Crazy person Sean Harris, senior pastor of the Berean Baptist Church in North Carolina, delivered a terrifying sermon on Sunday to his congregation suggesting that parents "crack" their fey sons' limp wrists, rein in daughters who appear butch, "punch" them if they act gay, and a slew of other child-abuse recommendations that are sure to horrify anyone with commonsense and a heart. Harris was speaking in support for North Carolina's Amendment One, the state's looming ban on gay marriage and civil union. Care of Good As You, who first reported the story, the transcript of the infamous sermon reads as follows: more ›

San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi received a one-day jail sentence and three years of probation Monday for falsely imprisoning his wife, Eliana Lopez, during a fight that allegedly resulted in his bruising her. The Chronicle breathlessly reports, "An emotional Mirkarimi said outside the courtroom that he accepted full responsibility for his actions. He will get credit for the time he has already spent in jail." more ›

(By D. Hanousek) Yesterday, a close friend pregnant with her first child posted a link on Facebook to an article about a mother who was arrested for allowing her 10-year-old to get a tattoo honoring his late brother. Said friend posed the question, "Would you let your 10-year-old son get a tattoo, for any reason? What if the tattoo is to honor the passing of his brother; is that acceptable?" I immediately felt my emotions heighten as I wrote the comment, "Er, circumcision is legal. So is piercing your infant's ears. Don't get me started..." This led me, of course, to the confession that when it comes to hot-topic children's issues, to me, ignorance is bliss. more ›

A UC Davis graduate filed a lawsuit against UC Davis for not taking action on his numerous complaints about a Jewish fraternity's sexually-charged and abusive hazing rituals. Ryan Clifford claims that he was "punched, stripped naked, molested and forced to drink 'inordinate amounts' of alcohol" while pledging the Chi Delta chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi back in 2008. more ›

Oakland Police are investigating "allegations that a young boy had been sexually assaulted by five other boys at a Boys & Girls Club facility in East Oakland." A seven-year-old boy alleges he was assaulted in the bathroom of the Boys & Girls Club of Oakland (at 8530 International Boulevard) on Wednesday night by "five other boys around the age of ten." Ugh. Awful. And depressing. Please teach your kids better, world. [KTVU] more ›

The Contra Costa Times has published disheartening details that have emerged in the lawsuit against the city of San Francisco regarding the torture of Jazzmin Davis and her twin brother at the hands of their aunt and lifelong foster parent, Shemeeka Davis, resulting in Jazzmin's death in 2008. more ›

Angela West, a former LA City Attorney, reportedly went on a bit of a rampage during the holiday season at San Francisco International Airport. And how. Look, we get it: Christmas and SFO and the lines and the kids and the outrageous Peet's kiosk prices make us go a little nuts as well. However, we've never been so bold as to act on our deepest rage-filled desires as West did on Christmas Eve. Behold: more ›

Three horrible human beings were arrested in Morgan Hill on Friday for animal abuse. Ciro Paredes, 40, Julio Perez, 27, and Ricardo Melgar, 19, were pinched for reportedly having a drug-fueled night of fun that, it seems, involved stuffing a goat in the back of their vehicle. more ›

Well, this is just cute: After news of a Budweiser-drinking seagull hater took off a few weeks ago, local rescue organization Wild Rescue received an outpouring of support and donations. Enough donations, in fact, that they were able to order a high-tech, net-launching device to help them capture the collared birds. more ›

According to BCN/The Appeal this morning: several birds have been spotted around the Bay Area with torturous collars fashioned from cut Budweiser cans around their necks. All jokes about jewelry made from recycled materials aside, someone out there has a sick attitude towards sea gulls. Two local wildlife organizations, WildRescue in Monterey and International Bird Rescue in Fairfield, are asking for any information or sightings of the collared birds so they can track them down and help them out. more ›

On Wednesday, SFist wondered about this installation at Civic Center. Turns out is an exhibit called "Keeping Our Promise," a kid-cutout visual representation of the "433 abused or neglected San Francisco children who entered state care in 2009." The exhibit will raise awareness for National Child Abuse Prevention Month. The cutouts were prepared by San Francisco CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), a non-profit organization that uses community volunteers to advocate for the rights of abused and neglected children in foster care. (Side note: we're told that 20% of the state of California’s foster children come from San Francisco). more ›

Here's something to think about the next time you want to post your next iPhone rant on Twitter: "Apple products are made in factories that regularly employ young teenagers, constantly work people more than 60 hours per week, and falsify records to cover up their misdeeds." (Makes your push-related battery drain seem less fury-inducing, doesn't it?) This, according to Ryan Tate at Valleywag, stems from a report on Apple's "Supplier Responsibility 2010 Progress Report" (PDF), which seems to reveal all sorts of lousy stuff. It was an audit done by Apple, so we're sure Jobs is on the job, if you'll excuse the pun. That said, we still love our Apple products -- so shiny, so new, so overwhelmingly neat-o. But you can expect rabid Apple fans to lose their collective shit in five, four, three, two... more ›

by Moses Namkung The last time Chris Brown performed in the Bay Area, he sold out Oracle Arena. A TMZ-obtained photo of Rihanna's battered visage, an awkward Larry King appearance, and a guilty plea to felony assault later, Chris Brown was back in town on a short run of shows geared towards rejuvenating his loyal fan base and healing his public image. The Fan Appreciation Tour, as it is called, is perhaps a test by various stakeholders to see how many fans Brown may have lost through the Rihanna ordeal. more ›

Muni Diaries just came out with this appalling account via the Noe Valley Voice about Noe Valley resident R. La Rose's encounter with an abusive teen on the J Church on the morning of April 1st. more ›

Corey Reed, 28, of Novato was arrested Saturday on one felony count and one misdemeanor count of attempted animal cruelty. It seems this sick human being poured antifreeze into food bowls that had been left for around 25 feral cats in the area. According to Carrie Harrington of the Humane Society, the animal group had "been working with water-district employees to control the feral-cat population in the area, but authorities don't believe that was a reason for the suspect's actions." We hope someone pours gasoline in Reed's food tray in the clink. more ›

29-year-old Anthony Waiters was arrested in Pleasanton on Tuesday for reportedly participating in the torture the 16-year-old Tracy boy, whose case has made national headlines. The four allegedly took part in torturing the boy by beating him, choking him, and keeping him chained to a fireplace or under a table. Waiters joines Michael Schumacher, his wife, Kelly Layne Lau, and the teen's "aunt," Caren Ramirez, who have all been under arrest ever since the teen managed to escape and sought refuge at a local gym. more ›

The whole story of the Tracy child abuse case is starting to emerge. The boy's aunt, Caren Ramirez, who was arrested on Tuesday night, was charged in 2006 with inflicting "cruel and inhuman corporal punishment" on her nephew. IN 2007, Ramirez admitted in court to using "a deadly or dangerous weapon" while abusing the boy. more ›

The final suspect in this week's terrible Tracy child abuse case has been nabbed. Caren Ramirez, 43, was picked up by police at her Berkeley home at around 9:30 p.m. last night. The case has received much media attention ever since a 17-year-old boy escaped from the home of Michael Luther Schumacher, 34, and Kelly Layne Lau, 30, on Monday via "vaulting over an 8-foot wall separating the couple's backyard and the parking lot of the In-Shape Sports Club in Tracy." He was found emaciated, nearly naked, and wearing a chain padlocked to his ankle. Schumacher and his wife, Lau, were arrested on Monday. more ›

Remember when Mission Mission wrote about that sinister Mission District landlord bitch who smeared blood and feces on tenants' doors -- which prompted the Mission Anti-Displacement Coalition (link almost banned due to unfortunate auto-play music!) to throw a pun-errific tamales-and-chocolate party for said poop/blood-stained tenants? Well, Phil Bronstein is on the case now, so the story gets deeper. Much deeper. The tale between the landlord and residents of 871 Capp Street (Corado/Alvarado) also involves such landlord sorcery as keys broken off in doors, doors removed, surveillance camera, and the landlady "throwing a neighbor down the building's staircase." Charming. This landlord case blows SoMa's Kip and Nicole Macy's beam removals right out of the water. (SFGate) more ›

Three square meals a day is finished. Heartiness plunged to its death from the Golden Gate Bridge. The entree, sadly, is dead. At least according Kim Severson of the New York Times it is, and we couldn't be more delighted. The article interviews chef Tom Colicchio who says, "I think the entree has been in trouble for a long time...[e]ating an entree is too many bites of one thing, and it’s boring." more ›

Degrassi: The Next Generation is known for it accurate, yet sometimes vanilla portrayal of North American teenage life. Topics such as date rape, teen pregnancy, school violence, and inevitable cocaine abuse by wayward rockers are all fair game on this Canadian after-school-special-like teenage sitcom. more ›

The man accused of assaulting and kidnapping Elie Wiesel -- attempted kidnapping, false imprisonment, battery, stalking, elder abuse and hate crimes, to be exact -- changed his not guilty plea to one of insanity today. Earlier this year, if you recall, Eric Hunt, 23, stalked and dragged the Nobel Prize winner and Holocaust survivor from an elevator at the Argent Hotel (recently re-branded Westin San Francisco Market Street, even though it's totally located on... more ›

Judging by the audiences' volatile reactions, She Wants Revenge did everything in their power to give the audience what they wanted: a spectacle (with some music). About half-way through their hour and a half set, a fight erupted. (This isn't the first time, we hear, that fights have started at one of their shows.) The lead singer, Justin Warfield asked, "Can't we all just get along?" and then continued singing their synth-pop Depeche Mode influenced... more ›

No, no -- not these freshly-scrubbed little blessings
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We just caught wind of this worldwide Michael Jackson "Thriller" movement, so [insert bad pedophilia, child abuse, or body dysmorphic disorder jokes here]. Thrill the World, "a worldwide attempt to break the Guinness World Record (GWR) for the largest simultaneous dance with Michael Jackson's 'Thriller,'" will take place in Dolores Park this Saturday. So...have at it, Michael Jackson followers. more ›

Oh my. According to the Snitch: more ›

Update: Wow, that was lightning quick! The account has been suspended... and we just posted this minutes ago! Still, for shame, bayareatailgater. Don't you know that the only time this kind of thing is ever appropriate is when it's done in a men's locker room? Jerk. more ›

Abandoned kids, wannabe models, sitcom groaners, socialite teens, and a screaming Brit. It must be Wednesday! more ›

Currently on sabbatical at the psychiatric unit of San Francisco County jailhouse for trying to beat the holy hell out of Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel -- and also hopped up on meds to soothe his lack of mental clarity , which supposedly triggered the violent incident -- the apologetic 23-year-old Eric Hunt will go to trial on September 4. Staring down the barrel of six felony charges -- i.e., attempted battery, stalking, kidnapping,... more ›