17 April 2012

April 17, 2012   Today's Stories

Justice Department Stayed Mum on Tainted Evidence Work by FBI Lab ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Justice Department officials have known for years that flawed forensic work might have led to convictions of potentially innocent people nationwide, but prosecutors failed to notify defendants or their attorneys even in many cases they knew were troubled, reports the Washington Post. Officials began reviewing the cases in the 1990s after reports that sloppy work by examiners at the FBI lab was producing unreliable forensic evidence in trials. Instead of releasing those findings, they made them available only to the prosecutors in the affected cases, the Post says. In addition, the Justice Department reviewed only a limited number of cases and focused on the work of one scientist at the FBI lab, despite warnings that problems were far more widespread and could affect potentially thousands of cases in federal, state and local courts. As a result, hundreds of defendants remain in prison or on parole for crimes that might merit exoneration, a retrial or a retesting of evidence using DNA because FBI hair and fiber experts may have misidentified them as suspects. Justice Department officials said they met their legal and constitutional obligations when they learned of specific errors, that they alerted prosecutors and were not required to inform defendants directly. Washington Post

TX Constitution Shields Judges From Scrutiny After Official Reprimands ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Strict rules written into the Texas constitution severely limit the release of information when judges in the state are disciplined, reports the Austin American-Statesman. Most reprimands meted out by the state's Commission on Judicial Conduct, the agency charged with disciplining Texas' approximately 3,900 judges, are kept private, with only the rough outlines of the case made public. No identifying information about the judge or his or her jurisdiction is released, and the penalty has no real impact beyond a notation in the commission's records and the judge's conscience. An American-Statesman review of a decade's worth of publicly available disciplinary records - several hundred case summaries - suggests that in some instances there is at least the appearance of uneven sanctions - cases in which judges found to have committed relatively minor infractions were punished more severely than those who committed more serious violations - or differing punishments for similar violations. "They're very arbitrary and capricious; they just do what they want to do," said attorney Henry Ackels. The commission says the protections are necessary to shield judges from spurious and political attacks and to protect complainants from judicial retribution. Defense lawyers, those who have filed complaints and even some judges counter that such secrecy raises questions about how the agency is policing some of the state's most powerful public officials. Austin American-Statesman

Communications Firm to Install Cell Phone-Blocking Devices in CA Prisons ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Global Tel Link will pay millions to install technology in California prisons to block Web searches, text messages and phone calls by inmates using smuggled phones, reports the Los Angeles Times. The company will do the work for free because it owns the traditional pay phones prisoners can legally use. Company officials are betting that once the contraband cell devices are disabled, demand for pay phones will skyrocket. Like other states, California is battling the problem of phones smuggled to inmates, some of whom use them to run criminal enterprises on the streets, organize assaults on guards and intimidate witnesses, prison officials say. Last year, California prison guards confiscated more than 15,000 contraband phones, nearly one for every 11 inmates. A prison officials called it "groundbreaking and momentous technology." Others have called for searches of prison employees - a main source of contraband cellphones, officials say - on their way into work, but the politically powerful California prison guards' union has fought that, arguing it would be an insult to members and would cost the state millions. Los Angeles Times

Spate of Officer-Involved Shootings Highlights Trouble for Albuquerque PD ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Los Angeles Times reports on troubling times for Albuquerque police. The department has had 23 officer-involved shootings, 17 of them fatal, since January 2010, a string that has given Albuquerque one of the highest police shooting rates in the country. Critics charge the Police Department is out of control and are calling for the police chief to step down. Wrongful-death lawsuits have mounted. In July 2011, the city agreed to pay $950,000 to the family of Roderick Jones, an unarmed security guard who in 2009 was shot in the back by an officer. That officer was later fired. In March, officers fatally shot two suspects, and the Albuquerque Journal disclosed that the police union had been giving officers involved in shootings up to $500 so they could leave town amid the intense media coverage that typically follows an incident. Relatives of police shooting victims called the payments a "bounty" for killing civilians. Mayor Richard Berry and Police Chief Ray Schultz disavowed the practice, which made national headlines, and two union leaders resigned. The department's reputation took another hit last year when it was found that a detective who had shot a man during a traffic stop had listed his occupation on his Facebook page as "human waste disposal," while another detective had posted politically and racially charged remarks on his Twitter and MySpace pages. Los Angeles Times

Microsoft Researchers: Cybercrime Loss Estimates 'Wholly Unreliable' ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Writing in the New York Times, Microsoft researchers Dinei Florêncio and Cormac Herley say estimates of cybercrime losses are mostly mythology. They write, "We have examined cybercrime from an economics standpoint and found a story at odds with the conventional wisdom. A few criminals do well, but cybercrime is a relentless, low-profit struggle for the majority." They say that estimated annual direct consumer losses from cybercrime--$114 billion worldwide in one recent example--"are generated using absurdly bad statistical methods, making them wholly unreliable." The estimates typically are based on narrow surveys of consumers and businesses which are then extrapolated for the broader population, even though big losses by one or two respondents account for the majority of losses. They write, "It is the rule, rather than the exception. Among dozens of surveys, from security vendors, industry analysts and government agencies, we have not found one that appears free of this upward bias. As a result, we have very little idea of the size of cybercrime losses." They conclude, "Surveys that perpetuate the myth that cybercrime makes for easy money are harmful because they encourage hopeful, if misinformed, new entrants, who generate more harm for users than profit for themselves." New York Times

LAPD Chief Reluctant to Punish Cops in Shootings; Police Commission Nettled ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck is under fire from the city's five-member civilian Police Commission, which is troubled by his reluctance to punish officers who are found to have killed or wounded people unjustifiably, reports the L.A. Times. A lack of punishment "could undermine the entire discipline system and undermine the authority of the commission," said member Robert Saltzman, associate dean at USC law school. Since he became chief in 2009, Beck has concluded that officers used force appropriately in almost all of the 90 incidents involving officers who fired weapons or used other deadly force. In four shootings, the commission went against the chief's recommendations and ruled the officers' use of lethal force was inappropriate. But Beck either refused to impose any punishment on the officers or gave them only a written reprimand. The chief's apparent unwillingness to suspend or demote officers, or to initiate the process to fire them, in these types of cases has worried a majority of the commission. "Sometimes the chief just needs to set a tone and, through his actions, send a message about what kind of conduct is acceptable," said commission President Richard Drooyan, an attorney. Los Angeles Times

Police Shootings of Dogs in TX, FL Rile Owners and Rally Facebookers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Facebook memorial page for a dog shot and killed by an Austin police officer while responding to the wrong address on a domestic disturbance had more than 33,000 "likes" Tuesday morning. The city's American-Statesman said the shooting happened Saturday afternoon as Michael Paxton was playing Frisbee with his blue heeler, Cisco. Police Sgt. David Daniels said Officer Thomas Griffin received a dispatch about a disturbance involving an intoxicated couple at the address of Paxton's triplex. When he encountered Paxton, Griffin drew his weapon and "advised the subject to 'show me your hands,'" Daniels said. "As soon as he did that, a dog charged him quickly and aggressively." Daniels described Griffin as "upset" about the shooting. A supervisor later apologized to Paxton. Meanwhile, another shooting of a dog by police is prompting calls for policy changes in Florida. On Feb. 24, an officer in Pembroke Pines, Fla., fired six shots at an Australian shepherd named Baxter, reports the Orlando Sentinel. Hit by three bullets, the dog died three weeks later. Baxter's owners and hundreds of supporters are demanding change in how officers respond to animal calls. Lethal force, they say, should be used only as a last resort. Austin American-Statesman

Ohio Jail Tries New Approach With Inmates: Anger Management ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Columbus Dispatch reports that anger-management classes among jail inmates in Delaware County, Ohio, may be having an impact. The classes started in early March with just a few inmates, but enough that the number of fights, assaults on staff members and uses of force has dropped. Officials hope the lessons carry over when inmates are released. "Maybe if we can teach them some skills while they're in jail, we can have a better outcome," said jail director Joseph Lynch. Only five inmates are admitted to the class, and it's not group therapy. Clinical counselor Doug Arnold, who counsels and assesses inmates, uses an education-based approach. He has small goals, for each attendee to take part in the class discussions. Last week, they all did. "My intent is that they are interested in talking," Arnold said. "Sometimes if it's too large, they don't want to talk." Columbus Dispatch

From Behind Bars, Washington State Killer Earns Literary Reputation ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Seattle Times profiles Arthur Longworth, 47, a convicted murderer in Washington who has won two national literary awards, including a 2010 prize for the best prison memoir, from the PEN Center in New York. His stories, most nonfiction, are spare and unsentimental descriptions of prison life. He often infuses his writing with a slow boil of outrage, particularly about sentences of life without parole for young inmates. His fans, often on the political left, see Longworth as a truth-teller about the jailing of America. Longworth, a seventh-grade dropout, was convicted for the 1985 murder of Cynthia Nelson, 25, a Bellevue, Wash., woman who was to meet a young man interested in hearing more about Amway, which she sold on the side. The next morning, a jogger spotted her body in a creek, killed by a deep stab wound to the back. It was not a who-done-it. Nelson's calendar noted the meeting with "Art Longworth," who had previously worked with her as a temp. A scrap of paper in her purse noted his address in Wallingford, and Nelson's car - with Longworth's fingerprints inside - was near his apartment. Witnesses picked Longworth out of a photo lineup. Seattle Times

Texas Teen Faces 9 Murder Charges in Crash of Van Filled With Immigrants ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A 15-year-old South Texas boy has been charged with nine counts of murder after he crashed a minivan packed with illegal immigrants near McAllen, killing nine of them, reports the Associated Press. The boy, who is not being identified because he is a juvenile, cried Monday during a probable cause hearing at a juvenile detention facility. Border Patrol agents pulled over the van April 10. As it stopped, one person jumped from the vehicle and ran. When agents pursued him the van sped off. It crashed a few blocks away, scattering a parking lot with bodies. The driver escaped, but was arrested two days later at his home. A detective who attended the probable cause hearing said the teen told the judge that if he didn't drive the van they were going to kill his family. The teen didn't say who "they" were. State prosecutors can pursue the felony murder charges because the deaths occurred during the commission of a felony. A judge will eventually decide whether the boy will be tried as an adult. Associated Press

Ganim's Penn State Stories, AP Reports on Muslims, NYPD Win Pulitzers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Crime reporter Sara Ganim and colleagues from the Harrisburg Patriot-News today were awarded the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting "for courageously revealing and adeptly covering the explosive Penn State sex scandal involving former football coach Jerry Sandusky." Two Pulitzers were awarded for investigative reporting, both in the criminal justice field. Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman, Eileen Sullivan, and Chris Hawley of the Associated Press won for reporting on the New York Police Department's clandestine spying program that monitored daily life in Muslim communities. Michael Berens and Ken Armstrong of the Seattle Times won for an investigation of how a little known governmental body in Washington State moved vulnerable patients from safer pain-control medication to methadone, a cheaper but more dangerous drug. The Philadelphia Inquirer won the public service Pulitzer "for its exploration of pervasive violence in the city's schools, using powerful print narratives and videos to illuminate crimes committed by children against children and to stir reforms to improve safety for teachers and students." A finalist for the same prize was the New York Times, for reporting by Danny Hakim and Russ Buettner "that revealed rapes, beatings and more than 1,200 unexplained deaths over the past decade of developmentally disabled people in New York State group homes." The Pulitzer in feature writing was awarded to Eli Sanders of The Stranger, a Seattle weekly, for what the jurors called "his haunting story of a woman who survived a brutal attack that took the life of her partner, using the woman's brave courtroom testimony and the details of the crime to construct a moving narrative." Crime & Justice News

Many Address Errors Found in Indiana Sex Offender Registry ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ An Indiana sex offender is listed on the state's registry as living in a day-care center. He doesn't really live there, but it is just one example of many problems the Indianapolis Star uncovered during an examination of the registry. Another offender shown as living at an Indianapolis address has been residing in Colorado since at least July 2009. It's not hard to find him -- he's in jail. More than 20 sex offenders are displayed on the registry's map by the Canal Walk downtown. They don't live there. But they, too, aren't especially hard to track down. Each of them is actually in prison. People who run places in Indianapolis that house a lot of sex offenders say the registry often lists many more offenders than actually live there. One homeless shelter, for example, keeps a maximum of 13 beds available for sex offenders. The registry regularly lists 20 or more as living there. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, as well as a major children's advocacy group, say such inaccuracies undercut a core purpose of such registries: to protect the public by providing people a way to check whether there are sex offenders near where they live, where they work, or where their children go to school. Indianapolis Star