CA Cancels New $356 Million Death Row Despite "Dismal" Conditions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ California Gov. Jerry Brown has canceled construction of a $356-million death row at San Quentin prison, saying it would be "unconscionable" to spend so much on condemned inmates as the state is slashing budgets for education and other social services, reports the Los Angeles Times. Previous administrations spent about $20 million on planning and design for a two-building complex. The project was approved in 2003, before the global financial crisis opened a gaping hole in the state budget. California Gov. Jerry Brown has canceled construction of a $356-million death row at San Quentin prison, saying it would be "unconscionable" to spend so much on condemned inmates as the state is slashing budgets for education and other social services, reports the Los Angeles Times. Previous administrations spent about $20 million on planning and design for a two-building complex. The project was approved in 2003, before the global financial crisis opened a gaping hole in the state budget. The new facility would have had room for 1,152 condemned inmates and housed visitor, medical, and mental health facilities to cut down on the cumbersome and costly need to escort death row prisoners around the wider institution. California now has 713 condemned inmates, 18 of whom are women housed at separate prisons. Conditions on the existing death row are "just dismal," said Donald Specter of the Prison Law Office, which advocates for inmates' rights. The cells are cramped, old and dilapidated, he said, and don't offer prisoners enough room to exercise |
10 Years After 9/11, FBI Reforms Far From Complete: Time ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In a profile of FBI director Robert Mueller, facing a mandatory 10-year retirement, Time magazine asks if the FBI is up to the task 10 years after the 9/11 attacks. Time calls Mueller himself "careful to dodge the spotlight, so rigorously bland when caught onstage, that he could drink unrecognized at any bar in America." 9/11 was the worst hour in the FBI's 93-year history. Field offices in Phoenix and Minneapolis had important clues long before the attacks. Neither knew what the other knew, and no one put the pieces together. Critics called the FBI was irreparably broken, ill equipped to collect intelligence and disinclined to share it anyway. Mueller doubled the agent force on national security and tripling the number of analysts. Time concludes, however, that "even a decade's reform has not changed J. Edgar Hoover's gangbusters into a 21st century counterterrorist force." Mueller says it is good for the FBI to lend a hand to local police, but carjacking "is not one of the top priorities." Mueller says he is still "trying to drive out [ ] the usual metric of arrests, indictments and convictions by numbers." Former Deputy Attorney General James Comey is called Mueller's "preferred successor." |
NJ Legislators Ending Prison Releases Six Months Ahead of Schedule ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New Jersey legislators are moving toward eliminating the state's controversial early-release program, which allows some inmates out of prison six months ahead of schedule, reports the Newark Star-Ledger. Gov. Chris Christie and some lawmakers blamed the program for two homicides allegedly committed by inmates released early. Since the program began Jan. 3, 363 inmates have been released early, said the state parole board. Twenty-two been arrested for new crimes. That includes Antoine Trent, 25, and Tyree Brown, 24, who were accused of attacking a police officer in Union Township last week. |
More Police Watching Congress Members' Events as Threats Rise ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Since the Tucson shootings that seriously injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), U.S. Capitol Police have urged members of Congress to be more vigilant. Lawmakers' aides now coordinate public activities in home districts with local law enforcement authorities. There are new protocols for reporting death threats, strange phone calls, and suspicious Facebook postings, says the Washington Post. The Secret Service is planning seminars for lawmakers and their staffs on how to assess the security of venues to minimize risk at gatherings. There is cause for the concern. Between October and March, 53 serious threats against members of Congress were reported, a 13 percent increase from the same six-month period a year earlier. At the same time, the number of non-criminal cases (such as alarming but not specifically threatening e-mails or phone calls) jumped by 18 percent, to 1,211. "Unlike a year ago when it was all health care, these threats run the social-economic gamut: health, pay benefits, veterans issues, Medicare," said Senate Sergeant at Arms Terrance Gainer. Gainer said federal and local prosecutors have filed more charges this year against suspected perpetrators than in previous years. "I'm not trying to paint the picture that the sky is falling," Gainer said. "But we're in some unique times, and there's still some unstable folks out there." In some places, securing a congressional event has required every police officer on duty. |
Finger-Pointing, Lobbying Continues As Meth Clean Up Funds Dry Up ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The loss of federal dollars for meth lab clean-ups has law-enforcement agencies nervous as they scramble to make up for the shortfall while the numbers of small-time meth labs are increasing across the nation, McClatchy Newspapers report. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration notified counties and states Feb. 22 that it could no longer pick up the tab to clean up the dangerous chemicals found in methamphetamine labs. Since federal funding evaporated, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigations has spent $140,000 to clean up 50 labs. Now that money is gone too - potentially leaving local police and sheriffs to pay the bills. "We're in a situation that we need Congress to step up to the plate and provide this funding," said bureau director Greg McLeod. "They're passing the buck down to us." When Congress returns next week, the National Sheriffs Association will resume lobbying for funds. Recent congressional appropriations have run about $10 million a year, but the sheriffs think at least twice as much as needed. U.S. Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC), blamed Republican budget cutters, saying they "had no real idea what they were doing, they just cut at random." |
Some Employers Misuse Criminal Histories In Rejecting Applicants ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Internet and the proliferation of screening companies that perform background checks can cause problems for the 65 million Americans who have an arrest or conviction on their record, says the New York Times. The pool of job seekers includes more people with criminal histories than ever before, a legacy of stiffer sentencing and increased enforcement for crimes like drug offenses. "We're spending a tremendous amount of money incarcerating people and then creating a system where it's almost impossible for them to find gainful employment," said Adam Klein, an employment lawyer. Many companies screen out anyone who has a hint of criminal activity in his or her background, in violation of government guidelines that demand that employers take into account the severity of an offense, the length of time that has passed, and its relevance to the job in question. Studies on repeat criminality indicate that "it is no longer accurate to say that individuals with criminal records are always a higher risk than individuals without a criminal record," said criminologist Shawn Bushway of the University at Albany. |
NYC Police Accused of Violating Rights in Pot Arrests ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Police arrest 140 people every day in New York City for possessing small amounts of marijuana, says WNYC Radio in a two-part series. It's by far the most common misdemeanor charge in the city, and thousands of arrests take place when police stop-and-frisk young men in the poorest neighborhoods. While police say these stop-and-frisks are a way to find guns, what they find more often is a bag of marijuana. Some officers may be violating constitutional rights in pot arrests. Current and former cops, defense lawyers and more than a dozen men arrested for the lowest-level marijuana possession say illegal searches take place during stop-and-frisks--street encounters carried out overwhelmingly on blacks and Latinos. Antonio Rivera, 25, said he is stopped by police up to five times a month. In January, he said he was stopped and frisked, then arrested for marijuana possession. Critics say his case is an example of how officers may be conducting illegal searches when making marijuana arrests. Rivera said his marijuana was in his pants and police pulled it out of his clothes after searching him without his consent. Robin Steinberg of Bronx Defenders handles thousands of marijuana arrests a year. She said, in most of these cases, police either ordered the person to empty pockets or searched pockets themselves - that's how the drugs get into "public view," she said. "So the police officer in fact is creating a type of criminality." |
Steroid Use Believed Common Among Cops Who Want to Bulk Up ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One day after three Philadelphia police officers were arrested in an alleged steroids ring, area police leaders agreed that steroid use has become an unshakable, illegal vice among some badge-wearers who believe bulking up will give them a physical and psychological edge in crime-fighting, reports the Philadelphia Daily News. "It's something that you have to be aware of, especially if you have a younger department, because a lot of the officers want to enhance their physique, which they think will enhance their ability to do the job," said Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood. The three cops collared this week for allegedly selling and distributing steroids didn't admit using the muscle-boosters when they appeared in federal court. If appearance is any indication, they're their own best customers: Detective Keith Gidelson, 34, and Officer Joseph McIntyre, 36, strode into court with bulging biceps bursting from their T-shirts, while Officer George Sambuca, 25, opted for a long-sleeve T-shirt that hugged his stocky frame and flaunted his bulky biceps. Most departments don't routinely test for steroids when they screen new recruits for drugs or randomly drug-test officers. |
Newark's McCarthy Still a Chicago Finalist, Not Kerlikowske ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Chicago Police Board has chosen three finalists for the top cop job for Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel -- two from inside the department as well as police chief Garry McCarthy of Newark, reports the Chiago Tribune. Not on the list was White House drug czar and former Seattle police chief Gil Kerkilowske, who had interviewed for the job. The Chicago Police Board has chosen three finalists for the top cop job for Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel -- two from inside the department as well as police chief Garry McCarthy of Newark, reports the Chiago Tribune. Not on the list was White House drug czar and former Seattle police chief Gil Kerkilowske, who had interviewed for the job. The two finalists from within Chicago police ranks are Chief of Patrol Eugene Williams and Debra Kirby, deputy superintendent for the Bureau of Professional Standards. The three finalists have been interviewed by the board as well as by Emanuel, who has been conducting his own search. |
Santorum, Gingrich, Toomey to Address NRA Convention ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Presidential aspirant and former U.S. senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) is scheduled to address about 70,000 National Rifle Association members at the group's annual meeting in Pittsburgh today, says the Associated Press. The meeting began yesterday. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and freshman U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, another Pennsylvania Republican, are also scheduled to speak as part of Friday's Celebration of American Values Leadership Forum. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee will be the convention's keynote speaker on Saturday night. The public portion of the convention runs through Sunday; the NRA's board of directors will meet through Tuesday. |
Federal Inmate Seeks to Ease Solitary Confinement After 28 Years ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thomas Silverstein remains in solitary confinement in the Supermax federal prison in Colorado nearly 28 years after he was placed there after killing a prison guard, says the Denver Post. In a lawsuit, Silverstein, 59, asked a judge to lessen his isolation, citing a spotless conduct record for more than two decades. The lawsuit chronicles his repeated but futile attempts to learn what, if anything, he could do to persuade prison officials to let him out of solitary so he could interact with other inmates and win back privileges, such as a prison job. Federal prosecutors argue that Silverstein's confinement, the longest of any federal prisoner, has been appropriate considering the danger he poses to prison officials, fellow inmates, and the public. They say Silverstein is a high-ranking member of the violent prison gang Aryan Brotherhood who has caused a prison riot, has committed other assaults on guards and continues to "call shots" for the gang - a claim Silverstein and his attorneys deny |
18-Year Dugard Kidnapping Case Nears End as Garridos Plead Guilty ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jaycee Lee Dugard expressed relief that Phillip and Nancy Garrido pleaded guilty to kidnapping and assaulting her, reports the Sacramento Bee. Nancy Garrido's attorney, Stephen Tapson, quoted his client as saying, "I don't want Jaycee and the kids to go through an actual trial." Dugard, now 30, is living with the two girls she bore to Phillip Garrido. The Garridos confessed to abducting Dugard in 1991 when she was 11 and holding her captive for 18 years. Under a plea agreement, Phillip Garrido, 60, will spend the rest of his life in prison, officially a 431-year term. Nancy Garrido, 55, would be eligible for parole only after serving about 31 years. The formal sentencing is June 2. |
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Friday, April 29, 2011
29 April 2011
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