We can do the right thing to create positive change within ourselves and the world around us! I have created this blog with the intention of keeping you informed of news that is affecting humanity and nature throughout the world! There is no better time than the present to become a global participant and not just an innocent bystander. I have provided you with several websites to help empower yourself and a list of global organizations that you can choose from to make a difference.
I'm enjoying movie FRIGHT night on this All Hallows' Eve! It's time for me to get the popcorn ready, order my pizza and turn off the lights. I always have to set the stage for a goosebump, hair-raising, spine-tingling night of HORROR movies! Bwahahahaha... Ahem.
Nevertheless, this Mel Brooks classic has been a permanent fixture on my Halloween movie list. I always have to throw in a little bit of humor. See you later, alligators!:D ♥
The Irish brought the tradition of carving pumpkins into Jack O'Lantern to America. But, the original Jack O'Lantern was not a pumpkin. Pumpkins did not exist in Ireland. Ancient Celtic cultures in Ireland carved turnips on All Hallow's Eve, and placed an ember in them, to ward off evil spirits.
The Tale of Stingy Jack and the Jack O' Lantern
Jack O'Lantern legend goes back hundreds of years in Irish History. Many of the stories, center round Stingy Jack. Here's the most popular story:
Stingy Jack was a miserable, old drunk who took pleasure in playing tricks on just about everyone: family, friends, his mother and even the Devil himself. One day, he tricked the Devil into climbing up an apple tree. After the Devil climbed up the tree, Stingy Jack hurriedly placed crosses around the trunk of the tree. Unable to touch a cross, the Devil was stuck in the tree. Stingy Jack made the Devil promise him not to take his soul when he died. Once the devil promised not to take his soul, Stingy Jack removed the crosses, and the Devil climbed down out of the apple tree.
Many years later, Jack died, he went to the pearly gates of Heaven and was told by Saint Peter that he was mean and cruel, and had led a miserable, worthless life on earth. Stingy Jack was not allowed to enter heaven. He then went down to Hell and the Devil. The Devil kept his promise and would not allow him to enter Hell. Now Jack was scared . He had nowhere to go, but to wander about forever in the dark Netherworld between heaven and hell. He asked the Devil how he could leave, as there was no light. The Devil tossed him an ember from the flames of Hell, to help Stingy Jack light his way. Jack had a Turnip with him. It was one of his favorite foods, and he always carried one with him. Jack hollowed out the Turnip, and placed the ember the Devil had given him, inside the turnip. From that day onward, Stingy Jack roamed the earth without a resting place, lighting his way as he went with his "Jack O'Lantern".
On all Hallow's eve, the Irish hollowed out Turnips, rutabagas, gourds, potatoes and beets. They placed a light in them to ward off evil spirits and keep Stingy Jack away. These were the original Jack O'Lanterns. In the 1800's a couple of waves of Irish immigrants came to America. The Irish immigrants quickly discovered that Pumpkins were bigger and easier to carve out. So they used pumpkins for Jack O'Lanterns.
Halloween or Hallowe’en (a contraction of All Hallows’ Evening) is an annual holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night preceding All Hallows Day. Much like Day of the Dead celebrations, the holiday has ancient origins tied to seasonal change, harvest time, and festivals honoring the dead. Typical Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (also known as "guising"), attending costume parties, carving jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.
Pre-Christian influences
Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)", derived from the Old Irish Samuin meaning "summer's end". Samhain was the first and by far the most important of the four quarter days in the medieval Irish and Scottish calendar and, falling on the last day of Autumn, it was a time for stock-taking and preparation for the cold winter months ahead. There was also a sense that this was the time of year when the physical and supernatural worlds were closest and magical things could happen. To ward off these spirits, the Gaels built huge, symbolically regenerative bonfires and invoked the help of the gods through animal and perhaps even human sacrifice.
Christian influences
Halloween is also thought to have been heavily influenced by the Christian holy days of All Saints' Day (also known as Hallowmas, All Hallows, and Hallowtide) and All Souls' Day. Falling on November 1st and 2nd respectively, collectively they were a time for honoring the Saints and praying for the recently departed who had yet to reach heaven. By the end of the 12th century they had become days of holy obligation across Europe and involved such traditions as ringing bells for the souls in purgatory and "souling", the custom of baking bread or soul cakes for "all crysten [christened] souls". It was traditionally believed that the souls of the departed wandered the earth until All Saints Day, and All Hallow's Eve provided one last chance for the dead to gain vengeance on their enemies before moving onto the next world. To avoid being recognised by a soul, Christians would wear masques and costumes to disguise themselves, following the lighted candles set by others to guide their travel for worship the next day. Today, this practice has been perpetuated through trick-or-treating.
In Britain the rituals of Hallowtide and Halloween came under attack during the Reformation as Protestants denounced purgatory as a "popish" doctrine incompatible with the notion of predestination. In addition the increasing popularity of Guy Fawkes Night from 1605 on saw Halloween become eclipsed in Britain with the notable exception of Scotland. There and in Ireland, they had been celebrating Samhain and Halloween since the early Middle Ages, and it is believed the Kirk took a more pragmatic approach towards Halloween, viewing it as important to the life cycle and rites of passage of local communities and thus ensuring its survival in the country.
North American almanacs of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century give no indication that Halloween was recognized as a holiday. The Puritans of New England, for example, maintained strong opposition to the holiday and it was not until the mass Irish and Scottish immigration during the 19th century that the holiday was introduced to the continent in earnest. Initially confined to the immigrant communities during the mid-nineteenth century, it was gradually assimilated into mainstream society and by the first decade of the twentieth century it was being celebrated coast to coast by people of all social, racial and religious backgrounds.
Etymology
The word Halloween is first attested in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of the fuller All-Hallows-Even ("evening"), that is, the night before All Hallows Day. Although the phrase All Hallows is found in Old English (ealra hฤlgena mรฆssedรฆg, mass-day of all saints), All-Hallows-Even is itself not attested until 1556.
A poem/song often told to small children by the superstitous. Though this piece is often heard most often in human Santharian villages, it is believed to have originated from stories of the Forbidden Zone in Northern Sarvonia and dark places like the Water Marshes.
18-year-old Cayler Ellingson was murdered by 41-year-old Shannon Brandt, who admitted to running over Ellington, claiming he was afraid the teen was a "Republican extremist."
Tell me, which side is typically seen engaging in violence and extremism again? pic.twitter.com/meA4MZN509
๐จ 41-year-old suspected killer Shannon Brandt, who admitted to hitting 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson with his car over the teen's conservative views, was RELEASED yesterday on $50k bond. Brandt has been charged with vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a deadly accident. pic.twitter.com/ulWpwOa5CN
Jail confirmed to me that Shannon Brandt, who reportedly confessed to killing a North Dakota teen because the 18yo victim was "part of a Republican extremist group," posted bond and is back on the streets.
18-year-old Cayler Ellingson was killed in an apparent politically motivated attack. Moments before he was hunted down and slain in an alleyway, the teen called his mom to come rescue him. Here's the GoFundMe page for Ellingson's funeral expenses:https://t.co/Dzfn9l2n40
An affidavit says Brandt fatally struck the teen over "a political argument." Brandt claimed Ellingson was "threatening" him and believed he was "calling people to come get him." Ellingson's mom said he was being "chased" by Brandt, didn't know him, and was calling her for help. pic.twitter.com/Dpju6VrIXx
I've obtained a search warrant and criminal complaint that say Brandt failed to render aid to the dying teen who was found slain in an alleyway, fled the fatal hit-and-run crime scene, and returned to his residence in a different city where he was later arrested. pic.twitter.com/EDIo5LdW5H
Brandt had a tough time understanding the charges against him in the killing of 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson.
"I have a job, a life and a house and things I don't want to see go by the wayside—family that are very important to me," Brandt told a judge at his first court hearing. pic.twitter.com/UG9vc9PvTV
At the bond hearing related to Cayler Ellingson's murder, State's Attorney Kara Brinster recommended to the court $50,000 bail and 24/7 sobriety monitoring during Shannon Brandt's release from jail.
An autopsy found that Cayler Ellingson was ON THE GROUND when he received his fatal injuries, indicating that the 18-year-old was RUN OVER by Shannon Brandt.
There was "little to no damage" to the front of Brandt's car, only "five small cracks" in the driver's side grill. pic.twitter.com/KjqG87AHLD
Brandt was on the phone with a 911 operator, “He wasn’t going to let me go, I hit him. I didn’t mean to and and he’s subdued,” Brandt said, according to the affidavit. “I was scared to death but he’s subdued, he can’t do anything to me now so, so this is why I’m calling you.
“I mean I…I almost oh god, I almost just runaway but I thought jeez obviously if it was a total accident I wouldn’t be scared but I know it was more than that,” Brandt said, according to the affidavit.
Shannon Brandt is now being held on $1 million bond, up from the previous $50k bond he was released on.
A NEW bail order says Brandt has to surrender his driver's license but does NOT place him on house arrest or forces him to follow a curfew if he posts bond again. pic.twitter.com/H7WNZ8Mqq0
A suspected killer in North Dakota accused of mowing down an 18-year-old over the teen's alleged conservative views was quickly released from jail. Townhall was the first to report that 41-year-old Shannon Joseph Brandt, of Glenfield, was freed from a local detention facility just two days after he confessed to hitting Cayler Ellingson, 18, with his car in an apparent politically motivated attack that resulted in the victim's death.
Jail inmate records show that Brandt was let out sometime on Tuesday and the Stutsman County Correctional Center administrator confirmed to Townhall that the defendant posted a $50,000 bond yesterday. Foster County Sheriff Justin Johnson also verified that Brandt is back on the streets pending his next court appearance.
Since his swift release, Brandt began scrubbing his locked-down social media activity. Then the suspect's Facebook account was deactivated Wednesday after public comments swarmed his page.
According to the Fargo-based InForum, which broke the news of the Brandt case, the fatal hit-and-run happened early Sunday morning in the rural city of McHenry, where a community "street dance" was wrapping up.
A probable cause affidavit Townhall obtained via public records request says that Ellingson's body was found on a dirt path near the intersection of Johnston Street and Jones Avenue. Before the gruesome discovery, a drunk Brandt called 911 and admitted to a dispatcher that he struck Ellingson with his 2003 Ford Explorer, alleging that the pedestrian was "threatening" him and "calling some people to come get him," according to a call made to State Radio emergency services that were logged at approximately 2:55 a.m. that day.
Testimony from a North Dakota Highway Patrol peace officer says Brandt claimed over the phone that Ellingson was "part of a Republican extremist group," although no evidence has surfaced corroborating his allegation.
Court documents tell a different story of a desperate Ellingson reaching out to his mother at the end of his young life and begging her to rescue him. The affidavit shows that moments before the teen's death, Ellingson called his mother twice, pleading for her to come pick him up and save him from Brandt, who he said was "chasing" him. Ellingson's mom could not reach her son after the second call. When she arrived at the scene along with a first responder, Ellingson's parents found their child's body in an alleyway. While his parents knew Brandt, the teen did not, the family told authorities. The extent of the relationship is not yet known.
A criminal complaint sent to Townhall from the Foster County District Court clerk says that Brandt did not render aid to the dying victim as required by N.D. Cent. Code § 39-08-06 fled the site of the fatal hit-and-run and returned to his residence in a different city—nearby Glenfield—where he was later arrested. Brandt told a patrol sergeant at his home that he struck Ellingson with his SUV "because he had a political argument," the affidavit says. Brandt acknowledged fleeing the crime scene and not remaining there until police arrived.
According to a search warrant Townhall received, there is reason to believe that on or within the premises of Brandt's house, there's "concealed evidence or property" proving that he caused Ellingson's fatal injuries.
Brandt was taken into custody Sunday for driving under the influence and consented to a chemical breath test, in which the results were above the legal blood-alcohol limit of 0.08. He has since been charged with criminal vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a deadly accident. If convicted of the first Class A felony, Brandt would face a maximum of 20 years in prison. The second offense, a Class B felony, against Brandt carries a penalty of up to 10 years behind bars. In addition to imprisonment, both charges carry a fine of $20,000.
The court docket says Brandt has his next court hearing on the afternoon of Oct. 11. At his first courtroom proceeding Monday via Zoom, Brandt objected to the judge ordering he be held on bond and insisted he's not a flight risk. "I have a job, a life, and a house and things I don't want to see go by the wayside—family that are very important to me," Brandt told the judge, indicating he doesn't understand the charges he's facing.
"We are still trying to determine what, exactly, transpired at the time of crash and prior to that as well," North Dakota Highway Patrol Capt. Bryan Niewind told reporters in a video aired by WDAY-TV. Niewind further explained that authorities "do not know of any witnesses" present before the incident and "are still making attempts to interview potential witnesses from the street dance." Meanwhile, state troopers say that more serious charges could be recommended against Brandt as the investigation develops, InForum reports.
Townhall requested an audio recording of Brandt's call but a strategic communications chief with the state's Department of Emergencies Services denied the inquiry after "checking" with the department's administrator. "Per law enforcement, this is still an active investigation, so I am not allowed to release records at this time," the representative said, citing a section in the state's Century Code that exempts disclosing the information.
An office manager at the state's Department of Transportation highway safety division told Townhall that an online crash report should be available in the digital system within 10 days following the incident.
A lifelong friend of the Ellingson family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for the slain teen's funeral expenses through the grieving process. As of Wednesday afternoon, the online fundraiser received an outpour of support, amassing over $22,000 in donations, which well-exceeds the initial goal that's half that. Cayler was "the heart" of his family's life before he "was taken way too soon from them," the GoFundMe page says. The tragic loss of losing a child is something "no parent should ever have to endure in their life."
Services will be held for Ellingson, from Grace City, next week on Sept. 26 in Carrington, where he just graduated high school in late May this year. Ellingson's Facebook account says he just started college in Bismarck last month, studying diagnostic medical sonography to become an ultrasound technician.
The political violence in the Upper Midwest region of America comes weeks after President Joe Biden's divisive, anti-MAGA speech in the City of Brotherly Love declared war on Republican voters nationwide. With an authoritarian-esque backdrop of blood-red lighting and flanking Marines, the Democratic U.S. president's rhetoric accused Trump supporters of harboring "anger," spreading "chaos," and living in the "shadow of lies."
ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC and CNN are hiding the murder of 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson, whose killer said the teen was a “Republican extremist.”
Over 100 people gathered in McHenry, North Dakota on Monday to mourn the loss of teenager Cayler Ellingson who was murdered because his alleged killer thought he was a “Republican extremist.” But you likely wouldn’t know about the left-wing political violence if you watched ABC, CBS, NBC or MSNBC. These networks and cable channels have buried what would be a huge story if only the man who hit the teen was a conservative, a Republican, or a pro-life activist.
In contrast to these liberal outlets, Fox News Channel and Newsmax have covered all the details of the story. On Tuesday morning, Fox and Friends co-host Carley Shimkus explained:
More than 100 loved ones come together to remember the life of 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson who was laid to rest after he was run over by an SUV last week. His alleged killer, Shannon Brandt, told an 911 operator that he hit Ellington with his car because he was part of an Republican extremist group. But he is currently walking free, given no curfew and under no house arrest after posting what one prosecutor called a, quote, “very low” $50,000 bail.
FoxNews.com noted the sad statement from Ellingson’s family: “Our love for you will never go unnoticed, you will forever be on our minds, it's heartbreaking to let you go... Please watch over all of us. Until we meet again, we love you, Cayler.”
Since September 18, the morning and evening shows on the networks, as well as MSNBC have been silent on the act of political violence. CNN covered it briefly on Friday's New Day for one minute and 45 seconds. According to a search of CNN.com, the online version of the liberal cable network allowed just one story. CNN.com writer Andy Rose referenced the "specifics of the alleged argument."
Brandt told a 911 dispatcher the victim was “part of a Republican extremist group,” according to court documents. Authorities did not provide further details of Brandt’s claims nor the specifics of the alleged argument.
It’s not just TV journalists that are burying the violent attack. As NewsBusters executive editor Tim Graham observed last week:
How about our taxpayer-funded PBS and NPR? Zero coverage. The New York Times and The Washington Post had nothing.
Associated Press did a brief story, but it left out the partisan/ideological details, that Brandt said Ellingson was a Republican "extremist.” They cited the Highway Patrol saying a political argument is still unsubstantiated. They don’t want this in the “political violence” category, where it becomes fodder for national debate.
Any news that counters the media narrative of conservative, Republican extremists isn’t welcome on the networks. As I reported in June, ABC, CBS and NBC suppressed the wave of pro-abortion violence against pro-life clinics and organizations in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
UPDATE: A previous version of this said that only CNN.com covered the story. However, the cable network itself had a story on Friday's New Day for one minute and 45 seconds.
๐จ๐ NOW I'M SHARING THIS ARTICLE TO SHOW YOU
HOW THE LEFT TWISTS THE STORY ๐๐จ
Remember how they referred to the rioters across America as peaceful protesters.
A teenager getting killed with a car on purpose for political reasons should be a big story.
WILMINGTON, N.C. — Former President Donald Trump claimed national media outlets ignored a fatal crash in North Dakota where the driver allegedly said he hit an 18-year-old because the teenager was Republican.
Trump weighed in Friday night, Sept. 23, during a rally in Wilmington on the Sept. 18 death of Cayler Ellingson. Shannon Joseph Brandt, 41, of Glenfield, North Dakota, hit the Grace City, North Dakota, teenager with a vehicle after a street dance in McHenry, North Dakota, according to state troopers.
Brandt told the North Dakota Highway Patrol he hit Ellingson that Sunday morning because of a political argument, a criminal complaint said. Specifics of the argument were not disclosed in the complaint, but Brandt reportedly told dispatchers Ellingson was part of a Republican extremist group. Brandt claimed Ellingson called several people to come after him, the complaint said.
Ellingson's funeral was Monday. A GoFundMe account has raised about $52,000 for expenses.
Brandt’s claims have sparked criticism from well-known Republicans across the country, including questions about why the defense was charged with criminal vehicular homicide instead of murder. Both are felony charges, but murder carries a life sentence. Criminal vehicular homicide is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
Some also have asked why Brandt was released on a $50,000 bond.
The Foster County State's Attorney's Office declined to comment to The Forum on why it charged Brandt with criminal vehicular homicide. A message left for Judge James Hovey, who set Brandt's bond, was not returned.
Trump pointed at journalists covering his rally in North Carolina, saying they should be ashamed of themselves for not publishing stories about the crash.
“Not one mainstream media network has even mentioned this horrible crime,” Trump said. “Think of it the other way. Supposing a MAGA person ran down somebody on the other side. It would be the biggest story you’d ever seen. It’s a disgrace.”
The Forum first reported the crash on Sept. 18, and followed up last week with details about the incident after the Foster County State’s Attorney’s Office filed criminal charges on Sept. 19. InForum first published details of the complaint on Sept. 19.
Several national media outlets, including Fox News, CNN, the Associated Press and Washington Post, picked up on the story after InForum.
The Forum also was the first to report that state troopers were skeptical the crash was politically motivated. No evidence supports Brandt’s claims about Ellingson, including that the teenager called people to go after the motorist.
Brandt made the statements when he was allegedly drunk, and it’s not uncommon for people to say things to cover up a crime, Highway Patrol Capt. Bryan Niewind said. Highway Patrol said it continues to investigate the case.
Trump said Ellingson was targeted and killed in cold blood for being a proud Republican. The former president didn’t mention Brandt by name, but he called the motorist a maniac and a “radical left, stupid person.”
The Forum has been unable to contact Brandt. His attorney, Mark Friese, declined to comment.
“At my direction, Shannon will not be answering questions or making any statement except in court proceedings,” Friese said in a statement to The Forum. “Although I would like to answer your questions, it would be inappropriate for me to make any comment now — a family and community are mourning. It is also premature to comment because I have not had an opportunity to fully investigate the background.”
Fox News Sep 21, 2022: Biden vilified half the country and leftists are acting on it: Hanson. Hoover Institution senior fellow Victor Davis Hanson reacts to deadly attack on conservative pedestrian and outburst at TPUSA event on 'Jesse Watters Primetime.'
- Secure borders. - Fair elections - Energy independence - Tough on crime - Save babies - Stop genital mutilation of kids - Put parents first - School choice - Protect constitutional rights - Put America First.
Sep 29, 2022: How is Leavitt linked to ritualistic sex abuse suspect? Videos obtained by the FOX 13 Investigates team are revealing new information about the man charged in Utah County on suspicion of ritualistic child sex abuse and his ties to Utah County Attorney David Leavitt.
UTAH COUNTY, Utah — The Utah County Sheriff's Office has arrested a suspect in an ongoing ritualistic child sex abuse investigation.
Former therapist David Hamblin, 68, was previously charged with 18 counts of sexual assault. He was taken into custody Wednesday morning and booked on the following:
3 counts of sodomy on a child
Rape of a child
2 counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a child
Lewdness involving a child
According to records obtained by FOX 13 News, Hamblin had previously confessed to sexually assaulting at least one of his female family members in an undercover phone recording.
"I am sorry for raping you," Hamblin reportedly said. "I'm not saying it isn't true... I'm not saying somebody in my body didn't do it."
The Utah County Attorney’s Office dropped all charges.
Hamblin lost his license and was excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
According to Wikipedia, "The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, often informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian, Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ." Just like the Jehovah Witnesses, they do not believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and do not believe that Jesus Christ is the living breathing Word of God that was made flesh to walk among us. (emphasis mine)
In an interview with FOX 13 News in April, alleged victim Brett Bluth described a long period of abuse and grooming by Hamblin as he tried to “heal” Bluth of his homosexuality.
Bluth expressed optimism that charges would be filed against Hamblin.
“I do think it will be different (this time),” Bluth said. “Hypnosis was a big part of (my treatment). He told me from the very beginning, that that was his main technique."
Bluth said Hamblin spent hours each week trying to convince Bluth that he was abused during his childhood and that he has multiple personality disorder "due to systemic ritual and sexual abuse."
"He had a yellow notepad with lined papers of notes, and he would read them back to me saying, 'This is what one of your personalities said while you were under hypnosis,'" Bluth said. "I told him I was never under... (but) I went home from those sessions thinking I had hurt other people."
Bluth said Hamblin hinted at the need for his patient to perform sex acts for several months in order to be cured of his homosexuality.
"He started suggesting that the semen of a righteous man would then undo the damage that the semen of the unrighteous men had done," Bluth described. "He put his arm on the back of the sofa, and he put his other arm back, and he waited — and we sat there in silence... He put his hands on my head and gave me a Mormon priesthood and blessed the sperm."
Years later, Bluth confronted Hamblin and told him to turn over his license to the state.
Although Hamblin is no longer a licensed therapist, he often conducts therapeutic "peyote ceremonies" through his church and has advocated for its use.
"I think the emotional abuse was far more damaging than the sexual abuse," Bluth said.
The sheriff's office announced an investigation into ritualistic sexual abuse on May 31, 2022. The investigation was opened the previous year after the department learned of multiple victims reporting similar incidents that took place in Utah County, Juab County, and Sanpete County between 1990-2010.
More than 130 potential victims came forward, with officials describing the majority of those tips as “credible.”
Sgt. Spencer Cannon said he wasn't sure how many of the victims mentioned Hamblin but that a new female victim came forward in April 2022 to describe being sexually assaulted by Hamblin between the ages of six and thirteen.
According to booking documents, in at least one instance, other children were present during the abuse.
In another instance, the female victim described being ordered to perform sex acts on an "adult female."
Cannon confirmed the "adult female" is not considered a victim and declined to comment on whether she is considered a suspect.
He stated UCSO anticipates there will be additional arrests.
On June 1, 2022, Utah County Attorney David Leavitt held a press conference, announcing himself as a subject of the investigation and describing his link to Hamblin.
"This therapist was my elder's quorum president in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was my neighbor. I had a family connection. When his wife learned of whatever he was doing, she divorced him, and I testified at that divorce hearing. I'm well aware of who the therapist is, and I'm well aware of many of the players here," Leavitt said. "I had a friendship with he and his wife to the extent that I went into court and testified on behalf of his wife to protect his children from him."
Leavitt said he felt the investigation was "politically motivated."
“There is no organized ring of abuse. It was debunked more than 10 years ago,” Leavitt said. “The allegations that are there are so outlandish and so crazy that – yeah, they’re just not true... That this all occurs less than one week before ballots drop in an election in which I am participating causes me tremendous concern.”
In August, a judge listened to testimony from Hamblin and his attorney, asking for his record to be expunged. The Utah County Attorney's Office and Utah Attorney General's Office opposed the expungement due to the active investigation.
At that hearing, another prosecutor with the Utah County Attorney's Office contradicted Leavitt, arguing the case was not "politically motivated."
This time around, the Utah County Attorney's Office will not handle the prosecution of Hamblin. Instead, Juab County Attorney Ryan Peters was appointed as a special prosecutor.
UCSO declined to comment on whether Leavitt's comments disqualified his office from prosecuting the case.
*******
KSL.com September 28, 2022: A victim came forward in April and told investigators that Hamblin started sexually assaulting her in the mid-1980s when she was 6 or 7 and her family lived in the same Provo neighborhood as Hamblin. She said she would go to his house where she and other children were babysat by him, according to a police booking affidavit.
The woman told police that Hamblin made her and two other children perform sex acts and then he would critique them.
"The victim described the shame that she felt and her confusion at the time of the sexual assault. The two other child victims who were present when the assault occurred have both been interviewed and have corroborated what this victim has disclosed," according to the affidavit.
The woman told detectives about two other specific incidents of sexual assault over the next six or seven years, including being forced headfirst into a sleeping bag while Hamblin sexually assaulted her, the affidavit alleges.
KSL News Jun 1, 2022: Utah County Attorney calls for outside review of sheriff over ritual child abuse investigation. Utah County Attorney David Leavitt is calling for an outside review of Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith, saying if politics motivated the reexamination of a ritual child abuse case that names Leavitt, the sheriff should resign. Smith refutes the case is politically motivated.
PROVO, Utah – Utah County Attorney David Leavitt, vying for re-election, said Wednesday the reopening of a decades-old case naming him in allegations of ritual child abuse is a political attack.
He called for a review of the case and of Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith, one day after Smith’s office announced an investigation of reports of ritualistic child sexual abuse that occurred in Utah, Juab and Sanpete counties between 1990 and 2010.
“The sheriff’s office is using its position for political gain,” Leavitt said.
Smith strongly denied the claim. The two top law enforcers in the county traded barbs in unusual, back-to-back news conferences Wednesday.
The vague announcement from the sheriff’s office Tuesday doesn’t name Leavitt. Rather, Leavitt was the one to confirm he’s named in a victim statement contained in hundreds of pages of police investigative reports he said are tied to the investigation.
Leavitt said the investigation is tied to a case that was dismissed in 2014 and said an outside review could ferret out whether Smith dug up old documents for political reasons.
“I challenge him to resign himself if his office is being used for such illicit political purposes,” Leavitt said during a news conference at his office in Provo. He noted the primary election is just weeks away and said ballots will be mailed out to voters within days.
Smith said he’s not resigning, and he believes investigating crimes against children is a good use of public money.
“This is not a politically motivated investigation,” he told reporters at his office in Spanish Fork Wednesday.
As for the timing of Tuesday’s release, Smith said the investigation got to a point where his employees believed there were other victims and wanted to gather information from them.
Smith would not name any suspects or confirm Leavitt was connected to the current investigation.
“I believe that Leavitt is using his authority and his pulpit to bully, distract and mischaracterize the facts of an ongoing investigation,” Smith said.
Leavitt said he only learned Tuesday that a witness statement tied to the 2012 investigation contained disturbing allegations against him and his wife.
“I learned that my wife and I were part of those allegations, alleging that we were guilty of cannibalizing young children and murdering young children.” He vehemently denied them.
Leavitt noted that prosecutors filed charges against one man roughly 10 years ago but said the case was subsequently dismissed “because the evidence was so outlandish and so unbelievable.”
Leavitt said the man ultimately charged in connection with the allegations was his neighbor for a time and someone he knew from church. Leavitt said he testified against the man at a divorce proceeding because he believed the man to be a danger to his children.
A prosecutor made a motion to dismiss charges of child rape and sexual abuse “due to trouble getting discovery to defense counsel,” according to court records. The case was dismissed without prejudice, meaning it can be refiled at a later date.
Leavitt provided copies of a 151-page document labeled as a “victim statement” that describes the alleged crimes in detail. The statement names Leavitt and more than a dozen others as part of a group that practiced ritual sexual abuse of children.
The KSL Investigators also obtained a copy through a public records request to the Provo Police Department.
Leavitt called the report “151 pages of utter baloney” and described the woman who reported the allegations to authorities as “tragically mentally ill.”
Smith took aim at that characterization. “These are victims of crime who have mustered the courage to come forward, and this is what we call them is mentally ill?”
Smith said victims of alleged crimes should not be shamed or intimidated for having the courage to come forward.
While Leavitt mentioned cannibalism and murder, Smith said the investigation is focused on ritualistic child sexual abuse and child sex trafficking. The sheriff’s office investigation began in April 2021, and their digging led them to similar crimes that investigators believe took place between 1990 and 2010 in Utah, Sanpete and Juab counties.
Smith said his deputies are working with the sheriff’s offices in Juab and Sanpete counties, along with the Nephi and Provo police departments and the FBI to investigate. An FBI spokeswoman confirmed the agency is assisting in the effort.
Since asking for anyone with knowledge of the alleged crimes to come forward on Tuesday, the sheriff said at least 20 people have gotten in touch to say they were either victimized or know someone who was.
Leavitt, a Republican, was elected county attorney in 2018. He and the sheriff’s office have previously sparred over Leavitt’s decision to dismantle the Special Victims Unit in the county attorney’s office. They’ve also been at odds over Leavitt’s plans to move away from offering plea deals in favor of more trials and prosecute fewer low-level drug crimes.
The Utah County Fraternal Order of Police issued a letter of “no confidence” in Leavitt. The county attorney has said criticism was bound to follow his efforts at reforming the criminal justice system.
Smith has endorsed Leavitt’s challenger, Jeff Gray, in the county attorney’s race.
FOX 13 News Utah published June 27, 2022: Video raises ethical questions about Leavitt's adoption of Native American child. The FOX 13 Investigates team has obtained a video of Utah County Attorney David Leavitt discussing his "strategy” to adopt a Native American baby, allegedly taking advantage of his political influence to overcome a federal law designed to protect Native American children from being adopted by non-Native families.
The video was entered into evidence as part of a human trafficking investigation into David Leavitt.
The FOX 13 Investigates team has obtained a video of Utah County Attorney David Leavitt discussing his "strategy” to adopt a Native American baby, allegedly taking advantage of his political influence to overcome a federal law designed to protect Native American children from being adopted by non-Native families.
The video was recorded by a documentarian in 2020. It has since been submitted to Homeland Security Investigations as part of a criminal human trafficking investigation.
The 17-minute clip first shows Leavitt expressing his struggle with the decision whether to pursue the adoption.
Leavitt went on to explain how he tried to broker a deal with the Northern Cheyenne Tribe in Montana, offering them the ability to export buffalo to Ukraine. ๐
Although he is not blood-related to the child, the little girl was considered Leavitt’s step-foster-great niece.
“I’m thinking to myself, ‘How in the world am I going to do this?’” Leavitt described. “Finally, this strategy comes into my head, and if you’ve got five minutes, I’ll tell you the story.”
The “strategy,” as Leavitt described, involved boarding a plane to Montana in 2017. Upon arrival, Leavitt said he walked onto the reservation for an unscheduled meeting with the president of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe.
FOX 13 News has confirmed the tribal president at the time was Lawrence Jace Killsback.
“And I say to him, ‘I’m here for two reasons,’” Leavitt described. “I said, ‘I’m here to tell you the second reason first, but I’ll tell you the first reason second – but before I tell you the second reason, I’ll tell you a story.’”
Leavitt’s story touched on the importance of family. Then it highlighted his close friendship with former Ukranian president Victor Yuschenko.
“Victor and I have this goal of introducing buffalo into western Ukraine,” Leavitt recounted, “and you’re a sovereign nation, and you have a buffalo herd, and Ukraine is a sovereign nation, and it doesn’t have a buffalo herd, but it wants one, and so I’m here to see if we can form a bilateral agreement between the people of the Northern Cheyenne and the people of Ukraine to introduce buffalo to western Ukraine.”
“At that point, (Killsback) was all ears,” Leavitt continued. “And I said, ‘That’s the second reason why I’m here. The first reason why I’m here is this. We want to adopt one of your people.’”
Leavitt said Killsback gave his blessing, but Tribal Social Services did not.
“Tribal Social Services looked at us and said, ‘We’re not giving you this baby,’” Leavitt said. “I just said, ‘You know what? You are shameless.’ I just let her have it with both barrels... There’s such a prejudice in the Native community about a non-Native adopting a Native.”
As a last-ditch effort, Leavitt said he went back to the tribal president for help.
“(Killsback) said, ‘Listen, the Leavitts are friends of the tribe... They’re assets to the tribe for more than just this,’” Leavitt said. “I left, and five minutes later the phone rang and it was the social worker saying, ‘I think I’ve figured out a way to get this child to you.’”
Leavitt said he took home the child that same day in 2017.
Killsback declined to comment. At the time of the 2020 interview, he was in prison for fraud in an unrelated case.
After the child's adoption, Tribal President Jace Killsback served time in prison for an unrelated case.
I spoke with him briefly on the phone. So far, he has chosen not to comment on the claims made by Leavitt. pic.twitter.com/SWnerCkwhT
Stephanie Benally, a Native American specialist for Utah Foster Care, said the adoption of any Native American child raises questions about the Indian Child Welfare Act.
“It’s best for the Native children to remain in Native communities,” Benally said. “Not every child needs to grow up in the city, green grass, white picket fence house.”
Benally explained the cultural and historical significance of the Indian Child Welfare Act, which was passed in 1978 in order to protect Native American children from being adopted by outsiders.
“It’s federal legislation to protect the Native children and Native families to keep them together,” Benally said. “Prior to the act, 25-35 percent of Native children were removed from their home and placed in non-Native homes.”
When asked about the child’s relationship to Leavitt as a “step-foster-great niece,” Benally said that the designation of “family” is up to the tribe, even if not related by blood.
“Let me put it this way: I would like our elected officials to be servants of the public, and not self-serving."
Linda F. Smith taught ethics at the University of Utah for more than 30 years.
According to court documents obtained by FOX 13 News, the child’s biological mother willingly gave up her parental rights, but the biological father did not.
The court ultimately ruled in Leavitt’s favor, approving the adoption.
Linda F. Smith – a member of the Utah State Bar Ethics Advisory Opinion Committee and former ethics professor at the University of Utah – agreed to review the video.
“Let me put it this way: I would like our elected officials to be servants of the public, and not self-serving,” Smith said. “He was clearly politicking to get his way... It was a little smarmy way to talk somebody into letting you adopt a child that might otherwise be better raised by the tribe.”
Criminal investigation
Leavitt is the same county attorney who named himself as the subject of a ritualistic child sex abuse investigation. Last month, he held a press conference to announce he is not a murderer, a cannibal, or an abuser.
Then he accused Utah County Sheriff Mike Smith of playing politics shortly before the primary election.
The Utah County Sheriff’s Office did not name Leavitt as a subject, even after the press conference.
“This is not a politically motivated investigation,” the sheriff insisted at his own press conference. “We won’t be intimidated by Mr. Leavitt, by his attempts to derail our investigation... We do not discuss the names of victims, and we do not discuss the names of suspects.”
Noel Engels, a former analyst with Homeland Security Investigations, confirmed his team had been investigating sexual allegations against Leavitt for several years.
Then, in 2020, Engels received a copy of the video. HSI added the video to the case file, investigating Leavitt on suspicion of human trafficking.
“It’s literally our job to make sure children are safe,” Engels said. “Is it disturbing? Yeah, it is. You have to kind of separate that and not let emotions affect your investigation at all.”
Five months after receiving the video, documents show Engels and his team were removed from the case.
The HSI case against Leavitt was eventually reassigned.
Engels filed a whistleblower complaint, suspecting his removal from the case was improper.
He received this letter in response, indicating "a substantial likelihood of wrongdoing." Not the same as a "final determination." pic.twitter.com/CFKEsdmwC6
Engels has since filed a whistleblower complaint and received a letter from the United States Office of Special Counsel in response.
“You alleged that HSI improperly terminated an investigation into allegations involving current Utah County Attorney David O. Leavitt,” wrote attorney John U. Young. “We emphasize that, while (Office of Special Counsel) has found a substantial likelihood of wrongdoing based on the information you submitted in support of your allegations, our referral to the Secretary for investigation is not a final determination that the allegations are substantiated.”
“This remains an open matter under investigation until the agency’s final report is forwarded to the President and Congress.”
FOX 13 News reached out to Leavitt for an explanation last week.
According to his spokesperson, “Mr. Leavitt would be happy to tell the entire story.”
More than 72 hours later, the spokesperson later clarified that Leavitt is not able to meet until after the primary election.
“Anything related to what you’ve brought up has no bearing on his performance as the Utah County Attorney and is not relevant,” she wrote.
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