Jason Dalton

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

The Kalamazoo, Mich., Uber driver accused of shooting dead six people and critically injuring two others in a shooting spree Saturday bought the firearm used in the attack in the middle of last year, the ATF said.

Investigators also found 11 long guns and four handguns at his Cooper Township home, WoodTV.com reports. 

The ATF’s Donald Dawkins said 45-year-old Jason Dalton used a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun in the shootings.

But, investigators said, Dalton was not licensed to carry a concealed pistol.

Dalton regularly visited a gun shop in nearby Plainwell and purchased a coat designed to conceal the handgun hours before the shooting spree.

Other Stories of Interest

• CIA Director Backs FBI in Privacy Battle with Apple
• Federal Official Targeted in FBI Probe Linked to Firm He Supervised
• Court: FBI Didn’t Have to Notify Minutemen of Home Invasion
• Weslaco Border Patrol Station Gets Surveillance Balloon
• Justice Department, Tech Companies Discuss Online Extremism

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

As Apple and the FBI square off over hacking into an iPhone that belonged to one of the San Bernardino shooters, Congress is debating a solution over the divide between digital privacy and national security.

NPR reports that lawmakers may form a commission modeled after the one created to investigate the 9/11 security breakdowns.

“There is no easy, knee-jerk, legislative response at this time,” Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said. “If Congress does nothing, as some would advocate … and we get hit in the United States with a Paris-style attack? I don’t want that on my hands.”

Apple has said it supports the formation of a commission, which could include members from the tech industry, law enforcement, privacy advocates and the Obama administration.

The commission would then submit a report of its findings.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. said Congress should have acted earlier.

“In many ways the current litigation that’s taking place might not have been needed if we’d had this kind of approach a few years back,” says Warner, adding that he fears that the sides are “talking past each other.”

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

CIA Director John Brennan told NPR that ISIS is a bigger threat than al-Qaeda.

In the interview, Brennan also said may stay with the agency if a new presidential administration supports him at the helm.

Listen to the interview above.

Steven Petrow
USA Today

“I don’t really need to worry about online privacy,” I used to think. “I’ve got nothing to hide. And who would want to know what I’m up to, anyway?”

Sure, I’m a journalist, but I’m not an investigative reporter, not a political radical, not of much interest to anyone, really.

That was last week, when the standoff between the FBI and Apple seemed much more about principle than practice to me. That’s when I thought I’d write a column on whether this legal fight matters to regular folk — people like my mother, a retired social worker; my best friend, who works in retail; or even my 20-year-old niece in college. That was before I found out — in a chillingly personal way — just why it does matter. To all of us.

Just before midnight last Friday, my plane touched down in Raleigh after a three-hour flight from Dallas. As usual, I’d spent much of the flight working, using American Airlines Gogo in-flight Internet connection to send and answer emails. As I was putting on my jacket, a fellow in the row behind me, someone I hadn’t even noticed before, said: “I need to talk to you.” A bit taken aback, I replied, “It’s late … need to get home.”

“You’re a reporter, right?”

“Um, yes.”

“Wait for me at the gate.”

[I didn’t answer, but I did wait.]

“How did you know I was a reporter?” I asked while we started walking.

“Are you interested in the Apple/FBI story?” he responded, ignoring my question.

“Kind of. Why are you asking me that?” I thought he was some kind of creepy mind reader.

Then he dropped the bombshell.

“I hacked your email on the plane and read everything you sent and received. I did it to most people on the flight.” He had verbatim detail of a long email that he repeated back to me essentially word for word.

To read more click here.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch

By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com

The Obama administration plans to target sanctuary cities that actively thwart federal efforts to deport illegal immigrants.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch said she would go as far as ceasing federal grant money from going to cities that provide sanctuary to illegal immigrants, the Washington Times reports. 

The move surprised many lawmakers because the Obama administration has long opposed crackdowns on sanctuary cities.

As part of the crack down, Lynch aid the federal Bureau of Prisons would stop releasing illegal immigrants to sanctuary cities and instead would turn them over for deportation.

“This is a very significant change, and we’re deeply grateful to you,” Rep. John Abney Culberson, Texas Republican, told Ms. Lynch at a hearing of the House Appropriations Committee.

Culberson said he would provide a list of sanctuary cities.

“If they insist on paying it out of their policy, and they won’t honor detainers, and they won’t share information, you know, don’t ask for federal money unless you follow federal law,” he said. “Delighted to hear you’re moving in that direction, and we’re going to work with you cooperatively and in a supportive way to ensure that that happens.”