Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/770340
ByKevinFreking The Associated Press WASHINGTON A Republi- can lawmaker removed a high school student's paint- ing from a Capitol Hill dis- play Friday because it shows a pig in a police uni- form, aiming a gun at Af- rican-American protesters. The image was inspired by the shooting and protests in Ferguson, Missouri. California Rep. Dun- can Hunter unscrewed the painting from a hallway dis- play that includes hundreds of works of art and returned it to the office of Democratic Rep. William Lacy Clay, who sponsored the work and rep- resents a St. Louis congres- sional district. Joe Kasper, a spokesman for Hunter, said "there's nothing appropriate" about the painting. He said the artwork was the subject of discussion when GOP lawmakers gathered for a morning caucus meeting. When Hunter left the meet- ing, he walked to the dis- play and took it off the wall. Hunter did not speak with Clay about the por- trait. Kasper said it was Clay's prerogative to return the painting to the display. A spokesman for Clay says the congressman was unavailable for comment. The painting showed a police officer taking aim at protesters with signs say- ing "history" and "stop kill." The police officer has an elongated face with tusks, much like a razorback pig. The background includes the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, a young black man looking out from prison bars. One of the figures also appears to show a protester as a wolf. Clay's website gives the following description of the artwork: "The painting por- trays a colorful landscape of symbolic characters repre- senting social injustice, the tragic events in Ferguson, Missouri, and the lingering elements of inequality in modern American society." In August 2014, a white police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, an un- armed black teenager, in Ferguson, setting off weeks of protests. Clay's office said Car- dinal Ritter College Prep High School Senior David Pulphus won the lawmak- er's 16th Annual Congres- sional Art Competition, and "his visually stunning acrylic painting on canvas entitled, 'Untitled #1' will be displayed at the U.S. Capitol Complex." Speaker Paul Ryan's office did not return a call seek- ing comment on whether he condoned Hunter's actions. Drew Hammill, a spokes- man for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Ca- lif., said Hunter "will soon realize that he's fallen down more than one rabbit hole." Hunter recently charged his campaign $600 to fly his children's pet rab- bit. Hunter paid back the money as part of more than $60,000 in other question- able charges, all self-identi- fied and self-reported. A tunnel leading to the Capitol is filled with paint- ings and other artwork done by students who en- ter them in the annual Con- gressional Art Competition. The nationwide competi- tion began in 1982 and stu- dents around the country submit entries to their rep- resentative's office. Panels of district artists select the winner from each district, and the winning works are displayed for one year. WASHINGTON Lawmaker removes art with pig in police uniform ZACHGIBSON—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS A painting by David Pulphus hangs in a hallway displaying paintings by high school students selected by their members of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington. By Don Babwin The Associated Press CHICAGO A judge rebuked four black people accused of beating a mentally disabled white man and broadcast- ing the attack on Facebook, sternly asking, "Where was your sense of decency?" be- fore denying their attor- neys' pleas to set bail so they might be released from jail. "I find each of you a dan- ger to yourself and soci- ety," Cook County Circuit Judge Maria Kuriakos Cie- sil said, sounding baffled that the suspects who hold jobs, attend school and, in one case, care for a brother in a wheelchair could be charged with attacking the 18-year-old victim. How, she wondered, could she agree to allow people accused of such "terrible actions" to walk out of jail? Prosecutors offered new details of the assault, ex- plaining that one of the sus- pects demanded $300 from the mother of the victim, who is schizophrenic and has attention-deficit disor- der, and that the beating started in a van and con- tinued at a house. A prosecutor told the judge that the suspects forced the victim to drink toilet water, kiss the floor and then allegedly stuffed a sock into his mouth and taped it shut as they bound his hands with a belt. The four are charged with two counts of com- mitting a hate crime — one because of the victim's race and the other because of his mental disabilities. The beating was cap- tured on cellphone video by one of the assailants and has since been viewed mil- lions of times on social me- dia. On the video, the male suspects use knives to cut the victim's hair and his sweatshirt with a knife. One of the females can be seen laughing. A female also laughs as she punches the victim. One of the men pulled the cord from the victim's sweatshirt around the vic- tim's neck and held him up while the victim was groan- ing in pain, according to a document read in court. The victim could be heard screaming when one of the men walked up to him with a knife and asked if he should "shank" him. The video also showed the suspects taunting the victim with profanities against white people and President-elect Donald Trump. At one point, the prose- cutor said, someone on the video can be heard saying that he did not care if the victim was schizophrenic. All of this started, ac- cording to prosecutors, when Hill became angry that the victim's mother had contacted him asking that her son be allowed to return home. The four suspects were identified as Brittany Cov- ington and Tesfaye Cooper, both of Chicago, and Jor- dan Hill, of suburban Car- pentersville. All are 18. A fourth suspect was identi- fied as Covington's 24-year- old sister, Tanishia Coving- ton, also of Chicago. They stood quietly as the prosecutor read the allega- tions. Some of their rela- tives listened to the allega- tions, including a woman who wiped tears from her eyes. Defense attorneys por- trayed the suspects as hard- working, responsible and re- ligious. Cooper, for example, was taking care of his twin brother, who is in a wheel- chair. Tanishia Covington has two small children. Her sister attends college and has a job. Hill, the judge was told, goes to church with his grandmother. All four have experienced brushes with the law, some for serious and violent crimes. Hill, for example, was ar- rested as a juvenile in 2015 on allegations of armed rob- bery, possession of a stolen vehicle and residential bur- glary. Chicago police said they did not know the dis- position of those arrests by suburban officers. CHICAGO Su sp ec ts i n be at in g of d is ab le d ma n ap pe ar i n co ur t; ju dg e de ni es ba il ASHLEE REZIN — SUN TIMES Family members of Brittany Covington and Tanishia Covington, le , and right, leave the Leighton Criminal Court Building in Chicago Friday. 6,159fans+24 this week Facebook Page YOU'LL LIKE WHAT YOU SEE ..andgrowing,everyweek! Daily News Facebook fans receive special posts of breaking news, sports, weather and road closures, clicking right to full stories and photos published on redbluffdailynews.com ... 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