30 March 2012

March 30, 2012 Today's Stories

Albuquerque Police Union Stops Special Payments to Officers Who Shoot ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Under pressure over its policy of paying officers involved in shootings, the Albuquerque Police Officers' Association said Thursday that it was ending the practice, reports the New York Times. Those opposed to the payments had characterized them as bounties since the practice was revealed last week by the Albuquerque Journal. The announcement was made at a news conference with Mayor Richard J. Berry and the police chief, Raymond D. Schultz,who said they ppposed the payments. "I feel very strongly that the practice of cash payments needed to stop, and I am very pleased that the union has made this decision," Berry said. The Journal reported that 20 Albuquerque police officers involved in shootings in 2010 and 2011 received payments from the police union of either $300 or $500. A written statement from police union president Joey Sigala said the payments were to cover some expenses for officers who have been involved in "critical incidents" and their families "to find a place to have some privacy and time to decompress outside the Albuquerque area." New York Times

FBI Casts Wary Eye on Growth of 'Sovereign Citizens' Movement ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ USA Today reports on "a troubling re-emergence of an anti-government movement" that hearkens back to 1995, when Timothy McVeigh-angered by the government's botched 1993 raid of the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas-detonated a truck bomb outside the Oklahoma City federal building, killing 168 people. In the past three years, there has been growing concern over activities of so-called "sovereign citizens," who "claim to exist beyond the realm of government authority," according to a January FBI bulletin to state and local law enforcement officials warning of the potential for violence. The sovereign movement, estimated by the Southern Poverty Law Center to number 100,000 ardent followers and about 200,000 sympathizers across the country, is rooted in an ideology that rejects government authority at its most basic levels, from its power to tax to the enforcement of criminal laws, including common traffic regulations. Although the FBI does not track sovereigns by number, the bureau does not dispute the law center's estimates, which have swelled dramatically a national anti-government network of related "patriot" and "militia'' groups. Since 2008, the number of groups surged from 149 to 1,274 in 2011, the law center reported this month. The rapid growth, according to the law center, has been fueled by a collision of factors, from the troubles related to the struggling economy and foreclosure crisis to the election of President Obama, the nation's first black president, to the government's aid to Wall Street banks and automakers. USA Today

In 'Big Step,' NY Courts Can Allow False Confession Testimony ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New York's highest court said for the first time on Thursday that expert testimony about false confessions should be allowed at trial if it is relevant, reports the New York Times. But the court also seemed to set a high bar for determining that relevance: In a 5-to-2 decision, the judges upheld the convictions of Khemwatie Bedessie in the rape of a 4-year-old boy, arguing that the testimony of her expert witness was not germane to the specifics of her confession. Still, the decision by the New York Court of Appeals was a welcome sign for defense lawyers and innocence advocates who have argued that police interrogation tactics can lead people to admit to crimes they did not commit. About a quarter of the convicts exonerated by DNA evidence nationwide gave false confessions, made self-incriminating statements or pleaded guilty, according to the Innocence Project. "That the phenomenon of false confessions is genuine has moved from the realm of startling hypothesis into that of common knowledge, if not conventional wisdom," Judge Susan P. Read wrote in the majority opinion. An Albany Law School professor called the ruling "a big step." New York Times

Tennessee Legislators Take Greater Role in Oversight of Judges ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A bill that would reform how judges are disciplined won unanimous approval from the Tennessee Senate Thursday, as lawmakers accepted a compromise meant to increase the legislature's oversight of the judicial branch, reports the Tennessean. Senators voted 30-0 to replace the Court of the Judiciary, which reviews and rules on complaints against judges, with a new 16-member board appointed by judges, legislative leaders and the governor. The unanimous vote increases the likelihood that the House would sign off on the measure, though a final vote has not been scheduled on companion legislation making its way through that chamber. The new Board of Judicial Conduct would be created after years of complaints that the Court of the Judiciary did not aggressively investigate claims of judicial misconduct and was too closely tied to the Tennessee Supreme Court, which appointed more than half of its members. The measure, Senate Bill 2671, also sets up a procedure for investigating complaints against judges and requires the board to report regularly to the legislature on how grievances are resolved. Tennessean

Concerns Over Financing Stall Juvenile Justice Reforms in Georgia ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A push to reform juvenile justice in Georgia failed over finances in the state legislature, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The 246-page proposal was a rewrite of the entire Georgia Code that deals with children, including incarceration, foster care and termination of parental rights. It was the result of five years of work and assurances that reforming the juvenile justice system would save money and young lives that otherwise would be lost to the criminal justice system. But the would-be reforms died over concerns that local governments would have had to cover millions in costs, and the state would have to come up with more money. The bill had passed the House but didn't get on the Senate's final calendar. "The governor knows we need significant reform in our juvenile justice system," said Brian Robinson, Gov. Nathan Deal's spokesman. "He agrees with the direction of the legislation, but right now, there are too many unknowns about the costs involved. Estimates vary widely, but we do know that it comes with a hefty price tag. The governor would like to see that issue resolved, so that we can move forward on these needed improvements." Douglas County District Attorney David McDade, who was among the prosecutors arguing against the bill, said, "The difficulty has been good government costs money, and if we're going to have to implement that [bill], we need the resources. We support the bill as long as it's fully funded." Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Didn't Trayvon Martin Have a Right to Stand His Ground, Too? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Didn't Trayvon Martin have a right to stand his ground, too? Delores Jones-Brown, an ex-prosecutor and former director of the Center on Race, Crime and Justice at John Jay College, asks that question in an essay posted at The Crime Report. On the night he was shot, Martin was tailed by George Zimmerman, who then pulled a gun on the teenager. Jones-Brown writes, "Under Florida's 'Stand Your Ground' law, Trayvon was allowed to stand his ground and use force to defend himself. If the gun was visible as Zimmerman approached him, Trayvon would have been allowed to use deadly force against Zimmerman." She continues, "To Trayvon, Zimmerman was a stranger. The media has made much of the fact that there are no other witnesses to what happened except George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin. That would mean that this child was being approached on an isolated street by a strange adult, with a gun, driving a big vehicle. Zimmerman is a threat, and Trayvon is in the fight of his young life-perhaps in the belief that he is fighting for his life. Ironically, I have not yet seen this version of the Trayvon Martin case portrayed in the media. Standard media analysis of this incident begins with Zimmerman's claim of self-defense and the applicability of the 'stand your ground' law to Zimmerman. Did Trayvon have no right to be afraid of this strange, large man, with a gun, who had been following him for some time, in a vehicle large enough to abduct him?" The Crime Report

Are Homeowners at Risk if Watch Captain at Fault in Martin Shooting? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Homeowners could be at risk financially in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, reports the Orlando Sentinel. The shooting happened Feb. 26 at the Retreat at Twin Lakes development in Sanford, Fla. George Zimmerman, who shot Martin, was the point man for the subdivision's Neighborhood Watch. If he is charged with and convicted of killing Trayvon, the community's homeowner association and property-management company will likely be sued by the victim's family regarding the way the watch program was established and operated, said Donna Berger, a lawyer who specializes in homeowner-association law. "They may wind up getting sued and getting hit with hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and damages," said Berger. "Who will pay is every member of the association, and they will have to make special assessments.().It's a cautionary tale for other associations." Located about six miles west of downtown Sanford, the 6-year-old Retreat at Twin Lakes contains about 200 two-story town homes. Orlando Sentinel

Discipline Is Rare in Cases of Prosecutorial Misconduct in Texas ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In 91 criminal cases in Texas since 2004, the courts decided that prosecutors committed misconduct, ranging from hiding evidence to making improper arguments to the jury, according to Innocence Project data. Yet none of those prosecutors has ever been disciplined, reports the Texas Tribune. "It paints a bleak picture about what's going on with accountability and prosecutors," said Cookie Ridolfi, founder of the Northern California Innocence Project, who researched misconduct data in Texas and other states. At a symposium this week in Austin, exonerees, lawyers and legal scholars discussed the need for increased accountability for prosecutors. The symposium was part of a national accountability campaign by the New York-based Innocence Project. Prosecutorial misconduct has become a national issue in the wake of the high-profile exoneration cases, including one prosecuted by Ken Anderson in Williamson County, Texas. A man served 25 years of a life sentence before DNA results showed last year that he was innocent. His lawyers discovered that Anderson did not turn over evidence that could have led to his acquittal. A rare court of inquiry is scheduled to consider whether Anderson committed criminal misconduct. Texas Tribune

Shakeup and Headline Murder Create Bottleneck in MA Parole Process ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick's revamped Parole Board has voted since last April to grant early release to 17 serious criminal offenders, most of them probably convicted murderers, but the panel has not notified any of the inmates - or the families of their victims - that they are on the path to freedom, reports the Boston Globe. The delay in processing applications for parole by so-called lifers - inmates serving sentences of 15 years to life - is part of a broader backlog that has built up at the Parole Board since a paroled lifer fatally shot a Woburn police officer, triggering a shake-up at the agency. The Parole Board also has failed to notify more than 100 lifers that their requests for parole over the last year have been rejected. Prisoner advocates say the delays, coupled with stricter standards for releasing other inmates on parole, have contributed heavily to a 58 percent drop in the number of inmates who are released under parole supervision, from 1,028 in 2010 to 435 in 2011. "The total effect is more people in prison overall, and fewer people released under supervision,'' said James R. Pingeon of Prisoners' Legal Services, a group that provides representation to inmates. "It's doubly bad.'' The Parole Board chairman, Josh Wall, defends his agency's performance, arguing that the new board is simply being more careful while coping with a shortage of resources. Boston Globe

Texas Seeks More Time to Transfer Mentally Incompetent Prisoners ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Texas officials say they can't obey a court order forcing them to move more than 150 mentally incompetent prisoners to psychiatric hospitals by June 1 because they don't have enough space, staff or money to do so, reports the Austin American-Statesman. The Texas attorney general's office has asked District Judge Orlinda Naranjo to review her January decision forcing the Department of State Health Services to start moving all current "forensic commitments" to state psychiatric hospitals. All such prisoners who arrive after June 1 would have to be moved to a psychiatric hospital within 21 days of a judge's order. Complying with the court order would cost between $39 million and $55.2 million, according to a motion for a new trial filed by the attorney general's office this month. "The short timelines set forth in the court's order makes it physically, fiscally and logistically impossible for DSHS to comply and indicates a lack of appreciation for the magnitude of the task and the complications inherent in implementing the terms of the order," the state wrote in its motion. The attorney general has also appealed the ruling with the state's 3rd Court of Appeals. Naranjo's ruling stemmed from a 2007 lawsuit filed by Disability Rights Texas, a federally funded organization that is an advocate for people with disabilities, including mental illness. Over the past two years, the average prisoner spent six months in jail waiting for a hospital bed, Naranjo wrote in her order. Austin American-Statesman

VA May Shift Monitoring of Sex Offenders From Troopers to Civilians ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Virginia State Police troopers' duties to check on registered sex offenders could be shifted to unarmed civilians under a little-noticed provision in the two-year state budget pending before the General Assembly, reports the Virginian-Pilot. Tucked into the $85 billion spending blueprint is Gov. Bob McDonnell's proposal to hire 43 "non-sworn" personnel to monitor people "required to comply with the requirements of the Sex Offender Registry." Under the current system, troopers and state parole and probation officers conduct semi-annual residence and employment status checks on thousands of registered offenders. Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling has said the switch would "free up troopers currently in that unit to get back on the roads" for patrol and other functions. However, the plan has triggered alarm bells for an organization that lobbies to change sex offender laws. Its implementation also is being watched closely by a State Police advocacy group. Mary Devoy, executive director of Reform Sex Offender Laws of Virginia, said: "We understand the state is looking to cut costs, but appointing inexperienced and insensitive rent-a-cops to conduct home and employment checks would be a big mistake." Virginian-Pilot

Crime and Delinquency Council Issues Annual Media Awards ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The National Council on Crime and Delinquency announced winners of its annual Prevention for a Safer Society (PASS) awards to print and broadcast journalists, TV news and feature reporters, producers, writers, and those in film and literature "who focus America's attention on our criminal justice, juvenile justice, child welfare, and adult protection systems in a thoughtful and considerate manner." The council says it seeks stories "that illustrate current realities or the promise of reform, especially those that help people understand the complex issues surrounding the nation's social systems." Council president Alexander Busansky said, "With the national dialogue on the Trayvon Martin case, we have all witnessed the power of the media to shine a light on issues of justice." He added that the PASS awards "recognize those who skillfully bring home to us the critical issues that affect justice and safety in our nation." Click on the link to see the list of award winners. National Council on Crime