title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Lehi prisoners captured by the British generally refused to employ lawyers in their defence. The defendants would conduct their own defence, and would deny the right of the military court to try them, saying that in accordance with the Hague Convention they should be accorded the status of prisoners of war. For the same reason, Lehi prisoners refused to plead for amnesty, even when it was clear that this would have spared them the death penalty. Moshe Barazani, a Lehi member, and Meir Feinstein, an Irgun member, took their own lives in prison with a grenade smuggled inside an orange so the British could not hang them.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: In mid-1940, Stern became convinced that the Italians were interested in the establishment of a fascist Jewish state in Palestine. He conducted negotiations, he thought, with the Italians via an intermediary Moshe Rotstein, and drew up a document that became known as the "Jerusalem Agreement". In exchange for Italy's recognition of, and aid in obtaining, Jewish sovereignty over Palestine, Stern promised that Zionism would come under the aegis of Italian fascism, with Haifa as its base, and the Old City of Jerusalem under Vatican control, except for the Jewish quarter. In Heller's words, Stern's proposal would "turn the 'Kingdom of Israel' into a satellite of the Axis powers."


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: However, the "intermediary" Rotstein was in fact an agent of the Irgun, conducting a sting operation under the direction of the Irgun intelligence leader in Haifa, Israel Pritzker, in cooperation with the British. Secret British documents about the affair were uncovered by historian Eldad Harouvi (now director of the Palmach Archives) and confirmed by former Irgun intelligence officer Yitzhak Berman. When Rotstein's role later became clear, Lehi sentenced him to death and assigned Yaacov Eliav to kill him, but the assassination never took place. However, Pritzker was killed by Lehi in 1943.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Late in 1940, Lehi, having identified a common interest between the intentions of the new German order and Jewish national aspirations, proposed forming an alliance in World War II with Nazi Germany. The organization offered cooperation in the following terms: Lehi would rebel against the British, while Germany would recognize an independent Jewish state in Palestine/Eretz Israel, and all Jews leaving their homes in Europe, by their own will or because of government injunctions, could enter Palestine with no restriction of numbers. Late in 1940, Lehi representative Naftali Lubenchik went to Beirut to meet German official Werner Otto von Hentig. The Lehi documents outlined that its rule would be authoritarian and indicated similarities between the organization and Nazis. Israel Eldad, one of the leading members of Lehi, wrote about Hitler "it is not Hitler who is the hater of the kingdom of Israel and the return to Zion, it is not Hitler who subjects us to the cruel fate of falling a second and a third time into Hitler's hands, but the British."


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Stern also proposed recruiting some 40,000 Jews from occupied Europe to invade Palestine with German support to oust the British. On 11 January 1941, Vice Admiral Ralf von der Marwitz, the German Naval attaché in Turkey, filed a report (the "Ankara document") conveying an offer by Lehi to "actively take part in the war on Germany's side" in return for German support for "the establishment of the historic Jewish state on a national and totalitarian basis, bound by a treaty with the German Reich."


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: According to Yellin-Mor:Lubenchik did not take along any written memorandum for the German representatives. Had there been a need for one, he would have formulated it on the spot, since he was familiar with the episode of the Italian "intermediary" and with the numerous drafts connected with it. Apparently one of von Hentig's secretaries noted down the essence of the proposal in his own words.According to Joseph Heller, "The memorandum arising from their conversation is an entirely authentic document, on which the stamp of the 'IZL in Israel' is clearly embossed." Von der Marwitz delivered the offer, classified as secret, to the German Ambassador in Turkey and on 21 January 1941 it was sent to Berlin. There was never any response. A second attempt to contact the Nazis was made at the end of 1941, but it was even less successful. The emissary Yellin-Mor was arrested in Syria before he could carry out his mission.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: This proposed alliance with Nazi Germany cost Lehi and Stern much support. The Stern Gang also had links with, and support from, the Vichy France Sûreté's Lebanese offices. Even as the full scale of Nazi atrocities became more evident in 1943, Lehi refused to accept Hitler as the main foe (as opposed to Great Britain).


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: On 6 November 1944, Lehi assassinated Lord Moyne, the British Minister Resident in the Middle East, in Cairo. Moyne was the highest ranking British official in the region. Yitzhak Shamir claimed later that Moyne was assassinated because of his support for a Middle Eastern Arab Federation and anti-Semitic lectures in which Arabs were held to be racially superior to Jews. The assassination rocked the British government, and outraged Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister. The two assassins, Eliahu Bet-Zouri and Eliahu Hakim were captured and used their trial as a platform to make public their political propaganda. They were executed. In 1975 their bodies were returned to Israel and given a state funeral. In 1982, postage stamps were issued for 20 Olei Hagardom, including Bet-Zouri and Hakim, in a souvenir sheet called "Martyrs of the struggle for Israel's independence."


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: As a group that never had more than a few hundred members, Lehi relied on audacious but small-scale operations to bring its message home. They adopted the tactics of groups such as the Socialist Revolutionaries and the Combat Organization of the Polish Socialist Party in Czarist Russia, and the Irish Republican Army. To this end, Lehi conducted small-scale operations such as individual assassinations of British officials (notable targets included Lord Moyne, CID detectives, and Jewish "collaborators"), and random shootings against soldiers and police officers. Another strategy, adopted in 1946, was to send bombs in the mail to British politicians. Other actions included sabotaging infrastructure targets: bridges, railroads, telephone and telegraph lines, and oil refineries, as well as the use of vehicle bombs against British military, police, and administrative targets. Lehi financed its operations from private donations, extortion, and bank robbery. Its campaign of violence lasted from 1944 to 1948. Initially conducted together with the Irgun, it included a six-month suspension to avoid being targeted by the Haganah during the Hunting Season, and later operated jointly with the Haganah and Irgun under the Jewish Resistance Movement. After the Jewish Resistance Movement was dissolved, it operated independently as part of the general Jewish insurgency in Palestine.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: On 25 April 1946, a Lehi unit attacked a car park in Tel Aviv occupied by the British 6th Airborne Division. Under a barrage of heavy covering fire, Lehi fighters broke into the car park, shot soldiers they encountered at close range, stole rifles from arms racks, laid mines to cover the retreat, and withdrew. Seven soldiers were killed in the attack, which caused widespread outrage among the British security forces in Palestine. It resulted in retaliatory anti-Jewish violence by British troops and a punitive curfew imposed on Tel Aviv's roads and the closure of places of entertainment in the city by the British Army.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: On 12 January 1947, Lehi members drove a truckload of explosives into a British police station in Haifa killing four and injuring 140, in what has been called 'the world's first true truck bomb'.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Following the bombing of the British embassy in Rome, in October 1946, a series of operations against targets in the United Kingdom were launched. On 7 March 1947, Lehi's only successful operation in Britain was carried out when a Lehi bomb severely damaged the British Colonial Club, a London recreational facility for soldiers and students from Britain's colonies in Africa and the West Indies. On 15 April 1947 a bomb consisting of twenty-four sticks of explosives was planted in the Colonial Office, Whitehall. It failed to explode due to a fault in the timer. Five weeks later, on 22 May, five alleged Lehi members were arrested in Paris with bomb making material including explosives of the same type as found in London. On 2 June, two Lehi members, Betty Knouth and Yaakov Levstein, were arrested crossing from Belgium to France. Envelopes addressed to British officials, with detonators, batteries and a time fuse were found in one of Knouth's suitcases. Knouth was sentenced to a year in prison, Levstein to eight months. The British Security Services identified Knouth as the person who planted the bomb in the Colonial Office. Shortly after their arrest, 21 letter bombs addressed to senior British figures were intercepted. The letters had been posted in Italy. The intended recipients included Bevin, Attlee, Churchill and Eden. Knouth aka Gilberte/Elizabeth Lazarus. Levstein was travelling as Jacob Elias; his fingerprints connected him to the deaths of several Palestine Policemen as well as an attempt on the life of the British High Commissioner. In 1973, Margaret Truman wrote that letter bombs were also posted to her father, U.S. President Harry S. Truman, in 1947. Former Lehi leader Yellin-Mor admitted that letter bombs had been sent to British targets but denied that any had been sent to Truman.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Shortly after the 1947 publication of "The Last Days of Hitler", Lehi issued a death threat against the author, Hugh Trevor-Roper, for his portrayal of Hitler, feeling that Trevor-Roper had attempted to exonerate the German populace from responsibility.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: During the lead-up to the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Lehi mined the Cairo–Haifa train several times. On 29 February 1948, Lehi mined the train north of Rehovot, killing 28 British soldiers and wounding 35. On 31 March, Lehi mined the train near Binyamina, killing 40 civilians and wounding 60.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Shlomo Sand writes that as a method of applying pressure on Arab villagers to abandon their settlements, Lehi planned a terror attack on Nablus and its Arab city headquarters; Lehi fighter Elisha Ibzov (Avraham Cohen) was captured with a truck filled with explosives on his way to the city. Lehi fighters in return abducted four adult villagers and youth from al-Sheikh Muwannis with no connection to Ibzov's capture and threatened to kill them. As rumours spread that they were already murdered, panic set out in the villagers and the settlement became increasingly abandoned, despite the eventual release of the hostages


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: One of the most widely known acts of Lehi was the attack on the Palestinian-Arab village of Deir Yassin.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: In the months before the British evacuation from Palestine, the Arab League-sponsored Arab Liberation Army (ALA) occupied several strategic points along the road between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, cutting off supplies to the Jewish part of Jerusalem. One of these points was Deir Yassin. By March 1948, the road was cut off and Jewish Jerusalem was under siege. The Haganah launched Operation Nachshon to break the siege.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: On 6 April, the Haganah attacked al-Qastal, a village two kilometres north of Deir Yassin, also overlooking the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv road.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Then on 9 April 1948, about 120 Lehi and Irgun fighters, acting in cooperation with the Haganah, attacked and captured Deir Yassin. The attack was at night, the fighting was confused, and many civilian inhabitants of the village were killed. This action had great consequences for the war, and remains a cause célèbre for Palestinians ever since.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Exactly what happened has never been established clearly. The Arab League reported a great massacre: 254 killed, with rape and lurid mutilations. Israeli investigations claimed the actual number of dead was between 100 and 120, and there were no mass rapes, but most of the dead were civilians and admitted some were killed deliberately. Lehi and Irgun both denied an organized massacre. Accounts by Lehi veterans such as Ezra Yakhin note that many of the attackers were killed or wounded, assert that Arabs fired from every building and that Iraqi and Syrian soldiers were among the dead, and even that some Arab fighters dressed as women.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: However, Jewish authorities, including Haganah, the Chief Rabbinate, the Jewish Agency, and David Ben-Gurion, also condemned the attack, lending credence to the charge of massacre. The Jewish Agency even sent a letter of condemnation, apology, and condolence to King Abdullah I of Jordan.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Both the Arab reports and Jewish responses had hidden motives: the Arab leaders wanted to encourage Palestinian Arabs to fight rather than surrender, to discredit the Zionists with international opinion, and to increase popular support in their countries for an invasion of Palestine. The Jewish leaders wanted to discredit Irgun and Lehi.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Ironically, the Arab reports backfired in one respect: frightened Palestinian Arabs did not surrender, but did not fight either – they fled, allowing Israel to gain much territory with little fighting and also without absorbing many Arabs.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Lehi similarly interpreted events at Deir Yassin as turning the tide of war in favour of the Jews. Lehi leader Israel Eldad later wrote in his memoirs from the underground period that "without Deir Yassin the State of Israel could never have been established".


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: The Deir Yassin story did not much sway international opinion. It did increase, not only support but pressure on Arab governments to intervene. Abdullah of Jordan was now compelled to join the invasion of Palestine after Israel's declaration of independence on 14 May.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Although Lehi had stopped operating nationally after May 1948, the group continued to function in Jerusalem. On 17 September 1948, Lehi assassinated UN mediator Count Folke Bernadotte. The assassination was directed by Yehoshua Zettler and carried out by a four-man team led by Meshulam Makover. The fatal shots were fired by Yehoshua Cohen. The Security Council described the assassination as a "cowardly act which appears to have been committed by a criminal group of terrorists".


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Three days after the assassination, the Israeli government passed the Ordinance to Prevent Terrorism and declared Lehi to be a terrorist organization. Many Lehi members were arrested, including leaders Nathan Yellin-Mor and Matitiahu Schmulevitz who were arrested on 29 September. Eldad and Shamir managed to escape arrest. Yellin-Mor and Schmulevitz were charged with leadership of a terrorist organization and on 10 February 1949 were sentenced to 8 years and 5 years imprisonment, respectively. However the State (Temporary) Council soon announced a general amnesty for Lehi members and they were released.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Between 5 December 1948 and 25 January 1949, Yellin-Mor and Schmuelevitch were tried in a military court on terrorism charges. The prosecution accused them of the murder of Bernadotte, though they were not specifically charged with it. Senior officers of the IDF, including Yisrael Galili and David Shaltiel, told the court that Lehi had hindered, rather than assisted the fight against the British and the Arabs.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: While the trial was in progress, some of the Lehi leadership founded a USSR-leaning political party called the Fighters' List with Yellin-Mor as its leader. The party took part in the elections in January 1949 with Yellin-Mor and Schmuelevitch heading the list. The trial verdict was handed down on 10 February, soon after the Fighters' List had won one seat with only 1.2% of the vote. Yellin-Mor was sentenced to 8 years and Schmuelevitch to 5 years imprisonment, but the court agreed to remit the sentences if the prisoners agreed to a list of conditions. The Provisional State Council then authorised their pardon. The party disbanded after several years and did not contest the 1951 elections.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: In 1956, some Lehi veterans established the Semitic Action movement, which sought the creation of a regional federation encompassing Israel and its Arab neighbours on the basis of an anti-colonialist alliance with other indigenous inhabitants of the Middle East.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: Not all Lehi alumni gave up political violence after independence: former members were involved in the activities of the Kingdom of Israel militant group, the 1957 assassination of Rudolf Kastner, and likely the 1952 attempted assassination of David-Zvi Pinkas.


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: In 1980, Israel instituted the Lehi ribbon, red, black, grey, pale blue and white, which is awarded to former members of the Lehi underground who wished to carry it, "for military service towards the establishment of the State of Israel".


title: Lehi (militant group)

text: The words and music of a song "Unknown Soldiers" (also translated "Anonymous Soldiers") were written by Avraham Stern in 1932 during the early days of the Irgun. It became the Irgun's anthem until the split with Lehi in 1940, after which it became the Lehi anthem.


title: Ana María Polo

text: Ana María Cristina Polo González (born 11 April 1959) is a Cuban-American- television arbitrator on "Caso Cerrado" and "Ana Polo Rules".


title: Ana María Polo

text: Born in Havana, Cuba, Ana moved to Puerto Rico when she was 2 years old accompanied by her family. Later, they moved to Miami where she participated in different musicals including "Godspell", "Jubilee" and "Show Boat" in addition to singing with the chorus of "Jubilee", which was invited by Pope Paul VI to sing at St. Peter's Basilica as part of the celebration of the 1975 Holy Year. She is now is the arbitrator on a show called "Caso Cerrado", which airs on Telemundo at different times throughout the entire day and she even performed the show’s theme song.


title: Ana María Polo

text: A breast cancer survivor, Polo frequently speaks and raises funds for the cause. She has advocated for LGBT rights throughout her career.


title: Ana María Polo

text: She graduated from the University of Miami School of Law in 1987, and is a member of the Florida Bar. Aside from her work on "Caso Cerrado", she was a member of the law firm of Emmanuel Perez & Associates, P.A. in Coral Gables, Florida.


title: Ana María Polo

text: In 2010, "Caso Cerrado", which Polo created, was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Legal/Courtroom Program. The nomination marked the first time a program from a Spanish-language network had been nominated for an Emmy Award.


title: Christopher Olsen (actor)

text: Olsen is perhaps best known as the kidnapped boy Hank McKenna in "The Man Who Knew Too Much". Other roles include "The Fastest Gun Alive", with Glenn Ford; "Return to Warbow", with Phil Carey; James Mason's son in "Bigger Than Life;" and Dorothy Malone's son, Jack Shumann, in "The Tarnished Angels".


title: Christopher Olsen (actor)

text: He also appeared in numerous television series episodes, including "Cheyenne", "Lassie", "The Millionaire", "Make Room for Daddy", and "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet".


title: Christopher Olsen (actor)

text: His youngest sister is Susan Olsen of "The Brady Bunch" fame, and his older brother, Larry, played the title character in the Hal Roach comedy, "Curley".


title: Guillemet

text: Guillemets (, , , ) are a pair of punctuation marks in the form of sideways double chevrons, and , used as quotation marks in a number of languages. In some of these languages "single" guillemets, and , are used for a quotation inside another quotation. Guillemets are not conventionally used in the English language.


title: Guillemet

text: "Guillemet" is a diminutive of the French name "", apparently after the French printer and punchcutter Guillaume Le Bé (1525–1598), though he did not invent the symbols: they first appear in a 1527 book printed by Josse Bade. Some languages derive their word for guillemets analogously:


title: Guillemet

text: In Adobe Systems font software, its file format specifications, and in all fonts derived from these that contain the characters, the glyph names are incorrectly spelled and (a malapropism: guillemot is actually a species of seabird). Adobe acknowledges the error. Likewise, X11 mistakenly uses and to name keys producing the characters.


title: Guillemet

text: Guillemets are smaller than less-than and greater-than signs, which in turn are smaller than angle brackets.


title: Guillemet

text: Guillemets are used pointing outwards («like this») to indicate speech in these languages and regions:


title: Guillemet

text: Microsoft Word uses guillemets when creating mail merges. Microsoft use these punctuation marks to denote a mail merge "field", such as , or . Then on the final printout, the guillemet-marked tags are replaced by each instance of the corresponding data item intended for that field by the user.


title: Guillemet

text: Double guillemets are present in many 8-bit extended ASCII character sets. They were at 0xAE and 0xAF (174 and 175) in CP437 on the IBM PC, and 0xC7 and 0xC8 in Mac OS Roman, and placed in several of ISO 8859 code pages (namely: -1, -7, -8, -9, -13, -15, -16) at 0xAB and 0xBB (171 and 187).


title: Guillemet

text: Microsoft added the single guillemets to CP1252 and similar sets used in Windows at 0x8B and 0x9B (139 and 155) (where the ISO standard placed C1 control codes).


title: Guillemet

text: The ISO 8859 locations were inherited by Unicode, which added the single guillemets at new locations:


title: Guillemet

text: The double guillemets are standard keys on AZERTY and French Canadian QWERTY keyboards and some others.


title: I Swear

text: "I Swear" is a song written by Gary Baker and Frank J. Myers that became a hit for American country music artist John Michael Montgomery in 1993 and for American R&B group All-4-One in 1994.


title: I Swear

text: Released in November 1993 as the lead single from his album "Kickin' It Up", and accompanied by a music video directed by Marc Ball, Montogemery's version spent four weeks at number-one on the U.S. Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, later crossing over to pop radio and reaching number 42 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 in March.


title: I Swear

text: The cover by All-4-One was subsequently released in April 1994, becoming a number-one hit in numerous countries, and later garnering a spot in "Billboard"'s ranking of All-Time Top 100 Songs.


title: I Swear

text: The song is a ballad in which the narrator promises his significant other that he will always love her.


title: I Swear

text: Following the release of Montgomery's version, American male R&B pop group All-4-One recorded a cover version with record producer David Foster for their eponymous 1994 debut album. The cover includes a lyric change: the original line from the second verse "And when there's silver in your hair" was replaced by "And when just the two of us are there."


title: I Swear

text: All-4-One's version hit number-one on numerous music charts, including the US "Billboard" Hot 100, where it remained number-one for 11 consecutive weeks. The recording later ranked number 98 on "Billboard"'s list of All-Time Top 100 Songs.


title: I Swear

text: In the United Kingdom, the All-4-One recording spent a total of 18 weeks on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number two, where it stayed for seven consecutive weeks (held off the top spot by Wet Wet Wet's "Love Is All Around", which spent 15 weeks at number one).


title: I Swear

text: After their first album had finished going through the mastering process of recording, Doug Morris, president of Atlantic Records called the group for a meeting. He showed them the original "I Swear" country record, asking All-4-One to do a cover of it promising to bring David Foster in for production. Singer Jamie Jones of the group was most hesitant about releasing the song due to the genre crossover. The group finished the recording at Foster's Malibu home studio.


title: I Swear

text: A reviewer from "Billboard" described the song as an "memorable anthem ballad". The magazine's Larry Flick wrote, "Follow-up to the gold-selling 'So Much in Love' once again spotlights this male quartet's seamless harmonies. Producer David Foster supplies soft and pillowy synths, a caressing sax solo, and an overall splash of drama, which complements the unabashed romance of this hit-bound ballad. As teens enter prom season, expect this song to be the peak tune of the evening. Ahhh, young love ..." M.R. Martinez from "Cash Box" complimented it as a single "complete with shimmering vocals, swooning pop arrangements, and throttled (yet soulful) vocals". Music writer James Masterton noted in his weekly UK chart commentary, "Labelled by many as this year's 'End of the Road' you can see what all the hype is about. Four American teenagers singing in barber's shop harmonies makes for a gorgeous record. Whether it emulates its American success remains to be seen but Top 10 success is almost assured."


title: I Swear

text: Dave Sholin from the "Gavin Report" complimented the producer that "polishes it up just right for pop audiences who, like their country counterparts, will soak in the lyrics." He added, "Those contemplating matrimony will no doubt have this played while they're walking down the aisle, and those who've already tied the knot might want to renew their vows just so they can make "I Swear" part of the ceremony." Pan-European magazine "Music & Media" commented, "Since Whitney covered Dolly, Nashville is hip in the R&B milieu. Now the vocal harmony quartet halfway between Shai and Boyz II Men polishes John Michael Montgomery country number 1 hit." Head of music on German Radio Regenbogen/Mannheim, Martin Schwebel said, "It's a beautiful love song. The fact that it's on pole position in every American chart imaginable shows its huge potential. Here in Germany it might be a sleeper, but it will be a hit in the long run." Alan Jones from "Music Week" deemed it a "pretty and powerful ballad", that "should be big".


title: I Swear

text: A music video was produced to promote the single. It portrays the members of All-4-One hanging out on a rooftop singing interspersed with scenes with a young woman walking on the sidewalk below. They go down to walk and talk with her as they implore her not to leave. Ultimately, she says goodbye to each member before boarding a departing bus. The video was published on YouTube in January 2014. It has amassed over 57 million views as of September 20, 2021.


title: I Swear

text: All-4-One and John Michael Montgomery recorded an updated duet version of "I Swear" for the deluxe edition of All-4-One's 2015 album "Twenty+". A music video for this duet version was released on May 9, 2016.


title: I Swear

text: In 2021, All-4-One recorded a remix of "I Swear" for a music video promoting Xbox All-Access, titled "It's All There".


title: I Swear

text: The final eleven contestants from "", ninth season of TV talent show "POPSTARS" in Germany, they released a cover version of the song with Gary Baker on November 19, 2010. The finalists premiered the song live on the November 18th edition of the programme; the single was available for digital download on November 16, 2010, and a physical release followed the day after the live performance of the song. The song was recorded at Noiseblock Studios in Florence, Alabama. The cover reached number 69 on the German Singles Chart.


title: I Swear

text: Filipino pop duo Quamo recorded a Tagalog version titled "Sumpa Ko", released by VIVA Records in 1995 in the Philippines.


title: I Swear

text: Brazilian duo Leandro e Leonardo recorded a Portuguese version entitled "Eu Juro", it was recorded in 1995. A Spanish language version titled "Te juro" was also released by the duo.


title: I Swear

text: Costa Rican group Centinelas Vocal Band has performed a Latin American version entitled "Juraré". It was also covered in 1997 by Sandy Lam, Chyi Yu, Prudence Liew and Teresa Carpio, and as ""Ya sé"" by Mexican country band Caballo Dorado in 1998.


title: I Swear

text: In 2008, Yao Si Ting (姚斯婷), a female Chinese singer from Guangzhou, recorded an English cover of the song.


title: I Swear

text: In the seventh episode for Season 16 of "South Park", Cartman Finds Love, the song was played by Eric Cartman who tries to get Token and Nicole to hook up. He and Brad Paisley also sang that song for Kyle Broflovski at the Denver Broncos Stadium.


title: I Swear

text: In the 2013 computer-animated comedy film "Despicable Me 2", the Minions sang a Minionese cover of the song during Gru and Lucy Wilde's wedding. The song is called ""Underwear"".


title: I Swear

text: In 2021, American country a cappella group Home Free released a cover of the song. It was accompanied by a music video released on February 19, filmed as a tongue-in-cheek homage to 1980s and 1990s romantic music videos.


title: I Swear

text: In 2021, the entire cast of "Pose" sang it at the wedding of Angel and Lil Papi in the episode "Something Old, Something New".


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Brandon Kyle Weeden (born October 14, 1983) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. After pursuing a baseball career from 2002 to 2006, Weeden enrolled at Oklahoma State to play college football. Selected 22nd overall by the Cleveland Browns in the 2012 NFL Draft, he was the NFL's oldest first round selection at age 28. Weeden served as the Browns' starter during his rookie season and spent the remainder of his career as backup on the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, and Tennessee Titans.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden was the starting quarterback at Edmond Santa Fe High School, where he led the team to the state semifinals and was named team MVP and offensive player of the year. He finished 2nd in the state of Oklahoma in passing yards with 2,863 and accounted for 25 touchdowns. He was named All-State in football and later that year was also named All-State in baseball. Weeden graduated from Edmond Santa Fe High School in 2002.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: A pitcher, Weeden was drafted in the second round of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft by the New York Yankees as their first selection in the draft. After the 2003 season, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers with Jeff Weaver and Yhency Brazobán for Kevin Brown. Following the 2005 season, he was selected in the Rule 5 draft by the Kansas City Royals. Weeden played his last season of professional baseball in 2006 for the Class-A High Desert Mavericks of the California League. Injuries and poor performance led Weeden to quit baseball.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden enrolled at Oklahoma State in 2007 and redshirted his first year. The following year, in 2008, he appeared in only one game against Missouri State.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Starting in 2009, Weeden played in three games, including one in the absence of injured Zac Robinson on Nov. 19. Alex Cate started the game, but Weeden replaced him at halftime and led the Cowboys to an 11-point comeback victory, 31–28, over Colorado in the nationally televised Thursday night game.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: In 2010, Weeden was named the starter for the Oklahoma State Cowboys. In Week 2, Weeden suffered a severe injury to his thumb, which led to two interceptions and two fumbles in a win over Troy. Weeden said, "Hurt thumb, no thumb, whatever, it doesn't matter. I don't care if I don't have a thumb. You've got to take the snaps." He followed that performance by throwing six touchdowns the following week. He was named Big-12 Offensive Player of the Week in the victory over Tulsa.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: The win helped move Oklahoma State into the Coaches' Poll top 25 for the first time in 2010. Coach Gundy reflected on the win: "Sometimes, you have games like that. We were rolling on all cylinders." Weeden added, "We had a great week of practice. ... It was a whole lot of fun tonight."


title: Brandon Weeden

text: In his senior season, 2011, he led Oklahoma State to an 11–1 regular season, a number 3 ranking in the BCS standings, and a berth in the 2012 BCS Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. He also broke school records in total attempts, completions, yardage, and touchdowns (all which were previously held by incumbent Coach Mike Gundy). In 12 games, Weeden completed 379 of 522 passes for 4,328 yards.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: In the 2012 Fiesta Bowl, the last game of his college football career, Weeden threw for 399 yards, completed 29 of 42 passes, and had 4 touchdowns (3 passing, 1 rushing) along with one interception in a 41–38 win against the Stanford Cardinals.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden set numerous records for passing, and offensive performance at Oklahoma State University, many of which surpassed records set by his college coach, Mike Gundy, when Gundy was a player.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden was drafted by the Cleveland Browns as the 22nd pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, Weeden became the oldest player ever taken in the first round, at 28 years old.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Going into the 2012 regular season, the Browns named Weeden their starting quarterback. In his first game, Weeden had a 5.1 passer rating after throwing four interceptions in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, which is the sixth lowest in a season opener by any quarterback attempting at least 15 passes since the merger in 1970. However, one week later, he was much improved throwing for 2 touchdowns, completed 26 passes on 37 attempts for 322 yards, no interceptions with a passer rating of 114.9. During Week 6, Weeden celebrated his 29th birthday by completing 17 passes on 29 attempts for 231 yards and 2 touchdowns en route to his first NFL win by defeating the intrastate rival Cincinnati Bengals. In the Browns victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 12, Weeden's helmet collided with Joe Thomas' knee, giving him a concussion. Weeden practiced three days later, and played the following week against the Oakland Raiders.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden won the starting job for the 2013 season, but injured his thumb in the fourth quarter of Week 2 in a 14–6 loss at Baltimore. He smashed his thumb on the helmet of left guard John Greco while throwing a pass and had to leave the game for treatment and X-rays. Backup Jason Campbell played the Browns' final offensive series as they dropped to 0–2. The Browns won their first game of the season the next week under 3rd string quarterback Brian Hoyer, with Weeden sidelined by his thumb injury. The following week it was announced Weeden would again sit for Week 4, giving Hoyer another start. On September 28, Weeden admitted that he was not guaranteed to reclaim the starting quarterback position over Hoyer when he returned from injury. The next day the Browns again won under Hoyer, leaving Weeden's status on the team in question. The next day, on September 30, it was announced Weeden would again sit in favor of Hoyer. However, the Browns had still not named who their permanent starter would be going forward. On Thursday Night Football vs the Buffalo Bills, Hoyer went down during the game and was replaced by Weeden. Weeden was able to guide the Browns to their third straight victory as they won, 37–24, over the Bills. The next day on October 4, it was announced that Hoyer would miss the rest of the 2013 regular season with a torn ACL. Despite the injury to Hoyer, Weeden was not guaranteed to reclaim the starting quarterback position. Later in the week, it was announced Weeden would start Week 6 for the Browns, and would remain the starter for the future if his play didn't begin to regress. In his Week 6 start, Weeden completed 26 of 43 passes for 292 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions in a 31–17 loss to the Detroit Lions, leading head coach Rob Chudzinski to declare that the Browns would stick with Weeden as the starting quarterback. Weeden put out another poor performance Week 7 vs the Green Bay Packers, completing only 17 of 42 passes for 149 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception in a 31–13 loss to the Packers. On October 23, Weeden was once again benched, this time in favor of Campbell, for the Browns' Week 8 matchup vs. the 7–0 Kansas City Chiefs.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: The Dallas Cowboys signed Weeden to a two-year contract on March 17. He was promoted to the backup quarterback position after the Cowboys waived Kyle Orton on July 15. Following a Week 8 back injury to Tony Romo, Weeden was named the starter in a 28–17 loss against the playoff bound Arizona Cardinals. He also closed out wins against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Washington.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden began the season again as Romo's backup. During a Week 2 game against the Eagles, Romo fractured his clavicle and Weeden closed out the win. It was announced that Romo would be placed on short term IR, which left him designated to return November 22, and that Weeden would be the starter at quarterback. Even though he was preparing to be the starter, with owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jason Garrett commenting on his positive progress the Cowboys covered themselves by trading for Matt Cassel on September 22. Weeden started three games, completing 71 percent of his attempts for 666 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions, but lost all three games. On October 13, the Cowboys decided to bench him and instead play Cassel, who started four games (all losses). On November 17, Weeden was waived to make room for Romo, with the team deciding to keep Cassel as the main backup.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: Weeden was claimed off waivers by the Houston Texans on November 18. He debuted with the team in a game against the Indianapolis Colts on December 20, leading the Texans to their first-ever victory in Indianapolis after starting quarterback T. J. Yates was injured.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: On December 27, Weeden made his first start with the Texans against the Tennessee Titans. He was 15–24 for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns, while also rushing for 11 yards and another score as the Texans won by a score of 34–6. The next week he returned to a backup role after Brian Hoyer (concussion) was cleared to play. Weeden was also Hoyer's backup for the Texans' 30–0 playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: On April 1, 2016, Weeden re-signed with the Texans on a two-year, $4 million contract. He spent the 2016 season as the third-string quarterback behind a combination of Brock Osweiler and Tom Savage. Weeden did not appear in a game in 2016. He was Osweiler's backup for the playoff win against the Oakland Raiders.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: On October 3, 2017, Weeden signed with the Tennessee Titans. He was only active for one game with the team. He became a free agent after the season.


title: Brandon Weeden

text: On March 27, 2018, Weeden signed with the Houston Texans. He was the backup to Deshaun Watson for 2018, appearing in only one game for one play.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: "I Miss You" is a song by American rock band Blink-182, released on February 2, 2004, as the second single from the group's self-titled fifth studio album (2003). Co-written by guitarist Tom DeLonge and bassist Mark Hoppus, they employed a method of writing separately and bringing their two verses together later. The song, produced entirely acoustic, features an acoustic electric bass, a cello, and a brushstroked drum loop. The song was inspired by the Cure song "The Love Cats" and contains references to "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (1993).


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song peaked at number one on the US "Billboard" Modern Rock Tracks chart and peaked at number 42 on the "Billboard" Hot 100. Although "All the Small Things" had slightly more radio airplay, "I Miss You" sold more copies, earning gold certification for selling over 500,000 copies. In the United Kingdom, the song was a national top 10 hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number eight.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: "I Miss You" was recorded throughout 2003, and began production at the Rubin's House, a rented home in the San Diego luxury community of Rancho Santa Fe. The song was written using the same method with which the band wrote "Feeling This"; namely, DeLonge and Hoppus would discuss themes and then set off to separate rooms of the home to write alone. The two would first have a discussion about the themes of the song "so that we were on the same page," and then they would go away to write, putting both parts together at the end. Tom wrote the second verse, and Mark wrote the first verse and the chorus. In 2018, Mark shared the original handwritten lyrics on Twitter. "Mark was always really, really good with words, so a lot of times I would ask him for help with things, to get help with how I say things better [...] But we never really explained song meanings to each other," said DeLonge. Hoppus referenced Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas" at the request of Barker, with the lines "We can live like Jack and Sally if we want... and we'll have Halloween on Christmas", toward his then-wife, Shanna Moakler.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The trio struggled recording "I Miss You" at first, originally employing a completely different chorus reminiscent of what they considered adult contemporary music. The track was directly inspired by the Cure song "The Love Cats". In expanding on the song's lyrical meaning, DeLonge said: "The song's more about the vulnerability and kind of heart-wrenching pain you feel when you're in love and when you're a guy and you're trying to tell a girl, 'Don't waste your time coming and talking to me because, in my head at least, you probably already gave me up a long time ago.'"


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song is composed in the key of B major and is set in time signature of common time with a tempo of 110 beats per minute. Hoppus and DeLonge's vocal range spans from F# to F#. "I Miss You" is an all-acoustic affair, featuring a piano, cello, acoustic bass guitar, and a "brushstroked hip-hop groove." The song's production was very layered, requiring multiple tracks. "There's probably 50 tracks of instruments going on the record," DeLonge said. In an interview with "The Washington Post", he re-estimated the amount: "It's got about 70 tracks of instruments, all of which are organic/acoustic, none of them plugged-in."


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: "I Miss You" was sent to radio in early 2004. The song performed best on "Billboard" Modern Rock Tracks chart, where it peaked at number one for two weeks. The song also charted at number 15 on the Pop Songs chart, and number 24 on the Adult Pop Songs chart. On the "Billboard" Hot 100, the song reached number 42, and also peaked at number 44 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart. Outside the United States, "I Miss You" performed best in the United Kingdom and New Zealand; in both countries it charted at number eight. It also charted at number 13 in Australia, and number 21 in Ireland.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: "I Miss You" was supported by a controversial initiative dubbed "spin buys" by "Billboard", in which labels, in Blink's case Geffen, spent thousands of dollars per week to have singles played multiple times from midnight to 6am at small and middle-market radio chains. While overnight airplay at radio at that time was "nothing new for the recording industry," label-sponsored spin-programs had risen considerably in popularity in 2004. By May 2004, the track had accumulated more than 50,000 spins at radio, and more than 100,000 by July.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America on October 25, 2004, for sales of over 500,000.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: "I Miss You" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Jesse Lord of IGN praised the "well-thought-out dissonance" between Hoppus and DeLonge's respective vocal tracks, opining that it "expertly showcases and highlights the differences between the two." Nick Catucci of "The Village Voice" praised the song, writing, "It's how Tom and Mark zing off of one another that makes Blink-182 one of the greats. Name another two dudes who can so naturally share a tender, swelling ballad like 'I Miss You.'" A.D. Amorosi of "The Philadelphia Inquirer" wrote that "post-teen amour drips through an acoustic 'I Miss You', with singer-guitarist Tom DeLonge in Marshall Crenshaw mode." "Spin" called it an "interstate breakup song," commending its use of strings and jazz brushes. In 2016, "Stereogum" ranked the song number four on their list of the 10 greatest Blink-182 songs, and in 2022, "Kerrang" ranked the song number three on their list of the 20 greatest Blink-182 songs, while "Variety" ranked it as one of the best emo songs of all time.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song's music video is shot in the style of a 1930s film, and find the trio performing in a haunted house with ghosts circling around. Jonas Åkerlund, who also directed the Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up" and Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful," helmed the clip that was filmed on December 17, 2003, in Los Angeles. "He's done amazing videos," DeLonge said. "We kind of had an idea of what we wanted to do, but it's gonna be interesting because with a guy like that, they bring so much artistic vision to the project. You don't really know what's going on in their head, like how they wanna film it and all that stuff." It also features Mark Hoppus playing a double bass, inspired by Phil Thornalley of the Cure's use of one in the video for "The Love Cats".


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song achieved heavy airplay on music video channels. It achieved its best airplay on Canada's MuchMusic, where it was the number one most-played video for the week ending February 22, 2004, as monitored by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems. For Fuse, the song was the eighth-most played that week, eleventh for MTV, and fourteenth for MTV2. It continued to be a strong performer on Fuse and MuchMusic into May, with the issue dated May 15 reporting it at numbers 9 and eleven, respectively. It remained in the top 30 most-played at MuchMusic into January 2005.


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: The song first appeared in the video game "SingStar Amped" and as DLC for "Rock Band 2". It was also featured in the TV show "Legit".


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: Chilean band Kudai used the drum sample of the song on their single "Escapar" from their 2004 album "Vuelo".


title: I Miss You (Blink-182 song)

text: Australian band 5 Seconds of Summer covered the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge in 2014. The song was a primary inspiration for The Chainsmokers' 2016 hit single "Closer". According to Chainsmokers member Andrew Taggart, the duo repeatedly listened to the song while writing it. In 2019, American singer-songwriter Skye employed an interpolation of "I Miss You" in his single "Voices", posthumously featuring rapper XXXTentacion.


title: Panic! at the Disco discography

text: Panic! at the Disco is an American rock band that originated in Las Vegas, Nevada. Their 2005 debut album, "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out", reached number 13 on the US "Billboard" 200, and has sold more than 2.2 million copies since its September 2005 release, spearheaded by the quintuple platinum top-10 hit single, "I Write Sins Not Tragedies". The band's second album, "Pretty. Odd.", was released on March 21, 2008, entering the US chart at, and peaking at, number 2. Their third effort, "Vices & Virtues", was released on March 18, 2011, and peaked at number 7 in the US. Their fourth album, 2013's "Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!", entered and peaked at number 2 on the US chart, and contained the platinum-certified lead single "Miss Jackson". The band's fifth studio album, "Death of a Bachelor", was released in January 2016 and became their first number-one album in the US. Their sixth album, "Pray for the Wicked", was released on June 22, 2018, and debuted at number one on the US "Billboard" 200.


title: Breathalyzer

text: A breathalyzer or breathalyser (a portmanteau of "breath" and "analyzer/analyser") is a device for estimating blood alcohol content (BAC), or to detect viruses or diseases from a breath sample.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The name is a genericized trademark of the Breathalyzer brand name of instruments developed by inventor Robert Frank Borkenstein in the 1950s.


title: Breathalyzer

text: A 1927 paper produced by Emil Bogen, who collected air in a football bladder and then tested this air for traces of alcohol, discovered that the alcohol content of 2 litres of expired air was a little greater than that of 1 cc of urine. However, research into the possibilities of using breath to test for alcohol in a person's body dates as far back as 1874, when Francis E. Anstie made the observation that small amounts of alcohol were excreted in breath.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Also, in 1927 a Chicago chemist, William Duncan McNally, invented a breathalyzer in which the breath moving through chemicals in water would change color. One use for his invention was for housewives to test whether their husbands had been drinking.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In late 1927, in a case in Marlborough, England, Gorsky, a police surgeon, asked a suspect to inflate a football bladder with his breath. Since the 2 liters of the man's breath contained 1.5 mg of ethanol, Gorsky testified before the court that the defendant was "50% drunk".


title: Breathalyzer

text: In 1931 the first practical roadside breath-testing device was the drunkometer developed by Rolla Neil Harger of the Indiana University School of Medicine. The drunkometer collected a motorist's breath sample directly into a balloon inside the machine. The breath sample was then pumped through an acidified potassium permanganate solution. If there was alcohol in the breath sample, the solution changed color. The greater the color change, the more alcohol there was present in the breath. The drunkometer was manufactured and sold by Stephenson Corporation of Red Bank, New Jersey.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In 1954 Robert Frank Borkenstein (1912–2002) was a captain with the Indiana State Police and later a professor at Indiana University Bloomington. His Breathalyzer used chemical oxidation and photometry to determine alcohol concentrations. Subsequent breath analyzers have converted primarily to infrared spectroscopy, though this method is subject to invalid results depending on ambient air temperature, the temperature of the device, and the body temperature of the subject, depending on specificity of the readings and how they correlate with one's BAC measured via a voluntary blood draw. The invention of the Breathalyzer provided law enforcement with an orally-invasive test providing immediate results to determine an individual's breath alcohol concentration at the time of testing, based on, according to this article, consistently faulty samples.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In 1967 in Britain, Bill Ducie and Tom Parry Jones developed and marketed the first electronic breathalyser. They established Lion Laboratories in Cardiff. Ducie was a chartered electrical engineer, and Tom Parry Jones was a lecturer at UWIST. The Road Safety Act 1967 introduced the first legally enforceable maximum blood alcohol level for drivers in the UK, above which it became an offence to be in charge of a motor vehicle; and introduced the roadside breathalyser, made available to police forces across the country. In 1979, Lion Laboratories' version of the breathalyser, known as the Alcolyser and incorporating crystal-filled tubes that changed colour above a certain level of alcohol in the breath, was approved for police use. Lion Laboratories won the Queen's Award for Technological Achievement for the product in 1980, and it began to be marketed worldwide. The Alcolyser was superseded by the Lion Intoximeter 3000 in 1983, and later by the Lion Alcolmeter and Lion Intoxilyser. These later models used a fuel cell alcohol sensor rather than crystals, providing a more reliable curbside test and removing the need for blood or urine samples to be taken at a police station. In 1991, Lion Laboratories was sold to the American company MPD, Inc.


title: Breathalyzer

text: When the user exhales into a breath analyzer, any ethanol present in their breath is oxidized to acetic acid at the anode:


title: Breathalyzer

text: The electric current produced by this reaction is measured by a microcontroller, and displayed as an approximation of overall blood alcohol content (BAC) by the Alcosensor.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Breath analyzers do not directly measure blood alcohol content or concentration, which requires the analysis of a blood sample. Instead, they estimate BAC indirectly by measuring the amount of alcohol in one's breath. In general, two types of breathalyzer are used. Small hand-held breathalyzers are not reliable enough to provide evidence in court but reliable enough to justify an arrest. Larger breathalyzer devices found in police stations can then be used to produce court evidence.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Two breathalyzer technologies are most prevalent. Desktop analyzers generally use infrared spectrophotometer technology, electrochemical fuel cell technology, or a combination of the two. Hand-held field testing devices are generally based on electrochemical platinum fuel cell analysis and, depending upon jurisdiction, may be used by officers in the field as a form of "field sobriety test" commonly called "preliminary breath test" or "preliminary alcohol screening" or as evidential devices in point of arrest testing.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In Canada, a preliminary non-evidentiary screening device can be approved by Parliament as an approved screening device, and an evidentiary breath instrument can be similarly designated as an approved instrument. The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration maintains a Conforming Products List of breath alcohol devices approved for evidentiary use, as well as for preliminary screening use. In order to demand a person produce a breathalyzer sample an officer must have "reasonable suspicion" that the person drove with more than 80 mg alcohol per 100 mL of blood. The demand must be within three hours of driving. Any driver that refuses can be charged under s.254 of the Criminal Code. With the legalization of cannabis, updates to the criminal code are proposed that will allow a breathalyzer test to be administered without suspicion of impairment.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Most states, including California and Michigan, have implied consent laws, which means that by applying for a driver's license, drivers are agreeing to take any breathalyzer test under suspicion of a DUI.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The preliminary breath test or preliminary alcohol screening test uses small hand-held breath analyzers (hand-held breathalyzers). These units are similar to evidentiary breathalyzers, but typically are not calibrated frequently enough for evidentiary purposes. (The terms "preliminary breath test" ("PBT") and "preliminary alcohol screening test" reference the same devices and functions.) The test device provides numerical blood alcohol content (BAC) readings, although in some cases, the device has "pass/fail" indicia. For example, in Canada, PST devices, called "alcohol screening devices" are set so that, from 0 to 49 mg% it shows digits, from 50 to 99 mg% it shows the word "warn" and 100 mg% and above it shows "fail".


title: Breathalyzer

text: These preliminary breath tests are sometimes categorised as part of field sobriety testing, although it is not part of a series of performance tests generally with "field sobriety tests" ("FSTs") or "standard field sobriety tests" ("SFSTs"). While the test device typically provides numerical BAC readings, its primary use is for screening and, in the US, establishing probable cause for arrest, to invoke the implied consent requirements.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In the US, the primary use of preliminary breath test or preliminary alcohol screening devices is for screening and establishing probable cause for arrest, to invoke the implied consent requirements.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In US law, this is necessary to sustain a conviction based on evidential testing (or implied consent refusal). In order to sustain a conviction based on evidential tests, probable cause must be shown (or the suspect must volunteer to take the evidential test without implied consent requirements being invoked). Police are not obliged to advise the suspect that participation in a FST or other pre-arrest procedures is voluntary. In contrast, formal evidentiary tests given under implied consent requirements are considered mandatory.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Refusal to take a preliminary breath test in the State of Michigan subjects a non-commercial driver to a "civil infraction" fine, with no violation "points", but is not considered to be a refusal under the general "implied consent" law. In some states, the state may present evidence of refusal to take a field sobriety test in court, although this is of questionable probative value in a drunk driving prosecution.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Different requirements apply in many states to drivers under DUI probation, in which case participation in a preliminary breath test may be a condition of probation, and for commercial drivers under "drug screening" requirements. Some US states, notably California, have statutes on the books penalizing preliminary breath test refusal for drivers under 21; however the Constitutionality of those statutes has not been tested. (As a practical matter, most criminal lawyers advise suspects who refuse a preliminary breath test or preliminary alcohol screening to not engage in discussion or "justifying" the refusal with the police.)


title: Breathalyzer

text: All breath alcohol testers used by law enforcement in the United States of America must be approved by the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Public breathalyzers are becoming a method for consumers to test themselves at the source of alcohol consumption. These are used in pubs, bars, restaurants, charities, weddings and all types of licensed events. As breathalyzer tests have increased risk of transmission of coronavirus, they were temporarily suspended from use in Sweden.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The breath alcohol content reading is used in criminal prosecutions in two ways. The operator of a vehicle whose reading indicates a BAC over the legal limit for driving will be charged with having committed an illegal "per se" offense: that is, it is automatically illegal throughout the United States to drive a vehicle with a breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) of 0.08% or higher. One exception is the state of Wisconsin, where a first time drunk driving offense is normally a civil ordinance violation.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The uniformity is due to federal guidelines that states choose to adopt as motor vehicle laws are enacted by the individual states. It is said that the federal government ensures the passage of the federal guidelines by tying traffic safety highway funds to compliance with federal guidelines on certain issues, such as the federal government ensuring that the legal drinking age be the age of 21 across the 50 states. In earlier years, the range of the threshold varied considerably between States.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The breath analyzer reading will be offered as evidence of that crime, although the issue is what the BrAC was at the time of driving rather than at the time of the test. Some jurisdictions, such as the State of Washington, now allow the use of breath analyzer test results without regard as to how much time passed between operation of the vehicle and the time the test was administered. The suspect will also be charged with driving under the influence of alcohol (sometimes referred to as driving or operating while intoxicated). While BrAC tests are not necessary to prove a defendant was under the influence, laws in most states require the jury to presume that he was under the influence if his BrAC is found and believed to be over 0.08 (grams of alcohol/210 liters breath) when driving. In California, this is once again demonstrated by California Vehicle Code Section 23152(b) and Cal-Crim 2111, which states: "If the People have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that a sample of the defendant's (blood/breath/urine) was taken within three hours of the defendant's [alleged] driving and that a chemical analysis of the sample showed a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent or more, you may, but are not required to, conclude that the defendant's blood alcohol level was 0.08 percent or more at the time of the alleged offense." This creates a rebuttable presumption, which means it is presumed, but that presumption can be rebutted if a jury finds it unreliable or if other evidence establishes a reasonable doubt as to whether the person actually drove with a breath or blood alcohol level of 0.08% or greater. This would not apply to States that have done away with the presumption, such as the State of Washington, as previously referenced.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Infrared instruments are also known as "evidentiary breath testers" and generally produce court-admissible results. Other instruments, usually hand held in design, are known as "preliminary breath testers" , and their results, while valuable to an officer attempting to establish probable cause for a drunk driving arrest, are generally not admissible in court. Some states, such as Idaho, permit data or "readings" from hand-held preliminary breath testers or preliminary alcohol screeners to be presented as evidence in court. If at all, they are generally only admissible to show the presence of alcohol or as a pass-fail field sobriety test to help determine probable cause for arrest. South Dakota had previously relied solely on blood tests to ensure accuracy, but has implemented evidential blood alcohol breath tests since Sep-2011.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Historically, states initially tried to prohibit driving with a high level of BAC, and a BrAC test result was merely presented as indirect evidence of BAC. Where the defendant had refused to take a subsequent blood test, the only way the state could prove BAC was by presenting scientific evidence of how alcohol in the breath gets there from alcohol in the blood, along with evidence of how to convert from one to the other. DUI defense attorneys frequently contested the scientific reliability of such evidence. In response, many states like California subsequently modified their BAC statutes so to directly prohibit a certain level of alcohol in the breath as an alternative to a prohibited level of BAC. In other words, the breath test result itself, the BrAC level, became the direct predicate evidence for conviction. In other states, such as New Jersey, the statute remains tied to BAC, but the BrAC results of certain machines have been judicially deemed presumptively accurate substitutes for blood testing when used as directed.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Police in Victoria, Australia, use breathalyzers that give a recognized 20% tolerance on readings. Noel Ashby, former Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner (Traffic & Transport), claims that this tolerance is to allow for different body types.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Many handheld breath analyzers sold to consumers use a silicon oxide sensor (also called a semiconductor sensor) to determine the blood alcohol concentration. These sensors are far more prone to contamination and interference from substances other than breath alcohol. The sensors require recalibration or replacement every six months. Higher-end personal breath analyzers and professional-use breath alcohol testers use platinum fuel cell sensors. These too require recalibration but at less frequent intervals than semiconductor devices, usually once a year.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Calibration is the process of checking and adjusting the internal settings of a breath analyzer by comparing and adjusting its test results to a known alcohol standard. Law enforcement breath analyzers need to be meticulously maintained and re-calibrated frequently to ensure accuracy.


title: Breathalyzer

text: There are two ways of calibrating a precision fuel cell breath analyzer, the wet-bath and the dry-gas methods. Each method requires specialized equipment and factory-trained technicians. It is not a procedure that can be conducted by untrained users or without the proper equipment.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The dry-gas method utilizes a portable calibration standard which is a precise mixture of ethanol and inert nitrogen available in a pressurized canister. Initial equipment costs are less than alternative methods and the steps required are fewer. The equipment is also portable allowing calibrations to be done when and where required.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The wet-bath method utilizes an ethanol/water standard in a precise specialized alcohol concentration, contained and delivered in specialized breath simulator equipment. The wet-bath method has a higher initial cost and is not intended to be portable. The standard must be fresh and replaced regularly. In addition, the assumed water-air partition ratio for aqueous ethanol must be taken into account along with its associated uncertainty.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Some semiconductor models are designed specifically to allow the sensor module to be replaced without the need to send the unit to a calibration lab.


title: Breathalyzer

text: One major problem with older breath analyzers is non-specificity: the machines identify not only the ethyl alcohol (or ethanol) found in alcoholic beverages but also other substances similar in molecular structure or reactivity.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The oldest breath analyzer models pass breath through a solution of potassium dichromate, which oxidizes ethanol into acetic acid, changing color in the process. A monochromatic light beam is passed through this sample, and a detector records the change in intensity and, hence, the change in color, which is used to calculate the percent alcohol in the breath. However, since potassium dichromate is a strong oxidizer, numerous alcohol groups can be oxidized by it, producing false positives. This source of false positives is unlikely as very few other substances found in exhaled air are oxidizable.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Infrared-based breath analyzers project an infrared beam of radiation through the captured breath in the sample chamber and detect the absorbance of the compound as a function of the wavelength of the beam, producing an absorbance spectrum that can be used to identify the compound, as the absorbance is due to the harmonic vibration and stretching of specific bonds in the molecule at specific wavelengths (see infrared spectroscopy). The characteristic bond of alcohols in infrared is the O-H bond, which gives a strong absorbance at a short wavelength. The more light is absorbed by compounds containing the alcohol group, the less reaches the detector on the other side—and the higher the reading. Other groups, most notably aromatic rings and carboxylic acids can give similar absorbance readings.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Some natural and volatile interfering compounds do exist, however. For example, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has found that dieters and diabetics may have acetone levels hundreds or even thousands of times higher than those in others. Acetone is one of the many substances that can be falsely identified as ethyl alcohol by some breath machines. However, fuel cell based systems are non-responsive to substances like acetone.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Substances in the environment can also lead to false BAC readings. For example, methyl tert-butyl ether, a common gasoline additive, has been alleged anecdotally to cause false positives in persons exposed to it. Tests have shown this to be true for older machines; however, newer machines detect this interference and compensate for it. Any number of other products found in the environment or workplace can also cause erroneous BAC results. These include compounds found in lacquer, paint remover, celluloid, gasoline, and cleaning fluids, especially ethers, alcohols, and other volatile compounds.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Breath analyzers assume that the subject being tested has a 2100-to-1 partition ratio in converting alcohol measured in the breath to estimates of alcohol in the blood. If the instrument estimates the BAC, then it measures weight of alcohol to volume of breath, so it will effectively measure grams of alcohol per 2100 ml of breath given. This measure is in direct proportion to the amount of grams of alcohol to every 1 ml of blood. Therefore, there is a 2100-to-1 ratio of alcohol in blood to alcohol in breath. However, this assumed partition ratio varies from 1300:1 to 3100:1 or wider among individuals and within a given individual over time. Assuming a true (and US legal) blood-alcohol concentration of 0.07%, for example, a person with a partition ratio of 1500:1 would have a breath test reading of 0.10%—over the legal limit.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Most individuals do, in fact, have a 2100-to-1 partition ratio in accordance with William Henry's law, which states that when the water solution of a volatile compound is brought into equilibrium with air, there is a fixed ratio between the concentration of the compound in air and its concentration in water. This ratio is constant at a given temperature. The human body is 37 degrees Celsius on average. Breath leaves the mouth at a temperature of 34 degrees Celsius. Alcohol in the body obeys Henry's Law as it is a volatile compound and diffuses in body water. To ensure that variables such as fever and hypothermia could not be pointed out to influence the results in a way that was harmful to the accused, the instrument is calibrated at a ratio of 2100:1, underestimating by 9 percent. In order for a person running a fever to significantly overestimate, he would have to have a fever that would likely see the subject in the hospital rather than driving in the first place. Studies suggest that about 1.8% of the population have a partition ratio below 2100:1. Thus, a machine using a 2100-to-1 ratio could actually overestimate the BAC. As much as 14% of the population has a partition ratio above 2100, thus causing the machine to under-report the BAC. Further, the assumption that the test subject's partition ratio will be average—that there will be 2100 parts in the blood for every part in the breath—means that accurate analysis of a given individual's blood alcohol by measuring breath alcohol is difficult, as the ratio varies considerably.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Variance in how much one breathes out can also give false readings, usually low. This is due to biological variance in breath alcohol concentration as a function of the volume of air in the lungs, an example of a factor which interferes with the liquid-gas equilibrium assumed by the devices. The presence of volatile components is another example of this; mixtures of volatile compounds can be more volatile than their components, which can create artificially high levels of ethanol (or other) vapors relative to the normal biological blood/breath alcohol equilibrium.


title: Breathalyzer

text: One of the most common causes of falsely high breath analyzer readings is the existence of mouth alcohol. In analyzing a subject's breath sample, the breath analyzer's internal computer is making the assumption that the alcohol in the breath sample came from alveolar air—that is, air exhaled from deep within the lungs. However, alcohol may have come from the mouth, throat or stomach for a number of reasons. To help guard against mouth-alcohol contamination, certified breath-test operators are trained to observe a test subject carefully for at least 15–20 minutes before administering the test.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The problem with mouth alcohol being analyzed by the breath analyzer is that it was not absorbed through the stomach and intestines and passed through the blood to the lungs. In other words, the machine's computer is mistakenly applying the partition ratio (2100:1, see above) and multiplying the result. Consequently, a very tiny amount of alcohol from the mouth, throat or stomach can have a significant impact on the breath-alcohol reading.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Other than recent drinking, the most common source of mouth alcohol is from belching or burping. This causes the liquids and/or gases from the stomach—including any alcohol—to rise up into the soft tissue of the esophagus and oral cavity, where it will stay until it has dissipated. The American Medical Association concludes in its "Manual for Chemical Tests for Intoxication" (1959): "True reactions with alcohol in expired breath from sources other than the alveolar air (eructation, regurgitation, vomiting) will, of course, vitiate the breath alcohol results." For this reason, police officers are supposed to keep a DUI suspect under observation for at least 15 minutes prior to administering a breath test. Instruments such as the Intoxilyzer 5000 also feature a "slope" parameter. This parameter detects any decrease in alcohol concentration of 0.006 g per 210 L of breath in 0.6 second, a condition indicative of residual mouth alcohol, and will result in an "invalid sample" warning to the operator, notifying the operator of the presence of the residual mouth alcohol. Preliminary breath testers, however, feature no such safeguard.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Acid reflux, or gastroesophageal reflux disease, can greatly exacerbate the mouth-alcohol problem. The stomach is normally separated from the throat by a valve, but when this valve becomes herniated, there is nothing to stop the liquid contents in the stomach from rising and permeating the esophagus and mouth. The contents—including any alcohol—are then later exhaled into the breathalyzer. One study of 10 individuals suffering from this condition did not find any actual increase in breath ethanol.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Mouth alcohol can also be created in other ways. Dentures, some have theorized, will trap alcohol, although experiments have shown no difference if the normal 15 minute observation period is observed. Periodontal disease can also create pockets in the gums which will contain the alcohol for longer periods. Also known to produce false results due to residual alcohol in the mouth is passionate kissing with an intoxicated person. Recent use of mouthwash or breath fresheners can skew results upward as they can contain fairly high levels of alcohol.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Absorption of alcohol continues for anywhere from 20 minutes (on an empty stomach) to two-and-one-half hours (on a full stomach) after the last consumption. Peak absorption generally occurs within an hour. During the initial absorptive phase, the distribution of alcohol throughout the body is not uniform. Uniformity of distribution, called equilibrium, occurs just as absorption completes. In other words, some parts of the body will have a higher blood alcohol content (BAC) than others. One aspect of the non-uniformity before absorption is complete is that the BAC in arterial blood will be higher than in venous blood.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Other false positive of high BAC and also blood reading are related to Patients with proteinuria and hematuria, due to kidney metabolization and failure.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The metabolization rate of related patients with kidney damage is abnormal in relation to percent in alcohol in the breath. However, since potassium dichromate is a strong oxidizer, numerous alcohol groups can be oxidized by kidney and blood filtration, producing false positives.


title: Breathalyzer

text: During the initial absorption phase, arterial blood alcohol concentrations are higher than venous. After absorption, venous blood is higher. This is especially true with bolus dosing (Canadian term). With additional doses of alcohol, the body can reach a sustained equilibrium when absorption and elimination are proportional, calculating a general absorption rate of 0.02/drink and a general elimination rate of 0.015/hour. (One drink is equal to of liquor, of beer, or of wine.)


title: Breathalyzer

text: Breath alcohol is a representation of the equilibrium of alcohol concentration as the blood gases (alcohol) pass from the (arterial) blood into the lungs to be expired in the breath. Arterial blood distributes oxygen throughout the body. Breath alcohol concentrations are generally lower than blood alcohol concentrations, because a true representation of blood alcohol concentration is only possible if the lungs were able to completely deflate. Vitreous (eye) fluid provides the most accurate account of blood alcohol concentration.


title: Breathalyzer

text: A common defense to an impaired driving charge (in appropriate circumstances) is that the consumption of alcohol occurred subsequent to driving. The typical circumstance where this comes up is when a driver consumes alcohol after a road accident, as an affirmative defense. This closely relates to absorptive stage intoxication (or bolus drinking), except that the consumption of alcohol also occurred after driving. This defense can be overcome by retrograde extrapolation "(infra)", but complicates prosecution.


title: Breathalyzer

text: While jurisdictions that recognise absorptive stage intoxication as a defense would also accept a defense of consumption after driving, some jurisdictions penalise post-driving drinking. While laws regarding absorption of alcohol consumed before (or while) driving are generally "per se", most statutes directed to post-driving consumption allow defenses for circumstances related to activity not related to. In Canada, it is illegal to be over the impaired driving limits within 3 hours of driving (given as 2  hours by CDN DOJ); however, the new law allows a "drinking after driving" defence in a situation where a driver had no reason to expect a demand by the police for breath testing. South Africa is more straightforward, with a separate penalty applied for consumption "After An Accident" until reported to the police and if so required, has been medically examined.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The breath analyzer test is usually administered at a police station, commonly an hour or more after the arrest. Although this gives the BrAC at the time of the test, it does not by itself answer the question of what it was at the time of driving. The prosecution typically provides an estimated alcohol concentration at the time of driving utilizing retrograde extrapolation, presented by expert opinion. This involves projecting back in time to estimate the BrAC level at the time of driving, by applying the physiological properties of absorption and elimination rates in the human body.


title: Breathalyzer

text: There are a number of substances or techniques that can supposedly "fool" a breath analyzer (i.e., generate a lower blood alcohol content).


title: Breathalyzer

text: A 2003 episode of the science television show "MythBusters" tested a number of methods that supposedly allow a person to fool a breath analyzer test. The methods tested included breath mints, onions, denture cream, mouthwash, pennies and batteries; all of these methods proved ineffective. The show noted that using these items to cover the smell of alcohol may fool a person, but, since they will not actually reduce a person's BrAC, there will be no effect on a breath analyzer test regardless of the quantity used, if any, it appeared that using mouthwash only raised the BrAC. Pennies supposedly produce a chemical reaction, while batteries supposedly create an electrical charge, yet neither of these methods affected the breath analyzer results.


title: Breathalyzer

text: The "MythBusters" episode also pointed out another complication: it would be necessary to insert the item into one's mouth (for example, eat an onion, rinse with mouthwash, conceal a battery), take the breath test, and then possibly remove the item — all of which would have to be accomplished discreetly enough to avoid alerting the police officers administering the test (who would obviously become very suspicious if they noticed that a person was inserting items into their mouth prior to taking a breath test). It would likely be very difficult, especially for someone in an intoxicated state, to be able to accomplish such a feat.


title: Breathalyzer

text: In addition, the show noted that breath tests are often verified with blood tests (BAC, which are more accurate) and that even if a person somehow managed to fool a breath test, a blood test would certainly confirm a person's guilt.


title: Breathalyzer

text: Other substances that might reduce the BrAC reading include a bag of activated charcoal concealed in the mouth (to absorb alcohol vapor), an oxidizing gas (such as NO, Cl, O, etc.) that would fool a fuel cell type detector, or an organic interferent to fool an infrared absorption detector. The infrared absorption detector is more vulnerable to interference than a laboratory instrument measuring a continuous absorption spectrum since it only makes measurements at particular discrete wavelengths. However, due to the fact that any interference can only cause higher absorption, not lower, the estimated blood alcohol content will be overestimated. Additionally, Cl is toxic and corrosive.


title: Breathalyzer

text: A 2007 episode of the Spike network's show "Manswers" showed some of the more common and not-so-common ways of attempts to beat the breath analyzer, none of which work. Test 1 was to suck on a copper-coated coin such as a penny. Test 2 was to hold a battery on the tongue. Test 3 was to chew gum. None of these tests showed a "pass" reading if the subject had consumed alcohol.


title: Breathalyzer

text: It is alleged that products such as mouthwash or breath spray can "fool" breath machines by significantly raising test results. Listerine mouthwash, for example, contains 27% alcohol. The breath machine is calibrated with the assumption that the alcohol is coming from alcohol in the blood diffusing into the lung rather than directly from the mouth, so it applies a partition ratio of 2100:1 in computing blood alcohol concentration—resulting in a false high test reading. To counter this, officers are not supposed to administer a preliminary breath test for 15 minutes after the subject eats, vomits, or puts anything in their mouth. In addition, most instruments require that the individual be tested twice at least two minutes apart. Mouthwash or other mouth alcohol will have somewhat dissipated after two minutes and cause the second reading to disagree with the first, requiring a retest. (Also see the discussion of the "slope parameter" of the Intoxilyzer 5000 in the "mouth alcohol" section above.)


title: Breathalyzer

text: A scientist tested the effects of Binaca breath spray on an Intoxilyzer 5000. He performed 23 tests with subjects who sprayed their throats and obtained readings as high as 0.81—far beyond legal levels. The scientist also noted that the effects of the spray did not fall below detectable levels until after 18 minutes.<ref name="Drinking/Driving Law Letter 1"></ref>


title: Michael (album)

text: Michael is the first posthumous album by American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was released on December 10, 2010, by Epic Records and Sony Music Entertainment. "Michael" is the first release of all-new Michael Jackson material since "Invincible" in 2001 and the seventh overall release since Jackson's death in 2009. The album was produced by Theron "Neff-U" Feemster, John McClain, Giorgio Tuinfort, and Teddy Riley, among others, and features guest performances by Akon and Lenny Kravitz.


title: Michael (album)

text: "Michael" debuted at number three on the US "Billboard" 200 albums chart and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in the United States. It produced four singles: "Hold My Hand", "Hollywood Tonight", "Behind the Mask", and "(I Like) The Way You Love Me", accompanied by music videos. "Hold My Hand" was a "Billboard" Hot 100 top 40 hit and has been certified Gold in the US.


title: Michael (album)

text: Announced on November 12, 2010, "Michael" features 10 tracks on the 2010 edition with the disputed tracks. "Breaking News" was the first song from the album to be released and was available for radio airplay. According to Sony, the song, along with two other tracks from the album, "Monster" and "Keep Your Head Up," was recorded in the home studio of Jackson family friend Eddie Cascio in New Jersey in 2007 and was "recently brought to completion."


title: Michael (album)

text: In the years prior to his death, Jackson was reported to be working with contemporary hitmakers such as singer-songwriter Akon and producer RedOne. The first official single from "Michael", "Hold My Hand", is a duet with Akon recorded in Las Vegas in 2007. Co-writer Claude Kelly told HitQuarters that it was the song's theme of friendship and togetherness that had struck a chord with Jackson. A handwritten note from Michael belonging to his Estate indicated his desire that "Hold My Hand" be the first single on his next project. However, in its unfinished state, the song leaked in July 2008. Before the release, Akon stated that the final version would have more of Jackson's vocals. The song was released globally on Monday, November 15 at 12:01am EST.


title: Michael (album)

text: Prior to the album's release, a lawyer for Jackson's father Joe stated that Jackson was a perfectionist and "would never have wanted his unfinished material to be released". Jackson collaborator will.i.am said it was "disrespectful" to release the material as Jackson was not able to approve it.


title: Michael (album)

text: "Michael" is composed of R&B, pop, soul and rock songs. Five out of the album's seven tracks were written by Michael Jackson on the edition without the disputed tracks. The album's full length is 27 minutes 24 seconds and it contains 7 songs on the edition without the disputed tracks. "Michael" opens with "Hold My Hand", the first line in the first verse recites the lyrics "This life don't last forever", and ends with "Much Too Soon", the last line in the last verse recites the lyrics "I guess I learned my lesson much too soon". The majority of the songs on the album are songs that were written and recorded during the "Invincible" era and onwards to the "This Is It" era. The album contains two songs that were written during the "Thriller" era, "Behind the Mask" and "Much Too Soon". The latter features Australian musician Tommy Emmanuel on the guitar. The song "(I Like) The Way You Love Me" previously appeared on "The Ultimate Collection" (2004) with the title "The Way You Love Me" as an unreleased track. For "Michael", the song has been re-arranged and more vocals have been added. The song "Best of Joy" is one of the last that Jackson recorded during his lifetime, having written and recorded it in 2008, one year before his death.


title: Michael (album)

text: The album cover artwork, a 2009 commissioned oil painting by African American artist Kadir Nelson, features two putti (one black, one white) placing a crown on Jackson's head against a mural depicting the images of the singer at different stages in his career. Nelson said that Jackson approached him several years ago to create a project detailing his life and career. The project stalled but was revived in 2009 by one of the estate's executors, John McClain, who has worked with Michael's sister Janet during her time at A&M. "Michael wears a golden suit of armor and stares at the viewer as he is crowned by cupids," Nelson said. "He places his hand over his heart and looks directly at the viewer, a symbol of Jackson's big heart and strong connection to his fans and music. A monarch butterfly sits on his shoulder, another symbol of Jackson's metamorphosis as a singer and entertainer, as well as a symbol of royalty. His musical history unfolds behind him." The original Sony publicity release of the album cover featured the Prince symbol in a bubble next to the tiger's head. This sparked discussion on the internet as to whether Prince was involved on any of the new songs. The official response from Prince's camp was "No permission was granted" and the symbol has since been removed from the cover on all official Sony websites.


title: Michael (album)

text: "Breaking News" was the first song from the album to be unveiled. On November 5, a video teaser for the song was released on Jackson's official website. It opens with a montage of various television journalists reporting breaking news about Jackson, followed by the musical introduction of a song. The montage refers to the tabloid stories and legal troubles that plagued Jackson in the years leading up to his death. On November 8, 2010, the full length version of the song was released, and made available on MichaelJackson.com for one week. The premiere of the song launched the public controversy about the authenticity of the vocals that plagued the album all the way through its promo campaign and ultimately resulted in lower than projected sales. The rumored single of another controversial Cascio song, "Monster", was subsequently cancelled.


title: Michael (album)

text: The album's first single, "Hold My Hand", was released on November 15, 2010. The filming for the official video of "Hold My Hand" began on Saturday, November 20 in Tustin, California. There was a casting call posted up on Jackson's official website, saying that they were "looking for his fans of all ages who want to be a part of this iconic event." On November 30, 2010, the final version of "Much Too Soon" was unveiled and announced that it would play on iTunes Ping for one week. On December 3, 2010, talk show host and comedian Ellen DeGeneres premiered the song "Hollywood Tonight" on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show". On December 6, 2010, talk show host Oprah Winfrey premiered controversial songs "Keep Your Head Up", and "Monster" during her talk show. On December 7, 2010, the final version of "(I Can't Make It) Another Day" was unveiled on iTunes Ping for one week.


title: Michael (album)

text: On December 8, 2010, the entire "Michael" album was released on Jackson's official website for preview. Sony Music had a listening party for the album at Roseland Ballroom on December 13. On Friday, December 10, 2010, a poster depicting the "Michael" album artwork was erected at the Rectory Farm in Middlesex, which broke a Guinness world record for the largest poster in the world, making it the 4th record Michael Jackson made in the Guinness Book of World Records, and the first record he broke posthumously. The poster, made of PVC and weighing one ton, took engineers three hours to install and was located less than 3,000 meters from one of Heathrow airport's main runways, literally viewable by all planes arriving and departing. The poster stayed at that location until December 23, 2010, after which, it traveled via sea-container into continental Europe where it was toured and displayed.


title: Michael (album)

text: "Hollywood Tonight" was the second official single, which was released in Italy on February 11, 2011, and in Poland on February 14, 2011. "Behind the Mask", the third single in this album, was released in France on February 21, 2011. "(I Like) The Way You Love Me", the fourth and final single released in South Korea as a digital single on January 18, 2011, and formally released in Italian and Chinese radio stations in July 2011.


title: Michael (album)

text: The authenticity of the vocals on the tracks "Breaking News", "Keep Your Head Up", and "Monster" is disputed. The tracks, along with nine other unreleased songs leaked online, are known as the Cascio tracks. They are attributed to Jackson, Eddie Cascio and James Porte and were allegedly recorded in the Cascios' basement in 2007, according to the documentary detailing the making of the album. Doubts over whether the vocals were by Jackson have been raised by his mother Katherine Jackson, his children Prince and Paris, his sister La Toya, his nephews T.J., Taj, and Taryll, music producer will.i.am, and fans. Jackson's brother Randy Jackson claimed that family members were not allowed at his studio where the album was being completed. According to Randy, when producer Teddy Riley played him some of the tracks, "I immediately said it wasn't his voice".


title: Michael (album)

text: Before the premiere of "Breaking News", Sony Music Group stated it had "complete confidence in the results of our extensive research, as well as the accounts of those who were in the studio with Michael, that the vocals on the new album are his own". Producer Riley, Frank DiLeo and Jackson's estate defended Sony's claims that the song is authentic. On December 6, 2010, the Cascio family appeared on "Oprah", where Eddie Cascio insisted the songs were sung by Jackson, and showed the studio where he had allegedly recorded the songs. Riley, who had worked on "Monster" and "Breaking News", said that the confusion had come about as a product of processing Jackson's vocals using software such as Melodyne. In September 2013, almost three years after the album release, Riley wrote on Twitter that his participation in the project had been "set up". Recording of the Cascio tracks was rumored to be recorded around late/early 2007. Fans have suggested that Italian-American R&B singer Jason Malachi recorded vocals for the tracks, but this was denied by the Jackson estate's lawyer. On January 16, 2011, a statement appeared on Malachi's Facebook page "confessing" to recording the vocals; however, Malachi claimed on MySpace that his Facebook and website had been hacked. Malachi's manager Thad Nauden stated that "Jason wants everyone to know beyond a shadow of a doubt, he did not sing a single note on the album".


title: Michael (album)

text: On June 12, 2014, a consumer who had purchased "Michael" filed a class-action lawsuit against Sony Music, the Jackson Estate, MJJ Productions, Cascio and Porte for violation of consumer laws, unfair competition and fraud. The complaint was based on an expert report prepared by forensic phonetician Dr. George Papcun that contested the authenticity of the vocals. According to the lawsuit, the report had been peer-reviewed and supported by a second well-credentialed independent audio expert. Sony, the Estate, Cascio and Porte raised First Amendment defense, claiming that regardless of the songs' authenticity, they had a constitutional right to attribute them to Jackson. On June 30, 2016, the judge refused to grant defendants' motion and ordered that the case proceeds to class certification. On August 23, 2018, some sources reported that Sony had admitted in court that the vocals on the Cascio songs were not performed by Jackson. The next day, Sony lawyer Zia Modabber dismissed the reports, stating that "no one has conceded that Michael Jackson did not sing on the songs".


title: Michael (album)

text: On June 29, 2022, the Jackson website spokesperson reported that 3 of the 10 tracks from the album are no longer available on YouTube, Apple Music, and Spotify as a result of a continual distraction to all listeners. A CD reissue of the album was released on September 9, 2022 that also dropped the three tracks.


title: Michael (album)

text: The album credits Dave Grohl with drums on the track "(I Can't Make It) Another Day". Grohl confirmed that he had recorded for the track, but said he was not contacted afterwards and that the final track does not feature his playing.


title: Michael (album)

text: "Michael" received mixed reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 54, based on 19 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews". Despite media skepticism and some dissent within Jackson family ranks, reviews largely found "Michael" better than expected. Joe Vogel of "The Huffington Post" stated that "the bottom line is this: "Michael" contains some very impressive new material" and "His habits, his obsessions, his versatility, and his genius are on display at every turn. Who else could move so seamlessly from social anthem to floor burner, fleet hip hop to cosmic rock, vintage funk to poignant folk ballad?"


title: Michael (album)

text: Dan Martin of "NME" called the album "kind of enjoyable" but commented that "if this decent-enough album is the best of the bunch, things are going to get ugly from here on in". Neil McCormick of "The Telegraph" called the album "a fine album" and stated that "It is certainly a great deal better than anyone had any right to expect. Jackson is finally about to get the comeback he craved." Jody Rosen of "Rolling Stone" thought the album was "not a Michael Jackson album", and Jackson "would not have released anything like this compilation, a grab bag of outtakes and outlines," but "it's a testament to the man's charisma that "Michael" can be compelling." Leah Greenblatt of "Entertainment Weekly" called it "certainly no great affront to his name", while "The New York Times" said it was a "miscellany of familiar Jackson offerings: inspirational, loving, resentful and paranoid."