Biggie Smalls Pronounced Dead

Jack Rodzik
Obituary
Jan. 28 2011
248 974 8926
Fara Warner

“Ready To Die” rapper Biggie Smalls was shot and killed in drive-by shooting yesterday said police. The 24-year-old icon was killed while stopped at an intersection in Los Angeles leaving Vibe magazine’s party following the Soul Train Awards.

            The successful rapper at the young age of 24, Christopher Wallace (more commonly known as Notorious B.I.G. and Biggie Smalls), was leaving an after-party following the Soul Train Awards in Los Angeles when, according to Los Angeles Police, a single gunman driving a black Chevy Impala pulled up next to the Suburban Wallace was riding in and opened fire. Wallace was pronounced dead at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center a little more than one hour after four shots from a 9mm semi-automatic pierced his body.

            Wallace has been monumental in the East coast for his unique style of rapping, what many say just flowed from him. Wallace has made a name for himself, starting off by getting paid only a few dollars to rap on the corner to his single “One More Chance” hit the Top Ten. The funeral service will be held at Frank E. Campbell Funeral Home and his body will be cremated. Christopher Wallace is remembered by his two children and Faith Evans.

Word Count: 202

LEADS

Seeking Shelter

            Mayor Datolli will introduce a new panhandling ordinance to city council next week. The new program will provide the option of a safe ride for those in need of a home to out-of-town family members.

            Local businessmen have become quite upset with the local vagrants being a major deterrent for their businesses. Complaints have been recognized as the seemingly never-ceasing and inappropriate actions of homeless people have gained attention to more than just the businessmen themselves.

            It has been reported that the panhandlers of downtown have been eating, urinating, and sleeping just about everywhere within the area, gaining the city unwanted attention and blemishing its reputation. One might say “they may have nowhere else to go,” but talks of a new ordinance may say otherwise.

            Businessmen are not the only ones who have noticed the problem; Mayor Datolli also realizes the harm being done. Today she announced that next week a new ordinance to deal with the panhandlers will be launched, providing one-way-bus tickets to vagrants’ out-of-town family members, if they so choose.

            However, some critics of this new ordinance say that it is inhumane. One critic, Sandra Ganfolf, says that it is heartless, that they should be provided with help in other ways, such as creating ways to feed and shelter the homeless, provide job assistance, substance abuse counseling, and even mental health treatment. Prior actions have proven ineffective; charging them with indecent exposure and shoplifting, making for over populated jails, a court system work overload, and even when all is said and done, the now-criminal homeless people of downtown wind up back on the streets.

            The downtown businessmen have promised to fund the optimistic resolution for our city, providing all of the money necessary for the bus tickets. 

WORD COUNT: 290

Interview A Student

 Terror-Engraved Memory

          Michigan State University journalism student, Andrew James, recounts the vivid memory of 

September 11. A photographic memory reveals a retrospective look on the event that the then-seventh 

grader at Walled Lake Middle School may have been too young to comprehend.

           It has been almost a decade now since the unpredictable terrorist attack of 9/11, a day every American will be able to tell you exactly what they were doing while the two hijacked planes flew into the World Trade Centers. For many of us it was a day the Earth stood still, one that we as a country stared at our television screens in utter disbelief, for others, they may have been too young to fathom such a monstrous attack on our nation’s soil.

            Andrew James, a Journalism student at Michigan State University, told me his personal account of the haunting morning in September. He described the day starting just as any other would at James R. Geisler (formerly Walled Lake Middle School), until his seventh grade teacher walked out of the room and returned to quickly turn on the television. From then on James said that he, his teacher, and his technical education classmates watched with their eyes glued to the TV for the remainder of the class period. James said that although this was a very frightening situation, he was not directly affected because he had no friends or family living in New York City. That day school was let out early and Andrew James returned home.

            James, his family, as well as his aunt Karen watched the TV and barely spoke. James’ father tried to explain to his son that what was happening was bigger than them, that he should not be intimidated or scared. James now describes the event as being “traumatic” and “pretty intense.” James states, “It will probably go down as one of the worst days in U.S. History as far as tragedy and casualties.”

WORD COUNT: 321

Kids These Days

    Every so often we hear about students bringing guns to school, be it the tragic event of the Columbine Shootings or someone pulling a prank with a toy gun. In any case, these matters are to be treated professionally and in the most serious way. For a a certain student attending Dansville Middle School in Dansville, Michigan, caught with a handgun in his locker that means being admitted to a psychiatric hospital and potentially juvenile court charges.

Article from the Lansing State Journal Below:

DANSVILLE - A Dansville Middle School student who administrators said had a handgun in his locker is being treated at a psychiatric hospital and could face charges in juvenile court when he is released, officials said.
Ingham County sheriff's deputies were called to the school Jan. 11 after two students told administrators that the boy had a gun in his locker. The school went on lockdown for about half an hour.
The boy was taken into custody, and his parents were called, officials said.
Ingham County Prosecutor Stuart Dunnings III confirmed today that his office is waiting for the boy to be released from the hospital. He did not know when that might happen. Dunnings would not say if he has decided to bring charges against the boy.

- Written by: Kevin Grasha • kgrasha@lsj.com • January 19, 2011
URL: http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20110119/NEWS01/101190340/Dansville-student-who-had-gun-in-locker-being-treated-at-psychiatric-hospital