Bandidos member prosecuted for gun with license to carry

Milam County, Texas, USA (December 19, 2019) BTN — Milam County went forward with prosecuting Patrick Lewis Vaden, a member of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, on Monday. This was after Vaden was accused of unlawfully carrying a weapon based on his affiliation with the Bandidos.

Vaden was pulled over in Nov. 2018 for going 67 mph in a 60 mph zone. He had a license to carry and had a gun when he was stopped.

More than 24 hours after jury selection, on Tuesday, the case abruptly ended in a mistrial and an appeal. Defense Attorney Kurt Glass told 6 News that Judge Steve Young ruled a mistrial after Glass refused to exclude a critical fact in the trial.

"What we have to appeal is whether or not Mr. Vaden and his license to carry are able to be mentioned in front of the jury," Glass said.

Glass said the prosecution filed a motion last week requesting that Vaden's license to carry, which was valid at the time of the arrest, was not to be admitted into evidence. He said Young agreed with prosecutors on Monday, but he had to risk bringing the LTC up in court regardless in order to lay the groundwork for a possible appeal after the case. He hopes it won't come to that.

"Depends upon what the court of appeals does," Glass said. "The court of appeals has the option to send the case back down with no decision, or they can tell the judge, 'Hey, you have to follow the law and allow Mr. Vaden to tell the jury he was allowed to carry a weapon.'"

Court documents state that Vaden was stopped by Department of Public Safety Trooper Michael Tice in Nov. 2018. According to a court transcript, Tice said he checked Vaden's driver's license and then confirmed Vaden was a gang member in the Texas Gang Intelligence Index. DPS later told 6 News the TxGANG database records are not to be used to independently confirm gang affiliation.

"If law enforcement performs a wanted persons check and the person being searched has been entered in TXGANG, the return will indicate that the person is a possible gang member. There is no message that states the person is “registered and confirmed as a gang member,” The Texas Department of Public Safety said in an emailed response.

Tice arrested Vaden for unlawfully carrying a weapon based on the TXGANG record and the colors Vaden was wearing, according to a court transcript.

Glass showed 6 News reporter Andrew Moore on Tuesday where in the law a license to carry should protect someone in Vaden's position.

Texas Penal Code Section 46.02(a-1)(2)(C) states a person cannot carry a handgun if they are a member of a criminal street gang, as defined by Section 71.01. The Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang has been labeled a criminal gang by the Texas Department of Public Safety.

However, Section 46.15(b)(6)(A)(B) says the previous section mentioned (Section 46.02) does not apply to a person who is carrying an LTC issued under Subchapter H, Chapter 411, provided they are carrying correctly. Glass said Vaden was carrying the gun correctly.


Young, in this case, wrote that a license to carry should not apply here and Vaden should not ride with a gun. After speaking with 6 News legal expert Liz Mitchell, she said it is not unusual for a judge to subjectively interpret laws in this situation.

"Sometimes in the penal code we do have certain statutes that may both be applicable at the same time and may even be at odds. The penal code is not going to set out specific fact patterns. That's when we get into precedent set by case law." Mitchell said. "That's where a judge might come into play -- based on his or her representation of legislative intent."

Mitchell said judges can and do make subjective decisions by interrupting law and decide what evidence should be valid in a specific jury trial, so Young is not doing anything unusual when it comes to evidence either.

SOURCE: KCENTV

Waco Massacre: Main stream media insanity

Disclaimer: This is a recent story, in it's entirely posted by KWTX-TV News 10 out of Waco, Texas. We have opted out of correcting misinformation so our educated readers can see for themselves the ludicrous accusations made by the main stream media regarding this tragic event. Below is their fabrication, including headline. We filed this story under our Propaganda Tag. - Biker Trash Network

New 'credible threats' made by bikers against local police

Waco, Texas, USA (December 13, 2019) BTN – It appears some of the key players in the Twin Peaks shootout can't seem to let go, even though the McLennan County District Attorney's Office dropped all of the pending cases against bikers earlier this year.

KWTX has obtained classified information about a secret meeting that recently took place between biker gangs which led to confidential law enforcement memos about possible hits on officers stemming from 2015's deadly biker brawl.

According to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the situation, within the last two weeks, memos were sent to several local law enforcement agencies about a meeting between two top biker groups--the Bandidos and the Outlaws--seeking revenge against police.

The Bandidos and Outlaws are both classified by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMGs).

The FBI and the Texas Department of Public Safety have yet to confirm the existence of these memos to KWTX, however, several local law enforcement sources have.

The first memo, sent last week, said law enforcement had received information that the Bandidos and the Outlaws were attempting to hire Bolivian nationals to carry out three hits on officers: two in Waco, and one in Florida.

The memo called the threat 'credible.'

The DPS, the Waco Police Department, the McLennan County Sheriff's Office and several judges were made aware of the threat, sources confirmed to KWTX.

Then, on Wednesday, the threat was supported by information obtained by an an out-of-state agency.

Local departments were sent a memo saying a confidential informant with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation reported that the Bandidos and the Outlaws and their support clubs, are attempting to do contract hits on officers in Waco, Florida, and possibly against other law enforcement officers nationwide.


On May 17, 2015 nine bikers were killed and more were injured as a result of what authorities say was a turf war between rival gangs--the Bandidos and the Cossacks--at the Twin Peaks restaurant at Central Texas Marketplace in Waco.

177 bikers were arrested but none were ever convicted of a single crime in connection with the shootout.

In April, the new McLennan County DA, Barry Johnson, dismissed the charges against the last of the bikers with criminal cases pending.

A spokesman for the DA's office told KWTX Thursday they know nothing about these memos or threats.

The FBI provided this statement:

"While our standard practice is to decline comment on specific law enforcement bulletins, the FBI routinely shares information with our law enforcement partners which identifies potential threats to law enforcement officers and the communities they serve. The FBI also directly notifies individuals and organizations of information that may be perceived as potentially threatening in nature."

Local law enforcement sources would not comment on the police response to the information contained in the memos, but did say they're "being more vigilant."

While Twin Peaks happened more than four years ago, it's fair to say it hasn't been forgotten, and, if anything, appears to have only emboldened some of those involved.

KWTX attempted to make contact with both the Bandidos and the Outlaws through their websites, but had not heard back as of Thursday night.

SOURCE: KWTX News

Cops seize $6.5 Million worth of meth in Manitoba

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada (December 10, 2019) BTN — RCMP have arrested 11 people and seized over 65 kilograms of meth and cocaine, amounting to $6.5 million, in what officers call the largest meth bust in Manitoba’s history. The arrests and seizures are a result of an ongoing investigation into organize crime that started over a year ago.

The investigation dubbed Project Declass first started in August 2018, after two people from Winnipeg were arrested trying to bring 40 kilograms of cocaine into the province, according to RCMP Superintendent Lisa Moreland.

The RCMP, along with the Canada Border Service Agency and the U.S. Enforcement and Administration launched the investigation.


Moreland said the investigation uncovered several different crime organizations are involved in the current drug trade in Manitoba and Western Canada.

“Investigators uncovered an integrative network of individuals belonging to different organized crime groups, that were working together in a resourceful fashion,” said Moreland, adding the RCMP identified several people from different organizations who played a role in distributing drugs in Manitoba.

Throughout the investigation, officers were able to seize over 20 kilograms of meth and over 40 kilograms of cocaine.

The day of the bust on Dec. 4, over 150 RCMP officers gathered in Winnipeg and Stonewall to prepare for the arrest and search.

RCMP officers in Calgary along with members of the Calgary Police Service also gathered to arrest a fully-pledged Hells Angels member who was staying at a hotel in the city.

Moreland said at 6 a.m., nine search warrants were executed, seven in Winnipeg, one in St. Laurent, Man., and one in Calgary.

Nine people were taken into custody and another two were also arrested the next day.

“The investigation is still on-going, thus far a total of 66 charges have been laid.”

Charges include:

• Trafficking of meth and cocaine
• Conspiracy to traffic fentanyl
• Possession of proceeds of crime
• Money laundering

LARGEST METH BUST IN MANITOBA

“The total amount of the drugs seized throughout this investigation to date, is 22 kilograms of meth, 43 kilograms of cocaine, with a street value of $6.5 million,” said Moreland.

Five vehicles were also seized including a 2018 Harley Davidson motorcycle.

Moreland said this investigation resulted in the largest amount of meth seized in Manitoba history.

RCMP WARNS AGAINST THE GLAMOUR OF MOTORCYCLE GANGS

Assistant Commissioner Jane MacLatchy, commanding officer of the Manitoba RCMP, said people need to be aware of motorcycle gang members.

“Despite what they want you to believe, outlaw motorcycle gangs such as the Hells Angels are criminal organizations whose illegal activities cause harm and victimization across Canada,” said MacLatchy.

MacLatchy said motorcycle gangs are heavily involved in the drug trade as well as fraud, money laundering and the sex trade.

She urged Manitobans to gain knowledge about motorcycle gangs and to try and keep young people away from them as they have a direct correlation to the meth problem in the province.

JUSTICE MINISTER THANKS RCMP FOR SERVICE

Justice Minister Cliff Cullen said he thanks all of those who were involved in the investigation.

Cullen added there are four important takeaways from this investigation.

“First of all, by seizing this volume of illicit drugs it will have a net positive impact to many families here in Manitoba,” said Cullen. “Two, by making the arrests it will impact the chain and flow of illicit drugs into Manitoba as well.”

“Three, there is consequences for criminal activity, and we appreciate this by the number of arrests made.”

“Four, in addition, there is money and goods recovered. These goods and this money can be used as proceeds of crime, to be put back to front line police operations, so we can reinvestigate that money to fighting the bad guys.”

SOURCE: CTV News

Pulsating Paula passes away

New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA (December 4, 2019) — Born in Jersey City, New Jersey on October 17 in 1954, Paula Rearden moved to New Brunswick when she was just 8 years old . Known in the Biker world as Pulsating Paula, her photographs of New Jersey bikers in the 1980's and 1990's seeped with authenticity and fun.

Paula once said, “Got married to my first lay in 1973. 10 years later he bought me a camera, a Canon AE1. I still have it."

She started taking photos of biker parties and tattoo events and she sent them into ‘Biker Lifestyle’ magazine who later Paisano publications took over. They came out with ‘Tattoo’ magazine first of it’s kind ever.


Between the Biker and Tattoo magazines she had thousands of photos published.

The 10 minute set up of her photography studio consisted of 2 flood lights that burnt the shit out of any poor person in front of them, and a 6×9 foot black cloth she got from Kmart that was tacked onto a wall.

She never considered herself professional, ever. She just loved doing it with every fiber in her body.

She knew the wonderful people she met by name and places she has been in her journey will live on forever in her photographs. many of us are so glad that we were there with you.

Pulsating Paula was on the East Coast documenting bikers from her point of view. What is so compelling about her photography is that her photos bleed honesty, passion and a high level of respect for her subjects.

Thank you Paula for all you have done to preserve our life and history, Rest In Peace ole' friend