Staff Blog
What We’ve Found: Kensington sting doesn’t catch rapist, Senegalese judge toughens rape punishment, ACLU loses quarter of its budget, cyberbegging for holiday gifts and fewer homeless on Philly streets
Julia Harte with your morning fix.
Kensington female cops posing as prostitutes arrested 102 people in a two-week sting, but failed to catch their target: a local man who's been raping and beating prostitutes over the past few months.
In response to increasing rape cases in his country's schools and homes, a Senegalese judge was calling for tougher sentences against rapists, punishments for family members who know about rapes but do not report them and allowing women's-rights associations to bring suits as civil plaintiffs.
The American Civil Liberties Union lost 25 percent of its budget when its largest donor, an anonymous individual who gave $20 million annually to the group, withdrew his gift "due to market conditions".
Websites devoted to online panhandling, a recent and growing phenomenon, were crowded with appeals from parents hoping to get their children something for the holidays without having to beg for money openly in the street.
According to data recently released from Mayor Nutter's office, street homelessness in Philadelphia has declined over the past year, with 135 fewer people on the streets this November compared to November 2008.
