#westgate event

[probablyasocialecologist]

In November, the Communist Party of Kenya organised a demonstration that was disrupted by the police. Vigils, workshops, and teaching events have popped up all over Nairobi, and boycotts of Israeli-owned businesses have begun to take priority for an increasing number of people. Gathimba is a part of several advocacy organisations, including one called Kenyans for Palestine, which has organised Palestinian film screenings, created infographics to help identify brands to boycott, and called for government actions. It is now urging the Kenyan grocery delivery platform Greenspoon to drop Israeli-owned products. Members are also educating friends and family about the nuances of the conflict. But a boycott is more difficult than it may appear. Israeli-owned businesses occupy many street corners in Kenya’s capital. The wildly popular Artcaffe coffee and casual dining chain and the bustling shopping centre, Westgate Mall, are owned and operated by Israeli-owned companies. There are also other influential businesses with slightly less name recognition, like the agricultural company Amiran Kenya. These Israeli-owned and supported institutions are a part of Kenyan life, so much so that few are aware of this connection. Even some of those who know, have been least bothered. Many Kenyans and indeed Africans have looked away from the conflict, preferring to focus on continental crises and seeing what is happening in the Middle East, as being far away from them. “[Many] Kenyans tend to think that [the Israel-Palestine conflict] is far away from us,” said XN Iraki, a lecturer in economics at the University of Nairobi. “The attitude is to let people sort out their problems. Like the war between Russia and Ukraine, people don’t talk about it much.” But for those leading the boycotts and encouraging others to join, the parallels between Kenya’s colonial past and Palestine’s present predicament are too strong to ignore.

[kawaiiwitchy]

Vegas Reflections ❤️

Things I really enjoyed:

There’s Elvis stuff, history, and tribute artists literally everywhere!

I can’t wait to come back and stay at the Westgate, and there’s a tram from the hotel that will take you to the strip so you may not need a car!

There are weddings literally all day, everywhere, so you just see all these dressed up happy people all over lol. A lot of the chapels had Elvis themes too!

Some tips:

Vegas is very overwhelming, crowded, and loud so be prepared. Have your ear plugs, and prepare for a lot of traffic and crowds within your schedule!

If you’re not used to a dry desert climate, make sure you drink lots of water and bring your lotion!

The wind! There may be some super high wind days, so that may impact your plans.

Have cash because tipping is constant!

Check the event calendar for the city before you book your trip. This weekend there was a rock festival, and they were preparing for an upcoming Formula 1 race that literally goes through the city itself, so the roads were all sorts of fucked up. Vegas always has stuff I’m sure, but those events will impact you.

We didn’t get to tour Elvis’s dressing room at the Westgate, but they do have events where that’s included, so make sure to check their website for that type of event! I believe they have the Vegas Elvis Fest there annually, so that’s another event to add to the bucket list!

I imagine there’s an Elvis related spots list for Vegas somewhere online that I need to find. The chapel from Viva Las Vegas is very close to the famous welcome sign!

[chaoticbardlady99]

Lethal Woman (GN! Reader x Astarion)- Chapter One

Hello! This is my first fanfiction in a very long time so please be kind (I'm fragile)! I have played DND before, but I will be taking a few creative liberties. With the Deathbringer class, the ceremony for creating a Deathbringer is vague so I have based the ceremony on the Grey Warden ceremony (with creative liberties) in DA:O. Also with the mine (in background) think Markarth from Skyrim (Cidhna Mine). This is an Astarion x Reader based on my ongoing mental story that I am obsessed with and finally had to do something about it. I hope you enjoy!

Title is inspired by the song Dove Cameron sings. The picture of Astarion is is by @aristenfromwarsaw on Tumblr. Nightmask and Astarion’s tattoo are off the internet, the picture of Rowan is from my PlayStation lol!

Chapter Two

General INFOOOOOO:

Astarion x Gender Neutral! Reader. 

  The sex of the character is female so if I ever become brave enough to write smut, the smut will be male/female sex. Otherwise, the character will be going by They/Them pronouns. I will do my best to be consistent with this as I have not written a gender neutral character before! 

Trigger Warnings: mentions of Death, mentions of blood, mentions of torture, mentions of physical abuse, mentions of emotional abuse (not a lot)

Name: Rowan (I don’t care for Tav so I chose another Gender Neutral name)

Race: Half Drow Elf, red eyes, black hair, draconic sorcerer parents

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

Class: Rogue

Subclass:Night Mask Deathbringer

Background: You are a Night Mask Deathbringer hailing from the Underbelly of Westgate. You spent the first 5 years of your life living happily in a grove with your sorcerer mother and your mercenary father- until a group of Ravenger’s killed your father, lit your town on fire, and sold all the women and children to a mine outside of Westgate. You remained working in that mine in poor conditions with your mother until you were 9. Your mother hatched an escape plan, but she became ill and you had to escape on your own. You live on the streets scavenging for food and fighting off attackers until you are 13 years old. Dahlia, the leader of the Assassin’s in the Night Mask Guild was scavenging for someone to drink from when she came across you. Dahlia watches you- a scrappy, skinny, feeble little thing fight off three older boys as they attempt to steal your food and your tent. Dahlia intervenes when the boys manage to overthrow you- draining them completely and leaving them to die.. She offers you a warm bed and a promise that you will never be hungry. That you will become the scariest thing in the darkness. After devoting 5 years to the Night Masks, you were deemed appropriate to become an A class assassin by going through a painful rite to become a Deathbringer- not quite undead, but not entirely alive either. As a pseudo vampire, you have become a powerful assassin despite your general disdain for tasteless killing. The money is good, you have a roof over your head, and your belly is always full- who wouldn’t become a little morally flexible? While taking care of a contract in Baldur’s Gate, a strange ship comes flying towards you…...

Chapter 1: Rowan (you!)

   Your head is throbbing when the smell of fresh grass hits your nose. Jolting upright with a start, you wince and press your hands against your eyes- desperately trying to get the black spots to fade away. 

What in the hells happened?

 You rub your eyes and slowly blink your way back into focus. You smell the stench of burning and look around to try to identify the source. 

  You survey the landscape and find that you are in the woods next to a stream with a precarious light shining brightly behind a large rock. Turning your head again, you see dark smoke coming up from somewhere beyond the trees. 

Suddenly, the events of the last 24 hours begin to replay in your head.

   The Nautiloid. La’Zeal. Shadowheart. Oh gods they are going to kill each other if I don’t find them quickly.

    You had met the two women on the Nautiloid when that thing put a disgusting, worm in your head. In response to your contempt, the worm wiggles behind your eye to make it’s presence known. 

   Despite how well you had fought together, the other two women had made it very clear that they had no intention of “bonding in the name of womanhood” as Dahlia would say as she whipped you for insubordination. It was hardly bonding- unless you count thick leather and your bareskin. 

   Slowly you get to your feet and test out your balance. Solid. All is well and there isn’t a single scratch on you. A sigh of relief leaves your mouth. Patting yourself down, you find that your daggers are still intact and your two hidden blades are not broken. Testing them, you watch as they slide smoothly out of your wrist guards and follow the curve of your index fingers. You smirk.

      Excellent, now time to make sure the glowing rock won’t kill me.

     You creep along the forest floor, barely making a peep as you approach the rock. You hear the sound of a woman groaning. You reach for your daggers as you go around the rock, brandishing your weapons- only to see a Tiefling woman on GODS DAMN FIRE! 

       She offers you a tense smile.

 “That looks incredibly uncomfortable,” you say awkwardly. You wince at how scratchy your voice sounds. You were never really one for “friends” and preferred to rely on yourself. You were less likely to suffer from heartache and Dahlia had been less likely to beat you that way. She once found you and your crush, Tessa, making out in an alleyway. Tessa was a warlock in training at a local guild and you had quickly been consumed by your love for her at the age of 13.

“Becoming attached is a weakness. Falling in love is a weakness. You will do no such things girl. You are a divine monster in the making. You are not made for love, only death and servitude.”

Once you had been deemed a Deathbringer, she never tortured you again and you never attempted to get close to anyone out of fear that the beatings would start up again. You would obey and you would serve- that kept you safe. And Tessa? Well, Dahlia killed her.

 “Oh this?” the Tiefling says with a heavy breath, “I have never felt better.”

   The fire begins to settle around the Tiefling. She stares back at you with investigative eyes- your weapon already sheathed, your eyes giving away your weariness. 

   The Tieflings eyes glow with recognition, “Well fuck me! It’s you! From the Nautiloid. Pleaseeeee tell me I found you before those so called ‘Paladins’ of Tyr did.” 

 She looks at you with desperation and nerves. You pretend to think about it, trying to assess the Tiefling’s posture and disposition. She appears to be friendly and open like a puppy- not what you would expect from someone who was just literally on fire and is now looking at you like they are on the verge of a panic attack.

  You shrug, “Fortunately for you, I have no idea what you are talking about.”

 The Tieflings beams at you with a happiness you never thought was possible in your presence. 

“We really shouldn’t spend too much time here. These so called paladins-”

The Tiefling is interrupted by the worm screaming visions into your heads. You see her on the front lines of the Blood War- scorching rage erupting from her being, but a sense of melancholy underneath. The mantra I will be free chanting in your head. 

  You feel your own vision come screeching into your head as she dives into your brain. You try to resist and control what she sees to the best of your ability, but she sees it. The ceremony that turned you into what you are. The way your body felt when Orbhak drank your blood. The radiating pain in your muscles as you try to keep yourself alive- resisting the urge to scream while your muscles cramp. The way he allowed your blood to drip slowly into your mouth from his wrist- your body aching to survive.

  She feels the way your new found power bursts through you- painful and like ice, your body numb. Then nothing.

   “What in the hells was that!?” 

      She matches your weary eyes with curiosity. You shrug, “I think it’s the tadpole,” you pause to fling your arms around to paint the worm (?) when she looks at you with confusion,  “The- Mindflayer? put it in our heads.”

You say it with a finality that even shocks you. You have a tadpole. In your head!

She stares at you with wide, unblinking eyes before she curses out loud.

    After further conversation, she tells you that her name is Karlach and she asks you to assist her in killing the people after her. You decide to help her kill the supposed “Paladins of Tyr” in exchange for assistance in finding Shadowheart and La’Zeal. The sooner the unwanted visitor is dealt with, the sooner you can go back to solitude and safety. There is safety in numbers after all.

       ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    You are setting up camp with Karlach as she vibrantly retells the day’s earlier events.

 “And your eyes!” She exclaims, looking at you in wonder, “A single change of color and you had that man PISSING himself in fear!”

     Karlach cackles as you give her a wide, appreciative smile. You never felt like your ability was something that others would find acceptable or in this case, admirable. The praise itself was uncomfortable, but your soul aches to bask in it- to feel something other than loathing. After the battle, Karlach had basically begged you to explain what you are and how you became so “magestic” as she put it. Despite your better instincts, you trust her and find that you actually enjoy her company. She takes your whole “not quite alive” thing very well.

Karlach is intelligent and quick. Her smile is infectious as she preached her love for being free from Avernus as they set up camp.

 You smile to yourself sadly, “I guess I haven’t ever actually used my vampiric stare on myself so I have no idea what you are talking about.”

   She stares at you and leans forward across the log, “Your eyes, they go from being bright like the earth to red like blood.”

 Ah. you thought, begrudgingly, my inner murderer is showing.

  Embarrassingly enough, you never looked so you didn’t know. You didn’t really care to look either- the hype wearing off after the first 6 months before you learned to use your stare.  5 and a half years later and you feel apathetic towards your condition. You often wonder if you could have been powerful without the whole “immortal, spooky semi-vampire thing”. 

    You push that thought aside as Karlach continues to highlight both of your best moments in combat. You chime in occasionally, finding your voice and your charisma deep within you- unaware of the individuals watching your camp.

[redbreastedbird]

hello! when i was nine i went to blackwells in westgate and wnt to a mmu event. i met you and took a picture with you (that i still have on my wall!) i just want to say how thankful i am for you writing queer and neurodivergent character representation even when i didnt know i needed it. murder most unladylike is my favourite book series, and there have defo been times when i wished i was with daisy and hazel and had the comfort that to me is in every one of your books. i feel so happy that i am seen and heard in my books and that it helps kids in the future like me. these books may have been read in an afternoon, but will have an impact for a lifetime. thank you.

This means so much to me. Thank you. It’s really strange to know the impact I have on the world as an author, and I never feel equal to it, but it does make me very happy.

[mastersoftheair]

Sorry but am I the only one that thought that episode…sucked? Like it was straight up bad. Horrible pacing, no wrap up of all the random characters and plot lines they’ve thrown around all season (the tuskegee airmen, Westgates spying, literally all the guys beside like the main 4). (Seriously it makes me so mad that the three redtails got all of 5 seconds of screen time, almost no lines. Literally what was the point of introducing them other than to pretend the show was iNcLuSiVe) Even at the end of BoB and the Pacific you get a much better idea of what happened to all the remaining guys. In this they’re like what happened to DeMarco or Hambone or Brady or (insert character here) we don’t know! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The concentration camp scene felt shoehorned in compared to how it was done in BoB. Unless that actually happened to Rosie (which i haven’t heard anything about) but it was just like.. ok? It all felt so rushed and emotionless to me. Maybe I’ve just fallen out of love with MoTA but it’s been downhill for me since episode 6 or so.

i already made a little (read: long) post-finale write-up here, where i talk about the use of the tuskegee airmen, l'sandra, and overall editing/pacing issues i felt the show had. but i don't agree with the notion that adding the redtails was in any way insincere or trying to halfass being "iNcLuSiVe", i just think they suffer from this show's obvious time constraints. and to summarize what i wrote in my linked post, there's a limit to what white writers/directors/producers can do when creating a story about black people. there are some stories i'd feel uncomfortable with them telling on their own, truth be told. dee rees wasn't the sole nonwhite director, but she Was the only black one. i think she did her job well given the limitations and i appreciate that they let her direct those episodes, rather than leaving it up to a team of white people trying their best to tell a black story.

the worst i can say about the finale is that it didn't feel like That strong of finale, tho i wouldn't go as far to say it "sucked" or call it "straight up bad". i liked it plenty, it's just the weakest of the hbo war finales imo.

as for the concentration camp scene, artistic license was taken with both shows. unlike what's seen in the BoB, easy company wasn't the first to arrive at kaufering, and there's 0 mention of the all-japanese american 552nd who helped them liberate it). similarly, rosie rosenthal did assist in liberating those camps, though it would've been after the events shown this episode. idk if he saw one in that up-close way seen in this episode, but he could've (i should research this when i have time). plus, it would've felt weird Not having him acknowledge them at all. "shoe-horned" is an odd term to use here imo, as both scenes more-or-less center a jewish character (BoB's liebgott and MotA's rosie). the former show has survivors the characters can help, the latter shows no one left to help. the former has all of easy company there, the latter has rosie there all alone. rosie's scene felt deeply personal in that way. at the end of the day, both scenes are communicating different things. that doesn't make one better than the other when they aren't trying to be identical. (disclaimer, i'm not jewish, so i'd be interesting hearing from the perspective of someone who wrt whether or not they felt it was "shoe-horned")

i can understand if you've disliked the show post-episode 6 (and episode 6 was a very strong episode i'm ngl). eps 7 and 8 were weaker in many ways, even to me, so i get it. everyone's entitled to their own opinion (i'd be a hypocrite saying otherwise). just understand that this blog is run by someone who overall enjoys this show despite its flaws! basically, i encourage you to take this energy and make your own posts.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Tim Dodd

Published: Apr 15, 2024

A charity that has helped almost 4,000 people with their mental health say some boys in the area are "suffering in silence".

TIC+ offers support and counselling, but said only 30% of those accessing its services were male.

The help available could make "life and death" differences in some cases, the Mitcheldean-based charity says.

Its outreach scheme is focusing on males aged nine to 25 in some of Gloucester's most deprived areas.

The Levelling Up Together initiative, launched by Gloucestershire County Council, will allow TIC+ to help tackle the disparity in those who access its service by introducing an outreach and engagement programme.

Formerly named Teens in Crisis, TIC+s targeted programme Boys in Mind operates in Barton & Tredworth, Kingsholm & Wotton, Podsmead, Tuffley, Westgate, and Cinderford.

In order to reach more young men, it wants to hear from community groups about events in the county where it can connect with youngsters who may not already know about the service.

"We want to know what's stopping you, why can you not reach out? Is it the stigma... is it just that you don't know that we're here?" was TIC+ Youth Outreach and Engagement Officer Kerryann's plea on BBC Radio Gloucestershire.

"This service is there, it's free... we've got the technology out there where it doesn't need to be face to face, it can be online, it can be through text messaging.

"And it's such a shame that these boys and young men are still suffering in silence."

The mental health of young people has been in the spotlight for a while, particularly in terms of the group's social media use.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has been accused of misleading the public about the risks of using social media and contributing to a mental health crisis among youth.

Meta argued in a federal case in the US that it provided "teens with safe, positive experiences online" and had "already introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families".

Anxiety, depression, isolation, and gang-related issues, were all issues that TIC+ could help with, Kerryann said.

"It can just make such a massive difference, in some cases you're talking literally life and death," she added.

The charity wants to level up mental health provision across disadvantaged areas to prevent deterioration in mental wellbeing and work towards reducing incidents of self-harm and suicidal thoughts among young men.

The TIC+ Boys in Mind project aims to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of mental ill health, ensure young males know about the support available, and to encourage them to seek help at an early stage to prevent issues becoming embedded in later life.

[ultrainfinitepit]

Hello Tumblr followers, I have very exciting news: I'll be vending at my very first convention this weekend! 

Friend Fest 2023, hosted by SJMade, will be on March 4 and March 5, 11 am to 5 pm, at the Westgate Shopping Center: 1600 Saratoga Ave #501, San Jose, CA; the event venue is located next to 49ers Fit. It is an indoor event, masks are highly recommended, and it will be free for you to attend. I'll be one of 100+ vendors, so there will be plenty of cool merch for you to browse!

Some new UltraInfiniteShop items will be debuting at Friend Fest, including prints, greeting cards, keychains, stickers, and a new item: pin hoops! And for any Owl House fans who will be in attendance, I'll be bringing some leftover seconds pins.

For everyone else, any leftovers of these new items will be made available with the March Etsy shop update, which will be after the event on March 6. Stay tuned for another missive once the shop is updated. 

Back to the convention news: here's the price list for what I'll have at Friend Fest, with discounts on almost everything over my online shop!

And in the spirit of friendship, you can buy a pair of pins for a discount so you and your bestie can share. AND I'll be giving away free postcard prints with every purchase, and a free Snacred Heart pin for every purchase of $20 or more (while supplies last). 

You can find me at booth 052.

I hope to see you there! Share with your friends in the Bay! See you soon!

[ladypepperofdavenshire]

The whole gang is finally here! Introducing The Westgate City Vigilantes!! They're a homegrown team of superheroes that Ben got stuck with acting as their leader (haha I managed to include some symbolism in this meme redraw)!

Top to bottom:

Amanda/Theia - 18 yo sorceress in training who is the sole survivor of another dimension that was destroyed (also my sister's oc!)

Ryan/Zeno - college dropout who can control and manipulate other people's powers. He has to rely on hand to hand combat a lot since he can't always use his powers against them

Monica/Element - on sabbatical from college; can control all the elements and has vague visions of future events. Also the daughter of Police Commissioner Stuart, who used to be a superhero in the '90s before hanging up his cape

Ben/Geist - 30-something yo who struggles to balance duties as a cop and vigilante stuff; has reality warping abilities along with "dimensional vision" (basically seeing into other dimensions on top of his own reality)

[vintagelasvegas]

Las Vegas Park Race Track, 1953

The track went bust after just 13 days of live racing in 1953, a failure of what was intended to merge the Las Vegas gambling and entertainment destination with the Thoroughbred racing boom. The site had sporadic, mixed use throughout the 60s and later became Las Vegas Country Club, Westgate, Regency Towers, and part of Las Vegas Convention Center.

Joe Smoot founded Las Vegas Park in ‘49, and acquired 750 acres from the estate of Leigh S. J. Hunt at $750/acre. The architects were Arthur Froehlich and Paul R. Williams. Construction began in summer of ‘50, and by the following year the business was bankrupt.

Smoot pleaded not guilty to a grand jury embezzlement indictment. In federal court, failing to produce receipts or canceled checks for $500,000 in missing money, he said: “You ever try to pay a politician with a check?”

Las Vegas Jockey Club, a new corporation headed by Lou Smith and Al Luke, emerged as the new owner and operator in early 1953. The park opened September 4, 1953. Their only season was married by faulty ticking and betting equipment. The stables were vacated in Oct. ‘53. Joe W. Brown bought the track following its second bankruptcy.

• Photos of Las Vegas Park Race Track

Las Vegas Turf Club was the second organization to use the track for horse racing. Their Dec. ‘54 season had poor attendance, as low as 400. Ten years later in ‘64 & 65, Las Vegas Park was used for the last time for Nevada Racing Association’s Thunderbird Downs. (The name Thunderbird Downs was also used for the half-mile track a short distance away at the Thunderbird Hotel.)

Throughout the 50s, the track – alternately known as Joe W. Brown Race Track – was also used for convention events and automobile racing: American Automobile Association Championship (‘54), NASCAR Grand National Championship (‘55), and the USAC Grand Prix (‘59). In the middle of the oval track two practice baseball fields were built for the Horseshoe Club midget baseball team and the Bank of Nevada team in the late 50s. In the early 60s, the track was used in the movie “Viva Las Vegas.”

Part of the property was sold to Clark County in ‘57 for the construction of the Convention Center. Joe W. Brown’s estate sold the remaining property to National Equities Inc. in ‘65 for the creation of what became Las Vegas Country Club. National Equities sold some 60 acres to Kirk Kerkorian for The International Hotel; 20 acres to Clark County for an expansion of the Convention Center; the southeast section was saved for what would be come Regency Towers.

• Video: construction and opening of Las Vegas Park in 1953

Photos: Las Vegas News Bureau; Keeneland Library Thoroughbred Times.

Sources. Work to Begin on Las Vegas Park Stand. Review-Journal, 5/26/50; B. Dow. “Sports Snorts.” Review-Journal, 7/21/50; Vegas Park Story of Accomplishment. RJ 9/4/53; Big Car Race. Review-Journal, 5/23/54; Vegas Race to Preview 500 Dash? Review-Journal, 11/7/54; Sad Ending: Turf Club Scratched. Review-Journal, 12/6/54; Vegas Track Mark of 95 MPH Might Fall Under Stocks. Review-Journal, 10/16/55; Home Show Opens Tonight at the Race Track. Review-Journal, 6/12/57; 250-Mile Grand Prix Set for Vegas Today. Review-Journal, 11/29/59; J. Price. “A Dream of Horse Racing that became a Nightmare.” The Nevadan, 2/6/66; R. Miech. A sad saga: horse racing in Las Vegas. Las Vegas Sun, 4/29/2008; J. Lowe. The lavish Las Vegas racetrack that went bust in 13 days. Thoroughbred Racing, 2/25/2019; J. Warren, 2021. The Path of the Shield.

Updated 11/25/2024.

[offender42085]

Post 0590

Karl Bruce Westgate, Florida inmate V44886, born 1995, incarceration intake in 2015 at age 19, sentenced to 25 years, died in custody 2015 after 48 days of incarceration

Burglary, Grand Theft, Traffic in Stolen Property, Lewd Conduct with a person under the age of 12

Karl Westgate, the 19-year-old Palm Coast resident sentenced in summer 2015 to 25 years in prison for molesting an 11-year-old girl, died in prison 48 days after his incarceration, and five weeks after writing a Flagler County judge to say that his plea had been coerced, and that he wanted his case re-opened.

Nothing was done by the court system or the public defender’s office—which had defended Westgate—after receiving his letter: Reginal Nunnally, his public defender, was shocked to learn of his death—from a news reporter—and had to take a moment to collect herself before addressing matters related to the case when asked about it.

Westgate was sentenced by Circuit Judge J. David Walsh. Until then, he had spent 221 days at the Flagler County jail, time that was credited to his sentence. He was then sent through the Florida prison system ending up in the East Unit of Apalachee Correctional Institution, a 1,322-bed prison for minimum and medium-security inmates off of I-10 just to the west of Tallahassee. The Department of Corrections records his death as taking place on July 16, or three days before his 20th birthday. 

“They call it prison justice,” said the victim's father, Daniel Westgate. “He was a dead man the minute they sentenced him.”

Prison officials would not detail anything surrounding his death. “The Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) Office of Inspector General (OIG) is proactively working with FDLE to provide investigatory assistance,” the Department of Corrections’ communications office wrote to local media in an email. “The Department will employ all available resources to ensure that a thorough investigation is completed. As this is an open and active criminal investigation, this is all of the information available at this time.”

But a week after the initial publication of the events in local media, a prison official said that although the medical examiner’s report has not yet been released, “it’s not entirely accurate to say that he was killed,” but rather, that “he died while incarcerated.” The implication is that Westgate took his own life.

Daniel Westgate–his father– and Westgate’s sister, however, say that Daniel had received letters from his son saying that his life was being repeatedly threatened, that in his last letter he said he’d asked to be placed in protective custody. The request was rebuffed.

Westgate was convicted on a series of sex crimes resulting from his relationship with an 11-year-old girl that entailed his sending her lewd pictures of himself, coercing her into sending naked pictures of herself, and subsequently visiting her at her home and raping her in her bedroom. He continued the rape even as the victim tried to push him off and complained of pain.

Inmates serving sentences for sex crimes against children, particularly very young children, are at a notoriously high risk to be themselves the victims of violence or murder by other inmates, who rank child-sex offenders at the lowest rung of the prison hierarchy, along with snitches. In November 2014, William Dillow (Florida inmate D45679), a 27-year-old man serving 45 years for raping two prepubescent girls–his girlfriend’s daughters–was murdered at Jefferson Correctional Institution, an 1,179-inmate prison in Monticello, just east of Tallahassee. The girlfriend, Rhonda Wilkerson (Florida inmate V45955), is serving 50 years.

According to the Department of Corrections, at the time of Westgate’s death; 40 inmates have been victims of homicides in the prior 5 years in Florida prisons, not including some 300 pending cases. The homicides are not explained.

Westgate had had a troubled life before his final incarceration. He’d been charged with burglary, theft, and fraud in the two years before his arrest on the sex charges.

He was sentenced wholesale to five years for burglary, five years for grand theft, 15 years for dealing in stolen property, 25 years for lewd and lascivious molestation of a girl younger than 12, five years for transmitting lewd materials to a minor, 15 years for use of a child in a sexual performance, and 25 years for lewd and lascivious molestation of a person younger than 12 (all to be served concurrently), followed by life on sex-offender probation and the designation as a sexual predator.

On June 6, 2015, Westgate wrote Judge Walsh. He claimed that since his incarceration at Apalachee, “I have not been able to contact my public defender or family to get any legal materials, or do any case work or start an appeal in my case. I would like to withdraw my plea and go fully through trial. I have reason of insufficient counsel, I have a wrong sentence, and was coerced into my plea.”

An inmate who tendered a plea may, under various circumstances, do what Westgate was requesting even after being sentenced.

He could have been out after serving 80 percent of his sentence, in early 2035, when he would have been 40: still young enough to have a life.

At the his sentencing hearing, the proceeding was routine.  Near the end of the proceeding, with the judge seemingly done and the bailiffs were readying to take Westgate’s fingerprints and DNA sample, he leaned over and whispered something in the ear of Regina Nunnally, his attorney and public defender.

There is one other thing, Nunnally told the judge. Westgate was requesting a furlough.

He wanted five hours to go to his family’s house. He would take a sheriff’s deputy’s escort. His family would pay for the escort, Nunnally said. He just wanted to go home, she did not explain for what, “for a period of time, and then back.”

The judge did not think about it. “I can’t allow that,” he said.

2u

Last reviewed October 2024

[themculibrary]

Nick Fury Masterlist 2

part one

a direct phone line to a mob boss (ao3) - lilyfarseer clint/phil E, 13k

Summary: Clint, in a quest for coffee, accidentally stumbles into a mob turf war and saves a mob boss named Nick Fury. Fury gives Clint an IOU in the form of a cell phone with instructions for Clint to call if he ever wants to cash in a favor. After a decade of unfortunate events, Clint accidently types, “I want to be happy”. From there, a strange number of things start occurring, starting with a text back of “Understood”, and followed by a series of strange happenstances. Then there is that really handsome guy whose apartment he accidentally crashed into with big blue eyes who sometimes asks Clint, “Are you happy?” Which really, what exactly is Clint supposed to say to him?

Agent Fury, Director Fury, Fury Nicholas J, Nick (ao3) -  R_o_x_x_a_n_n_e G, 907

Summary: Nick Fury tries to cope with Maria Hill's death, the new threats in his world and his own vulnerability.

And a game of chess

all the days of our lives, phase 1 (ao3) - ElrondsScribe pepper/tony, jane/thor, clint/laura, ian/darcy, wanda/vision, sharon/steve, bucky/natasha N/R, 41k

Summary: An Avengers-watch-their-own-movies fanfiction. I know it’s been done before, but I wanted to try it with a more expansive audience. In addition to all the Avengers (both retired and active) you’ll find Nick Fury, Maria Hill, Laura Barton, Betty Ross, Helen Cho, Jane Foster, Darcy Lewis, and even Ian Boothby.

Post Captain America: Civil War. AU, obviously. All ships in the tags. Please do enjoy! Warning: there will be a bit of language.

First up: Captain America: The First Avenger

a place to lie low (ao3) - Sholio T, 5k

Summary: Two separate Hydra-hunting missions converge, and Nick Fury and Sitwell end up getting Sam out of a tight spot. Looks like they’re all going the same way for a while.

avengers at disney world (ao3) - ctxrover clint/natasha, steve/bucky T, 70k

Summary: Fury’s fed up of the Avengers not behaving like a team, so he’s sending them on a bonding trip to Disney World with Hill as their babysitter. Meanwhile, Coulson rarely gets to spend time with his kids so he takes them to Disney World. The problem? They’re going at the same time as the Avengers-who don’t know of Coulson’s survival. Some sort of AU. Clintasha. Some Stucky. Rated T.

avengers watch captain marvel (fanfiction.net) - Roxas Itsuka T, 30k

Summary: Called forth by an unknown being. The Avengers are made watch a movie about a hero who came not long before them. Fury and Goose present also. No pairing.

beneath the shadow of atlas (we’re all just chasing stardust) (ao3) - GrimRevolution G, 2k

Summary: Carol’s gone. She went back to space.

What the hell was Fury supposed to do about the alien cat?

Don't Bet With Nick Fury (ao3) - Westgate (Harkpad) clint/phil T, 1k

Summary: Phil loses a bit to Nick, and the payoff is more than annoying than a Duran Duran song from the 80s. He and Clint have to go to his High School reunion. It's a little bit Grosse Pointe Blank, it's a little bit badass Phil. Clint thinks the whole night is a success.

easy work for easy pay (ao3) - AustinB steve/bucky M, 45k

Summary: Bucky’s working his way back up through the ranks at S.H.I.E.L.D. after a mission took his left arm and Stark gave him a new metal one.

So when Fury tasks him with integrating the newly defrosted Captain Rogers into the 21st century, he jumps at the promotion.

magic isn’t the answer to everything (only some things) (ao3) - melonbutterfly loki/tony E, 25k

Summary: In which Tony is pregnant, everybody else isn’t (except for two weeks but it doesn’t count), Fury’s chair gets abducted, there’s some panicking, a little textspeak, some overprotectiveness, a lot of tuna, and no fainting.

Nick Fury (ao3) - untilweseeawingshot pepper/tony G, 1k

Summary: Fury pays a visit to the tower and suddenly gains a new friend.

nick fury is an asshole (ao3) - pastelfalcon phil/nick/melinda G, 417

Summary: Nick has been away for awhile and Phil is (understandably) pissed off about it. Melinda is, as always, the most level-headed.

Nick Fury's Missing Eye (ao3) - apollothyme bruce/clint, steve/tony G, 1k

Summary: Inspired by this memo where The Avengers form a band just to piss off Fury.

Service Dogs for Superheroes (SDfSH): Nick Fury (ao3) - literally_no_idea T, 3k

Summary: When Carol comes back to Earth, the first thing she does is meet with Nick Fury. Well, at least, that was the plan.

somewhere in the dark (ao3) - flipflop_diva steve/natasha E, 13k

Summary: In the weeks following the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers and Sam Wilson spend their days tracking down leads to the winter soldier’s whereabouts. But when Nick Fury shows up unannounced one night with the news that Natasha has gone missing, plans quickly change. And soon it becomes a race not only to find her but to figure out the circumstances around her disappearance. (And, of course, for Steve, it might be time to figure out how he finally feels about her.)

still life with flerken (ao3) - copperbadge G, 1k

Summary: Nick Fury: soldier, spy, strategist, cat dad.

the story behind the man: iron man 1 (ao3) - Anothershadow24 bruce/tony T, 34k

Summary: A year after the so called ‘Civil War’, the six original avengers, plus Sam, Wanda, Vision, Fury and Hill, get locked up on a room to watch a stack of films about one Tony Stark.

through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered (ao3) - indiefic E, 98k

Summary: Set post-Captain America: the Winter Soldier. Steve’s been lost since they thawed him out. When he discovers Peggy Carter is still alive, he’s even more lost. Sometimes reuniting with the love of your life isn’t happily ever after. Sometimes, it’s the very beginning of the hardest thing you’ve ever done.

((or, that one fic where Bucky’s medical records are missing. Tony thinks Fury’s growing super soldiers. Fury thinks Steve has an illegitimate daughter. Natasha knows a lot more than she’s saying. And everyone’s afraid of Peggy.))

Numerous flashbacks to the Captain America and Agent Carter timelines.

[dontuwishuwerehere]

Don't You Wish You Were Here Event Fic Collection

At the Door with Linus by Westgate (Harkpad) (Rated T, multichapter in progress) Summary: Hugo, Wallace, and Mei get a very unusual file: one of Linus Baker. It's a little sad because obvious reasons, but I promise it's a feel-good story. The "Major Character Death" tag is there because that's how the world of "Under The Whispering Door" works. Offscreen death. Lucy isn't having it, btw. If he can boil the seas, he can stop all of this, surely.

The Home in the Cerulean Sea by @house-in-the-cerulean-sea (Rated General Audiences, 2434 words) Summary: so this is for the don't you wish you were here event in celebration of thitcs's third birthday. It is the story but from the perspective of the house, which is also magic and sentient. You know, the usual. Basically I thought a house filled with so many magical people on what is essentially a magical island can't not be magic right? So what if it loves the people that live in it back?

Lucy's Macbeth by @davidbowielovesyou. (Rated T, 8218 words) Summary: For his seventh birthday, Lucy wishes to direct a play. So, with the help of Sal, he writes a script for everyone at Marsyas (plus J-Bone!) to perform Macbeth together under his direction. He also plays Lady Macbeth.

Magic Yet Unwritten by nyaaauuuu (Rated General Audiences, 3147 words) Summary: Zoe Chapelwhite has always been a little suspicious about Marsyas village. But she's been curious, too.

[see the collection on AO3]

[realestatewithkk]

Hiranandani Kavesar Thane | Embrace Luxury Living

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Hiranandani Kavesar Thane offers a luxurious and holistic living experience, combining modern comforts with a serene environment. Whether you're looking for a dream home for your family or a sound investment opportunity, Westgate by House of Hiranandani Thane is the perfect choice. Embrace a lifestyle of luxury, convenience, and community Welcome home.

[alcowarlock]

🏹Ellisiv Moenlund, her given name. Eruwaedhiel is her elven.🌿

She was adopted by former member of Iron Maidens, half-elven woman Mjöll, and her consort, ordinary, but skilled, human warrior William. Sometimes her adopted parents called her Ella.

She and her little sister Faelwen has uneven beauty and gorgeous longest fire-ginger hair in their native forests. Fae has piercing green, like emeralds, eyes, and Eru has "the amber in verdant, the amber in sun-glimmed fathom", as her father told her. Eruwaedhiel and her family catched by Cormanthor War, and fleed further into the forest, to the route to Dalelands, but little grove, where they had a temporary shelter, was destroyed by fire. All she could do back then, is grab her little sister and run away. As wooden elves, they both was learned to master the bow, but Fae still was too young to survive long road through the forests. So Eru got her luck, when she found tiny thorp and left little elf in front of the doors of pretty family she had observed for two days: they look worthy and kind enough. As she got sure that her sister got a new family, she continued her path, wipping tears. Long road led her to the Daleland, but even trance couldn't get over her emaciation, so she fell unconcious right before the little hut, not so far from closest village, where she woke up few days later and called Mjöll her new mother.

She don't know if her true parents alive, and the fire still comes into her nightmares. Ellisiv almost sure that her sister doesn't remember nor terrible events, nor herself – Fae was young enough back then.

Eru was very close with her adopted father – she learned him to master the bow, and he learned her to master the sword. Tender relations with her adopted mother gave her grace and lioness pride, and not without high skill of stealth and deadliness. But she missed her sister dearly and had to gather her strenght to return in search for her.

Many years passed, and her dear father William passed too. Mother, as half-elf, was getting old now. Although, as a proud scout she was, Mjöll resisted to let Eru "sit chained and change her dirty skirts", so they said their heavy goodbyes, and once again Ellisiv was on the road, wipping tears.

Yet, her searches challenged her a lot: tiny thorp, naturally, was long abandoned, and her scouts skills only led her further. Luckily, their similiarity had its power: in Westgate some people remembered a "sly red fox, stealed every purse by her fluffy paws", and Eru new she's on the right way.

Even if it way turned into a few months of wandering, until rumors and Trader's Road led her to the very Baldur's Gate. But she was too late, Faelwen gone missing almost 70 years ago. All Eruwaedhiel could find, is a gravestone, right near her long passed human parents. But of course her inner sisterhood and elven instincts resisted to take her death: Eru just knew that her little Fae still alive. Even if she wasn't "alive" technically.

[mysteamgreenccphoenix]

Unleash the Excitement at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, AZ

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Desert Diamond Arena offers more than just events—it delivers unforgettable memories. Whether you’re roaring with the crowd at a nail-biting game or swaying to your favorite tunes at a live concert, the atmosphere is electric. With its dedication to providing top-notch entertainment and guest experiences, it has firmly established itself as a must-visit destination in Glendale, AZ, offering something special for everyone.

[indoorverticalfarmingnews]

Indoor Ag-Con Announces 2025 Advisory Board Members

Key Takeaways: Indoor Ag-Con, the premier event for the greenhouse, vertical farming, and controlled environment agriculture (CEA) industry, has announced its 2025 Advisory Board. The Advisory Board will provide insights to shape the conference program, special events, and exhibition for the March 2025 edition. The event will take place March 11-12, 2025, at the Westgate in Las Vegas, with a…