Woman wins RSPCA will challenge

--Dr Gill said she always knew she would win her legal challenge-- A woman who contested her parents' will after they left their £2.34m estate in North Yorkshire to the RSPCA has won her legal battle. Christine Gill, 58, claimed her father forced her mother into making the will and she had been assured many times she would inherit Potto Carr Farm. Judge James Allen QC, at a High Court hearing in Leeds, ruled she would inherit the estate near Northallerton. The RSPCA said it was "very surprised" and "disappointed" and would appeal. Dr Gill, an only child, told the court she had devoted many years to helping out on the farm. 'Avowed dislike' In his judgement, Judge James Allen QC said it would be "unconscionable" if she did not inherit the estate. He found that Dr Gill's mother Joyce had been "coerced" by her husband John into making a will that was contrary to her wishes as she had an "avowed dislike" of the charity. He said that Mrs Gill had wanted her daughter to inherit the farm but Mr Gill had exerted pressure over his wife to favour the RSPCA. The judge agreed with expert evidence heard during last year's hearings that Mrs Gill suffered from agoraphobia and severe anxiety. Judge Allen described Mr Gill as a "bully" and a "domineering" and "determined" man. The judgement read: "The court is satisfied that having made his decision Mr Gill exerted pressure upon Mrs Gill to make the will, which she did which was contrary to her wishes." It continued: "He directed his domineering and bombastic personality to Mrs Gill, utilising her anxiety and fear of his explosive character and of the possibility of her losing her support upon which she was so dependent to coerce her into making the will which she did." 'Difficult position' Previous hearings were told how, after her mother's death in 2006, Dr Gill, from Northallerton, discovered her parents had made wills leaving their 287-acre farm to each other and then to the animal charity when both died. This was despite Dr Gill having been given repeated assurances that she would inherit the estate when her parents died. The hearings were told how the Leeds University lecturer had devoted most of her spare time over a period of more than 30 years to voluntarily helping out at the farm. When Mr Gill died in 1999, aged 82, Dr Gill was left to look after her mother and run the farm. It was only when her mother died in 2006, also aged 82, that she saw the will, which left everything to the RSPCA. The RSPCA said it planned to appeal against the judgement. It said in a statement: "Throughout this, the RSPCA has been in an extremely difficult position. "The will left by Dr Gill's parents was very clear - in one sentence they left their entire estate to the RSPCA, and in the next they said their daughter should receive nothing. "In that situation the RSPCA cannot just walk away, in fact we are legally obliged to seek the funds under charitable law. "That said, we are a compassionate organisation, and that's why we've tried to settle this matter amicably before it even came to court. Unfortunately our offers were rejected." The charity said the case highlighted the importance of people discussing their intentions with family when making a will. (my view)-WTF...YOU CAN TELL SHE IS A LIAR,SHE HAS HER OWN PLACE,SHE IS TO GREEDY AND WANTS HER PARENTS HOUSE!THATS IT,JUST LOOK AT HER FOR A SEC.......NOW TELL ME SHES NOT GREEDY!WHY DIDN'T SHE SAY ANYTHING BEFORE THEY DIED?...BECAUSE NOW THEY ARE DEAD THEY CAN'T FIGHT OR SAY SHES A LIAR......THIS STORY PISSES ME OFF SORRY KIDS but what a lying greedy fugly bitch....and to rip off the RSPCA......she don't give a flying fuck about noone but her own self

Parents 'should supply alcohol'

Parents could help keep their teenagers away from drink-fuelled violence and sex by giving them a weekly alcohol allowance, a study has suggested. A third of those polled had experienced violence when drunk and 12.5% reported sexual encounters they regretted. University researchers questioned nearly 10,000 15 to 16-year-olds in the north-west of England. They got into trouble more when buying their own cheap alcohol, rather than getting access from parents, it found. Carefully introducing alcohol to children may help them "prepare themselves for life in an adult environment dominated by this drug", said the study. 'Increase prices' Study leader Professor Mark Bellis, from Liverpool John Moores University, said the negative impacts of alcohol on children's health were "substantial". "Those parents who choose to allow children aged 15 to 16 years to drink may limit harm by restricting consumption to lower frequencies - for example, to no more than once a week - and under no circumstances permitting binge drinking. "However, parental efforts should be matched by genuine legislative and enforcement activity to reduce independent access to alcohol by children and to increase the price of cheap alcohol products." In similar studies done by the university in 2006 and 2007 researchers concluded that teenagers who drank alcohol with their parents in moderation were less likely to binge drink. In 2008 their results showed that teenagers were drinking an average of 44 bottles of wine or 177 pints of beer a year each. This year's survey found that teenagers who relied on obtaining their own supplies of cheap alcohol were much more likely to be involved in violence and other forms of bad behaviour. As well as those reporting violence and sexual encounters they regretted, some 35.8% of the teenagers had drunk in public places like parks and shopping centres and 45.3% had suffered forgetfulness after drinking. Researchers said that while no teenage drinking was risk-free, the way teenagers got hold of alcohol made a big difference to the harm caused. Just under 20% of teens who drank once a week and were supplied with alcohol by their parents had been involved in violence when drunk. The proportion getting into fights rose to 36% for those drinking as often, after obtaining alcohol by other means. International threat A strong link was found between the availability of cheap drinks and alcohol-related violence, "regretted" sex, and drinking in public places. Large bottles of cheap cider were particularly associated with drinking in public, while relatively expensive alcopop-style drinks were less of a significant problem, said researchers. Writing in the journal BMC Public Health, they warned that parents who tried to impose alcohol bans might only shift the problem away from the family into the street. They added: "Our results suggest that such a move, even if overall consumption did not increase, could exacerbate negative outcomes from alcohol consumption among teenagers." "Despite much of the chronic burden of alcohol-related disease falling on adults, the foundations of such damage are often established in childhood," they added. In their paper the scientists said alcohol had emerged in recent decades as "one of the major international threats to public health" (my view)-WTF........they are saying the parents SHOULD turn their kids on/into alcoholics!!!what is the would fucking coming to?

Paper battery offers future power

Flexible paper batteries could meet the energy demands of the next generation of gadgets, says a team of researchers. They have produced a sample slightly larger than a postage stamp that can store enough energy to illuminate a small light bulb. But the ambition is to produce reams of paper that could one day power a car. Professor Robert Linhardt, of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, said the paper battery was a glimpse into the future of power storage. The team behind the versatile paper, which stores energy like a conventional battery, says it can also double as a capacitor capable of releasing sudden energy bursts for high-power applications. While a conventional battery contains a number of separate components, the paper battery integrates all of the battery components in a single structure, making it more energy efficient. Integrated devices The research appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). "Think of all the disadvantages of an old TV set with tubes," said Professor Linhardt, from the New York-based institute, who co-authored a report into the technology. "The warm up time, power loss, component malfunction; you don't get those problems with integrated devices. When you transfer power from one component to another you lose energy. But you lose less energy in an integrated device." The battery contains carbon nanotubes, each about one millionth of a centimetre thick, which act as an electrode. The nanotubes are embedded in a sheet of paper soaked in ionic liquid electrolytes, which conduct the electricity. The flexible battery can function even if it is rolled up, folded or cut. Although the power output is currently modest, Professor Linhardt said that increasing the output should be easy. "If we stack 500 sheets together in a ream, that's 500 times the voltage. If we rip the paper in half we cut power by 50%. So we can control the power and voltage issue." Because the battery consists mainly of paper and carbon, it could be used to power pacemakers within the body where conventional batteries pose a toxic threat. "I wouldn't want the ionic liquid electrolytes in my body, but it works without them," said Professor Linhardt. "You can implant a piece of paper in the body and blood would serve as an electrolyte." But Professor Daniel Sperling at University of California, Davis, an expert on alternative power sources for transport, is unconvinced. 'More difficult' "Batteries and capacitors are being steadily improved, but electricity storage is much more difficult and expensive than liquid fuels and probably will be so forever," he said. "The world is not going to change as a result of this new invention any time soon." Professor Linhardt admitted that the new battery is still some way from the commercial market. "The devices we're making are only a few inches across. We would have to scale up to sheets of newspaper size to make it commercially viable," he said. But at that scale, the voltage could be large enough to power a car, he said. However, carbon nanotubes are very expensive, and batteries large enough to power a car are unlikely to be cost effective. "I'm a strong enthusiast of electric vehicles, but it is going to take time to bring the costs down," said Professor Sperling. But Professor Linhardt said integrated devices, like the paper battery, were the direction the world was moving. "They are ultimately easier to manufacture, more environmentally friendly and usable in a wide range of devices," he said. The ambition is to produce the paper battery using a newspaper-type roller printer. "You can implant a piece of paper in the body and blood would serve as an"- Professor Robert Linhardtelectrolyte

Girl drowned 'as father kissed'

The married father of a toddler who drowned when her pushchair fell into the sea had let go of her buggy to kiss his girlfriend, an inquest has heard. Rebecca Hopper, two, from Chatham, was in a double buggy with her baby brother when they fell into the water at Warren Apron near Folkestone on 15 February. Andrew Hopper told the hearing at Ashford Magistrates' Court he had let go of the buggy "momentarily". The coroner recorded a verdict of accidental death. Pathologist Dr Irene Scheimberg told the inquest Rebecca had drowned and suffered several cardiac arrests during resuscitation attempts. Accident 'avoidable' At the time of the incident Mr Hopper and his wife Sarah lived together in Chatham. Mrs Hopper, who now lives in Dymchurch, was not with them at the time and said after the inquest that the accident could "easily have been avoided". Rebecca was airlifted to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, but died the same day. Her eight-month-old brother Lewis survived Mr Hopper, of Rochester, had taken his children to the coast with his girlfriend, Paula Anderson. A statement from Mr Hopper's interview with Kent Police was read out by coroner Rachel Redman during the inquest. The software engineer said: "We stopped. I said 'come here', or something like that and we kissed. "Momentarily I let go of the buggy and seconds into that kiss we heard a plop - it was like someone throwing a stone into the water. "We broke from that kiss and thought, 'what was that?' We both looked and saw the buggy had gone." 'Not strapped in' He said they jumped into the water with Mrs Anderson helping Rebecca while he went to the aid of Lewis. Passers-by then threw a rubber ring into the water. Mr Hopper said the children had not been properly strapped in and the buggy was floating on its side. Mrs Anderson told the inquest: "The event is very strange in my head. We struggled in the water, it was very cold and very deep." Asked by the coroner if the buggy's brake had been on, Mrs Anderson said as far as she knew, "no". A file containing information on the incident had been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, but it found no criminal offences to be prosecuted, the inquest heard. Following the hearing, a statement was read on behalf of Mrs Hopper, who chose not to attend the hearing. It said: "Rebecca was my beautiful baby girl and her brothers and I miss her every second of every day. "While today's decision will help us take the next step in our recovery, the accident which took my little girl's life could so easily have been avoided." "The inquest heard the buggy's brake was probably not on"(my view)---Yea think! derrrrrrrr! "A file containing information on the incident had been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, but it found no criminal offences to be prosecuted, the inquest heard-WTF......of course offences were made.....for 1 he took his hands off the pram...that was next to the sea.....drrrrrr! unfit parents and they don't sound to UPSET do they??? hence........their killers

A 15-year-old student at a special needs school get beaten up by a cop-for no reason

A 15-year-old student at a special needs school got a lesson in police brutality. Marshawn Pitts, who attends the Academy for Learning in the south suburb of Dolton, was slammed into a locker and thrown to the ground by an unidentified police officer as he was taking Pitts to the principals office for an untucked shirt. A security camera installed in one of the schools halls caught the entire confrontation, which ended with a broken nose for Pitts, who lay motionless while the officer sat on him. The fight allegedly broke out after the officer asked the student to tuck his shirt in, a policy enforced in the school. The boys attorney, Ed Manzke, says the video will help Pitts cause. Were fortunate that it [the beating] was caught on videotape, he told the Chicago Tribune. There is nothing [the officer] can say that could justify [the beating]. The video shows the police officer and the student walking down a hall. After saying something to a woman standing there, Pitts is violently pushed against the lockers by the officer, who then proceeds to pin the student to the floor. As the fight starts, students in adjacent classrooms try to walk out of class, but are blocked by other teachers. Once the student is on the floor, two other men run up to the officer, but its unclear if they were trying to block or help him.