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By Lilly Workneh America’s justice system can often act in ways that stir up even more pain for family members of victims of police killings ― and, sadly,  Michael Brown ’s family is all too familiar with this.  Michael Brown was fatally shot in August 2014. Vern was shot and killed earlier that year. On Tuesday, Brown’s parents, Lezley McSpadden and Michael Brown Sr.,  received a $1.5 million settlement  after filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Ferguson, former Police Chief Thomas Jackson and former police officer Darren Wilson. Of course, no amount of money will ever rectify the unjust death of a loved one, but it’s worth noting the amount that Brown’s family received was significantly less than other multimillion-dollar payouts given to other families of black victims of police shootings.  The settlement was, however, on par with one particular shooting in Maryland ― except, in this case, the family was white and the vi...

URoy Huge crowd at VIP Organisers of Groovin' in the Park are conducting an investigation into why singjay Busy Signal's microphone was cut during his set at Roy Wilkins Park in Queens, New York, on Sunday. According to a source close to the promoters, organisers were not the ones responsible for the abrupt ending of the artiste's performance. “A statement is expected to be issued within the next 24 hours as to what really transpired. The organisers did not pull the plug on Busy,” the source told the  Jamaica Observer  yesterday. Busy Signal Prior to the premature end, Busy Signal — who was making his US debut — was delivering a solid set and had the audience going with Bedroom  Bully, Step Out, Nah Go A Jail Again, Unknown Number,  and  One More Night. Tarrus Riley Sensing that his performance was about to be ended, he implored organisers not to shorten his set. “Mi reach a the venue from 3 o'clock and mi suppose to perfo...

BY KIMONE THOMPSON Associate editor — features thompsonk@jamaicaobserver.com  Thursday, June 22, 2017 The late Denton 'Brown Man' Stewart  While   the world was celebrating Father's Day on Sunday, Denton “Brown Man” Stewart, himself a father of four, apparently took his own life. Stewart, a middle-aged carpenter, was employed to Bellevue Hospital, a State-run mental health facility in Kingston. Co-workers found his body dangling from a rope inside an abandoned ward undergoing renovations when they showed up for work on Monday. The hospital staff members, many of whom gathered in groups under trees just outside the building where their colleague's body was found, were visibly shocked and hurt, many even angry and casting blame on hospital administration for what they described as a tense and stressful working relationship. “Dis a nuh Brown Man. Dis a nuh 'Brown Man',” one of them kept repeating, shaking his head. Another said: “A not even o...

Bishop Curry, 10 y-o inventor  By Zahara Hill of Huffpost 6/20/17  After Bishop Curry heard his neighbor’s 6-month-old infant died from being in an overheated car, he decided to create a life-saving device to prevent incidents like this from reoccurring ― as any responsible 10-year-old would. “It kind of came in my head,” Bishop told HuffPost of his device, the Oasis.  The Oasis would respond to rising temperatures by emitting cool air and use an antenna to signal parents and authorities. At the moment, Bishop only has a 3-D clay model of the device, but his father, Bishop Curry IV, began   a GoFundMe campaign   for the Oasis in January. “I got lots of help from my parents,” Bishop said.  Attorneys advised the family that the minimum amount they’d need for prototyping and manufacturing fees, as well as a patent for the device, is $20,000.  The GoFundMe campaign has already exceeded that $20,000 goal and, as of Monday, has r...

 6/19/17@ 5:08 pm ET Otto Warmbier , the former University of Virginia student who returned home to the U.S. last week after spending more than a year imprisoned in North Korea, died on Monday afternoon, his family announced. “Unfortunately, the  awful torturous mistreatment  our son received at the hands of the North Koreans ensured that no other outcome was possible beyond the sad one we experienced today,” his parents said in a statement. Otto Warmbier Warmbier landed in the U.S. on June 13 unable to speak, see or react to verbal commands, the statement added. Doctors at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center characterized his state as one of “ unresponsive wakefulness ,” they said on Thursday. North Korea also sent MRI images of Warmbier’s brain, dated April 2016. The photos indicated his injury likely occurred before the scans were taken ― meaning he had been suffering since the beginning of his imprisonment.  The Wyoming, Ohi...

Beyhive, meet your two newest members.  Beyoncé  and husband  Jay Z  have welcomed twins in Los Angeles, according to  multiple outlets . The sex of the twins is currently unknown, as well as exactly when the singer gave birth. The couple are, of course, already parents to Blue Ivy, 5, who, if you haven’t heard, is about the  most adorable girl on planet earth . The “Formation” singer announced she was  pregnant with twins  in February with an  instantly iconic photo shoot  that essentially broke the internet. Her announcement photo became the most-liked Instagram post  ever . Remember? The floral moment with some green mesh and major Virgin Mary vibes?  “We would like to share our love and happiness. We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishes,” the announcement read, signed by “The Carters.” The typically reclusiv...

BY HORACE HINES Staff reporter hinesh@jamaicaobserver.com  Sunday, June 18, 2017 LITTLE LONDON, Westmoreland — Angry residents of this Western Westmoreland town yesterday disrupted normal activities on the road leading to the popular tourist town of Negril to protest the death of a female employee of the Savanna-la-Mar Police Station, whose body was found in a canefield. The woman's relatives and other community members, who mounted the roadblock, alleged that Wright was last seen alive in the company of a senior police officer, who is stationed in Westmoreland, and called for the senior officer to answer certain questions. “He has to be interrogated,” one female protester demanded. Later the protesters heard that the Independent Commission of Investigation (INDECOM) had stepped in to probe the death of 21-year-old Shantel Wright who went missing last Wednesday night, before her body was found a short distance from her home late Friday evening. “A report was...

Friday, June 09, 2017 THREE people were left homeless after a fire destroyed two houses on Second Street in Trench Town, Kingston, yesterday.According to Garth Mills, district officer for the Jamaica Fire Brigade, firefighters responded to a call at 10:39 am. He said two units from York Park Fire Station responded. A resident videos what is left of the houses following the fire yesterday in Trench Town, Kingston. (Photos: Bryan Cummings)  No one was injured in the blaze. When the  Jamaica Observer  visited the community yesterday, the fire had already been extinguished. Shanise Mendez, 23, who occupied one of the houses with her six-year-old son, told the  Observer  that she lost everything. “I was on West Road when mi hear, 'Watch dah smoke deh'. I stopped and look. People were moving like nothing was happening. Then my sister called me and said your house a burn down. When I came I saw the place burn down,” Mendez said, adding that she was pre...

BY KIMONE THOMPSON Observer staff reporter thompsonk@jamaicaobserver.com  Friday, June 09, 2017 IF the national scores and the number of students placed in one of the five schools on their preferred list are any indication, school administrators and teachers should be pleased when they receive the results of the 2017 sitting of the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT) today. The Ministry of Education reported yesterday that schools with online access should have been able to access the results as of 12:01 am today, while those without will be able to pick up the documents at the regional offices by midday. Parents should start learning their children's scores and placement schools today. Education Minister Ruel Reid (left) and his  junior minister Floyd Green announced the 2017  results of the Grade Six Achievement Test  in a press conference at the ministry yesterday. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)  At a press conference at its Heroes Circle head office yes...

BY ALICIA SUTHERLAND Observer staff reporter sutherlanda@jamaicaobserver.com  Thursday, June 08, 2017 MANDEVILLE, Manchester — It was just Monday of this week, according to acting principal of the Porus High School in Manchester, David Powell, that he offered commendations at the school's devotion for what he said was a relatively incident-free school environment. “We hadn't had a fight or uproar in a while,” he told the  Jamaica Observer . Students of the Porus High School in Manchester on the compound of the Mandeville Regional Hospital yesterday, where one of their schoolmates was pronounced dead and another hospitalised after an altercation at their school. (Photo: Gregory Bennett)  However, that changed yesterday afternoon when a male third-form student was killed and another hospitalised, following a stabbing incident at the institution. One year and four months into his role as principal, Powell said that he was on a quest of “reforming and rebranding”...

BY HORACE HINES Observer West reporter  Thursday, June 08, 2017 BARRETT TOWN, St James  —  The   bloodletting in the western parish of St James continued yesterday when four people — a mother, her son and his friend, as well as a female bartender — were shot dead by gunmen in two incidents in Barrett Town and the adjoining Barrett Hall community.  Both incidents reportedly occurred shortly after1:00 am yesterday. Bartender Nardia Cunningham killed at her Barrett Hall home.  Grieving family members of Doreen Brown wait outside the Barrett Town Police Station yesterday for word from investigators about the,latest killings in the community.  Those killed in the Barrett Town incident when gunmen invaded their home have been identified as 59-year-old Doreen Brown, her 24-year- old son Wade Weekly; and Clayton Daley. Brown's15-year-old grandson, who was also shot and injured during the incident, was up to late yesterday battling for his life i...

BY HORACE HINES Observer staff reporter hinesh@jamaicaobserver.com  Thursday, June 08, 2017 NEGRIL, Westmoreland — The police yesterday afternoon removed the partially decomposed body of 24-year-old Shantel Dyer from a tomb which they demolished inside the house in which she lived here. But her three-year-old daughter, Orlandi Miller, is still missing. The police say they will be seeking the help of their international partners to extradite Dyer's spouse, whom she lived with, but who left the island on April 27. Family members of 24-year-old Shantel  Dyer are distraught after receiving  confirmation that her body was found  in a tomb inside her house in  Negril yesterday. (Photo: Philp Lemonte)   “We will be working with our overseas colleagues to get him back into the country,” head of the Criminal Investigation Branch Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police Ealan Powell told the  Jamaica Observer  last night. The mother and her infant d...

By Jesselyn Cook ,  Sebastian Murdock 6/3/17 A car plowed into a crowd of people on the London Bridge Saturday night, injuring dozens. London Bridge One witness at the scene described bodies being “strewn over the pavement.” Witnesses told the Associated Press that a white van struck  as many as six people. Authorities have closed the bridge and traffic has been diverted. London’s Metropolitan Police said they are investigating the incident, but did not provide more immediate details.  Unverified social media posts show chaos as people rush to flee the area.  Metropolitan Police   ✔ @metpoliceuk We are dealing with an incident on  # LondonBridge , when we have more information we will update this twitter feed. 5:28 PM - 3 Jun 2017     9,502 9,502 Retweets     4,077 4,077 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy Video taken by a bystander shows a large police presence where the...

Jody-Anne Maxwell From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jodi-Ann Maxwell Jody-Anne Maxwell  from  Kingston, Jamaica , was the winner of the 1998  Scripps National Spelling Bee  at the age of 12. [1]  She made history as the first non-American to win the competition. According to  Ebony  magazine, she was viewed as a  celebrity  on her return to Jamaica. [2]  Maxwell also attained significant fame in Jamaican communities within the United States. [3] Maxwell qualified for the Scripps competition by winning Jamaica's National Spelling Bee Championship, which her sister Janice had also won in 1990. [2]  Her prizes for winning the national [ clarification needed ]  bee included $10,000 cash, [1]  and an education trust fund of $11,000 (U.S). [4] She later went on to host the local Jamaican program  The KFC Quiz Show  with various co-hosts, (the first two being Dominique Lyew and Damar Pessoa) up ...