This puts in jeopardy 126 people for a random whack-job going through the list and deciding what they can do" about it. Of all the people sitting in Allegheny County, why put me in there? This is very, very disturbing," said the attorney whose name was on the list. Whether it's accurate or not, the snitch list is troubling to police, prosecutors and jail officials and terrifying to many people who have discovered friends, neighbors and relatives listed on it. Local law enforcement officials said they recognized the names of a number of people who have testified or given information to authorities and the names of inmates serving state or federal sentences who might share information in return for a lighter sentence. THESE FOLKS ARE OUT TO GET PEOPLE LOCKED UP!!" The warning taps into language that's become increasingly prevalent in crime-ridden neighborhoods: "STOP DA KILL'N, STOP DA SNITCH'N, STOP EVERYTHING." The anonymous author does not suggest what readers should do, only what they shouldn't do: "PLEASE DON'T TRUST NOBODY. Also listed are a veteran criminal defense attorney, two outreach workers in a county program and six people who are dead, five of those the victims of homicide. Named on the list are confidential police informants, crime victims who have testified or planned to testify, and prison inmates who have testified or planned to testify against co-conspirators or former cellmates. The writer's apparent purpose was to spread the list around, sending out copies with inmates headed to state correctional facilities and getting other county jail inmates to mail them to friends on the outside. ![]() Police and Allegheny County Jail administrators believe a jail inmate compiled the list of purported "snitches" - people who have cooperated with authorities by reporting crimes, giving information on others, or testifying - which they say is the most comprehensive they have ever seen. "THESE INDIVIDUALS HAVE SNITCHED ON SOMEONE IN THEIR LIFES." ![]() "THESE INDIVIDUALS ARE NOT TO BE TRUSTED BY NO ONE ON THE STREETS AT ALL," it says above a sketch of a rat nibbling on a hunk of cheese. By Gabrielle Banks Pittsburgh Post-GazetteĪLLEGHENY COUNTY - A crudely typed list of 126 names began circulating hand-to-hand last week in several city neighborhoods.
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