26 April 2012

April 26, 2012   Today's Stories

CT Gov. Ends Capital Punishment; 'Time for Reflection, Not Celebration' ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Hartford Courant reports that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy quietly signed a bill repealing Connecticut's death penalty on Wednesday, ending a practice that has been state policy since a Native American named Napauduck was hanged for murder in 1639. "I signed legislation that will, effective today, replace the death penalty with life in prison without the possibility of release as the highest form of legal punishment in Connecticut,'' Malloy said after a solemn ceremony closed to the press and public. "Although it is an historic moment - Connecticut joins 16 other states and the rest of the industrialized world by taking this action - it is a moment for sober reflection, not celebration." About 30 guests crowded into the governor's office at the state Capitol to watch him sign the bill, which had cleared both chambers of the General Assembly earlier this month. Among them were members of the clergy, legislative leaders and people who have lost family members to homicide. Capital punishment has been a part of the state's criminal code since Colonial times. In the past 52 years, only two men--Michael Ross, in 2005, and Joseph "Mad Dog" Taborsky, in 1960--have been executed by the state in Connecticut. Hartford Courant

EEOC Clarifies Rules on When Employers Can Deny Jobs to Convicts ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted Wednesday to revise its long-standing guidance to employers on how to properly evaluate job applicants' criminal histories in pre-employment screening, reports McClatchy News Service. To pass muster, job denials based on criminal convictions must be shown to be "job-related and consistent with business necessity," according to EEOC guidelines. This means the employer must show that it considered three factors: the nature and gravity of the offense, the amount of time since the conviction and the relevance of the offense to the type of the job that's being sought. The issue became a controversy because an estimated 65 million Americans have some type of criminal record, which can make it very difficult to get a job. Researchers found in 2009 that a criminal record cut chances for a job callback or offer by nearly 50 percent. Yet employers say record checks are essential in judging job seekers' judgment, trustworthiness and reliability. The revamped guidelines clarify standards established in 1987. They also make recommendations on how employers can avoid EEOC scrutiny when they're considering job seekers with previous arrests and convictions. Denying jobs solely on the basis of criminal convictions is illegal, because it would disproportionately affect blacks and Latinos, who have higher rates of arrest and criminal conviction. McClatchy News Service

Feds Get 'Buzz-Sawed' in AZ Immigration Arguments at High Court ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ For the second time in less than a month, President Barack Obama's administration ran into a buzz saw at the Supreme Court in oral arguments Wednesday over Arizona's law cracking down on illegal immigrants, reports Politico. Both conservative and liberal justices expressed deep skepticism about the federal government's case against the core of the law: a provision requiring local law enforcement to check the immigration status of people arrested or even detained briefly for a traffic violation if they're suspected of being in the country illegally. The outcome could be felt in states nationwide that have passed similar laws or are considering them. And there could be significant consequences at the polls in November, whichever way the court rules. The justices clearly were not swayed by the Justice Department's argument. The skepticism was strongest among the conservative justices, but even a couple of liberals said they're perplexed by the federal government's claim that Arizona is violating the Constitution by requiring police to perform immigration status checks that they already can request at their own discretion. Politico

AP: 'Secretive Process' Brought Lethal Injection Drugs to Delaware ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Associated Press explains how Delaware managed to obtain a key execution drug through a "complicated and secretive procurement process" that has allowed the state to conduct executions. The process involved a state official with close ties to the pharmaceutical industry and was kept secret from all but a few Department of Correction officials as it unfolded. Even the attorney general was kept out of the loop for much of the process. The documents offer a behind-the-scenes look at how Delaware officials navigated a procurement process that can be fraught with political and legal consequences. States have been scrambling to find the sedatives needed to carry executions. When the DOC needed to replenish its supply of lethal injection drugs last spring, it turned to a man who spent years cultivating contacts in the pharmaceutical industry: Delaware Economic Development Director Alan Levin. Before Levin's involvement, DOC Commissioner Carl Danberg and his staff had tried other ways of getting execution drugs, including sodium thiopental or pentobarbital, without success. But with a single email, Levin, former head of the Happy Harry's drugstore chain, was able to get the ball rolling, allowing the DOC to get the drugs it needed. Associated Press

Quiet New Hampshire Experiences 'Unprecedented' Spate of Violence ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Boston Globe says 10 days of bloodshed in New Hampshire during April have left residents on edge in a state that prides itself on its low homicide rate. Ten violent deaths spanned the state geographically and occurred without discernible pattern. Jane Young, the senior assistant state attorney general, called the violence "unprecedented." The most prominent killing was that of Greenland Police Chief Michael Maloney, shot to death April 12 while serving a search warrant in a drug case. Four other officers serving the warrant were wounded. Inside the home, the shooter, Cullen Mutrie, apparently killed his former girlfriend, Brittany Tibbetts, before killing himself. The first violent death occurred on April 7, when one man ran over another in Claremont. Five days later, on the same day as the Greenland tragedy, a shooting in Dalton left two dead and one wounded. On April 14, a man was fatally shot on a rural road in Chesterfield and on April 17 officials opened another homicide investigation into three more deaths in Lancaster. The deaths have left residents wondering what has happened to their quiet state. Boston Globe

Innocence Coalition to Delineate Prosecutorial Misconduct in Arizona ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A coalition of innocence projects, legal experts and wrongly convicted defendants was to announce today that a study of prosecutorial misconduct in Arizona from 2004 through 2008 found prosecutors committed error in 20 cases, according to The Crime Report. The coalition is convening in Arizona in the latest stop in a national tour aimed at exposing prosecutorial misconduct and initiating reform. In 15 of the cases, the finding of error was deemed "harmless" and the convictions were upheld. In five of the cases, the errors were ruled to be "harmful" and the convictions were reversed. During that same time period, three prosecutors were publicly disciplined by the State Bar of Arizona, but none of the prosecutors in the 20 cases were disciplined. One of those three prosecutors disciplined was the late Kenneth Peasley, of Pima County, Ariz., where he won many convictions, some of which sent defendants to Death Row. Peasley was disbarred in 2004 for knowingly allowing a detective to testify falsely in two capital murder trials-improper behavior that led to the release of a man from Death Row. The Crime Report

Texas Legislators Question Efficacy of State Juvenile Justice Reforms ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A legislative inquiry in Texas is focusing on whether sweeping juvenile justice reforms instituted five years ago are still working, reports the Austin American-Statesman. "It would appear that the management of the (Texas Juvenile Justice Department) has not been properly managing or protecting the youth and staff," said Senate Criminal Justice Committee Chairman John Whitmire, a Houston Democrat who authored many of the reforms. "You could change the names and dates, and it would be 2007 all over again." Meanwhile, the former superintendent of the Giddings State School claimed in a lawsuit that he was fired in March for reporting violations of state law and growing safety issues at the troubled lockup. A week ago, in an inspection report that quickly triggered a legislative investigation, Ombudsman Debbie Unruh detailed allegations that youths at Giddings were being "bought and owned" by other youths for cigarettes, illicit drugs and money at a facility that was chaotic and unsafe for some youths and staff alike. The nine-page report listed an array of other issues: Youth ringleaders are "controlling the culture on this campus," staff have a lack of control over youths, youths have refused to leave security detention for fear of their safety, and bullying and extortion of food are common. Austin American-Statesman

GA Parents Wonder Why Slaying of Their Son Has Missed the Spotlight ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Why do some cases with perceived racial implications catch the national consciousness and others do not? The New York Times considers that question in a story that looks into a 2011 homicide in Lyons, Ga., in which Norman Neesmith, white and 62, shot and killed the unarmed Justin Patterson, black and 22. The shooting happened when Neesmith found Patterson and his brother in his home in the middle of the night, having been secretly invited to party with an 18-year-old relative he had raised like a daughter and her younger friend. The young people were paired up in separate bedrooms. Neesmith was arrested and is expected to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct, which might bring a year in a special detention program that requires no time behind bars. The dead man's parents, Deede and Julius Patterson, watched news of Trayvon Martin's death in Florida and--noting the similarities--began to wonder why no one was marching for their son. New York Times

Maryland Police to Continue DNA Sampling, Despite High Court Decision ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Police around Maryland said Wednesday that they would continue to collect DNA samples when suspects are arrested for violent crimes and burglaries, despite a ruling by the state's top court limiting the practice, reports the Baltimore Sun. The Court of Appeals ruled 5-2 that the 2009 law violated a suspect's Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. The ruling did leave open the possibility that police could take DNA samples for the purpose of identifying a suspect at the time of arrest. The collection of DNA at arrest has been the subject of national debate, because opponents point out that it takes place before a suspect is tried in court. Twenty-six states have laws similar to Maryland's, and many have been upheld in state and federal court. Several law enforcement agencies, including the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, were awaiting a decision on whether the state will appeal before they make changes. State and local officials called for an appeal of what they see as a crucial tool that has linked suspects to other, unsolved crimes. Opponents of the practice said the decision to continue taking samples shows disregard for the Court of Appeals and the law. Baltimore Sun

Report: Billboard Firm Poisoned FL Trees That Obscured Advertisements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FairWarning.org reports that a criminal investigation is underway into allegations that Lamar Advertising Co., a highway billboard giant, poisoned trees that obscured views of its roadside ads near Tallahassee, Fla. Robert J. Barnhart, a crew chief for the company, said he was fired because he refused to continue "hit and run" poisonings with a potent herbicide. He has filed a whistle-blower lawsuit. It is not clear if the Tallahassee tree-poisonings were isolated. The Baton Rouge, La., company has nearly 150,000 billboards, more than any other U.S. outdoor advertising firm. Barnhart he said acted under orders from Lamar's former regional manager, Myron A. "Chip" LaBorde, who ran company operations in Florida and Georgia and was past president of the Florida Outdoor Advertising Association. LaBorde died of pancreatic cancer last summer. Hal Kilshaw, a Lamar vice president and chief spokesman, declined to discuss the criminal investigation, but he said "cutting of trees or poisoning of trees without the required permits would be contrary to company policy." FairWarning.org

TSA Screeners Charged in Drug-Smuggling, Bribery Ring at LAX ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A ring of corrupt TSA screeners who were taking bribes to allow narcotics through security checkpoints at Los Angeles International Airport was broken up when a drug courier went to the wrong terminal and was arrested after another screener found 10 pounds of cocaine in his belongings, reports the Associated Press. The discovery prompted an investigation that led to the arrests of two former and two current TSA employees on federal drug trafficking and bribery charges. A 22-count indictment outlined five incidents where the TSA employees took payments of up to $2,400 to provide drug couriers unfettered access at LAX over a six-month period last year. In all, seven people are facing charges. Associated Press

Philly Bank Robbers Disguise Themselves in Female Muslim Garb ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Five recent bank holdups and a homicide committed by men dressed as Muslim women has prompted the Philadelphia-area Islamic community to offer a $20,000 reward for tips that lead to the arrest and conviction of the suspects, reports the city's Inquirer. The Majlis Ash Shura, an organization representing the membership of 71 masajids and congregations in the Philadelphia area, was joined by elected officials at a City Hall news conference. Since December, there have been at least five bank robberies in Philadelphia in which the suspects wore Muslim clothing. The most recent holdups include a robbery at the Wells Fargo Bank on Adams Avenue and the Sovereign Bank on Stenton Avenue. On April 18, a suspect dressed in Muslim garb entered an Upper Darby barber shop and fatally shot Michael Turner, 35. Sharif Wynn, 27, of Philadelphia has been arrested. The clothing, which consists of a loose dress, or abaya, and a head covering known as a niqab, is worn by some Muslim women as a sign of respect for God. Philadelphia Inquirer