12 Year-Old Pregnant Girl Keara Hess and Sister Sierra, 11, Missing After Stepfather, Mathew Hess, Leaves Note Saying He's Taking Them to School

SISTERS FOUND SAFE IN TENNESSEE!!!

The search has intensified for Sierra Hess, 11, and her sister Keara, 12, who is nine months pregnant, and have been missing since Thursday. According to the Charlotte Observer, Iredell Sheriff's Office Lt. Julie Gibson said the sheriff's office is under order to turn the girls over to the Department of Social Services when they are found. She also added that, "DSS was involved with the family before we were," Gibson said. She didn't know all the details, but at least part of the reason was Keara's "medical needs."

According to media reports, the girls are believed to be with their adoptive father, Matthew Hess, who left a note for the girl s' mother, saying he was taking them to school that day. The girls go to Lakeshore Middle School in Mooresville and are in sixth and seventh grades.

Besides the fact that it is a shame that a 12-year old child is pregnant, one has to wonder what the adoptive father's motivation for running off is? In any case, I am sure the facts will be revealed once they are found, and we hope, safe.

UPDATE#1: According to media reports, investigators think Matthew Hess may be driving a brown or tan 1993 Ford Explorer with North Carolina license plate YTE-8014. The back right passenger window is broken out and is covered with Plexiglass, which is duct-taped in place.

Anyone who sees Hess or the girls should call the Iredell County Sheriff's Office at 704-878-3100.

U.S. House passes 'Matthew Shepard Act' Hate Crimes Bill, as GOP Rep. Virginia Foxx Calls his Murder a "Hoax"

After steep opposition from the Republicans in the House of Representatives, the Matthew Shepard Act was passed. The bill will now make its way to the Senate, who will come up with its own version. I have no doubt that it will pass here as well, but I am sure with a great deal of opposition from the GOP.

The “Matthew Shepard Act.” The bill, which was introduced in 2007, was named after Matthew Wayne Shepard who died on October 12, 1998. He was twenty-one at the time of death. His killers are currently serving life behind bars. During the trial, witnesses said that Shepard was attacked because of his sexual preferences, which was a travesty and a hate crime.

The real drama came from GOP Representative Virginia Foxx of North Carolina who referred to Matthew Shepard's hate-motivated murder as "a hoax." Voters in her district need to note her incendiary comments about the bill and vote accordingly when she comes up for re-election. She owes the family and all other victims of hate-crimes an apology. This is a disgrace and she should be called out on it.

According to Reuters, , the vote passed through the US House by 249-175. That means one-hundred and seventy-five House Representatives had given their opposition to the bill, of which the Republicans had a large number of detractors. Opponents of the bill have said that it is discriminatory. In this piece, GOP Representative Trent Franks of Arizona said the bill puts equal protection in danger. He added that it destroys equality of protection amongst all groups. Really Trent Franks? So, I guess my question to him is what really constitute a hate crime?

Franks gave the argument that this bill if signed into law would undermine equal protection. He made the argument that handing out justice to perpetrators of a crime will end up depending on gender, ethnicity, sexual preferences, and so forth. So, I am guessing that the whole notion of a hate crime is moot to him and we should just sit by and watch people get hurt or even killed and just shrug our shoulders. Contrary to the flawed argument from the Republicans, this bill will strength civil rights protections.

Robert Stewart, 45, Faces Eight Counts of Murder, for Gun Rampage at North Carolina Nursing Home

Robert Stewart, 45, has done the unthinkable. He reportedly carried out a heinous attack on a nursing home, killing seven patients and a nurse at the Pine Lake Health and Rehab Center in Carthage, NC. It seems that these senseless rampages by armed thugs have been escalating in recent months. Thank God Stewart was shot by police and not killed. At least that what is being reported in the news. I pray this man will be able to stand trial for his actions.

Moore County District Attorney Maureen Krueger said that the slain patients ranged in age from 78 to 98. She said that Stewart, faces eight counts of murder and one count of felony assault on a police officer. I believe North Carolina is a death penalty state and he deserves that fate. Krueger said Stewart was not an employee of the nursing home nor did he appear to have been related to any of the patients.

Kreuger identified the residents who were killed as: Tessie Garner, 88; Lillian Dunn, 89; Jessie Musser, 88; Bessie Hendrick, 78; John Goldston, 78; Margaret Johnson, 89; and Louise Decker, 98. Jerry Avent, a nurse, also was killed. His age was not available. Krueger said Carthage police officer Justin Garner, 25, was injured, along with a visitor to the nursing home, 53-year-old Michael Cotton.

It has been reported that Stewart's wife works at the nursing home. His ex-wife, Ms. Griffin said Stewart had been recently reaching out to family members, telling them he had cancer and was preparing for a long trip and to "go away." Nonetheless, it was a barbaric crime and he deserves the death penalty for his actions. I hope this scumbag will face the music and succumb to his injuries, which would be the easy way out.