingredients in the United States, deteriorating relations could make it impossible to get the medicines and antibiotics many of us need.
Stocking up many prescription medications can be hard. Doctors generally do not like to prescribe large batches of drugs even if they are shelf-stable for extended periods of time. It is a best practice to ask your doctor if they can prescribe a larger amount. Today, some are sympathetic to concerns about pharmacies running out or becoming inaccessible. Tell them your concerns. It’s worth a shot. The worst they can do is say no.
If your doctor is unwilling to help you stock up on medicines, then Jase Medical is a good alternative. Through telehealth, they can prescribe daily meds or antibiotics that are shipped to your door. As proponents of medical freedom, they empathize with those who want to have enough medical supplies on hand in case things go wrong.
Energy Sources
The vast majority of Americans are locked into the grid. This has proven to be a massive liability when the grid goes down. Unfortunately, there are no inexpensive remedies.
Those living off-grid had to either spend a lot of money or effort (or both) to get their alternative energy sources like solar set up. For those who do not want to go so far, it’s still a best practice to have backup power sources. Diesel generators and portable solar panels are the two most popular, and while they’re not inexpensive they are not out of reach of most Americans who are concerned about being without power for extended periods of time.
Natural gas is another necessity for many, but that’s far more challenging to replace. Having alternatives for heating and cooking that can be powered if gas and electric grids go down is important. Have a backup for items that require power such as manual can openers. If you’re stuck eating canned foods for a while and all you have is an electric opener, you’ll have problems.
Don’t Forget the Protein
When most think about “prepping,” they think about their food supply. More Americans are turning to gardening and homesteading as ways to produce their own food. Others are working with local farmers and ranchers to purchase directly from the sources. This is a good idea whether doomsday comes or not, but it’s particularly important if the food supply chain is broken.
Most grocery stores have about one to two weeks worth of food, as do most American households. Grocers rely heavily on truckers to receive their ongoing shipments. In a crisis, the current process can fail. It behooves Americans for multiple reasons to localize their food purchases as much as possible.
Long-term storage is another popular option. Canned foods, MREs, and freeze dried meals are selling out quickly even as prices rise. But one component that is conspicuously absent in shelf-stable food is high-quality protein. Most survival food companies offer low quality “protein buckets” or cans of meat, but they are often barely edible.
Prepper All-Naturals offers premium cuts of steak that have been cooked sous vide and freeze dried to give them a 25-year shelf life. They offer Ribeye, NY Strip, and Tenderloin among others.
Having buckets of beans and rice is a good start, but keeping a solid supply of high-quality protein isn’t just healthier. It can help a family maintain normalcy through crises.
Prepare Without Fear
With all the challenges we face as Americans today, it can be emotionally draining. Citizens are scared and there’s nothing irrational about their concerns. Being prepared and making lifestyle changes to secure necessities can go a long way toward overcoming the fears that plague us. We should hope and pray for the best but prepare for the worst. And if the worst does come, then knowing we did what we could to be ready for it will help us face those challenges with confidence.
When Dersh starts talking about all the J6ers civil rights being violated every single day for the last four years, I’ll start caring what he says again about the U.S. Constitution.
Terrorists in Gitmo were treated better than these Americans, many of whom are veterans, grandparents, ministers and family people with ZERO offenses on their records, and all they did was walk into the People’s House. Timing was bad, but Dershowitz should be helping THEM.
He has spoken about it. Speaking about it every day hardly makes someone not credible. You don’t seem to be an intelligent person
“There is another class of coloured people who make a business of keeping the troubles, the wrongs, and the hardships of the Negro race before the public. Having learned that they are able to make a living out of their troubles, they have grown into the settled habit of advertising their wrongs — partly because they want sympathy and partly because it pays. Some of these people do not want the Negro to lose his grievances, because they do not want to lose their jobs.” ― Booker T. Washington
This blm dude saw how much money the female blm chick was able to steal and buy homes, etc and by golly, he wants his! Hoping for another George Floyd “moment”.
Aside from the clear fact you lack intellect intelligence and common sense perhaps you should read the stories before going on your ignorant racist diatribe which actually is what proves you have the IQ of a houseplant. Your comment aside from showing how profoundly ignorant you are actually demonstrates your reading comprehension challenges. Perhaps you should stick with pop up books they are probably better suited to your limited intellectual capacity.
He is really grasping at straws on that one.
Doug, so, you think arresting someone entitles you to go thru everything they have? 👌
You don’t understand basic human rights or the US Constitution, apparently.
With all of your smug, vacuous insults, denigrating other people’s intelligence levels, you sure don’t provide evidence that you aren’t simply projecting.
Doug, he may have made a mistake posting here, but how is the obviously and ubiquitously factual quote by TLC even remotely racist, you feckless, condescending douche?
White people aren’t out to get black people; they are just exhausted with them. They are exhausted by the social pathologies, the violence, the endless complaints, the blind racial solidarity, the bottomless pit of grievances, the excuses, the reflexive animosity and the endless race baiting and race grifting.
Perhaps Douggie doesn’t know that Booker T. Washington IS BLACK. He made the truthful statement over 100 yrs ago. We’ve seen it time and time again since then.