9-30-2008 Georgia:
I’m not ashamed to admit to having some questionable judgment when ingesting large amounts of alcohol, but my idiot friends took the cake while tailgating for the UGA-Bama game.
After having to hit up the nasty messes known as porta-potties on numerous occasions on Saturday, they decided to find alternative places to go. It was hot, they were drunk, and most importantly, they were sick of waiting in lines when they HAD to go. So a few of them decided to just find places to go (usually between cars) and time themselves to see who went the longest. Both cool and classy, I’m aware.
While a friend finished timing his 1 minute, 7 second stream, he heard someone coming behind him. Unfortunately, it was a less-than-amused cop.
Although he got off with a warning, the cop informed us that during the GA Southern game he gave someone a ticket for public exposure under similar circumstances. The kid had previously been caught peeing downtown one night, and once again outside a party. That's three times and apparently there is a law that states if you are caught for public exposure on three occasions, you have to register as a sex offender.
Yeah, like one of those guys you see on hidden-camera shows. The habitual public-pisser now can’t live within a certain number of feet of schools or even bus stops, and has to register his home location at all times. He relieved himself while drunk three times and now he’s publicly known as a sex offender. And it stays with you-undoubtedly influencing what job you get, where you can live, and most importantly, your social life.
So save yourself the embarrassment and either zip up, or at least adapt the public pee game to involve some sort of watchdog. ..News Source.. by Tony
September 30, 2008
GA- On-Campus Public Pee Contests At UGA May Have Serious Consequences
DC- PEOPLE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE -- House of Representatives' Web site overwhelmed
Hummm, the US House was overwhelmed on the Financial Bailout bill! Lets see, there supposedly are OVER 600,000 RSOs, and their family members, well thats over a million. RSOs and advocates of those issues, just give that a thought and pass on to your family members and other advocates... Hint..Hint.. Faxes and telephones even to local offices of the Congessmen and Congresswomen.
9-30-2008 Washington D.C.:
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The servers hosting the Web sites of the House of Representatives and its members have been overwhelmed with millions of e-mails in the past few days, forcing administrators to implement the "digital version of a traffic cop" to handle the overload -- for the first time ever.
"This is unprecedented," said Jeff Ventura, communications director for the House's chief administrator.
The tidal waves of e-mails and page views began over the weekend after negotiators announced Sunday that a deal had been reached on legislation to enact a $700 billion bailout of the country's financial system.
In making the announcement, legislators said the public could view the agreement at financialservices.house.gov.
"In a short period of time, lots of Web users were rushing to the digital doorway to get a copy of this thing," Ventura told CNN in a phone interview.
As millions of people tried to look at the details of the bailout plan, the House.gov system became overwhelmed and many people saw notices on their computer screens saying "this page does not appear." iReport.com: Do you support a bailout?
Ventura compared the situation to the "old days, when you listened to a radio show and the 10th caller got a toaster. Then everyone calls the same 1-800 number at the same time and all you got was a busy signal."
"This was a massive digital busy signal," he said.
As more people gained access to the page and details of the bailout proposal were published in the news media, constituents then started to e-mail their representatives, Ventura explained.
"We know it's in the millions," he said of the number of e-mails that lawmakers in the House have been receiving. "But we haven't counted yet, because when you're about to get hit by a tidal wave, you don't count the drops of water in the wave."
After the House failed to pass the proposed deal Monday by a vote of 228-205, the e-mail volume surged again, Ventura said.
"Because there were so many e-mails, it was impacting even the presentation of House.gov," he explained.
"This morning, our engineers sounded the alarms ... and we have installed a digital version of a traffic cop. We enacted stopgaps that we planned for last night. We had hoped we didn't have to."
The office of the chief administrative officer of the House of Representatives issued a statement Tuesday saying: "This measure has become temporarily necessary to ensure that congressional Web sites are not completely disabled by the millions of e-mails flowing into the system.
Engineers are working diligently to accommodate this enormous traffic flow and we appreciate your patience in this matter."
Now, when House.gov or individual members' sites begin to get overloaded, a message will come up on the computer screen saying, in effect, "try back later," Ventura said.
"This really tells us that the level of constituent engagement on this issue is extremely high," he added.
He said after the failed vote Monday and the initial backlash, the House's Web site administrators thought there would be a drop in Web traffic -- especially with the Rosh Hashanah holiday.
"We monitored the situation all night long, and technicians and engineers saw that we were facing the same demand as yesterday," Ventura said.
He predicted that traffic on those Web sites "would start to subside once there's some guidance on the marketplace and political landscape about what comes next."
Ventura said the House.gov Web site experienced a very high number of hits when the 9/11 commission released its final report on the September 11, 2001, terror attacks against the United States, but nothing like what the site has seen in the past few days. ..News Source.. by CNN News
ME- STATEHOUSE Testimony targets sex offenders
9-30-2008 Maine:
AUGUSTA -- Victims of sex crimes and the offenders often live in the same home, where the crimes also occur.
That was part of the message brought by Kurt Bumby, senior manager of the Center for Sex Offender Management, to a committee of legislators wrestling with the problem of how to manage sex offenders and increase public safety.
"Being grabbed in an alleyway sometimes happens, but those are the exceptions," Bumby said. "Strangers tend to be the exception."
The Committee on Criminal Justice & Public Safety met Monday at the Department of Public Safety offices in Augusta for a briefing on Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.
In the second of three informational meetings, the panel heard from Bumby as well as from officials in four other states where policymakers have grappled with similar issues.
"We either reinvent the wheel or take a day and bring in the experts," Sen. Bill Diamond, D-Windham, said. "This should enhance the effectiveness of what we're trying to do."
Diamond, Senate chairman of the committee, said the committee is dealing with three issues:
* legal challenges of Maine's retroactive registration requirement filed by sex offenders;
* the federal Adam Walsh Act, which is aimed at expanding the national sex offender registry and keeping track of sex offenders no matter which state they live in, while increasing penalties for crimes against children; and
* a tiered system to classify offenders based on offense or risk to reoffend or both.
"We have our hands full," Diamond said.
Sen. Earle McCormick, R-West Gardiner, said he was looking for information on how the state's sex offender registry can be more effectively administered.
"If we have a three-tier system, how do we figure who are the high risks?" McCormick said.
Bumby told committee members that sex offenses are a small percentage of all crimes committed, but get a disproportionate amount of publicity.
He also said offenders are a diverse group.
"Research is clear that sex offenders don't all look the same, and those variations have important implications for management strategies," Bumby said. "One-size-fits-all strategies are not likely to get us the results we want."
He said research shows that those more likely to reoffend are those who rape adult women and those who victimize boys outside the family.
"Depending on whom they target, recidivism rates vary," Bumby said. "Sex offenders are not all alike. Do we want policies to treat them alike? Will that serve the public?"
He recommended concentrating on higher risk offenders to lower the recidivism rate.
"It seems we do better to increase public safety when we focused on higher-risk offenders," Bumby said.
Bumby also said a federal study showed that longer sentences do not result in much variation in the rate of committing another sexual offense.
He also said that despite a sharp increase in restrictions on where convicted sex offenders live, there's no evidence those restrictions affect the recidivism rate.
Later, Roger Werholtz, secretary of the Kansas Department of Corrections, said the state legislature there imposed a permanent moratorium to prevent municipalities from restricting where sex offenders can live.
Werholtz said the restrictions tended to force sex offenders into enclaves in rural areas which had less supervision and few opportunities for treatment.
"Ninety-five to 98 percent of people who go to prison in Kansas are going to come back out," Werholtz said. "We want them to succeed, not reoffend."
..News Source.. by BETTY ADAMS, Staff Writer
MI- Portable toilets to serve homeless open in downtown Grand Rapids church parking lot
9-30-2008 Michigan:
GRAND RAPIDS -- After spending the night sleeping on a bench downtown, 35-year-old Monsonae Washington wandered the streets before finding out the nearest public library branch -- and its bathrooms -- were closed Saturday afternoon.
Fearing he wouldn't find a spot were he could legally take care of business, Washington was relieved to see a dozen bright orange portable toilets at Park Church's parking lot downtown.
"Having public restrooms 24/7 is a good idea," said Washington, who by Sunday had used the temporary facilities several times. "They have them in Europe, and it makes sense to have them."
Washington was one of about 50 people attending a rally Sunday at the church to raise awareness about the need for providing safe, clean restrooms during the night for the hundreds of homeless who seek refuge in the city's parks.
Organizers said they hope other churches and businesses will adopt a portable potty, giving it a home on parking lots.
The cost of maintaining one bathroom is $70 a month, said organizer Nathan Dannison. Park Church is keeping the portable toilets for a week.
"We would like to have them all downtown until we can reach a more permanent agreement with the city," he said.
During the event, Mayor George Heartwell said the problem was not new to the city, recalling when he started working for Heartside Ministry about 15 years ago.
"It was a problem back then, it was a problem before I was there, and it is a problem now," he said.
Heartwell said he hopes the city, churches and businesses will work together to find a permanent solution.
The increase in the number of people roaming the streets, including women and children, makes the issue even more pressing, organizers said.
Urinating in public not only carries fines, but it could also get people on the sex-offenders list, which would result in their banishment from homeless shelters.
In the streets at night, people ask others to watch for police so they can do their business when no public bathrooms are available, Washington said.
"If there's no public bathroom, you're gonna go behind a tree or the bushes," he said. "You shouldn't have to ask someone to watch for police so you can use the bathroom."
"People have no choice but to poop and pee in public areas," said Cheryl Millirans, who said she's spent seven years in street ministries in the Heartside area. "We see it and smell it. When you're downtown, watch your step." ..News Source.. by Nardy Baeza Bickel | The Grand Rapids Press
SA- Are sex offenders two-faced?
9-30-2008 South Africa:
Almost half the number of people who seek help after committing sexual offences against children come from wealthy suburbs and are professional people.
These are two of the findings of a study of child sex offenders who took part in treatment programmes by Safeline and the Catts treatment programme in Kenilworth.
In all, 177 child sex offenders were used for the study.
One percent of the offenders came from abroad, and 55 percent came from previously disadvantaged areas.
Besides the startling statistic that 41 percent of offenders came from affluent areas, the study found 58 percent of offenders were married or cohabiting, and 36 percent had never been married.
An overwhelming majority of participants were male, while more than 85 percent of victims were female.
Most of the victims were stepchildren of the offenders, with the youngest being two years old.
The average age of offenders was 41, most had been convicted of indecent assault, and 12 percent had been found guilty of rape.
The study was conducted by Marcel Londt and Nicolette Vanessa Roman, who analysed offenders who participated in Safeline's community-based programme and the private programme run by Catts between 1992 and April. It assessed common assumptions about sex offenders.
Londt runs the Catts programme at the Kenilworth Clinic and has testified in court cases of high-profile sex offenders, including those featuring James McNeill and William Creasey.
McNeill was known as Father Christmas, and often posed for pictures with little children sitting on his lap.
Creasey was a teacher in Grassy Park.
He recently made headlines when it was found that he would be paroled in October and that he would be placed in the care of a friend who lived across the road from a day care centre in Plumstead.
After queries to the department of correctional services, his release was put on hold. ..News Source.. by Fatima Schroeder
UPDATE- U.S. Congress - Financial Bailout bill - HR 3997
9-28-2008 U.S. Congress:
The Financial Bailout bill is numbered HR 3997 and on the Thomas website there are 7 versions. The version below is the one listed by the Speaker of the House. Hopefully Thomas will get it cleaned up so we know which version is being voted on.
‘‘Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008’’.
Summary of the Bill
Section by Section Analysis
If you have not heard Nancy Pelosi's speech (CLICK for Video) it is worth your time.
Click picture to go to HFSC websiteA few additional, and interesting, reports from the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) website. The very last report outlines legislation over the years, a very interesting read.
On Housing Finance, the Difference between Democrats and Republicans Has Been Night and Day
The Truth about the Community Reinvestment Act
*** The Truth versus the Republicans on the Regulation of Subprime Mortgages and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
eAdvocate
September 29, 2008
SC- Cases show offenders often people we know
9-28-2008 South Carolina:
We teach children about stranger danger.
But locals arrested in sex-crime cases have included teachers, pastors and other seemingly upstanding members of the community. National statistics say that this pattern isn't unusual. In fact, most offenders are non-relatives whom the victim or the victim's family knows and trusts.
"They used to teach us stranger danger, but nowadays, that's not usually the case," said Rita Avila, a Charleston County Sheriff's detective who has investigated many such crimes in this area.
Her co-worker, Detective Diane Turner, added that most suspects don't fit the stereotypical, creepy image: "They need to maintain a good, upstanding-citizen-type role with everybody."
Last winter and spring, the Sheriff's Office and neighboring agencies arrested a cross-section of respected community members on abuse charges.
--A year ago, George Francis Weld, a photographer and former rector of a Johns Island Episcopal church was accused of molesting a boy and a girl in the 1980s and 1990s. Weld, 62, is awaiting trial on charges of lewd act on a child younger than 16, two counts of criminal sexual conduct with a minor and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, the 9th Circuit Solicitor's Office said.
--In January, a James Island Middle School teacher who was once South Carolina's Teacher of the Year was arrested on charges of molesting a boy in the early- to mid-1980s. The boy was between 11 and 14 years old at the time. The suspect, Charles H. "Chuck" Long Jr., also was the director of the Charleston Youth Company, a performing arts program for students that he founded.
Long, 57, is charged with a lewd act on a minor.
--A volunteer coach at James Island Christian School, Rohan Lewis, also is accused of inappropriate sexual contact with a student. Detectives arrested him the same week a 15-year-old girl accused him of fondling her in the school gymnasium. Lewis, 39, is charged with a lewd act on a minor.
The suspects come from all walks of life. Many are married with children. Most have little or no criminal history.
"You can go online and find people on the sex offender list," said Libby Ralston, executive director of the Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Center, which performs forensic interviews of children. "The only sex offenders on that list are ones who have been found guilty by a court of law. The majority of sex offenders are not on that list."
Detectives and children's advocates want parents to recognize the dangers but not to panic. There are ways to prevent abuse before it happens.
In cases when it is too late, authorities still want to hear from the victims, even if they don't wish to pursue charges. Avila and Turner said they even want to hear from potential abusers with pangs of conscience.
"Our job isn't just to lock people up," Turner said. "People only seek help after an arrest. We need to change that."
The investigators don't think the cases are necessarily on the increase, though they do seem to be getting reported more often. Police tend to get more reports after similar stories in the national or local media.
A big catalyst for local reports arrived in 1997 when news broke about former Porter-Gaud teacher Eddie Fischer. Fischer was accused of molesting students in the 1970s, and though officials had been warned repeatedly about his behavior, they moved him to other schools where he harmed more children. Fischer later received a 20-year sentence, but died in prison.
The detectives said a very small percentage of the allegations they receive prove to be false. Often, they don't come to light for years afterward because children are forced to do something that most grown-ups can't bring themselves to do.
"You're basically asking a child to make an adult decision," Avila said.
Local nonprofit Darkness to Light says increasing awareness of abuse is one of the best ways to protect children. Anne Lee, the group's president and CEO, recommended common-sense preventative steps, such as the Stewards of Children course Darkness to Light offers online. Parents should get training and let others know they have it.
"We don't need to be hysterical, we don't need to be overwhelmed," she said.
Don't be afraid to ask sports leagues, schools and church whether they have abuse policies in place and whether they train employees on them, she said.
"Sex offenders actually look for children, families and communities that aren't educated," Lee said. "When you think it can't happen to you, that's when you put yourself at risk."
Sex-abuse facts
As many as 50 percent of sexual-assault victims are abused by someone outside of the family whom they know and trust.
Thirty percent to 40 percent of victims are abused by a family member.
Fewer than 10 percent are abused by strangers.
Approximately 40 percent are abused by older or larger children whom they know.
More statistics
More than 30 percent of child sexual abuse victims never disclose the abuse to anyone.
Almost 80 percent initially deny abuse or are hesitant about disclosing it.
Of those who do disclose, approximately 75 percent do so accidentally. About 20 percent later recant their statements.
Fabricated sexual-abuse reports are thought to contribute to only 1 percent to 4 percent of all cases. Of these false reports, an estimated 75 percent come from adults and 25 percent from children.
Abusers can gain easy access to children at:
Sports leagues
Faith centers
Clubs
Schools
Local resources
The Charleston County Sheriff's Office, 202-1700
If you suspect abuse by a family member who has responsibility for taking care of the child, contact the Department of Social Services in your county: Berkeley, 719-1158; Charleston, 953-9422; and Dorchester, 821-0444.
The Dee Norton Lowcountry Children's Center can help with the process of reporting abuse, 723-3600, www.dnlcc.org.
Darkness to Light offers a range of educational materials to promote awareness of sexual abuse, 965-5444, www.darkness2light.org.
Darkness to Light and the U.S. Department of Justice's National Center for Juvenile Justice.
Less relevant than the ones above, in my opinion. ..News Source.. by Noah Haglund at 937-5550 or nhaglund@postandcourier.com
NY- Simple Complications Of A Wrongful Conviction
9-29-2008 New York:
From time to time over the years, my wife Mary and I would hear stories about total strangers who know about my case and would express dismay about the situation. One of the silver linings of this dark cloud we live is that we have been lucky enough to form friendships with many of those “strangers.” It is always comforting to hear of people who take the time to research my case and then form their opinion.
While at work recently, our daughter-in-law met a young woman who is currently studying law at a local college. During their conversation, the student offered that she is studying the convictions of innocent people and has an interest in defense work because of what she has learned. She went on to tell our daughter-in-law that she was currently studying the case of a local man by the name of Jack Carroll. News of such a coincidence might cause a cynical person to doubt its occurrence. After all, what are the odds?
Thinking about this interesting encounter triggered a view of the “big” picture. I wondered, as I often have, how had things gotten so complicated? How could something that started as a dream by a young girl end up causing so much destruction? How could it be that in this day and age of high tech everything, could lies and deceit about something so serious oppress the truth for so long?
In 1997, this all began so very simply. My ex-wife’s daughter had a dream that a boy was touching her. My ex then took the child to Troy Police Detective Stephen Weber, claiming that I was touching the girl.
In spite of the insistence of the girl that is was just a dream; Weber took her to his girlfriend (now wife), Nurse Practitioner Jane Szary, for an examination. Despite Szary’s negative findings- she found only a yeast infection- she nonetheless produced a sworn affidavit to the contrary. Oh, and by the way- she never mentioned the yeast infection in the affidavit. Everything else spun from Jane Szary’s bogus affidavit.
From the beginning of this fight, through the many years of battle and right through till today, the sole argument has been simple. I am innocent. I never, ever, ever did anything inappropriate to my former stepdaughter. I know that and she knows that. Nevertheless, as time passed, this lie took on a life of it’s own. While the war itself has not changed, the battles have become more and more complicated.
After our many efforts to prove my innocence failed, I was running out of options. Along came Troy powerhouse attorney, E. Stewart Jones, whose integrity and commitment to justice is above reproach. He took my case on pro bono.
Mr. Jones’ argument was simple; I was convicted because of one outstanding issue- the egregious and pervasive trial conduct of former Rensselaer County DA Patricia DeAngelis. He has said often, had it not been for the many instances of misconduct, there would never have been a conviction because there was no evidence. Of course, there cannot be evidence when there is no crime!
In December 1998, nearly one year to the day from my first conviction, my accuser attempted suicide. But, before doing so, she wrote a note. Prior to my second trial, Judge Patrick McGrath granted our request for the girl’s medical records, which included information about the suicide attempt and the note that she wrote. Yet, despite the court order, Ms. DeAngelis withheld the evidence.
Our efforts in the State courts to compel Ms. DeAngelis and Rensselaer County to comply with the court order have repeatedly failed, so we have moved our efforts to the federal courts. In 2007, the feds also denied our requests, saying in effect that we did not try hard enough in the State court. We were directed to go back to the State courts and try again. Three motions have been filed to date, with one denial and two pending decisions.
While all of this activity was occurring, the federal court has also been reviewing my request for habeas corpus relief. During the review, the federal district court judge expressed concern over Ms. DeAngelis’ improper mention of the attempted suicide issue to the jury.
Specifically, that Ms. DeAngelis presented her opinion of the suicide attempt yet withheld from the defense any evidence related to the event. As a result of this, the door has been opened for us to make another application to the federal court for this evidence.
Next is my parole issue. In December 2007, I appeared before my first parole board for parole consideration; I was denied. The parole commission’s reason was two-fold. First, they said that I failed to participate in a sex offender treatment program while incarcerated. Second, they stated that my release would be incompatible with the welfare of society. This was of particular interest to me considering that seven years ago, before my retrial, Ms. DeAngelis offered to release me back into the community with time served as long as I admitted to the crime I was charged with. I did not accept her offer to plead guilty to something I did not do.
I later discovered that the parole decision was also based on the parole board’s review of records from my overturned 1998 conviction that were inappropriately still included in my Corrections file. By law, the reversal of a conviction and/or dismissal of charges means the conviction never occurred. Yet despite the NYS Court of Appeals reversal of my 1998 conviction and dismissal of 3 rape charges against me, the records related to that conviction are still included in my files.
The inclusion of these records in my files gives the appearance that the original conviction was valid. I immediately brought this critical error to the attention of the Department of Parole, Department of Correctional Services, and the courts but so far all that has happened is a lot of finger pointing. To date, my records have still not been corrected and everyone claims it is someone else’s responsibility to do so.
Next, we have the extremely critical pre-sentence investigation report. The law mandates that the report be completed upon a felony conviction. Once a conviction occurs, the trial court orders the county probation dept to do an investigation and report on the defendant before sentencing. The pre-sentence investigation report is the primary document relied upon by the court for sentencing and also follows the defendant throughout his entire time in the prison and parole system. It is used as a tool and guide by anyone who deals with the inmate.
In 2001, after my conviction in the retrial, the court ordered Rensselaer County Probation Supervisor, Jane Hanft to complete a new report. She did not do so. She merely revived the 1998 report and changed the dates. Consequently, for seven years this illegal report has been used against me; including in my parole denial. The report also contained references to my 1998 dismissed conviction. I appealed to the courts to order a new report. Although Rensselaer County Court Judge Patrick McGrath agreed with me, he only ordered half of the report to be updated, leaving me with a pre-sentence report that is still partially incorrect. Presently, this too is in the state court for review.
In the meantime, I will soon be faced with a second hearing before the parole board. Yet, unless my files are corrected, I will likely suffer the same fate as in my first appearance. In order to correct this issue prior to the second hearing, I will spend many hours researching and filing paperwork to parole, DOCS and the courts.
Finally, we have the charges themselves. Due to the fact that they are “sex” charges, the inmate is required to participate in the state run sex offender counseling program (SOCP). However, DOCS has a policy of denying an inmate participation in this program before his minimum release date. They preclude him for participation until just prior to his conditional release date. This practice, in effect, adds months if not years to an inmate’s prison time.
Now, after being denied parole, DOCS is reporting that I need to complete the program before my next parole appearance. The twist is, they are ordering that I take the program in Buffalo, even though there are facilities closer to home that offer the program.
The bright side, if there is any here, is that recently the district court rendered a decision that DOCS can no longer mandate inmates who are convicted of sex crimes to admit to the charges. It seems that for years DOCS has been violating the constitutional rights of those who participated in the program.
Recently, I was called to the facility school to meet with my counselor. While there, I had a brief conversation with an administration staff member who is familiar with my case through the media. He asked me several questions about the current status of the case. At the end of our talk he said, “How could something so simple get so terribly complicated?” The only answer I could give was that it was the simple complications of a wrongful conviction.
EDITOR’S NOTE: John “Jack” Carroll of Troy, is currently incarcerated in the Great Meadow Correctional Facility at Comstock, convicted of sexual abuse as a result of what his attorneys and family members say was prosecutorial misconduct by former Rensselaer County district attorney Patricia DeAngelis.
Carroll, 49, a former salesman, was convicted in December of 1997 for the rape and sexual abuse of his then 13-year-old stepdaughter. On appeal, the New York State Court of Appeals dismissed the rape convictions and ordered a new trial on the sexual abuse counts. He was convicted a second time on the sexual abuse counts in January, 2001. DeAngelis, who was assistant district attorney during the period of Carroll’s two trials, prosecuted both trials.
http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/030206DeAngelisGoesFed.html
Carroll has steadfastly maintained his innocence.
On appeal, Carroll’s attorney argued that the trial court judge had prevented Carroll from introducing an exculpatory tape-recorded phone call and on grounds there was no evidence of rape.
The Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court, Third Department denied the appeal and affirmed the conviction. Carroll appealed to the Court of Appeals and the high court dismissed the three rape charges that “there had been no evidence or testimony of penetration of any instrumentality”.
The court further ordered a new trial for the six sex abuse counts on the grounds the taped phone call should have been admitted at trial. At that time, Carroll had served three years in prison.
On the eve of the new trial, Carroll refused the prosecution’s plea bargain offer to plead to a misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child for which he would be sentenced to time served. He maintained his innocence and opted to go to trial, was reconvicted, and sentenced to 12 to 24 years in prison, a harsher sentence than the original and which he and his attorney say was procured by the prosecutorial misconduct of DeAngelis.
The appellate court has on at least three occasions overturned sex crimes convictions on the grounds that DeAngelis and her office improperly attempted to shift the burden of proof, repeatedly strayed beyond the bounds of permissible conduct and denied defendants a fair trial.
DeAngelis was defeated fall in her bid to become Rensselaer County Court judge by Robert Jacon. She decided not to seek reelection as district attorney last fall. She is currently prosecuting traffic tickets part-time in the Stephentown Town Court.
For more about the Carroll case, see http://www.justicenow4.com/ 9-22-08
..News Source.. by Jack Carroll
September 28, 2008
WV- Charge dropped against man accused of farting
9-28-2008 West Virginia:
He had an upset stomach, but police didn't let him go to the toilet, he says
SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A West Virginia man accused of passing gas and fanning it toward a police officer no longer faces a battery charge.
The Kanawha County prosecutor's office requested that the charge be dropped against 34-year-old Jose Cruz.
Cruz, of Clarksburg, W. Va., was pulled over early Tuesday for driving without headlights, police said. According to the criminal complaint, Cruz smelled of alcohol, had slurred speech and failed three field sobriety tests before he was handcuffed and taken to a police station.
According to a criminal complaint, Cruz passed gas and made a fanning motion toward patrolman T.E. Parsons after being taken for a breathalyzer test.
"The gas was very odorous and created contact of an insulting or provoking nature with Patrolman Parsons," the complaint alleged.
Cruz acknowledged passing gas, but said he didn't move his chair toward the officer nor aim gas at the patrolman. He said he had an upset stomach at the time, but police denied his request to go to the bathroom when he first arrived at the station.
"I couldn't hold it no more," he said.
He also denied being drunk and uncooperative as the police complaint alleged. He added he was upset at being prepared for a breathalyzer test while having an asthma attack. The police statement said he later resisted being secured for a trip to a hospital that he requested for asthma treatment.
Cruz said the officers thought the gas incident was funny when it happened and laughed about it with him.
Cruz, who was arrested Tuesday, still faces two charges: driving under the influence and driving without headlights, and two counts of obstruction. ..News Source.. by MSNBC
NH- UNH bans Newmarket sex offender
9-28-2008 New Hampshire:
Police at the University of New Hampshire in Durham have banned a Newmarket sex offender from campus, accusing him of recruiting female students at the school to serve as "concubines."
In a letter dated Sept. 24, 2008, campus police informed Bert Allen III of Newmarket that the order was in effect until the same date next year.
The letter was sent to the same address listed for Allen in the New Hampshire State Police registry of sex offenders against children.
Campus police have asked anyone who sees Allen on campus to call 911, and issued a warning not to approach Allen, who according the state police registry is 6 feet 4 inches and 240 pounds.
According to UNH Deputy Police Chief Paul Dean, Allen was recruiting students in the area of Dimond Library and had posted a two-page flyer in the library.
The typewritten flyer, rife with spelling and grammatical errors, seeks women of ages 18 to 30 to become a "wife or bride" or "concubine," and promise "gifts . . . trips, free vacations, cars, help with school" in exchange for lifetime contracts.
The UNH police letter to Allen informs him he is subject to arrest for criminal trespass if he violates the order banning him "from all properties and buildings on the campus of the University of New Hampshire, Durham."
Dean said his department issued the letter to Allen after the university received several complaints about the flyer.
"We made it clear to him you can't do this," Dean said.
Allen denied posting the flyer, although it includes a Web site address that lists Allen's name on the homepage.
In a telephone interview yesterday, Allen said he visited UNH to use the library's computers for legal work, citing the library's access to the Lexis-Nexis legal database system.
Allen further claimed the flyer police say he posted was doctored. He also said he had asked, acting as his own attorney, for Strafford County Superior Court to issue an injunction reversing the department's action. Because the court was closed yesterday, the status of that request could not be confirmed.
"They're in for a bear on this," Allen said of the campus police. "I'm plumb mad."
Police said Allen could appeal the measure through university channels.
Along with purporting to arrange a "lease" for a wife, the Web site listed on the flyers offers services for adopting children from Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.
The offense listed against Allen in the state police registry was an instance of aggravated felonious sexual assault against a child under the age of 13. The crime was committed in Maine.
He was sentenced to five years prison, along with three of years of supervised release after that, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine, according to federal court records. ..News Source.. by BENJAMIN KEPPLE, New Hampshire Union Leader Staff
WI- Editorial: Residency law only one part in fight against sex assaults
Although based on a few myths it is refreshing to see a residency law with exceptions that appear logical. Further, such laws are not permitted if their intent is to make life difficult for who they call "Sex Predators."
9-28-2008 Wisconsin:
Passage of a sex-offender residency law in Sheboygan, which appears very likely, should not cause anyone to think that we are completely protected from sex assaults.
Aldermen, meeting as a Committee of the Whole, voted last Monday for a favorable report on an ordinance that prohibits a person who must register with the state as a sex offender from living within 2,000 feet of a school, playground, park, licensed day-care center or place of worship. The 14-0 committee vote virtually assures passage by the council on Oct. 6.
Though the measure, with its 2,000-foot barrier from the specified places, effectively bars sex offenders from living anywhere in Sheboygan, it only will apply to those convicted after the law takes effect.
Right now, there are about 200 registered sex offenders who live in the city and are unaffected by the residency law unless they want to move.
There are provisions for newly released sex offenders to apply for a waiver from the residency rule.
And, a sex offender can live with his or her parents, grandparents, siblings, spouse or child if they have lived in the city for at least two years.
Fortunately, with the state law that requires sex offenders to report their address to police, people do have access to this information.
One of the problems we saw with the 2,000-foot exclusionary zone is that it could cause some sex offenders to not comply with the provision in the state law to report their address to police.
They would "go underground," according to the state Department of Corrections.
The idea behind the state registry law is to keep the public informed as to where sex offenders are residing, but if offenders flaunt this law, no one knows where they are and the level of protection decreases.
So even with passage of a city ordinance, convicted sex offenders will still be living in Sheboygan.
Unfortunately, there will also be sexual assaults in the future.
Those who prey on children are not likely to be intimidated by a residency law. Also, there is the sad reality that family members commit many of the sexual assaults of children.
The scourge of sexual assault cannot be completely removed with passage of a residency law.
But together with community awareness, aggressive prosecution of those who commit sexual assault and stiff sentences, a community can make life difficult for sex predators. ..News Source.. by Sheboygan Press.com
There's No Way We Can Protect Kids All the Time
9-28-2008 National:
It's a typical evening in the Miller household. Darrell and Charlene are having dinner with their sons Thomas and Jeremy, ages 9 and 6. The television on the kitchen counter drones mindlessly. Charlene likes to listen to the news. This evening's report begins with a news flash
"There is a scandal involving police officers having sex while on duty with two public safety dispatchers at the Torrington Police Department," the anchor reports as a transcript of dialogue scrolls across the screen. We're told that the sexual activities occurred in the women's locker room along with other "juicy" details about the investigation.
"What did the police do?" asks Thomas innocently as Jeremy listens intently.
"Nothing nice," says Darrell, flustered.
"Something bad?" Thomas asks.
"Err-rr … eat your mashed potatoes, Thomas, they're getting cold. … We'll talk about this later. ... And shut that darn thing off, Charlene!"
Maybe it's just me, but there's hardly a newscast (or any other show) without some mention of sexual predators or sexual misconduct. Whenever I hear these stories, I imagine what it would be like to be a child — innocently playing in the corner, but listening.
We've become pretty accustomed to this titillation. The Torrington police investigation doesn't rank along with big league stories like Sen. "wide stance" Larry Craig or the ever-fascinating "Clinton-Lewinsky cigar capers." But nearly every patient who entered my office the day after the broadcast had a comment about the officer-dispatcher's indiscretion. Is this news, voyeurism, or both?
My real concern is what do we do about the children who are exposed to this.
We know that children are naturally inquisitive. They take delight in all pleasurable sensations. Words for sex organs or elimination are often among the first acquired (wee-wee or pee-pee). If we had our druthers, how or when we discuss sex with our kids would be geared toward their age and developmental readiness. Unfortunately, the introduction of mature sexual content has become more the rule than the exception.
It's natural to want to protect our children from harm — but how? Placing them in a cocoon only increases their isolation and vulnerability — postponing the inevitable moment they emerge to face peer pressure.
I'm sadly reminded of my dear high school friend, Brenda. She was a shy girl with long curly chestnut brown hair who came from a strict but loving family. Brenda was an only child and the apple of her father's eye. She was forbidden to date until she was 16. Even in her teen years, her mom had to approve of her clothing. She never quite fit in with the "cool" kids and was the brunt of their jokes. Tragically, Brenda became pregnant with the first boy who showed an interest in her. She knew nothing about contraception. She committed suicide a few months later. She left a letter apologizing for the shame she brought to her family. I have no doubt Brenda's passing contributed to my decision to become a sex educator and therapist.
Whether you support "abstinence only" or "comprehensive sex education programs," I can tell you this — the lack of information in this highly sexualized society leaves kids over-stimulated and confused. How will they satisfy their hunger for clarity if not through their families? How did you learn the facts of life? Without accurate information in a safe nurturing context, our kids are left to fill in the blanks with their own active imaginations.
Sex, the good, the bad, and the ugly, is here to stay. If we don't like a broadcast — we can just turn it off. But we can't turn off life's media stream — even if we choose to. ..News Source.. by Dr. Sandra Scantling who is a licensed clinical psychologist and certified sex therapist in Farmington. You may e-mail her at AskDrScantling@aol.com; her website is www.drsandy.com. This column is not intended as a substitute for professional, medical or psychological advice. Case material used here includes composites and is not intended to represent any actual individuals.
September 27, 2008
MA- Prosecutors praise new sex-abuse law
9-27-2008 Massachusetts:
HYANNIS — When the Massachusetts version of "Jessica's Law" takes effect next month, it won't have the same tough sentencing requirements as the Florida legislation on which the act concerning child predators was modeled.
But the commonwealth's modified version will make it easier for law enforcement officials to prosecute sexual abuse crimes against children, Michael O'Keefe, Cape and Islands district attorney and one of the law's backers, said yesterday.
"A lesser sentence is better than no sentence at all," said O'Keefe, who is president of the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association. He was speaking at the ninth annual conference of Children's Cove, which investigates sexual abuse cases on the Cape and Islands and provides treatment for young victims and their families. The conference was held at the Resort and Conference Center of Cape Cod.
Jessica's Law is named after Jessica Lunsford, a 9-year-old Florida girl who was raped and murdered in 2005 by a repeat sexual offender. In the original Florida version adopted by several states, the law establishes a 25-year minimum sentence for sexually abusing a young child and requires that paroled sex offenders wear a GPS positioning unit.
Other states, including Massachusetts, have passed a modified version of the law that raises the minimum sentence for some sexual offenses against children but gives prosecutors more leeway in working out plea agreements.
Flexibility an advantage
Many defendants would go free with a mandatory 25-year sentencing law, O'Keefe said. "We'll capture more perpetrators with the flexibility inherent in this law."
The problem is young children often make poor witnesses, particularly if they are called upon to face their abuser in court, he said.
Currently, many sexual abuse cases never go to trial, sparing the child and family the rigors of a courtroom battle. Instead, the prosecutors use evidence and expert interviews to work out a plea deal and a sentence for the perpetrator, who must also registered as a sex offender.
If people accused of sexually abusing a child are faced with a quarter century in prison, they are more likely to take a gamble and push for a trial, O'Keefe said. The fear is many families will end up withdrawing complaints rather than traumatizing a young child on the stand.
Prosecutors want to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to prosecuting child molesters, O'Keefe said. He said under a mandatory 25-year sentencing law, a grandfather with Alzheimer's who molests a child in a one-time incident would be subject to the same sentencing as a pedophile kidnapper.
Stronger version sought
Rep. Jeffrey Perry, R-Sandwich, supported a stronger version of Jessica's Law. But he said the modified version that passed this summer and is going into effect Oct. 22 "is better than if we didn't pass anything."
He is disappointed with the fact the law does not call for a 10-year minimum sentence for rape of a child by force.
"That's really the type of crime that deserves a minimum mandatory sentence," said Perry, a member of the Public Safety Committee.
The law does call for a minimum 10-year sentence for aggravated indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, but the simple use of physical force is not considered an "aggravating" factor, Perry said during a phone interview.
Aggravated indecent assault and battery is a new charge. Aggravating factors include using a dangerous weapon and committing the crime during a home invasion or while posing the child for nudity.
Also new is a 15-year mandatory minimum sentence for a person committing indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 as a second offense, Perry said. He said legislators will be pushing for more stringent sentencing once their new session begins in January.
The Massachusetts constitution guarantees defendants the right to face their accuser, which means it's not possible for children to testify from behind a screen as happens elsewhere, said state Sen. President Therese Murray, who also spoke at the Children's Cove conference.
The way that Martha Coakley, the state attorney general, and the district attorneys put the law together "is the right way to go," Murray said. The convicted perpetrator will be automatically registered as a Level 3 sex offender and be tracked for the rest of his or her life, she said.
Jessica Lunsford's father, Mark Lunsford, urged Massachusetts to follow the Florida example, Murray said. But in the end he agreed to the modified version, she said. "He just said to me, whatever you can do, please do." ..News Source.. by CYNTHIA McCORMICK
KY- State adds technology programs to track criminal offenders (beyond sex offenders)
9-27-2008 Kentucky:
FRANKFORT — Kentucky is going to spend approximately half a million dollars to expand its data base of criminal offenders and provide victims and the public “real time” information when they are released.
“Public safety neither begins nor ends with locking up criminals,” Gov. Steve Beshear said. “Being tough on crime isn’t enough; the bottom line is we have to remain vigilant 24/7.”
The state will contract with APPRISS, a Louisville firm, to consolidate some existing contracts in the Justice Cabinet and add data bases tracking sex offenders and former inmates, providing real time notification to crime victims when their attackers are released from jail or prison and to alert pharmacists when customers attempt to buy psuedoephedrine to produce meth.
Beshear has dubbed the program “Public Safety First.”
Justice Secretary J. Michael Brown said the additional cost is between $400,000 and $500,000 a year on top of the approximately $1 million in current contracts with APRISS. He said savings in other areas will make up for the additional costs.
Brown said the new technology will benefit the state as well as victims. Previously the state’s data system wasn’t designed to track inmates and offenders except while they’re under the control of the Department of Corrections. Beginning the first of the year, the state will be able to track former inmates when they reoffend or re-enter the criminal justice system.
Victims and the public will have access to Web sites which will show where sex offenders live and alerts law enforcement when they are arrested or jailed. It will also allow domestic violence victims to be notified when their attackers have been served with protective orders – a time when victims are statistically at greater risk for attack.
The Justice Cabinet and Department of Corrections will also automatically be notified when former inmates are rearrested and booked into county jails.
The state will also extend MethCheck, a computer program which can alert pharmacists immediately if a customer is trying to violate state laws governing sale of over-the-counter drugs used in the manufacture of meth.
According to Doug Cobb, CEO of APRISS, the program recorded 261,251 pharmaceutical transactions in the first 90 days it operated, and 4,412 of those were blocked. Most were individuals trying to make multiple purchases in the same day. The law limiting purchases of meth “pre-cursors” and tracking purchases are credited with lowering the number of meth labs in the state by about a third.
Finally, the additional technology will allow law enforcement, child support and state investigative agencies to access a nationwide offender data base to track who is in or out of jail, even in other states.
Brown said moving all the existing contracts – some with agencies like Kentucky State Police and Homeland Security – under one umbrella under the Justice Cabinet will save money and increase their effectiveness. ..News Source.. by RONNIE ELLIS writes for CNHI News Service and is based in Frankfort.
IL- Domestic Sex Trafficking of Chicago Women and Girls
5-13-2008 Illinois:
While international sex trafficking has made headlines, domestic sex trafficking remains a problem. In a study undertaken in Chicago, 100 women were interviewed and asked about their entrance into the sex industry and their current experiences in the trade.
The study asks questions such as the age when the woman or girl began, who it was that introduced her to the industry, relationship to the pimp, and the violence the woman experiences. The data showed that the longer a person remains in the sex trade, the greater the downward spiral in experience of violence, number of clients per day, and distance traveled.
..To read the full report.. by Jody Raphael and Jessica Ashley
See Also: Deconstructing The Demand for Prostitution: Preliminary Insights From Interviews With Chicago Men Who Purchase Sex by Rachel Durchslag and Samir Goswami
CA- Man beaten by mother of sexual assault victim
9-27-2008 California:
Police arrest 23-year-old man for alleged sexual assault of 2-year-old girl
A 23-year-old man who allegedly sexually assaulted his 2-year-old niece was beaten Wednesday by the mother of the child until officers arrived to the East Palo Alto home and took him into custody.
Police said Joel Aguilar Guizar was found cowering inside a home in an undisclosed location after officers responded around 1 p.m. to a report of a domestic battery in progress.
The officers found two women inside who were holding their children and were visibly upset, police said. The officers determined the women had discovered that Guizar had sexually assaulted his niece, police said.
The victim's mother assaulted Guizar, who confessed to the sexual assault during a police interview, according to police. He was booked into San Mateo County Jail on three counts of sodomy of a child and one count of lewd acts with a child
..News Source.. by Bay City News Service
AR- Prison-sex confession stands
9-27-2008 Arkansas:
A prison psychologist given a three-year sentence for having sex with an inmate patient will go to prison after the Arkansas Supreme Court upheld her conviction Thursday.
Anna Clark, now 57, was convicted of third-degree sexual assault for her dalliance with Dan Burns, an inmate under her care.
Clark argued on appeal that her confession to an Arkansas State Police investigator about her sex with Burns was based on false promises.
Clark said the investigator told her he would keep the matter out of the press, keep her out of jail and even hoped that she’d retain her psychology license.
But Justice Annabelle Clinton Imber, writing for the court, said Clark had waived her Miranda rights and knew that having sex with an inmate was a crime.
“In viewing the totality of the circumstances, we conclude that [Clark ] ’s confession was voluntarily, knowingly and intelligently given,” Imber wrote.
Clark also contended that because the investigator didn’t tape the first 75 minutes of the interview, he violated the due-process clause in Article 2, Section 8 of the Arkansas Constitution.
No Arkansas law requires the police to record an interrogation in its entirety, Imber wrote.
But, Imber wrote, “we believe that the criminal-justice system will be better served if our supervisory authority is brought to bear on this issue” and announced the court will refer the “practicability” of adopting a formal rule on electronic recordings to its Committee on Criminal Practice for study.
But even if the court had a rule on taping confessions “any resulting error would be harmless in light of otherwise overwhelming evidence of [Clark ] ’s guilt,” Imber wrote.
A correctional officer walked in on Clark and Burns having sex, and Burns admitted to the relationship, the judge wrote.
Clark has been free on an appeals bond since her August 2007 sentencing, according to Department of Correction records, said prison spokesman George Brewer.
Her time out on bond won’t count toward her sentence, he said.
At the Supreme Court, the case is CR 07-1276, Anna Clark v. State of Arkansas. ..News Source.. by CHARLIE FRAGO
FL- Homeless sex offenders register bogus residence
9-27-2008 Florida:
Mission House bans residency
Homelessness is not illegal at the Beaches but transients who are also registered sexual offenders must register a permanent address with police to avoid a felony charge.
But homeless sexual offenders who use the Mission House as a permanent address are committing a crime, Jacksonville Beach police said this week, adding they plan to meet with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, where registration is conducted, to let them know that the Beaches do not have a permanent shelter that sex offenders can claim as a residence.
"It's complicated," Jacksonville Beach Police Sgt. Thom Bingham said Tuesday. "We have conferred with the State Attorney's office regarding our interpretation of the law. There needs to be some type of residence for a person to register. The Mission House is not set up for that."
Bingham said a permanent address is defined by law as a location where an individual resides or sleeps. A temporary address is permitted for registration purposes only when an individual spends more than 14 days at that location in a calendar year.
"The Mission House does not qualify as a residence unless homeless offenders are sleeping on the property," Bingham said.
-Someone misses or misconstrues what a temporary residence is, 14 or more days in a calendar year, qualifies as a temporary residence under the law. However, the police are only allowing homeless registrants to file PERMANENT residences. Maybe a court can settle this..
Executive Director Jan Flager of the Mission House, a day facility that serves with the homeless population with meals and provides clothing, toiletries and free medical care, said clients are permitted to use the address for mailing purposes only and must mark anything using 800 Shetter Avenue for "mailing purposes only." Those who violate the policy and register with the county using the Mission House address are barred from the facility.
"This is never to be used as a residence. If we know, they are not allowed to be here. It is one of our standard rules," he said. "It is one of the things we absolutely stand hard on."
Flager said the case management teams that gather client background information are usually able to flag a past criminal background, including sex offenses. But not all of the clients that the Mission House serves go through the case management process.
"We can't check everybody's background. We do act on it when it comes to our attention," he said of transients who break the rules and stay on the facility's grounds. "There is a huge apartment complex behind us. We are very sensitive to that."
All sex offenders and predators are required by law to register with the county within 48 hours of arrival. In Duval County, registry must be completed through the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Failure to register as a sex offender is a felony in most jurisdictions.
"That was the intent behind Megan's Law. If someone moves into your neighborhood you should be notified," Bingham said. "It goes against the law when someone wants to camp out behind [a restaurant] and people living in [nearby condos] don't know they have a sex offender living 100 feet away," he said, acknowledging that is sometimes the situation at the Beaches.
-Apparently folks are forgetting the 14 day issue, or that homeless offenders or anyone -police permitting- can sleep anywhere in the state as there is no law prohibiting sleeping anywhere, maybe even on a bus, train, park bench, in a tree, or even on a couch in a store; sleeping is not just confined to residences to be legal. I can see the charge "Illegal Sleeping" in a prohibited area? These laws are riddled with errors...
Megan's Law was enacted in honor of 7-year-old Megan Kanka who was murdered by a repeat sex offender in 1994. The law requires those convicted of sex crimes against children to notify local law enforcement of any change of address or employment.
In Jacksonville Beach, Bingham said investigators are aware of five or six homeless sexual offenders registered in the city using the MIssion House address. Warrants have been issued for those failing to register or update information.
"We don't know how many are failing to register at all in our area," he said. "If they are just passing through, they don't have to. But if they are here more than 48 hours, it's the law."
Flager said of the thousands of people helped by Mission House, very few are sex offenders.
"It is the exception as opposed to the rule with our clients," he said. "I am certainly not trying to belittle the importance of the situation but it is an extremely small element of our population. We just want to make sure folks know that it is not a haven." ..News Source.. by LIZA MITCHELL, Staff Writer
FL- EXCLUSIVE: Florida sex offender registry not accurate...
9-27-2008 Florida:
LEE COUNTY, Fla. - A WINK News Exclusive investigation uncovers the Florida Sex Offender Registry might not be as accurate as you think.
A Southwest Florida man's address was listed on the Florida registry as being in Louisiana, but when we showed up to his last known address in our area we found him.
The man showed us paperwork proving he registered with the Lee County Sheriff's Office when he came back to Louisiana.
Our investigation found Florida's law enforcement agencies did nothing wrong, the problem was in Louisiana.
We're told the state put all their offenders in a new system and therefore wrong information was sent to the national database and Florida registry.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement says it believes this is a rare occurrence, but admits officers don't check what other agencies submit to the national registry.
Louisiana State Police now plans on checking its database to make sure other offenders information is accurate. ..News Source.. by Melissa Cabral
September 26, 2008
UK- Sex offenders can 'live' at bus stop, park bench or in tree
Glitch, legal loophole, amazing construction or misconstruction. Is it likely or unlikely to find the homeless at these locations, especially since they cannot afford the price of a hotel or other home. Why is it that logic and normal constructions cannot be employed in cases such as these?
9-26-2008 United Kingdom:
A legal loophole which allows homeless sex offenders to roam free - 'living' at a bus stop, park bench or in a tree - has been branded "astonishing" by a senior judge.
A glitch in the Sex Offenders Register states that paedophiles and rapists with no fixed abode can register their address as a bus stop, park bench or tree.
This means that many offenders can go unchecked and sometimes disappear altogether.
Judge Anthony Scott-Gall discovered the loophole on hearing a case in which a man went missing for nearly three years after failing to sign the Sex Offenders Register.
Serial sex offender Darren Hellowell appeared in Lewes Crown Court for breaching the terms of a suspended prison sentence.
When Judge Scott-Gall asked how police kept a track of people who had no fixed address, prosecutor Barbara Down replied: "Apparently it is perfectly acceptable to sign the register with a particular bus stop or public bench as your home address."
To which the judge replied: "Goodness me. That's quite astonishing."
A leading sexual abuse charity is now demanding that the rules be tightened to keep a proper track of offenders.
Yvonne Traynor, chief executive of the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre UK, branded the Sex Offenders Register "a sham".
She said: "This is an absolutely ludicrous state of affairs. The Sex Offenders Register is nothing more than a sham.
"The whole idea is to keep track of where these potentially dangerous people are living.
"But if they can record their addresses as ridiculous things like 'a tree', it makes a mockery of the whole system. Something a bit more sensible must be put in place to protect our society."
Mappa, the organisation responsible for the Sex Offenders Register, confirmed that such unconventional addresses could be used.
A spokeman said: "Under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, registered sexual offenders must notify the police of their address or, if they are homeless, any place where they may be regularly found.
"The MAPPA authority monitors these cases to ensure that individuals can be regularly found at these locations. If they are not they will find themselves in breach of the Act and may be arrested and brought before court." ..News Source.. by Charlotte Bailey
IN- Who's right when it comes to laws for sex offenders?
This is a interesting opinion, albeit biased (see last sentence). Given that last sentence comment I'll add, it cannot be "continuing" unless it comes from the sentencing court and would have to be in that court's sentencing order. Here, with parks, it is not, and as to other issues mentioned, the ex post facto clauses have no exceptions written into them, except what judges have read into them.
9-26-2008 Indiana:
Answer depends on if our focus is on punishment or safety.
The Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld Plainfield's law that bans sex offenders from parks. Child-safety advocates are elated, but the American Civil Liberties Union says enjoyment of parks is a “core value” under the Indiana constitution and that banishment amounts to a second punishment for a crime.
So who's right? The question is being debated in several communities that have laws similar to Plainfield's. The bans in Lafayette and Michigan City have also withstood court challenges. A suit over a similar law in Greenwood has been on hold pending an outcome in the Plainfield case. A federal judge overturned Indianapolis' law as overly broad. It banned offenders from being within 1,000 feet of a park or school. There are very few such places in the city.
An answer to the question depends on our focus.
If we just concentrate on the punishment aspect, it can seem to be too unfair to the offenders. We tend to have a “punish and move on” attitude about crime in this country. Once people have paid the debt for their crimes, they are allowed the benefit of the doubt and given a chance to learn from their mistakes.
We especially have to be careful not to deny a whole class of offenders constitutional rights that belong to everybody. The Fourth Amendment does not make an exception for sex offenders when it says “the people” have a right to be secure from “unreasonable searches and seizures,” for example. Indiana was not mindful of that blanket right when it tried to require registered sex offenders to “volunteer” for on-demand searches of their computers.
But there is a safety aspect to be considered. The man at the heart of the Plainfield case - identified only as John Doe - was not someone who was arrested for having sex at 18 with his 16-year-old girlfriend. He was convicted on child exploitation and possession of child pornography. It is not unreasonable to worry about him being in a park where children congregate.
It is now well-known that sex offenders have to register with the state and that many communities are trying to restrict their movements, so such treatment can be no great surprise to anyone. Certain things, therefore, can be seen as a continuation of the punishment, not a second round of it. ..Source.. Opinion by News Sentenial
FL- 'Predator' sting group rejects judge's order
9-26-2008 Florida:
BUNNELL -- Perverted Justice, the controversial group that worked with "Dateline NBC" in its "To Catch a Predator" sting in Flagler Beach, refused to comply with a judge's order to allow an expert to examine its computer, defense attorneys said during a hearing Thursday.
-This is troubling, over the years there have been many claims questioning the methods used by this group, and here -for unknown reasons- they refuse a court order. Makes one wonder what such a search would have uncovered and whether such might even be illegal. Could the house of cards come tumbling down...
But it may be a non-issue if defense attorneys accept a plea agreement offered this week by prosecutors. Ted Zentner, who spoke for a group of four defense attorneys at the hearing before Circuit Judge Kim C. Hammond, declined to reveal details of the offer.
Prosecutor Jennifer Carlson, who Zentner said made the offer, could not be reached for comment. No one at Perverted Justice could be reached for comment.
If the case is not settled, then Perverted Justice's refusal to allow access to its computer would have to be dealt with, Zentner said after the hearing.
Zentner represents Todd Spikes, 43, a former Alabama police officer who was fired after his arrest during the sting. Zentner also represents another man arrested in the sting, Daniel Kelly, 46, of Clearwater.
Spikes and Kelly were among 21 men who police said had sexually explicit online chats with decoys posing as children and then drove to a house in Flagler Beach to meet what they believed to be children during the sting in December 2006.
"We need to have somebody check their computer to make sure the logs as prepared are true and accurate statements of the actual chats," Zentner said after the hearing at the Kim C. Hammond Justice Center. "That's what the analysis was going to do for us. It was going to give us basically verification of the truthfulness of the chat log. And, without that, we have no way of determining whether they are, in fact, true and accurate. Because anybody can type anything in a chat log; that doesn't mean that's what was discussed online."
The problem is not with prosecutors but with Perverted Justice, said Mark Rosenblum, an attorney who represents Michael Reyes of Branford, who was also arrested in the sting.
"(Perverted Justice comes) across as if they were a law enforcement agency, or at least a quasi-law enforcement agency, and then when a judge like Judge Hammond orders them to do something, they flaunt it," Rosenblum said.
Zentner said he and the other defense attorneys sent an expert to check the Perverted Justice computer in Louisville, Ky., only to have the person turned away without reason and despite the order from Hammond.
NBC pays the controversial Oregon-based group, which has volunteers pose as minors in Internet chat rooms where the topic sometimes turns to sex. Dateline then sets up sting houses, where cameras film anyone who shows up to meet actors they thought were minors.
Other defense attorneys present Thursday included Fritz Scheller, who represents Oanh Le of Orlando, and Harrison Slaughter, who represents Michael Collins of Apopka.
Spikes, who lives in DeFuniak Springs but had commuted to work in nearby Florala, Ala., was one of the more notable arrests in the sting since he was a police officer. Spikes is charged with attempted lewd or lascivious battery, two counts of lewd or lascivious exhibition, and computer pornography and child exploitation. ..News Source.. by FRANK FERNANDEZ, Staff Writer
September 25, 2008
WA- Woman Claims Fiance Falsely Arrested
Interesting here is how the arresting officers try to double-talk their way to innocence. It is clear that, someone where this man did properly register, either, intentionally or inadvertantly, failed to do what the law required of them. That failure led to the losses suffered by this man and his family.
9-25-2008 Washington:
Police Say Warrant Was Valid
VANCOUVER, Wash. -- A woman said her fiance was arrested unjustly as a part of Tuesday night's Operation Crackdown.
Operation Crackdown was a weeklong mission in Clark County where police were rounding up wanted sex offenders.
But Mickeal Stafford's fiancee said she has proof that he does not fit into that category.
Stafford was one of the men caught on FOX 12 cameras being arrested by police.
They picked him up on a warrant for failing to register as a sex offender.
But on Thursday, his fiancee, Rebecca Robinson, provided paperwork that showed he did register his current address with the county one month ago. Officials said he is still out of luck.
"This is the copy of the registration we got on the 25th of last month," Robinson said.
Robinson was alone in her apartment Thursday waiting for her fiance to get out of jail.
He was caught up in the sweep designed to bring in offenders who haven't been following the rules of their probation or have failed to register new addresses.
That's the reason they said they came after Stafford, but Robinson said it was a mistake.
"Really, I'm just shocked that this would happen -- that they would be this unorganized, because that's not something that you just do," Robinson said.
Rebecca had a carbon copy of paperwork from the Sex Offender Registration Office dated Aug. 25, 2008.
That's the day Robinson and Stafford registered their new address.
Since the story aired, Robinson said she's gotten threats from neighbors and Stafford got fired from his job.
"Parents have called and said I don't want my daughter working with a sex offender. And people are scared of him. He can't work there anymore," Robinson said.
County officials said Stafford was arrested on a charge of assault in July and gave police an address in Hazel Dell that was never registered.
That's when they issued a warrant for his arrest.
They said that even though Stafford registered another new address last month, the warrant was still valid and he was still a wanted man.
After all the work they've done, Robinson said they may have to start all over.
"Who knows, we just might have to move completely. I don't want trouble. We're very private people," Robinson said. ..News Source.. by FOX 12
Second stimulus announced
Look VERY CLOSE at what this covers, especially under crime! Scroll down, way down, kinda hidden at the end. While I don't know most of these programs I do wonder if they would have passed otherwise. Covering so many dissimilar topics it almost looks like a bill to bailout the 110th Congress.
9-25-2008 Washington D.C.:
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.) today announced a $56.2 billion stimulus package.
The bill would extend unemployment insurance benefits for seven weeks and provide money for a range of other concerns. The detailed proposal after the jump.
Reid/Byrd Economic Recovery Act of 2008
If we are going to bail out Wall Street, we need to also help those on Main Street. The President’s failed fiscal policies have resulted in higher unemployment and hardships in coping with rising food costs, higher energy costs, and increased dependence on foreign oil.
CONTENTS:
Major points on the $56.2 billion economic stimulus package:
Unemployment
The unemployment rate now stands at 6.1%, the highest rate since September 2003. The unemployment rate is up 1.4% since last August, including an increase of 0.4% in the last month alone. The U.S. economy has lost jobs every month this year, a total of 605,000 jobs. The stimulus package extends unemployment benefits by seven weeks in all States and another thirteen weeks in high unemployment states.
High Food Costs
Food prices have increased by 7.5% this year after increasing 4.9% in 2007. In order to help low-income families cope with rising food prices, the stimulus package temporarily increases Food Stamp benefits by 10 percent and includes $450 million for the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program (which would allow 625,000 women and children to receive WIC benefits, meet some of the rising demand due to a faltering economy, and allow states to avoid creating waiting lists). $50 million is included for Food Banks, $30 million for the Commodity Supplemental Food program, and $60 million for senior meals programs (18 million more meals).
• Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). The economic recovery act provides $450 million for WIC, which will prevent more than 625,000 low-income women, infants, and children from losing WIC benefits, according to United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) latest food and administrative cost estimates. The funding will also prevent States from having to create waiting lists due to funding uncertainty.
• The Commodity Supplemental Food Programs (CSFP). The CSFP currently serves approximately 466,075 low-income senior citizens, women, infants, and children in 32 States and the District of Columbia and allows USDA to purchase specific commodities and make them available to participating States. Recent and rapid increases in commodity prices have forced USDA to use up much of its inventory for CSFP food. The additional $30 million that the stimulus provides will allow USDA to replenish its food stocks, preventing smaller food packages or a forced decrease in participation.
• The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). TEFAP allows USDA to purchase commodities and make them available for free to the States, which then provide them to approved food distribution centers, including food banks and homeless shelters. The amount of food distributed to each State is determined by that State's low-income and unemployed population. The stimulus includes $50 million for TEFAP that will allow USDA to buy additional food at a time when food prices are at record highs and the economy is weak at best.
• Senior Meals. The stimulus provides $60 million to help senior meals programs cope with steep increases in food and fuel costs. This will result in an additional 18 million meals served. Skyrocketing food and gas prices have forced senior meals programs to make cuts; nearly half of programs have been forced to eliminate meal delivery routes or consolidate their meal services. These cutbacks put our most vulnerable seniors at risk of hunger, poor health, and isolation.
• Farm Bill Implementation Costs. The bill provides $172 million to assist USDA in upgrading computer systems and implementing the new Farm Bill.
High Energy Prices
Energy prices have increased by 22.4% in 2008 after increasing 17.4% in 2007. In order to help Americans cope with spiraling energy costs, we include $500 million in the stimulus package for weatherization programs. This is in addition to $5.1 billion for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance and $250 million for weatherization provided in the underlying amendment.
• Weatherization Assistance. The stimulus bill also provides an additional $500 million for the Weatherization Assistance Program, which improves the energy efficiency of low-income housing. This amount of funding will support more than 8,000 existing jobs, weatherize about 300,000 homes, and save each household about $400 in energy costs this coming year.
Helping States Deal with a Flagging Economy
Twenty-nine States are facing a $52 billion shortfall in revenues in their FY 2009 budgets, resulting in cuts in health care, education, and other programs. The stimulus package includes $19.6 billion to reduce the States share of Medicaid costs by increasing the Federal share by four percent.
Energy Independence/Environment
The second stimulus includes major investments in promoting energy independence and a clean environment. The underlying amendment includes $7.5 billion to support $25 billion of loans to auto companies to manufacture advanced, more energy-efficient vehicles. The stimulus package adds $300 million for advanced battery research, $300 million to help local governments improve energy efficiency, $750 million for environmental clean up, and $800 million for urban and rural clean water systems.
Over 22 percent of the world’s energy supply is under the Arctic ice cap. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has stated that Russia should unilaterally claim part of the Arctic, stepping up the race for the disputed energy-rich region. Russia has a fleet of 20 heavy ice breakers and is nearing completion of the first of their newest fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers in an effort to control energy exploration and maritime trade in the region. Thanks to the Bush Administration, the United States has only one functioning heavy polar icebreaker, and it has only six years left of useful life. $925 million is included for the Coast Guard to provide what the Navy and the Air Force call, “an essential instrument of U.S. policy” in the region. Constructing a new Coast Guard icebreaker will ensure that the United States has the ability to respond to the growing risks presented by increased activity in the Arctic and protects U.S. environmental, economic, homeland security and national security interests in both Polar Regions.
• National Park Centennial Fund. The stimulus package establishes the Centennial Fund for fiscal years 2009-2018. Over $500 million in public-private funding will be provided for restoration of Park Service facilities and development of new programs. Funding thus far has provided an additional 3,000 park rangers, law enforcement rangers, and maintenance personnel service-wide.
• Corps of Engineers. The second stimulus includes $500 million, of which $200 million will provide construction jobs for rehabilitation of some of the Corps’ hydropower plants that are nearing the end of their design life. Construction work includes rewinding generators, replacing turbines and transformers, upgrading switchyards and other electrical equipment. Maintenance work would include replacing breakers, electrical equipment and other non-routine maintenance items such as replacing surge tanks, stators, intake tubes, etc. $100 million in funding is included for dredging of channels that provide either significant movement of coal, fuel, liquefied natural gas (LNG), or oil and natural gas equipment, and to partially address the backlog of construction work at Corps of Engineers, flood control, environmental restoration and navigation projects nationwide. And an additional $200 million for the Corps will be used to fund work that can be immediately awarded to provide jobs in the construction industry across the country.
• Advanced Battery Technology. $300 million is included for Advanced Battery technology to help resolve problems in developing long-term, cost-effective storage systems, the biggest hurdle to bringing plug-in hybrid or pure plug-in vehicles to the marketplace.
• Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Project Grants. The stimulus includes $300 million for competitively awarded grants to local, county, State, and tribal governments for innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy demonstration projects.
• Bureau of Reclamation Energy Stimulus Work. $50 million provides immediate jobs for the rehabilitation of some Bureau of Reclamation hydropower plants that are nearing the end of their design life. Additionally, a Canal Safety Program would be initiated by Bureau of Reclamation to determine the safety and stability of the hundreds of miles of canals that convey water across the western U.S. Many of these canals are approaching 100-years of age and are nearing the end of their design life. This program would help to determine the next steps that should be undertaken to address these aging canals.
• The bill includes $600 million for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Clean Water State Revolving Fund, which provides funding to States for low-cost loans to make local sewer projects affordable.
EPA estimates that $202 billion will be needed to keep pace with aging sewer infrastructure needs over the next 20 years, which would require an average commitment of $10 billion per year. The President's FY 2009 request of $555 million for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund funds just 5 percent of that annual need.
It is estimated by the State and local water pollution agencies’ association that this $600 million investment would create at least 24,000 jobs and generate an additional $1.1 billion in economic benefits for communities.
• Rural Utilities & Community Facilities. The stimulus includes $792 million in loans and grants for essential rural community facilities, including hospitals, health clinics, health and safety vehicles and equipment, public buildings, and child and elder care facilities. The bill also provides $26 million for distance learning and telemedicine infrastructure grants to improve access to these services in remote rural communities. A substantial and longstanding backlog exists of approved applications for clean water and waste disposal projects in rural communities. The recent Farm Bill provided some funding for this purpose, but the backlog remains. This bill includes $200 million in budget authority that will support over $500 million in loans and grants for needed water and waste disposal facilities in remote rural areas.
• Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The second stimulus also includes $13.1 million to permit prompt implementation of new authorities enacted in the 2008 Farm Bill (P.L. 110-246) and to enhance enforcement, market surveillance, and oversight of the futures markets in response to significant public concern about record energy and agricultural commodity prices, including escalating costs at the gas pump and the impact on American consumers and our national economy.
• Department of Energy. The stimulus includes $750 million for the Department of Energy’s Environmental Cleanup program of former nuclear weapons production plants, which will restore at least 200 cleanup jobs around the nation that were going to be lost due to the Administration’s budget cuts in FY 2008 and 2009.
Creating Jobs
There are consequences for failing to invest in America. Bridges fall into rivers. Roads and subways are congested to the breaking point. FEMA cannot respond to a major disaster. Fuel prices go through the roof. Our economy slows, and we are less competitive in the world economy.
The stimulus package includes: $10.8 billion for building and repairing highways, bridges, mass transit, airports, and AMTRAK, creating 384,000 jobs; $50 million for the Economic Development Administration (EDA) to help communities impacted by massive job losses due to corporate restructuring; $500 million for the COPS program to hire 6,500 police officers; $600 million for clean water systems that would create 24,000 jobs; $2 billion for school construction that would create 32,300 jobs; and $500 million to address some of the construction backlog for the Corps of Engineers for flood control, navigation, shore protection, and environmental restoration projects – funds that will provide immediate construction jobs around the nation.
• Additional Highway Funding. The Committee bill includes $8 billion for highway investments. Funding from the general fund would be sent by formula to every State in order to improve deficient roads and bridges. These investments would also generate over 278,000 jobs right here at home.
• Public Transportation. The first quarter of 2008 saw 130 million more transit trips than the same period last year. The bill includes $2 billion for transit agencies to address capital and operating needs in order to meet this growing demand.
• Investing in Amtrak. As an increasing number of Americans are turning to rail transportation in the wake of high gas prices, the bill includes funding to address the increasing demands on Amtrak across the country. The bill includes $350 million to fund capital projects along Amtrak’s corridors, including funding to rehabilitate inactive rolling stock.
• Airport Investments. The Committee bill includes $400 million for capital improvements to airports across the country. These funds would support projects that are ready to begin construction immediately, bringing necessary improvements to our aviation system and supporting jobs in the local communities.
• Funding for Small Shipyards. The bill includes $44 million for grants to assist small shipyards across the country make the capital improvements necessary to fortify the competitiveness of our domestic shipbuilding industry by improving its efficiency, cost effectiveness, and the quality of domestic ship construction for commercial and Federal Government use.
• Economic Development Administration (EDA) Economic Adjustment Assistance. The bill includes $50 million for EDA economic adjustment grants to assist communities to recover from sudden and severe economic dislocation and massive job losses due to corporate restructuring. This funding will leverage $350 million in private funding and create 9,000 new jobs in communities struggling with substantial job losses.
Housing
$702 million is included to promote safety and energy efficiency in public housing, implement provisions of the recent housing bill, give housing assistance to tenants displaced by foreclosure, and fund FBI investigations of fraud in the mortgage market. Over $2 billion of loans and grants would be made available for rural housing.
• Supporting the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). In the midst of the Nation’s housing crisis, the Federal Housing Administration has seen its role in the housing market increase substantially. In addition, with the recent passage of the housing legislation, FHA is expected to guarantee an estimated 400,000 additional loans to prevent more Americans from facing foreclosure. The stimulus provides FHA with $52 million to modernize its systems and hire additional staff. These resources will be critical to ensuring that FHA’s mortgage fund remains solvent, and that the agency serves the needs of homeowners while protecting the interests of the taxpayer.
• Stopping Mortgage Fraud. The bill includes $5 million for the FBI for agents to investigate rising claims of mortgage fraud.
• Help for Families Facing Foreclosure. The stimulus provides $37.5 million for the Legal Services Corporation to provide legal assistance to families whose homes are in foreclosure.
• Public Housing Capital Assistance. The bill includes $250 million for public housing agencies to address critical and urgent safety, security, and energy-related needs. Priority will be given for funding to be used to rehabilitate vacant rental units in order to meet the increasing demand for affordable rental housing. In addition, the bill includes $200 million for public housing agencies to help offset the increased energy costs associated with operating public housing and to help avoid slowdowns in the maintenance of public housing.
• Housing Assistance for Tenants Displace by Foreclosure. The bill provides $200 million to assist individuals and families in rental housing that are being displaced due to foreclosure. The funding provided will be for public housing agencies and other community providers to help families with temporary relocation and rental assistance in their efforts to secure safe and affordable permanent housing.
• Rural Housing. The bill includes $3.4 billion in direct and guaranteed single family housing (SFH) loans that will provide about 34,000 very low to moderate-income rural households the opportunity of homeownership, especially during this period of uncertainty in the housing market.
Education and Job Training
To promote education and job training, $2 billion is included for school repairs, $600 million for youth training and dislocated workers, $36 million for homeless education, and $400 million for the Secure Rural Schools program. Job training funds would provide 160,000 dislocated workers and youth with education, training, counseling, and job search assistance.
• Department of Labor Employment and Training. Over the past year, unemployment has grown to 9.4 million people nationally, an increase of more than 1.8 million people. Long-term unemployment is up by more than 70 percent over the level at the beginning of the last recession in March 2001. At that time, the number of workers unemployed 27 weeks or more was 703,000, or 11.4 percent of the unemployed. Last month, more than 1.8 million people were unemployed for at least 27 weeks, which is 19.5 percent of all unemployed individuals.
Additional funds are needed to help get the economy moving. The second stimulus package includes $300 million for employment and training activities for dislocated workers. These funds will help more than 79,000 people receive services, which include job search and career counseling, as well as training.
Additionally, the national jobless rate for teenagers was 18.9% in August, and unemployment rates for minority teens were worse -- for example, about 28.8% for African American teenagers. These are near historic highs. Funds are needed to improve these rates, and this second stimulus includes $300 million for this purpose. These funds will support part-time jobs after school, paid internships, and community service jobs for older youth, and will help low income youth acquire work skills and income that can help families living in poverty or experiencing economic turmoil. Communities and cities will also benefit by engaging young people in productive activities. More than 80,000 youth would receive services under this stimulus package.
• School Repair and Renovation. Too many of America’s children go to school in overcrowded buildings with leaky roofs, faulty electrical systems, and outdated technology, all of which compromise their ability to achieve, succeed, and develop the educational skills necessary for the workforce of the 21st century. An emergency public school renovation and repair program will help States meet the school facility needs of local communities by providing resources to repair, renovate, and modernize America’s schools. Equally important, its enactment will stimulate the creation of thousands of new jobs in construction-related services. The stimulus includes $2 billion for this purpose, an amount that would be sufficient to create an estimated 32,300 jobs.
• Rural Schools. The stimulus includes $400 million for a one-year extension of the Secure Rural Schools Act. These funds are critically urgent to over 775 rural counties and 4,400 schools nationwide that are facing permanent cuts to teaching positions and school and road improvement programs. Nearly 7,000 teachers and educational staff across the country have received pink slips and will otherwise not have a job when the new school year begins this September.
• School Improvement – Education for Homeless Children. Many school districts across the country are reporting sharp spikes in the number of homeless students because of the foreclosure crisis, which is expected to directly impact an estimated 1.95 million children. At the same time, rising fuel costs are making it harder for school districts to provide transportation to students who have been displaced. The $36 million in this amendment for “School Improvement Programs” would be sufficient to provide transportation or other services to an estimated 265,000 homeless children.
Health
$1.2 billion is included for the National Institutes of Health, $966 million is included to improve public health to cope with a potential pandemic flu outbreak or the use of a biological weapon, and $46 million is included for the Centers for Disease Control for combating infectious diseases and investigating disease clusters.
• National Institutes of Health (NIH). Even with the $150 million included in the first stimulus bill, NIH funding failed to keep up with biomedical inflation in FY08 for the fifth year in a row, a trend that has discouraged many young scientists from this field and puts the Nation at risk of losing a generation of talented investigators. The second stimulus includes $1.2 billion to restore some of the purchasing power of NIH that was lost because of inflation in the past five years and allow NIH to award at least 3,300 new research project grants that could lead to cures and treatments for cancer, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, and many other devastating diseases.
• Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The bill provides $46 million for the CDC for combating infectious diseases and investigating disease clusters.
• Bioterror Attack and Pandemic Flu Preparedness. The bill provides $905 million for the Public Health and Social Services (PHSSEF) to enhance the Nation’s preparedness against a bioterrorist event through the advanced development of priority medical countermeasures and activities that support the distribution and dispensing of medical countermeasures. This funding would also improve the Nation’s preparedness in the event of an influenza pandemic. In addition, $35 million is included for EPA and $27 million for the Department of Homeland Security to deploy additional sensors for biological agents.
Small Business
America’s small businesses, the lifeblood of our economy, face an ever-tightening credit market in the wake of struggling financial markets. The stimulus provides $200 million to support $16 billion in reduced-fee loans to small businesses, delivering needed relief to small businesses on Main Street during Wall Street’s financial crisis. Funding will support even lower loan fees for both veterans and small businesses purchasing energy efficient technologies.
• Rural Business. The stimulus includes approximately $70 million for loans and grants to support income and employment expansion through improved business opportunities in rural areas.
• Small Business Administration. America’s small businesses, the lifeblood of our economy, face an ever-tightening credit market in the wake of struggling financial markets. The stimulus provides $200 million to support $16 billion in reduced-fee loans to small businesses, delivering needed relief to small businesses on Main Street during Wall Street’s financial crisis. Funding will support even lower loan fees for both veterans and small businesses purchasing energy efficient technologies.
The bill also provides $1 million to support $10 million in new microloans for small businesses and $4 million for critical technical assistance for these “micro” borrowers.
Border Security and Crime Fighting
$490 million is included for Byrne grants, and $776 million is provided for border facility construction and other homeland security infrastructure. $50 million is included to hire 150 new Deputy U.S. Marshals to enforce the Adam Walsh Child Protection Act and apprehend fugitive sex offenders who threaten our children.
• COPS Hiring. The bill includes $500 million for the competitive COPS hiring grant program, which will put 6,500 new cops on the street across the country. This is the first time since FY2005 that this program would receive substantial dedicated funds to help communities hire new police.
• Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The bill provides $100 million to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for construction at CBP-owned inspection facilities at land border ports of entry.
• General Services Administration. The stimulus also includes $201 million for construction and repair/alteration of border stations (land ports of entry) to help address the backlog of these facilities needed for our Nation’s security and commerce. Significant increases in trade and vehicle traffic, as well as the hiring of new personnel, have placed strains on the many outdated border inspection facilities.
• Consolidating Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Headquarters. The stimulus includes $466 million for DHS to begin construction of a consolidated headquarters in Washington, D.C. Currently operating in 70 buildings located on 40 sites across the National Capital Region, DHS has a critical need for a permanent, unified headquarters.
• Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) – Acquisition Construction & Improvements. The bill provides $9 million for security upgrades at border related FLETC sites.
• Byrne Justice Assistance Grants. The bill provides $490 million for Byrne Justice Assistance Grants to support State and local police fighting crime in our communities. Specifically, this funding will help keep over 6,000 cops on the beat in our local communities and aid in the installation of almost 45,000 mobile laptops in police vehicles.
• U.S. Marshals Service. The stimulus also includes $50 million for the U.S. Marshals Service to implement the Adam Walsh Act. This funding will allow the Marshals to hire 150 new Deputy U.S. Marshals dedicated to apprehending fugitive sex offenders who threaten children in our communities.
• Capitol Police Interoperability. The bill provides $55 million for interoperability upgrades for Capitol Police radios.
• Fighting Violence on the Southwest Border. The bill includes $100 million to help communities along the Southwest Border fight the illegal flow of guns and drugs between the U.S. and Mexico that is fueling violence along the Border.
• Treasury Inspector General. The financial system is grappling with an unprecedented number of bank failures. The bill provides $10.5 million for the Treasury Inspector General to conduct critical reviews of these bank failures.
Science
$250 million is included for NASA to speed development of our next U.S. space vehicle, so we are not reliant solely on Russia after the retirement of the Space Shuttle. $150 million is included for the Department of Energy's Office of Science to protect and provide jobs at national laboratories and universities, continue research, and meet international science project obligations; and $100 million is provided for nuclear security upgrades.
• NASA. The bill provides $250 million for NASA to help shorten the projected 5-year gap between the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2010 and the availability of the new U.S. space vehicle in 2015. During this gap, the only way U.S. astronauts will be able to access space will be aboard Russian vehicles.
• Department of Energy. The stimulus the Department of Energy’s Office of Science program by $150 million to meet international and domestic research priorities.
• Finally, the bill includes $100 million for implementation of Section 1051 of the 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act ($30 million) and enhanced cyber and site security across the National Nuclear Security Administration complex ($70 million) in the Department of Energy.
..Source.. The Crypt (Breaking news from Capitol Hill)
