Advocate: "Untold Riches" In $1.7 Billion Medical Pot Market ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The medical marijuana industry is beginning to show its age, McClatchy Newspapers report. After humble California beginnings in 1996, 15 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana use for ill patients who have a doctor's recommendation. Nearly 25 million Americans are medically eligible to buy marijuana. Sales are expected to hit $1.7 billion this year. Last week, the San Francisco-based ArcView Group, formed the industry's first investment network to link cannabis entrepreneurs to qualified investors with "seed" money. "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize that this industry is growing and that there are untold riches to be made here," said ArcView's Troy Dayton. In coming months, Arizona, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia will join eight states where medical marijuana is sold legally. Some law enforcement officials have expressed concern that medical marijuana could be obtained by relatively healthy people who could lie or overstate their pain. |
Public Smartphone Thefts Highlighted by Chicago Rider Death ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The exploding popularity of smartphones that command high prices on the black market is making them targets of thieves on Chicago public transit, says the Chicago Tribune. This week, a fleeing phone robber knocked a 68-year-old woman down the "L" train steps, killing her. Smartphones can be an easy and lucrative target for thieves, as commuters are often distracted by listening to music or checking email or the Web. Some smartphones with a contract that sell for less than $100 in stores can be sold on the street for $200 because they're activated. Investigators are able to track and arrest criminals by tracing calls made with a stolen phone or using a phone's GPS to locate the device. Undercover officers riding city trains and buses look for thieves trying to steal smartphones. Users should enable features that allow all data on a stolen or lost phone to be deleted remotely, said Nikki Junker, social media coordinator and victim adviser at the Identity Theft Resource Center. |
How Neighborhood Watch Group Operates on Facebook ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Some community groups are turning to online crime-tracking tools or creating neighborhood watch groups on the Internet that give them instant access to crimes reported in their neighborhoods and suspicious activity, says the Sacramento Bee. Susanne Burns of Carmichael, Ca., took action after her home was burglarized last May while her family slept. Burns set up a Neighborhood Watch group of homes in her gated community. "We started emailing and this list grew basically out of control," she said. "It started with me emailing the 22 homes in our little community. It just mushroomed, and I think that's when it hit me." Now she has created the Carmichael Watchgroup, a Facebook page with 342 members that notifies residents of community meetings with the Sheriff's Department, crime-tracking website, and criminal reports. News about stolen bikes, garage break-ins and other crimes are posted regularly. At Christmas, video from one home's security cameras was posted showing a burglar breaking into a house and leaving on a bicycle with stolen property. |
Lawyers Mining Social Media Sites to Find Juror Biases ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When jurors were chosen for the perjury trial of Barry Bonds this month, they were barred from using social media in regards to the case. There's no such ban on lawyers, who mine the social-networking profiles of jurors to unearth a bias that might hurt - or help - their side, Bloomberg News reports. Facebook, Twitter and other services have become a major resource for both prosecutors and defense attorneys, allowing them to glean more insight than they can get from jury questionnaires, said Joseph Rice of Jury Research Institute. "Social media has given us an incredible tool, because it's something jurors voluntarily engage in, and they post information about their activities or affiliations or hobbies," Rice said. That reveals "their life experience or attitude that may have an impact on how they view the facts of the case." A West Virginia juror didn't disclose that she was MySpace friends with the defendant, a police officer being tried on criminal charges. After the relationship came to light, a state appeals court threw out the defendant's conviction and ordered a new trial. |
Christie Moves to End NJ Early Inmate Release Program ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has accelerated the repeal of a controversial early release program for prison inmates while also seeking to broaden the Parole Board's discretion to review cases, reports the Newark Star-Ledger. If the state senate accepts the changes Christie made to a Democratic bill yesterday, the state would no longer release some inmates six months before their sentences are scheduled to end. n addition, the Parole Board would not have to hold hearings for inmates at regular intervals. The recommendations could roll back two critical pieces of a law signed by Gov. Jon Corzine on his last day in office. The early release program in particular has drawn a firestorm of controversy after two inmates who were allowed out of prison months early were accused of murder. "Whatever original policy or principle motivated passage of this law, it failed to adequately consider the safety of the public," Christie said. |
Seattle Report Urges Police To Focus On Crime Hot Spots ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Based on 14 years worth of data that shows half of Seattle's crimes take place on 4.5 percent of its streets, the city auditor's office is recommending that police focus their energies on a handful of high-crime areas, reports KOMO-TV. "These 'powerful few' hot spots are responsible for many of the disorder problems in Seattle," said the report. The report says it would be more effective to focus on the 1,500 hot spots responsible for half the city's crime than to attempt to focus on the equivalent 6,108 offenders responsible for the same amount of crime each year. Hot spot approaches to policing have been successful in Minneapolis, Kansas City, Jersey City, Oakland, and elsewhere, the auditor said |
Illinois Still Seeks Inmate "Good Time" Replacement Program ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Illinois faces serious challenges with its prisons' budget and population, which clocked a record 48,739 inmates this month, says the Bloomington (Il.) Pantagraph in the third of a series. The higher census started last year after Gov. Pat Quinn halted the Meritorious Good Time (MGT) and MGT-Push programs that gave inmates up to 180 days' credit for good conduct. and removed a requirement that inmates serve a minimum of 60 days even if their anticipated stay in prison was below that mark. The Illinois Department of Corrections has made it a high priority to create a replacement for MGT. Across the U.S., states are trying to strike a balance between policies that ultimately reduce prison population and a perception that such policies can threaten public safety. Sometimes, it's a matter of how the decisions are phrased: public word of MGT-Push came through news reports that termed it a "secret early release program." In fact, it was essentially a tweak to an administrative rule already in place. |
Texas Seen Unlikely To Rush Into Privatizing Prison Health Care ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Texas legislative leaders gave an initial cold shoulder to the idea of hiring private contractors to take over parts or all of Texas' cash-strapped health care system for convicted felons, reports the Austin American-Statesman. Their concern is that there's no proof such a plan would save money, and time is too short to explore such an extensive overhaul of a complicated and costly system. Leaders appeared intent to move ahead with a funding plan relying primarily on two state universities - the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and Texas Tech University - to provide most medical services for Texas' 154,000 convicted criminals. "The concern is that private vendors would come in and cherry-pick the best parts of the system, and leave everything else because that's not where the money is," said Senate Criminal Justice Committee Chairman John Whitmire |
Indiana Prosecutors Didn't Disclose Problems With Crime Lab ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Leaders of Indiana's prosecuting attorneys association and other prosecutors were told more than two years ago about concerns regarding Indiana State Department of Toxicology test results, which are used as evidence in criminal cases, reports the Indianapolis Star. Legal experts and defense attorneys say it's troubling that the prosecutors kept that information to themselves. Instead of informing defense attorneys or pushing for an investigation of the lab's work, prosecutors continued to use the results -- often critical to winning convictions or leveraging plea agreements. Not sharing the information, defense attorneys contend, smacks of a cover-up. They see it as an attempt to quickly and quietly move on without calling into question the work of the lab. Besides raising the likelihood of wrongful convictions, the situation raises the possibility that someone who committed a crime might have been cleared by an incorrect test result. |
Senate Confirmations May End for Justice Department Jobs ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Five top jobs in the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs no longer would require Senate confirmation under a bipartisan Senate leadership agreement announced yesterday and reported by MainJustice.com. They include the directorships of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Bureau of Justice Assistance, National Institute of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and Office for Victims of Crime. The agreement, which still must be approved by Congress, includes the main Justice Department's legislative affairs director and 200 other government jobs. Only two of the five offices--the Bureau of Justice Statistics and National Institute of Justice--have Senate-confirmed directors in the two-year-old Obama administration, and those confirmations occurred only last June. The other agencies are being run by acting directors. Nominations for the agency positions often must compete with judicial nominations for time slots at the Senate Judiciary Committee. |
GA Judge Profile Illustrates Pros, Cons Of Drug Court Approach ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chicago Public Radio's "This American Life" profiles the Glynn County, Ga., drug court. The program contends that drug courts generally save "lots of money because fewer people are incarcerated, and, studies show, it actually helps people, gets them off drugs. Which means fewer repeat offenders." Critics, including the Justice Policy Institute and Drug Policy Alliance, say the radio program "illustrates the harm that can arise from drug court programs, highlighting a Georgia drug court which handed down excessively long sentences and prison terms to people who would have otherwise received minimal or no sentences. West Huddleston of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals says on the program that, "Any drug court that relies primarily on jail, or punishment generally, is operating way outside our philosophy and just does not understand addiction." |
Departing Prison Chief Lappin Had Drunk-Driving Arrest ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Federal prison director Harley Lappin, who announced his retirement last week effective May 7, was arrested on charges of drunken driving in February near his home in Annapolis, Md., and again for speeding last week, reports MainJustice.com. A spokeswoman for Lappin says the driving incidents are not related to his departure. Lappin told his staff Tuesday, according to the Daily Caller in Washington, that he drunk driving case was a "lapse in my judgment [ ] giving rise to potential embarrassment to the agency, the Department of Justice, and my position as Director." Lappin noted that "our affiliation with the Bureau of Prisons remains with us regardless of where we are or what we are doing." |
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Thursday, March 31, 2011
31 March 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Articles for 29 March 2011
Nonfatal Workplace Violence In 2009 Was 1/4 Of 1993 Total ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The level of nonfatal violent crime in U.S. workplaces in 2009 was about a quarter of the total in 1993, the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics said today. More than 572,000 nonfatal violent crimes-rape, robbery, or assault-occurred against persons age 16 or older while they were at work or on duty in 2009. Workplace homicides fell 51 percent from 1,068 in 1993 to 521 in 2009. Law enforcement personnel, security guards, and bartenders had the highest rates of nonfatal workplace violence. About one-fifth of workplace violence from 2005 through 2009 consisted of serious violent crime, compared to almost two-fifths of nonworkplace violence and violence against persons not employed. Strangers committed about 53 percent of nonfatal workplace violence against males and about 41 percent against females. Data on nonfatal violence in the workplace are from the BJS National Crime Victimization Survey. Findings on fatal violence in the workplace are based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries |
Boston Antviolence Program Yet To Cut Homicide Total ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Next week, experts from six cities will gather at a Washington, D.C., 'summit' to discuss tackling the national epidemic of youth violence. An approach used by one of those cities-Boston-is already sparking debate, says The Crime Report. When deadly gun violence happens in Boston, the killing zone is mostly concentrated along a four-mile North-South route in the city named Blue Hill Avenue. And it affects for the most part one segment of the population who are either perpetrators or victims-young men between the ages of 16 and 24. Those two facts have focused the minds of people determined to find a way to curb an epidemic of death by guns that has plagued Boston for nearly a decade. The solution seemed logical: develop an intervention program that targeted both the Blue Hill Avenue neighborhoods where most of Boston's gun homicides were occurring, and the youthful population that was responsible. With help from the Boston Foundation, StreetSafe Boston was launched in the summer of 2009 to do exactly thatĪ²€•but with a controversial added feature. Twenty former gang members were hired to work in so-called "hot-zone" neighborhoods where young men tend to meet insults with gunfire, and gunfire with revenge. The short-term results were not promising. By the end of 2010, the number of Boston homicides not only failed to dropĪ²€•it increased to a worrying new high of 72. That continued an upward trend from the year ending in December 2008, when 63 homicide victims were recorded-more than half of them under the age of 30. |
Some Texas Private Jails Struggle To Fill Their Cells ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The U.S. is supporting a $3 billion private prison industry, says NPR in the second in a series. In Texas, there are more for-profit prisons than any other state. because of a growing inmate shortage, some private jails cannot fill empty cells, leaving some towns wishing they'd never gotten in the prison business. The west Texas farming town of Littlefield borrowed $10 million and built the Bill Clayton Detention Center in a cotton field in 2000. For eight years, the prison was a good employer. Then the for-profit operator, GEO Group, left. One hundred prison jobs disappeared. The facility has been empty ever since. Still, Corrections Corporation of America, the nation's largest private prison operator, says the demand for its facilities remains strong, particularly for federal immigration detainees |
New FL Corrections Chief Buss Seeks Big Prison Overhaul ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ed Buss, a low-key Midwesterner, has taken the Florida Department of Corrections by storm as he sets about reforming and revitalizing the nation's third-largest prison system, a place long hostile to change and where outsiders are viewed with suspicion, reports the St. Petersburg Times. Gov. Rick Scott promised to shake things up, and nobody on his new team is pushing more change more quickly than Buss, a 45-year-old Army veteran who ran Indiana's prisons. In just six weeks, Buss has called for a major financial commitment to helping prison inmates re-enter society so they will be less likely to return to prison; fired more than a dozen highly paid administrators, proposed a 5 percent pay cut for all wardens and the privatization of prison health care programs; banned smoking by an estimated 60,000 inmates, urged the legislature to abolish mandatory minimum prison sentences in some cases, proposed that corrections officers switch from eight-hour days to 12-hour shifts to cut down on commuting costs and give more officers more weekends off, and suggested closing three prisons to cut costs and improve efficiency |
CO Probation Reviewed After Much Violence During Supervision ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In the past nine months, 10 Colorado felons were charged with murder or attempted murder for crimes that authorities said were committed while they were supposed to be under the supervision of state probation officers, the Denver Post reports. The crimes include the March 18 fatal shooting of a college football player, the killing of a sheriff's deputy, and the death of a 16-year-old girl who was mutilated. Three felons, none of whom were allowed to possess firearms as a condition of their probation, shot at police officers, wounding two of them. As legislators discuss ways to reduce expensive prison populations, perhaps putting more people on probation, the rash of probationers charged with new crimes raises questions about whether the state is effectively balancing the responsibility of rehabilitating offenders with public safety. "I know how serious and upsetting it is to us - especially the officers in the field - when cases end tragically like this," said Tom Quinn, director of the state's Division of Probation Services. The department will consider conducting formal reviews of cases in which probationers commit new violent crimes, something it currently does not do. |
After Murder, Parents Sue Facebook Over Photo, Seek Victim Cooperation ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The parents of an aspiring teacher who was strangled on New York City's Staten Island are suing Facebook over a gruesome photo of their murdered daughter that an EMT posted on the site, reports the New York Daily News. Ronald and Marti Wimmer filed suit over a photo taken by EMT Mark Musarella after the 2009 murder of their daughter, Caroline, 26, in her apartment. A man is serving a 25 years-to-life sentence for the murder. Musarella, 46, leaded guilty to official misconduct and was stripped of his EMT certification and sentenced to 200 hours of community service. The suit wants Facebook to turn over the picture, identify those who viewed or downloaded it and destroy images in its possession. The lawsuit is also seeking a court mandate that Facebook cooperate with victims in the future. Facebook said it would fight the lawsuit. |
Lobbying Push On Reagan Shooting Anniversary Not Going Far ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Wednesday is the 30th anniversary of the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan. Gun-control advocates, including wounded press secretary Jim Brady, will launch a renewed push for curbs on guns. Once again, chances are they won't get very far, McClatchy Newspapers report. The public remains sharply divided over gun rights vs. gun control. Gun-rights groups, led by the National Rifle Association, dramatically outspend gun-control organizations on campaign donations and lobbying. "People are sensitive to the issue of gun violence because of the Giffords shooting [ ] but the gun issue is down on Congress' list of priorities, given high unemployment and two and a half wars," said Darrell West of the Brookings Institution. Brady and his wife Sarah will visit the White House today and Capitol Hill on Wednesday to lobby for tighter curbs on firearms. Other than the 1993 "Brady Bill," which requires background checks for purchasers from federally licensed gun dealers, "not much has been done in the last 30 years," says Brady campaign chief Paul Helmke |
NY Times Publishes "Deeper Portrait" of TX Gang-Rape Victim ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The New York Times, which received criticism over its coverage of a Cleveland, Tx., girl, 11, who was repeatedly gang-raped last year, has published a front-page follow-up story on the case. Police say the girl was raped at least six times. Nineteen boys and men, ages 14 to 27, have been charged. The Times says that court documents and dozens of interviews with the girl's family, her friends and neighbors, as well as those who know the defendants, "provide a more complete picture of what occurred as well as a deeper portrait of the victim." The case have raises questions about how a girl might have been repeatedly abused by many men and boys in a tightly knit community without any adult intervening until sexually explicit videos of the victim began circulating in local schools. A local pastor says, "You can be awake and see things and still not do anything." |
More States Mull Decongestant-RX Rules to Fight Meth ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Several states faced with surging methamphetamine problems are weighing contentious bills that would require a doctor's prescription for popular decongestants like Sudafed, reports the New York Times. The drugs contain pseudoephedrine, the crucial ingredient in methamphetamine. Police say efforts to keep them out of the hands of meth cooks have failed. Tennessee police seized nearly 2,100 meth labs last year, 45 percent higher than 2009 and more than any other state. The proposals are meeting stiff resistance from drug makers and pharmacy groups, who say they would place an undue burden on cold and allergy sufferers. They are promoting other bills that would help the police monitor pseudoephedrine sales with interstate electronic tracking. "We can't change lives just to stop these weirdo people," said Joy Krieger of the St. Louis chapter of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, who is fighting a prescription-only bill in Missouri. |
Georgia TV Surrender Highlights Police-Criminal Tensions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The death of Jamie Hood's brother to a police bullet in 2001 and Hood's dramatic surrender Friday in Athens, Ga., after a four-hour hostage standoff offers a provocative timeline of rising tensions between police and street criminals in the last decade, leading to more bloodshed on the beat even as violent crime has decreased, says the Christian Science Monitor. After being approached by two police officers investigating a carjacking, Hood allegedly opened fire and escaped, leaving one officer dead and another seriously injured. Police tracked Hood to an apartment. As he held eight women and children hostage, Hood demanded that TV cameras cover the surrender because he was afraid he'd be gunned down by police. The drama in Athens unfolded at a time when many experts believe that there's a brewing "war on cops," given a spike in the number of police officers killed in shootouts over the past 18 months |
Feds Could File Manslaughter Charges in BP Oil Spill ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Federal prosecutors are considering whether to file manslaughter charges against BP managers for decisions made before the Gulf of Mexico oil well explosion last year that killed 11 workers and caused the biggest offshore spill in U.S. history, reports Bloomberg News. Investigators are examining statements made by leaders of companies involved in the spill - including former BP CEO Tony Hayward - during congressional hearings last year to determine whether their testimony was at odds with what they knew. Charging individuals would be significant to environmental-safety cases because it might change behavior, said University of Maryland law Prof. Jane Barrett. "They typically don't prosecute employees of large corporations," said Barrett, who spent 20 years prosecuting environmental crimes at the federal and state levels. "You've got to prosecute the individuals in order to maximize, and not lose, the deterrent effect." The Justice Department has opened criminal and civil investigations into the spill, which began after an April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig |
After International Attention, High Court Rejects Troy Davis Case ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected the appeal of Georgia death row inmate Troy Davis, whose persistent claims of innocence attracted the support of death penalty opponents around the world and forced a series of extra hearings to investigate his case, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Davis was sentenced to die for the 1989 shooting death of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail. He has avoided execution dates three times by persuading a new court to examine his case. In 2009, Davis persuaded the high court to take the unusual step of ordering a federal judge to reexamine Davis' case from top to bottom. The conclusion: "new evidence casts some additional, minimal doubt on his conviction, it is largely smoke and mirrors," federal judge William Moore said. |
Monday, March 28, 2011
Articles for 28 March 2011
Violence Stifles Learning, Causes Trauma In Philly Schools ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In the first of a seven-part series on violence in the Philadelphia schools that took five reporters a year to report, the Philadelphia Inquirer says there were 4,541 violent incidents last school year. On an average day, 25 students, teachers, or other staff members were beaten, robbed, sexually assaulted, or victims of other violent crimes. That doesn't even include thousands more who are extorted, threatened, or bullied. Teachers, students, and administrators told the newspaper that many incidents aren't even reported. During the last school year, 183 cases came to the district's attention only after the city police made arrests. Violence in the schools is more than the sheer numbers. The specter of violence traumatizes students and teachers, and stifles learning |
Dallas DNA Exonerations Show Importance of Saving Evidence ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The exoneration of Cornelius DuPree Jr. after three decades in prison began in a cramped Dallas laboratory, where an unusual repository of biological evidence from thousands of crimes is liberating more wrongly convicted inmates than any in the U.S., reports USA Today. Crime-solving is the lab's primary mission, but exonerations have emerged as a by-product of that mission. Since 2001, the lab's DNA archive has secured freedom for 21 prisoners serving up to life in prison. As more horrific mistakes of the past are exposed, the Institute of Forensic Sciences has become Exhibit A in a national push by some lawmakers, civil rights advocates, prosecutors, and the federal government for more uniform standards regulating how biological evidence should be retained in criminal cases. In Dallas County, wrongs are being righted because "the evidence - decades after it was collected - was there to test," says District Attorney Craig Watkins. The county has been retaining evidence for decades, some samples since 1978. Only about half the states require the automatic preservation of DNA evidence after conviction, says the Innocence Project. Sixteen states have no preservation laws. |
OK Non-Prison Sentencing Grows As Funds For New Cells Dry Up ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "District attorneys are being asked to do more and more [ ] now, we're also being asked to be social workers," says Commanche County, Ok., District Attorney Fred Smith. Prosecutors today may choose from a variety of nontraditional sentencing options ranging from drug court assignments to mental health and anger management counseling, The Oklahoman reports. GPS monitoring devices for sex offenders, alcohol monitoring bracelets, and drug patches are some of the newer probation tools. Alternative sentencing is a necessity borne from prison overcrowding and shrinking budgets. In Oklahoma, where the prison population has grown by 9,000 in 13 years, there is no money for prison construction and agencies are bracing for more budget cuts |
With No Cleanup Funds, Agencies May Scale Back Meth Lab Busts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Police and sheriff's departments in states ravaged by methamphetamine may have to scale back efforts to bust manufacturers because federal funds for cleaning up the toxic sites has dried up and departments don't want to get stuck footing the bill, reports the Associated Press. Congressional funding for the program has been exhausted, and renewed funding in the next few years is unlikely. The COPS program provided $19.2 million for meth lab cleanup in the current fiscal year. "I think it will change enforcement strategy," said Tony Saucedo, meth enforcement director for Michigan State Police. "There's no way to be proactive. If we come across [a meth lab], obviously it's going to have to be handled. You can probably bet that nobody's going to go actively looking for meth labs." Tennessee, which has overtaken Missouri as the nation's top meth lab state, got $4.5 million from COPS last year for meth cleanup -- about 2 1/2-times more than any other state, and funding Tennessee will be hard-pressed to find elsewhere. |
Sexting Tale: How WA Girl's Nude Photo Yielded 3 Felony Charges ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Law enforcement officials and educators are struggling with how to confront minors who "sext," an imprecise term that refers to sending sexual photos, videos, or texts from one cellphone to another, says the New York Times. For teenagers with ready access to technology, sexting is laughably easy, unremarkable, and usually done to look cool and sexy to someone they find attractive. "Having a naked picture of your significant other on your cellphone is an advertisement that you're sexually active to a degree that gives you status," said Rick Peters, a prosecutor in Thurston County, Wa., "It's an electronic hickey." The Times tells the story of what happened with Washington state charges against three students for dissemination of child pornography, a Class C felony, because they had set off a viral outbreak involving a girl's nude photo. |
Violence Alleged in Large Private Mississippi Youth Prison ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Prisons are filled with stress and violence; without proper supervision they can revert to primitive places. NPR, in the first of a two-part series on private prisons, says that is what happened at Walnut Grove Youth Correctional Facility in Mississippi. The nation's largest juvenile prison, Walnut Grove houses 1,200 boys and young men in a sprawling one-story complex east of Jackson. The State of Mississippi pays Geo Group to run the prison. Allegations raise the fundamental question of whether profits have distorted the mission of rehabilitating young inmates. Former inmates describe an environment of violence inside the youth prison as so pervasive it became entertainment. The Southern Poverty Law Center and the American Civil Liberties Union National Prison Project have filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of 13 inmates against Geo, the prison administration and state officials |
Federal Prison Director Harley Lappin to Retire in May ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Harley Lappin director of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, will retire May 7. Lappin has run the bureau for eight years. An agency employee for 25 years, Lappin became warden of the federal prison in Butner, N.C., in 1996. The prison included a forensic center, inpatient and outpatient psychiatric units, sex offender treatment, and a satellite prison camp. In 1998, he moved to become warden at the U.S. Penitentiary at Terre Haute, IN, where he activated a Special Confinement Unit, which houses federal inmates under death sentences, and he presided over the first two federal executions since 1963. In testimony March 15 before a House subcommittee on the bureau's $6.7 billion budget request for the fiscal year beginning October 1, Lappin talked about "severe crowding" in some of the agency's facilities housing 171,000 inmates (another 29,000 federal inmates are in private facilities.") Lappin said he federal prisoner population is increasing, and that he expects it to grow for the foreseeable future. The bureau noted that Lappin has "championed the Inmate Skills Development Initiative," which is aimed at improving prisoner re-entry into society |
TX Scrap Metal Firms Not Reporting Amid Copper Theft Boom ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Copper is like a gold mine for thieves because it has a fairly high resale value -- up to $4 a pound for scrap copper at salvage yards -- and is hard to trace, reports the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram. Hard times make a bad situation worse. Thieves stole about 100 feet of copper from behind a local restaurant this month. "We lost business for two days," said restaurant owner Steven Wong. Thieves target schools, churches, nonprofits, homes, foreclosed and abandoned houses, construction sites, and gas wells. They take copper from air-conditioning units, street lights and bronze vases on gravestones. They even steal manhole covers. Then they head to scrap yards to sell the metal. A 2007 Texas law was supposed to help put the thieves out of business. It requires all scrap metal businesses to register with the state and report purchases. Only 870 of the 2,400 metal recyclers have registered, and only about 430 have reported transactions the past year |
TN-Made Assault Rifles, Gun Parts End Up in Middle East ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Illegally trafficked assault rifles and gun parts manufactured in Nashville found their way to Middle Eastern countries such as Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, The Tennessean reports. Court document from federal agents show details of an alleged conspiracy to skirt U.S. regulators and law enforcement to get a leg up in the high-stakes international arms industry. Four Sabre Defence Industries executives charged in a 21-count federal indictment are likely to change their not guilty pleas Monday. The alleged fraud included British owner Guy Savage and Nashville officials using "phony shipping documents" and invoices from "fairy land," sending gun parts overseas under false bottoms in shipping containers and stamping silencers illegally imported from Finland as if they were manufactured in Nashville. Sabre officials were calling silencers "lawn mower mufflers" and rifle barrels "gear shafts" in an effort to fly under the radar of regulators. Savage allegedly purchased a Nashville gun maker known as Ramo Defense Systems in 2002 hoping to be able to ship parts to his British company and hoping to score U.S. defense contracts |
NC Cases Raise Questions On Blood Test Results ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Foye's case and others call into doubt the prosecutors' assurances that there is no need to worry about last year's independent audit, commissioned by Attorney General Roy Cooper, which found that the bureau's crime lab withheld or misreported blood test results in 229 cases. The SBI said this week that it has identified an additional 74 cases with similar problems |
Milwaukee Cops Still on Job After Sex Misconduct Discipline ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Three Milwaukee police officers disciplined after women accused them of on-duty sexual misconduct continue to wear the badge, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. One of the officers, Scott Charles, served a 60-day suspension and has since been promoted to sergeant. The other two, Reginald Hampton and Milford Adams, were fired but reinstated after appealing to the civilian Fire and Police Commission, which has the power to overturn punishments imposed by the chief. Recently fired officer Ladmarald Cates - accused of raping a woman after he responded to her 911 call in July - hopes to use the same appeals process to get his job back. Like the other three, he is accused of using his police authority to prey on vulnerable women. Carmen Pitre of the Sojourner Family Peace Center said abusive officers are particularly dangerous to victims. They cast a shadow of doubt on the good work done by the rest of the force, she said. "Police officers have a lot of power in their hands and when they abuse that power, we have to take a very firm stand on that not being acceptable," she said. |
Missteps in Federal Use of Wiretaps in Insider-Trading Case ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The wiretaps of conversations between Raj Rajaratnam, Galleon Group hedge fund manager, and his sources of information appear to provide powerful evidence that he traded on illegal insider tips, writes Peter Henning in the New York Times. The jury in the insider trading trial can hear what was actually said rather than relying on the sometimes-fuzzy recollections of witnesses. Missteps in how federal prosecutors obtained and monitored the wiretaps and tried to entice people into making incriminating statements have come to light, raising questions about how carefully the Justice Department has been in applying these tactics in white-collar crime cases says Henning. These should serve as a warning that wiretaps must be used very carefully in future cases. |
Friday, March 25, 2011
25 March 2011
Brown's Tax Plan to Shift CA Juvenile Rehab to Counties Stalls ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A decade and a half ago, the California Youth Authority (now the Division of Juvenile Justice) incarcerated 10,000 young offenders, says The California Watch. A lawsuit by the Prison Law Office and other advocates forced dramatic changes in the treatment of teenagers who've run afoul of the law. At the same time, state leaders with scarce funds have become eager to trim their tight budgets. County governments have taken on an increasingly large role in rehabilitating teenage offenders. California's five facilities now house just 1,200 inmates, referred to as wards in the juvenile justice system. This year, Gov. Jerry Brown suggested that California become the first state in the nation to shut its youth correctional system completely and turn over the remaining wards to the custody of counties. Local officials pushed back, and Brown responded with a compromise plan. His goal remains to slash tens of millions of dollars from the state's general fund obligations by turning over juvenile justice to California's 58 counties. Brown aims to find new revenue for counties to handle the state's most difficult young offenders in a package of tax extensions he hopes to put before voters in June. The tax plan is stalled in the legislature, lacking the two-thirds vote needed to put the measure on a special election ballot. |
How Chicago's CeaseFire Intervenes to Curb Youth Violence ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Amid a decrease in youth violence, violent crimes are still most concentrated in poorer, urban neighborhoods. Experts say kids who grow up in dangerous areas are more likely to become targets, NPR reports. In Chicago, a program called CeaseFire is working to curb violence by helping at-risk youth find employment and patrolling the streets to stop crimes before they happen. University of Chicago researcher Dexter Voisin says teens growing up in dangerous neighborhoods have a range of coping strategies. They seek out non-violent friends, some become resigned, others strive to do well in school, and some cope by fighting. Part of the "code of survival on the streets" is to retaliate. He says youth begin to think, "'if I don't retaliate, it's just a matter of time before I'm dead.'" Voisin thinks "the coping mechanisms for some boys are the same coping mechanisms that are also putting them in harm's way in terms of homicide trends." The U.S. Justice Department calls CeaseFire's strategy effective. It found that the group's interventions in risky neighborhoods and its work with gang members has helped decrease shootings and killings. |
Critics: Proposed OR Juvenile Justice Cuts Would Hurt Rehab ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oregon's youth offenders would get less help and less hope of escaping future trouble under reductions facing state and county operations, The Oregonian reports. The system is intended to keep the 15,600 kids a year referred to juvenile departments from ever seeing the inside of an adult prison. Gov. John Kitzhaber wants to take millions of dollars from youth programs to keep the adult prisons running. That, executives at state and county juvenile agencies say, would hurt kids in the short term and be self-defeating in the long run. Under the cuts, the state juvenile justice system would lose hundreds of beds housing the most at-risk kids. Some youths would be shifted to less secure community programs. Kids in those programs, in turn, would be bumped out the door just when they are most open to the changes that can set them straight for life, juvenile authorities say. "These cuts will cause a major shift in how we handle juvenile justice in Oregon," said Scott Taylor, director of the Multnomah County Community Justice Department. Those who tend young offenders appreciate the terrible budget chore facing the governor. But they say they have worked years to make their systems smarter and more focused, catching kids earlier and turning around even the seemingly most incorrigible. The number of criminal referrals to juvenile authorities has dropped by one-third in 10 years |
Thirteen States Maintain Crack-Powder Sentencing Disparities ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Now that Congress has reduced the disparity in mandatory federal sentences for crack and powder cocaine offenses, the Washington, D.C.,-based advocacy group The Sentencing Project reports that 13 states maintain sentencing disparities in their own drug laws. In Missouri, a defendant convicted of selling six grams of crack faces the same prison term -a ten-year mandatory minimum - as someone who sells 450 grams of powder cocaine, or 75 times that amount. In Oklahoma, with a 6-to-1 quantity-based sentencing disparity, a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence is triggered for five grams of crack cocaine and 28 grams of powder cocaine. In Arizona, with a 12-to-1 disparity, nine grams of powder cocaine or less than a gram of crack cocaine trigger five-year prison terms for trafficking offenses. Penalties like these contribute to overcrowding in state prisons, says the organization. It says that fiscal pressure to tighten state corrections budgets, along with evidence that the crack-powder disparity is "unfair and unwarranted," suggests that lawmakers should reexamine the sentencing differentials, the project contends. |
NYC First: Caseworker Charged With Contributing to Child's Death ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For the first time, a New York City caseworker has been charged with contributing to the death of a child, says the New York Times. Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes announced the indictment of a former caseworker and a supervisor on charges of criminally negligent homicide in the death of a 4-year-old girl. Agency workers, officials, and some child welfare advocates expressed fears that the charges would make a tough job - attracting smart, qualified people - even tougher, and might even make things worse for vulnerable families too. Marchella Brett-Pierce died after being repeatedly beaten and bound. Her mother has been charged with murder and now former caseworker Damon Adams and his former supervisor Chereece Bell have been charged with criminally negligent homicide. Adams also was charged with falsifying records, was accused of lying about visits to Marchella's home that he had not made; Bell was accused of failing to monitor him properly. Both have resigned. Hynes is convening a special grand jury to look at "evidence of alleged systemic failures" at the agency. The agency has attempted an overhaul since another prominent death of a girl named Nixzmary Brown in 2006. |
Texas Judges Send Many First Time Youth Offenders to State Prison ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Texas judges, particularly in Houston's Harris County, are sending hundreds of adolescent, first-time violent offenders to state prison, a punishment lawmakers intended for youths considered the worst of the worst, says a report quoted by the Texas Tribune. "Adult jails and adult prisons are simply the wrong place to hold these kids," says report author Michele Deitch of the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs. Texas law allows judges to certify as adults youths between the ages of 14 and 17 who have committed felony offenses. Young, violent offenders can be given determinate sentences of up to 40 years that begin in a youth facility and continue to adult prisons if the judge determines that is necessary. Over a recent 5-year period, Texas courts certified nearly 1,300 youths as adults, and about 860 got determinate sentences. The report said there was little difference in the criminality among youths sentenced to the adult system and those who were sent to youth facilities. In both cases, the majority committed a violent crime like aggravated robbery or sexual assault, and had one or no previous juvenile court cases |
Why The Police Solution Rate to Home Burglaries is Slipping ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ John Abraham waited three hours for a police officer to show up after someone broke into his home in 2009. He filled out a report and never heard anything, says the Austin American-Statesman. "It's not cool to feel like police don't even care," he says. Last year, there were more than 8,000 reported burglaries in Austin, and typically only 5 percent of them will end in arrest, with the victim's items being returned. The national average is 10 percent. Critics say there's more that could be done by the department to track down or follow up with burglaries, but police say a lack of staffing is keeping them from solving more. With 14 crime scene technicians on staff, police can only respond to about 45 percent of reported burglaries. Officers are trained to collect some evidence, however it's common for the more experienced crime scene technician to be called out, said Tim O'Brien, a property crime technician for the police department. He said he works on three to four burglaries a day. Because the clearance rate, or percentage of burglaries solved, is slipping, police should allocate more resources toward solving burglaries, said Kim Rossmo, who researches geographical patterns in crime at Texas State University in San Marcos. He said police in other jurisdictions have technology installed in pawn shops so that when a stolen item is sold, they are automatically alerted. Rossmo said burglars move from one neighborhood to another quickly , making them even more difficult to track down. "(Police) are responding mostly to data, and that's already too late," Rossmo said. "If you want to catch a burglar, you have to understand how they work." |
Are DUI Checkpoints a Good Idea? Depends On Who You Ask ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Are police DUI checkpoints worthwhile/ USA Today raises that question. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says they reduce alcohol-related crashes, and the Supreme Court has ruled that they are constitutional. Still, a dozen states don't allow them. "DUI checkpoints are proven to be effective at deterring drunk drivers," says Barbara Harsha of the Governors Highway Safety Association. "The goal is not to write tickets or make arrests but rather to remind the public that they should drive sober or face serious consequences." Some experts say checkpoints are less cost-effective than rolling patrols, in which officers drive around and look for people driving drunk. "They freeze up a certain amount of resources standing out there on the side of the road. They tend to tie up traffic," says Prof. Dennis Kenney of John Jay College of Criminal Justice. "That said, they do catch some drunk drivers, especially if they set them up in places where they're difficult to avoid." Riverside County (Ca.) Sheriff Stanley Sniff, whose office made 491 DUI arrests at 83 checkpoints in 16 cities last year, says: "Random patrols are still the most effective. We make light-years more arrests on random patrols than at checkpoints." |
Child Pornographers Using Social Media to Evade Probers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When federal investigators raided Brian Rubenaker's Seattle home, they found he was trading in child pornography. The Washington Post says that just as disquieting as the photos of sexual abuse was the computer program that Rubenaker, 45, was using. Federal investigators said this was the first time they had come across the Google Hello program, a now-defunct instant messaging system for photos, in a child-pornography case. Links from Rubenaker's computer produced hundreds of leads that spanned continents. The years-long investigation into shadowy groups on Google Hello and the Multiply social network showed that pedophiles are using powerful encryption tools in social media and other programs to share child pornography illegally. Child-porn rings are using a simple - but highly effective - tool to keep prying investigators at bay. Would-be ring members are asked to share photographs and videos of children being sexually abused in order to gain entry. Because sharing child pornography is a crime - it re-victimizes abused children - law enforcement officers are prohibited from offering images and videos in sting operations. As a result it is becoming more difficult to monitor child-porn rings. |
Criminologists Brief Congress Staff on Importance of Police Research ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Criminology associations brought an academic police expert and two police officials to Capitol Hill yesterday to brief congressional staff members on the importance of criminal justice research in developing effective policing strategies. Criminologist Geoff Alpert of the University of South Carolina described studies on the causes of a dramatic increase in driving-related officer fatalities. Deputy Seattle Police Chief Clark Kimerer spoke on police partnering with researchers to develop a better understanding of crime "hot spots." Lt. Michael Spochart of the U.S. Capitol Police said partnerships between researchers and police departments "bring nothing but good to the community." The event was organized by the Criminology and Criminal Justice Policy Coalition of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) and the American Society of Criminology (ASC). Panelists, including Dean Todd Clear of the Rutgers University School of Criminal Justice and Melissa Barlow, president of ACJS and a professor at Fayetteville State University, stressed what they called the critical role grant-making and data-gathering roles of the U.S. Justice Department's National Institute of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, and Bureau of Justice Assistance. |
TN Police Motoryclists in 100th Year: a "Full-Contact Sport" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Memphis' police motorcycle patrol unit is celebrating its 100th anniversary, says the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Its members "are a special breed," said Memphis police Col. Mary Newsom, who oversees it. "It's a very dangerous job. They do it because they love it." Maj. Greg Quinn, who commands two shifts of motorcycle officers, each with seven patrolmen and one lieutenant, calls the job "a full-contact sport." The motors unit also performs dignitary and other escorts. They provide security at movie sets. The unit is also used for traffic control and enforcement, accident investigations and sometimes to bolster the city's precinct patrols. Perhaps most importantly, they aim radar at speeders in school zones. The officers have to complete a two-week intensive training school, and have to be able to perform a set of difficult maneuvers on the cycle. Only about one quarter of those who want to be motor officers make it through training. |
"Green Rush" Prompts WA Battles Over Medical Pot Dispensaries ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As Washington's state legislature appears poised to legalize and regulate medical marijuana dispensaries, cities in the Seattle region are not waiting for state action, says the Seattle Times. At least four have moved to shut down a combined 35 dispensaries since February. Three other cities have passed or debated outright moratoriums on dispensaries. Those actions aim to rein in an uncontrolled boom - a "green rush" - in medical-marijuana dispensaries. Dozens of dispensaries have emerged from the shadows since early 2010 to apply for business licenses and insurance and to form lobbying groups. The crackdown is driven in part by a little-noticed memo from a municipal-insurance risk pool, which emphatically stated that dispensaries are illegal and not entitled to business licenses. It is not a universal opinion. King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg in Seattle believes dispensaries are legal and necessary to help patients. He pointed to charges his office filed yesterday against three people for an armed takeover-style robbery at a dispensary last Saturday as evidence that dispensaries need regulation, including security requirements. |
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