If the new law is written, or interpreted, as explained in this article then there are insane provisions which are impossible for many prior offenders to comply with (highlighted shows one example). This law protects no one and harms many, and some of those are not even offenders. See Table (at end of article) from a study showing the harm caused by registries.
1-7-2009 New Mexico:
With the turn of a calendar page, a new year begins. With it come new federal guidelines for the registration of convicted sex offenders in the form of the Adam Walsh Child Safety and Protection Act.
The federal act was passed in 2007, and the final guidelines were issued in 2008, Regina Chacon of the State Department of Public Safety (DPS) said. Now it's New Mexico's turn to come into compliance with the federal statute.
Compliancy with the act includes juvenile registration, retroactive registration and technology enhancements that include mapping of registrants, e-mail notifications of their locations and a link to a national database.
Chacon said during the January legislative session, which begins its 60-day session on Jan. 20., the act will be introduced to the legislature and the governor will have to sign the bill into effect.
"We have tried to come up with something that will comply with the Adam Walsh bill. We are already compliant with the requirements for our Web site and database," Chacon said. "We will have to start the juvenile and retroactive registrations."
An example of when retroactive registry would happen is if someone is convicted on a burglary charge in 2009, after the act goes into effect, and was convicted of criminal sexual penetration in the first degree in 1975. "They were not required to register then, but they would be now," Chacon said.
She went on to say that with the retroactive registration in place, registered sex offender numbers would increase as well as the research it takes to put them in the state's database.
"We do in-depth research of conviction and court documents," Chacon said. "We will not put someone on the registry until we have absolutely verified the conviction. We will have to get that information from court documents, which, with the older records, those documents are the sole source. That will probably be one of the hardest tasks."
Currently, the state will place a juvenile on the sex offender registry if they are convicted and sentenced under adult sanctions. "A 17-year-old convicted as an adult would have to register," Chacon said. "Under the Adam Walsh Act, they will be registered even if the juvenile is simply adjudicated."
Criticism and concern
Both the retroactive and juvenile registration aspects of the federal law have been criticized, and Chacon says she understands the conflicting feelings.
"You have someone who committed a sex crime 30-some years ago and hasn't been in trouble since. Is that fair, to register them now?" she asked. "But we also see studies and research that shows with the majority of predators, for every crime they are caught for, there are several others they aren't ever caught for."
In regards to juvenile registration, Chacon questions if it is fair for an 18-year-old to have to register for the rest of his or her life because of a mistake or mental illness.
"But we have seen a situation where a foster child in Texas molested his sister and brother. Nobody knew because the matter was adjudicated," Chacon said. "He then comes to New Mexico and is seeking treatment, which is admirable, but he molested again. He had been molesting children since he was 12 but the matter was always adjudicated.
"We know the bullying that can happen because of something like this, the psychological impact of registration. We are trying to come up with an alternative that will meet our needs as a state, but we have to err on the side of caution and believe in the registry."
Chacon went on to call the registration an "excellent tool" saying the purpose of the new federal legislation is to enhance the registry.
"There is the possibility that there will be ramifications from state to state that were not anticipated," she said. "It's up to us to create something that will benefit us as a state."
Three-tier system
The federal act also establishes three tiers of registration time periods - 15 years, 25 years and a lifetime. A Tier 3 crime such as aggravated sexual abuse, abusive sexual contact or the kidnapping of a minor by someone other than a parent or guardian would warrant a lifetime registration and a renewal visit to the local sheriff's department every three months.
A 15-year registration is for Tier 2 crimes such as sex trafficking, coercion and enticement or transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. A Tier 2 sex offender must renew their registration every six months.
A Tier 1 offender is anything that is less severe than a Tier 2 or 3 crime. Their registration lasts 15 years, and they must renew their information with the sheriff's department annually.
Det. Sgt. John Gordon of the Valencia County Sheriff's Department is the officer tasked with tracking and monitoring the sex offenders living in Valencia County. He is hopeful the new federal law will streamline the various state registration systems.
Gordon said, for example, if a sex offender moves to New Mexico, he or she has 10 days to notify the department of public safety. However, in Las Vegas, Nev., offenders have 72 hours to notify authorities.
"If you are convicted in Wisconsin, you have to register there even if you are living in New Mexico," Gordon said.
--Note: Given the retroactive nature of this law, how does someone incapacitated in a nursing home today, go back to where they lived 20-30-40-50 years ago, and register there then come back to the nursing home, especially if it involves different states. This is insane, but the lawmakers must have been as well. Never forget, Mark Foley was the author of the registraion portion of this law, he was driven our of Congress due to his secretive messages with underage Pages in Congress, and he is not prosecuted for that when on the registry there are others doing the same.
Chacon said DPS felt that the 10 days allowed in New Mexico was reasonable. "They have to establish a residence, make an appointment with the sheriff's department and go register," she said. "The federal act says three days, so we'll put that in and see what the final decision is."
NM registration
and notification
New Mexico isn't alone in registering sex offenders. According to Chacon, federal law requires all 50 states to have a sex offender registry.
"Federal law requires the 'sending' state to notify the 'receiving' state of a move by a sex offender," Chacon said. "The state the offender was convicted in notifies New Mexico, and we notify the sheriff's department of the county the offender is moving to. In New Mexico, offenders currently have 10 days to register with the county sheriff's department.
"If they do not register within that timeframe, the department will go out and try to locate the offender."
When an offender registers with a sheriff's department, he must provide his legal name and any aliases, date of birth, Social Security number, current address, place of employment, the sex offense convicted of and the date and place of the conviction.
With little exception, that information, plus a physical description including scars and tattoos, is put into the online database the state maintains of all the registered offenders living in the state.
Chacon said Social Security numbers aren't put on the Web site, and it is up to the department as to whether the sex offender's place of employment is listed.
"We report the offender's workplace if we feel that they will come in contact with children, and there are very few places where they won't," she said. "They would literally have to be on an oil rig in the middle of the ocean. A plumber, a handyman, working at a fast-food restaurant - they probably will."
Chacon went on to say that if a sex offender is retired, unemployed or is on disability or Social Security, they don't post that because there is no need. The department does post the residential address of the registered offenders.
"We review every single registration, and the final determination is up to us," she said. "We also rely a lot on the local sheriff's department to let us know what kind of business it is the offender works at. If it isn't a recognizable name, we don't know if it's a tire shop or a pizza place."
Gordon said each time an offender renews his registration, he signs a form acknowledging the New Mexico sex offender registration and notification statute.
According to Chacon, New Mexico is unique and special in that it registers all offenses against a minor or adult.
"The act focuses on violence against children," she said. "It includes kidnapping and false imprisonment of a child by someone other than a parent or guardian."
According to the state's registration and notification act, an offender must also disclose his status as a sex offender in writing when he begins employment, begins a vocation or enrolls as a student at an institution of higher education in New Mexico to the county sheriff for the county in which the school is located and to the law enforcement entity and registrar for the institution of higher education.
Offenders must also disclose their status in writing when enrolling as a student in a private or public school in New Mexico to the county sheriff for the county in which the school is located and to the principal of the school.
The act stipulates that an offender must "disclose his status as a sex offender in writing to his employer, supervisor or other person similarly situated, when he begins employment, begins a vocation or volunteers his services, regardless of whether the sex offender receives payment or other compensation ..."
If an offender's employment or enrollment status changes, he must again notify those same people in writing of the changes.
Changing information
When an offender notifies the local sheriff's department about a change either in their residence, job or school location, Chacon said the department notifies the state.
"We update our database no later than 24 hour after they give us the information," she said. "The database automatically updates the Web site every six hours."
In order to change an offender's information, be it a new home address or change of employment, there has to be an authorized document with the changes, Chacon said.
"The sheriff's department can't just call us. There has to be written notification from the offender with their new address," she said. "There is a process in place for verification."
If the offender notifies the sheriff's department and state that they are moving out of state, Chacon says DPS gives the offender all the information about the new state's requirements.
"We then notify the new state that they are coming. We give them a couple of weeks and do a follow-up to make sure they registered," she said. "It is a fourth-degree felony to not register. If we find out they lied to us and didn't register, we have a warrant issued."
Criminal background checks
To further protect the population, Chacon said DPS could conduct a background check of a person's criminal history in New Mexico for a $10 fee.
"In New Mexico, conviction records are open records," Chacon said. "As a good place to start, we recommend checking www.nmcourts.com." The Web site gives summaries of criminal cases throughout the state.
To do a criminal background check, Chacon says DPS needs an authorization for release. "An employer asks a prospective employee to sign what is basically a waiver," she said. "DPS is the central depository for criminal records, so first we do a name comparison. If there is no record, then that's that. If there is a hit, then we run the name, date of birth and Social Security number."
Chacon goes on to say that, if there is a record, the employer can see arrests and convictions for the individual requested. "We only release the records if all the information matches," she said. "If the person believes we are wrong, we will do an identification fingerprint for verification purposes only. In the nine years I've been with DPS, I've only seen one time when it was the completely wrong person."
In the case of many non-profit groups, such as YAFL and Little League, Chacon said DPS would usually waive the fee.
The state's sex offender database is also available for people to check for free via the Internet. "Business owners should be doing that anyway," Chacon said. "They should know who are the offenders around their business especially if they have a business aimed at children."
Roberta Scott, the director of the county's Small Business Development Center at the University of New Mexico-Valencia Campus, also recommends utilizing the state's database. If you are unsure, check the state's sex offender database," she said. "It's the least you should be doing. Plus it's free and public knowledge." ..News Source.. by Julia M. Dendinger News-Bulletin Staff Writer eAdvocate note: Reviewing this study was interesting but there were two charts which caught my eye, they follows:
Levenson, J. S., & Tewksbury, R. (2009). Collateral damage: Family members of registered sex offenders. American Journal of Criminal Justice.
eAdvocate note: Reviewing this study was interesting but there was one chart which caught my eye, it follows:
Monica L. P. Robbers PhD: Lifers on the Outside: Sex Offenders and Disintegrative Shaming . International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Vol. 53, No. 1, 5-28 (2009)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
NM- New federal laws mandate sex offender registration guidelines
AU- 'Penis fire' suspect is charged
1-7-2009 Australia:
An Australian woman has appeared in court in Adelaide charged with murdering her husband by setting fire to his penis.
Rajini Narayan, 44, is alleged to have doused her husband, Satish, with a flammable liquid while he was sleeping.
When she set him alight, Mr Narayan jumped out of bed and knocked over the substance, causing the fire to spread.
Mrs Narayan told the court she had not intended to kill her husband but to punish him for his alleged infidelity.
Prosecutor Lucy Boord said Mrs Narayan had confessed to her neighbours, telling them she was a "jealous wife" and believed her husband was having an affair.
"I just wanted to burn his penis so it belongs to me and no one else, I didn't mean this to happen," Ms Boord quoted Mrs Narayan as saying.
The fire, on 8 December 2008, caused damage to the couple's house estimated at 1m Australian dollars ($715,000, £490,000).
Mrs Narayan was initially charged with arson and endangering life - including the lives of her three children who were in the house at the time.
The charge was upgraded to murder after Mr Narayan died from his injuries last week.
She has been held in police custody pending the results of a psychological assessment. ..News Source.. by BBC
Check your Internet SPEED
This is quite a good site to see what SPEED your Internet connection is providing you then you should know if you are getting what you pay for.
eAdvocate
CA- Just say "know" to Teen Sex
1-7-2009 California:
Grown-ups spend a lot of time worrying that the next generation is sexually stupid. “Today’s teens,” the cries begin, and they end with the words “wild,” “in such a hurry,” or “setting themselves up for heartache …”
They’re not unfounded, these accusations. But they were true of us, too. And they were true of our mothers, grandmothers, and — sorry for the mental image — great-grandmothers. Sex is like driving. Before you slide into the driver’s seat and take your foot off that brake, you don’t really know anything useful about it. And the education can be terrifying.
My friends learned the hard way. “I didn’t anticipate how emotionally overwhelming the experience would be,” said one.
“I wish I’d been better educated about STDs,” confessed another.
Me? My first time was slow and sweet, passionate and perfect — until my mother walked in on us. Wish I were kidding.
It’s true that “today’s teens” are dealing with brand new issues. Puberty happens earlier than it used to. Music videos dare 11-year-olds to wear booty shorts and shake body parts whose very functions they have yet to comprehend. And explicit digital photos — which we all know seem like a ducky idea at the time — can circulate through campus infinitely faster than a dog-eared Polaroid ever could.
But I wonder if girls today are actually smarter about sex than I ever was. More knowledgeable. More conscientious. That’s what it seemed like recently, when I sat in on a Sexual Wisdom workshop for teenage girls.
Run by therapist Jennifer Freed, the 10-week group aims to help teens make informed decisions about sex by fostering casual, confidential conversations about everything from flirtation to masturbation, virginity to pornography. On a recent Monday night, a dozen Santa Barbara girls aged 14 to 18 trickled into Freed’s living room-like therapy office. Some are there at the suggestion of school counselors, or their parents. Some come simply out of curiosity.
Dressed in sweatshirts and jeans, they plop onto couches and armchairs, dip into a bag of organic snacks, and start talking about sex.
A girl announces that her boyfriend wants them both to date other people. Freed asks the group to rate, on a scale of one to 10, one being lowest, how comfortable they’d be with such an “open relationship.” When no one goes above four, she explained that women’s hormones make us want to bond, and that sharing partners may actually be harder for women than men.
“I’m kind of on a crusade,” said Freed, who cofounded the Academy of Healing Arts for area teens. “One third of girls will have had sexual intercourse by the time they’re 14 — so they’d better know what that means for them.”
Abstinence education is a joke, she said. “That doesn’t help anybody in the midst of teen lust.” So instead of advising them to resist “sexting” (sending nude phone-to-phone photos of themselves), for instance, Freed asks them, “‘What motivates us to do that? Why is it exciting and interesting? And what are the consequences of this?’ You have to slow it all down so they can really examine the emotional aspects of the choices.”
The workshop operates on donations and includes Freed’s workbook, which prompts participants to write or draw responses to questions like, “How would you react if someone walked in on you during sex?”
And believe me when I say that’s one you want to think about before it happens. ..News Source.. by Starshine Roshell
NY- EDNY Judge Finds Violation of Supervised Release in SO Case Where Defendant Refrained from Participating in Treatment in "Meaningful Manner"
1-7-2009 New York:
How many people haven't clicked with their therapists and moved on to another? Imagine being sentenced to therapy and not clicking with the assigned therapist, but not having the option of switching? That's a predicament in which more than a few defendants have found themselves.
If so, United States v. Porter, 03-cr-0129 (CPS), 2008 WL 5377946 (E.D.N.Y. December 23, 2008), is required reading. Advise your client to grit their teeth and comply, or (while still gritting their teeth) respectfully request the court for the right to enroll in an alternative program because the approved one is not optimal.
Just don't do what Porter did: make snide and sarcastic comments, disrupt group therapy sessions with legal discussions, fail to do assignments on the grounds they were unimportant, and then stop showing up and enroll in another program that is not approved by the Probation Department.
While EDNY Judge Sifton recognizes that Porter and his therapist may not have been a good "fit," he points out that "there is no evidence that Mr. Porter ever complained about [her]."
Moreover, he points out that that Porter "deliberately refrained from participating in sex offender treatment in a meaningful manner," and, citing three cases from the Sixth and Eighth Circuits, he holds that "[m]ere attendace is not 'participation.'" Accordingly, Porter was held to have violated the conditions of his supervised release and awaits sentencing. ..News Source..
Joe Burns: No call for a call to kill
1-7-2009 National
“Protect our children: kill a pedophile.”
That’s what the bumper sticker read on a car just ahead of me.
Encountering a call for murder is unsettling, but, in this case, not surprising. In the dung heap of depravity, where sadists, serial killers and mass murders dwell, you will find the sexual predator as well. But while convicted serial killers and mass murderers will, mercifully, never see freedom and may even be executed, that is not the case with pedophiles and other sexual offenders. We don’t give them the same sentences we give to murderers, and with good reason: doing so would offer little motivation for sparing the life of the sole witness to a sexual crime. And so they serve their sentences and are released out into the world.
But unlike many other violent criminals who are returned to society without restrictions, the whereabouts of sexual offenders are monitored. And those deemed most likely to re-offend also have their name, address, photo and past offenses made easily accessible to the public.
So what message is that giving us — that these are people ready to live among us or that they’re a danger in our midst that we must protect ourselves and our family against? Many would say the latter.
That was likely why, in 2006, a 20-year-old Canadian, Stephen Marshall, who had no history of being sexually abused, took the law into his own hands. Marshall killed two Maine men whom he had never met and whose names and addresses he had gotten from a sexual offender list. One of the men, 24-year-old William Elliott, had been placed on the list after serving four months in jail because, as a teenager, he had consensual sex with his girlfriend who was days shy of the age of consent.
Marshall shot and killed himself as police were about to arrest him. Shortly after the killings, Maine took down its online sex offender listing. They are now up again.
Two men in a small Tennessee town didn’t want to kill the pedophile who lived down the road, but they took a life just the same. Attempting to drive away a neighbor convicted of downloading child pornography, they set fire to his home. The man escaped the blaze, but his wife died in the fire.
One of the most famous, or perhaps infamous, examples of taking the law into one’s own hands is that of Ellie Nesler, a California woman who died last month.
Nesler, whose story was the subject of the TV movie “Judgment Day,” became a hero to some in 1993 when she walked into a California courtroom and shot and killed the man who was accused of molesting her son and other boys.
“He deserved to die. Maybe I'm not God, but I'll tell you what — I'm the closest damn thing to it for all the other little boys," Nesler said at the time.
The state of California disagreed. Nesler served three years in prison for her crime.
Some would call that a small price to pay for doing away with a predator. Others might say it’s a small price to pay for taking a life. But Nesler also paid in other ways.
Eleven years after Nesler took the law into her own hands, her son did the same, stomping to death a man he accused of stealing his tools. How much of that disturbingly distorted sense of justice stemmed from his abuse and how much stemmed from his mother’s actions and the public’s reactions to her act is impossible to determine. But he is now serving 25 years to life, and his mother was unable to have him by her side before she died.
Being made aware of who and where the most dangerous sexual offenders are is meant to be a way of controlling crime and protecting the public, but as this anecdotal evidence shows, it can backfire tragically.
The “kill a pedophile” sentiment doesn’t represent the feelings of just one motorist; the bumper sticker has been spotted all over the country. Why someone chooses to advocate violent vigilantism is not ours to understand. Perhaps they do so because of a personal pain, a hatred for those who commit such vile acts, or a frustration with those who turn them out into society and then tell us to beware. In all cases, one can recognize the rage while rejecting the rationale.
But as long as we free convicted sexual offenders, saying that they’ve paid their debt to society, and then tell the public the “degree of dangerousness” posed by them is such that we be made aware of their whereabouts “to prevent further victimization,” there will be people who believe they must take the law into their own hands.
Anyone that dangerous should not be reintroduced to society. The way we deal with sexual offenders must be changed, and not with death sentences or mandatory sentences. We need a system that allows for greater flexibility in sentencing — a system that sets benchmarks for release so that those who are judged a serious danger to society aren’t set free, while others, like William Elliott, are allowed to return to their community without the threat of being targeted by some self-appointed vigilante with a downloaded hit list. ..News Source.. by Joe Burns, GateHouse News Service
CO- School District Won't Move Bus Stop Away From Sexually Violent Predator
The problem here is not the RSO it is the parent. There isn't a state in the U.S. which permits parents to allow their children to be unsupervised in the public. Parents need to get the picture, they need to go with their children to the bus stop until the child gets on the bus, then there is no worry from a RSO or a murder or a burgular or a person who has committed any other kind of crime. Parents need to recognize that 95% of sex crimes are committed by someone known to the victim such as Uncle Joe, the person next door, or get this, the TEACHER the child / young adult is getting off the bus to go learn from in the school.
1-7-2009 Colorado:
PEYTON - What would you do if a sexually violent predator moved into a home near your child's bus stop? Charity Weese is dealing with that exact scenario. Her three kids go to Falcon Elementary School and pick up the bus stop just down the street from her home. One month ago, a sexually violent predator moved into a trailer two-tenths of a mile from the bus stop.
"I mean it's really scary, you don't want your kids to become victims," says Weese. "School's been out, so it's been okay, but now you know we're going back to work, kids are going back to school and everything. We're not always right there being able to watch."
The bus stop is at the corner of Stage Stop Road and Slocum Road in Peyton. On December 5th, 2008, Kelly Stroble moved to 4955 Slocum Road, two-tenths of a mile from the bus stop. In 1999, Stroble was convicted of sexual assault on a child by a person in position of trust. His victims were ages 8-to-14.
He's considered a sexually violent predator because he meets certain criteria and is considered likely to commit another sex crime.
"We're just on the other side of this hill, we can't see down there at the bus stop," says Weese. "For the transportation people to pick the kids up and drop them off and just wipe their hands and be done with it, what is the purpose then?"
"Society has said that they're deemed appropriate to be out in society," says Falcon District 49 Chief Operating Officer Paul McCarty.
District 49 isn't moving the bus stop. McCarty says other kids at the same stop would be affected.
"(The Weese) home is down here and the other students are down in this area," says McCarty pointing farther down the road.
The district's transportation committee can choose to move the stop. Weese will take her plea to the committee's next meeting later this month. If the committee approves a move, the district would then have to pick a new location. If not, the bus stop won't be moving. ..News Source.. by Marshall Zelinger
GA- Registered Sex Offenders Must Comply with New Internet Rules
Again, lawmakers with another UNCONSTITUTIONAL provision tacked into sex offender laws. This password provision is no different than saying to RSOs, give me a key to your home so we can search it whenever we feel like. This is plain nonsense, two other states have tried it and courts have declared such UNCONSTITUTIONAL, the 4th Amendment has not been repealed to my knowledge. Any lawyer worth his/her salt can tackle this and win. Passwords, e-mail addresses, and other Internet IDs are all inside the home, a place where the state is not permitted to go absent a warrant showing probable cause that a crime has occurred.
Further, this law violates the U.S. Supreme court precedent which holds that every citizen has the right to anonymous free speech. Further, a federal court in Utah has already declared this unconstitutional. The same was held true in Indiana also by a federal court.
1-7-2009 Georgia:
Columbia County, GA—When Georgia sex offenders go online, there could soon be more eyes watching what they do, who they instant message, even monitoring their email accounts. “We have people here who are involved in internet crimes, internet crimes against children, and I’m sure we’ll come up with some type of plan to make sure we do monitor those people to make sure they’re not doing something illegal.“
Starting January 1st, sex offenders have to turn in their email addresses, passwords, and screen names to their local sheriff’s office. David Rush with Columbia County admits there are some kinks for law enforcement agencies to work out, but once they do, he says it (the new law) will be a plus.
Columbia County hasn’t decided exactly how they’ll monitor the offenders online or how often, but says if they don’t send in the information, they will be arrested. “It’s just another way for these people, these sex offenders to know that we are looking at them. As long as they’re obeying the law, they have nothing to worry about. But we want them to know that if they try to entice a child, or try to engage in any type of internet porn, we will be watching them and taking appropriate action if they do violate the law,“ says Rush.
Next week, the Governor’s Sex Offender Registry Task Force meets and could hammer out guidelines for how law enforcement agencies should validate the internet information sex offenders turn in and how often they should check on them. We’ll follow up after that meeting. ..News Source.. by Paige Tucker
CA- Swearengin jumps right in to Fresno mayoral job
The mayor's comments as to sex offenders are laughable. Notice she intends to monitor those offenders who are no longer on parole or probation which the law does say. Whats wrong with that you say, well what will the monitor do when the registrant takes a trip to Europe, South America, etc. They are OFF supervision and can go where they want and when they want. Absent a new crime they cannot be placed back on supervision. What a waste of public resources and funds, yes funds that were recouped from drug offenders, but that will not cover the costs mark my words. Shortsighted lawmakers only look to what sounds good.
1-7-2009 California:
Minutes after she was sworn in as the 24th mayor of Fresno on Tuesday morning, Ashley Swearengin stepped to a podium and began outlining her plans for the next 100 days.
"If I seem impatient this morning, it's because I am. I'm chomping at the bit to get to work," Swearengin said.
Swearengin was sworn in at 9:35 a.m., with her husband, Paul, and their two children watching.
She thanked her family and supporters for their help, and then jumped into her goals for the coming months, including a citywide efficiency analysis to make sure residents get the most for their tax dollars, an internal analysis of every city department to find unneeded programs, and a redesign of the permitting process to make it more transparent and accountable.
"The dollars we spend are not ours; they belong to the public, and we will keep a close eye on each one. We've got to be extremely focused on the work that will produce the best results for the community," Swearengin said.
She didn't wait long to introduce her first initiative. An hour after she was sworn in, she and Police Chief Jerry Dyer announced a plan to increase local monitoring of sex offenders.
Swearengin was one of the last to speak at Tuesday's meeting, which began with the swearing-in of Andreas Borgeas and Lee Brand to the City Council.
Both thanked their supporters and outgoing Mayor Alan Autry for his leadership over the past eight years. There were also several light moments.
Borgeas, who takes over the District 2 seat from Brian Calhoun, returned to his seat in the audience after being sworn in, then laughed as he was called to the dais by outgoing Council President Blong Xiong.
"You need to get used to sitting up here," Xiong said.
Borgeas, 34, became emotional while thanking his friends and family, and particularly his wife, Anna.
Brand, who took over the District 6 seat from his good friend Jerry Duncan, said he looked forward to working with the rest of the council.
"No matter how good our ideas are, we cannot succeed without the support of our colleagues and the mayor. My prayer for us all is that God will grant us the wisdom to make the right decisions in these difficult times," Brand said.
Throughout the meeting, Autry was the first out of his seat to applaud as the new council members and Swearengin were sworn in.
Earlier in the meeting, in his last remarks as mayor, Autry encouraged all of the new officials to keep open minds as they began their public service careers.
"Expect the unexpected, but remember that mayors come and mayors go. You don't own the offices you were elected to, you are simply stewards," Autry said.
Swearengin's sex-offender monitoring program is scheduled to go before the City Council next week.
The program would use money seized from drug dealers to fund monitoring of sex offenders who have completed their state parole.
Currently, the more than 70 registered sex offenders living in Fresno are not monitored after they complete state parole, even though the law allows lifelong electronic monitoring, Dyer said.
Dyer said the program would cost about $50,000 this year, and would use police cadets to track movements of sex offenders by satellite-monitored ankle bracelets.
Dyer said the monitoring would stop on any sex offender who moved out of Fresno.
"It may provide incentive for some of these individuals to leave," Dyer said. ..News Source.. by Denny Boyles / The Fresno Bee
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Criminal gang takes over sex offender website
This is the State's website of previously convicted sex offenders, that vigilantes have taken over. i.e. Pirated.
1-6-2009 Sweden:
Criminal organisation Original Gangsters (OG) has assumed control of a Swedish website that exposes the identity of sex offenders, Crime News reports.
The gang has taken the step after the founders of the Kriminellt.com website, four concerned parents, approached them after receiving a series of threats.
"We have families to think about and the threats have recently been getting a little close to home. Call us weak if you will but the family always comes first," explained the four founders in a statement on the site.
OG leader Denho "Dano" Acar explained that the the gang "wanted to provide a community service" and underlined that taking over the site "has nothing to do with money."
"Just because we are professional criminals does not mean that we don't have any morals," Acar wrote in a statement on the site.
But the move has drawn criticism from some observers concerned that the involvement of the criminal organization might lead to an escalation of violence and an increased incidence of vigilante justice.
Many of the comments on Kriminellt's user forum are of a threatening nature with specific warnings directed towards some of the convicted rapists, child sex offenders and child pornography offenders listed on the website.
"In a democracy it is of great interest that the state retains a monopoly on the administration of justice and that there is not some form of private punishment," said retired state prosecutor Sven-Erik Alheim to Crime News.
Many of those writing on the site's open forum reason that the OG are less likely to succumb to threats and are therefore a suitable and effective means of keeping the site open. A published survey of 89 users showed that 71 percent were "very much in favour" of the new owners.
The site introduces itself by asking a series of questions: Why are convicted criminals protected by the media? Why are no convictions ever published? and Do we not have the right to know if we have a convicted paedophile as a neighbour?
Original Gangsters leader Dehno Acar has promised that the site will continue to address these concerns and will ensure that more offenders are exposed.
"We shall increase the amount of news. More and more will be exposed. We feel it is our duty to do so," Acar said in an interview with Nyheter 24. ..News Source.. by Peter Vinthagen Simpson
Study: Teens on MySpace mention sex, violence
1-6-2009 National:
A new study finds that 54 percent of teens talk about behaviors such as sex, alcohol use, and violence on the social networking giant MySpace -- presenting potential risks even if all they're doing is talking, researchers said Monday.
The study looked at MySpace profiles of 500 people who identified themselves as 18-year-old males and females in the United States. References to risky behaviors included both words and photos, the authors said.
Not all teens who write about risky behaviors in their profiles actually engage in them in real life, said Dr. Megan Moreno of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, one of the authors of the study, which appears in the January issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
They may instead talk about sex, substance use, or violence because they are contemplating doing those things, or because they want to brag without actually doing what they say, Moreno said.
Even if teens have not actually engaged in risky behaviors but merely brag about them online, this can still affect their future behavior, said study co-author Dr. Dimitri Christakis, professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington and director of the Center for Child Health, Behavior and Development at Seattle Children's Hospital.
Those who lie about the behaviors to show off may receive positive feedback from others -- comments such as "that's great" or "I do the same thing" -- that encourage them to actually try out the behaviors, he said.
Apart from that, teens who claim such behaviors are more likely to be victims of bullying and unwanted invitations for sex, he said.
In a second study, Moreno and colleagues identified 190 profiles of 18- to 20-year-olds that contained three or more references to sexual behaviors or substance abuse. The authors then made a profile of their own, called "Dr. Meg," from which they sent a single e-mail to half these profiles, warning them about the risky information and offering information about clinical resources.
They found that, after three months, 42.1 percent of the profile owners who received the e-mail -- and 29.5 percent of those who did not -- either removed references to risky behaviors or made their profiles private.
"It's really not that MySpace is bad or good. I think the lesson is that it's a tool, and how you use it determines the kinds of outcome you're going to get," Moreno said.
Experts say the bottom line is that parents should get more involved in the online lives of their children.
"I tell parents that they should absolutely create their own MySpace and Facebook page," Christakis said. The study inspired him to create his own Facebook account, and his 10-year-old already wants to know about his "friends," he said.
In some cases, parents should even have their children's passwords for these social networking sites, especially when the children are around age 13 or 14, said Vivian Friedman, child-adolescent psychologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Friedman was not involved with the study, but she is well aware of the problem. One of Friedman's patients, the daughter of a preacher, posted nude photographs of herself online, a move that cost her father his job, Friedman said.
But she said 54 percent as a figure for profiles with risky behaviors seems too high, given that most of what happens on social networking sites is "chit-chat."
"I have parents that catch their kids bragging about something on MySpace, and when you actually confront them, the kid says 'I really wasn't doing it,' and they can prove they were not at the party where they were supposed to have been drinking," she said.
Beyond keeping a watchful eye on risky interests and pictures, parents should also use social networking sites such as MySpace -- which had about 120 million users as of this summer -- as an opportunity to learn about their childrens' favorite movies and hobbies, as well as their top friends, she said.
"You so often hear parents say 'I don't even know my kid anymore.' Here's a very easy tool to get to know your kid again," she said. ..News Source.. by Elizabeth Landau
CNN
See also: "Risky behaviors referenced on MySpace by adults" by CyberBullying
OH- Obama friend plans to be ally outside administration
1-6-2009 Ohio:
If you had to pick one person in Cincinnati who might have a ticket for a top job in the administration of Barack Obama, David Singleton would not be a bad choice.
The same could be said for his wife, Verna Williams.
He is the executive director of the Ohio Justice and Policy Center in Cincinnati, a nonprofit law office in Cincinnati that works for reform of the state's criminal justice system, representing the rights of those in prison and those who have served their time while helping them re-enter society.
She is a professor at the University of Cincinnati College of Law and a former vice president of the National Women's Law Center, a legal advocacy group for women.
Both have close ties to the soon-to-be president and his wife, Michelle Obama. Singleton was Obama's classmate in Harvard Law School's class of 1991; Williams struck up a friendship with Michelle Obama at the same law school several years earlier.
Singleton had a hand in introducing his former law school colleague to Cincinnati, when, in the summer of 2004, he hosted a fundraiser for Obama's U.S. Senate campaign that gave Cincinnati Democrats their first look at a man who would soon be their presidential candidate.
Later, he helped state Sen. Eric Kearney and his wife, lawyer Jan-Michelle Lemon Kearney, also personal friends of the Obamas, organize some fundraising events in Cincinnati for Obama's presidential campaign.
'Both ordinary and extraordinary'
Bringing Obama to Cincinnati back in 2004 - about two weeks before Obama made a speech at the Democratic National Convention in Boston that cemented his status as a rising political star - "opened a lot of people's eyes around here," Singleton said.
"They were impressed by his obvious intelligence, but also by his ability to connect with people, one on one," the 42-year-old lawyer said. "A man who is both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time." Singleton had seen those qualities years before at Harvard Law School.
"Barack was always seen by the rest of us as a little older and a little wiser than the rest of us," Singleton said. "And he was about five years older than most of us. He was approachable, friendly. And clearly a star."
Jan-Michelle Kearney - who, like Singleton, was a Harvard Law School classmate of Obama - called Singleton and Williams "two brilliant, wonderful people."
"To meet them for the first time, you would never know how accomplished they are," said Jan-Michelle Kearney, publisher of the Cincinnati Herald. "They are fun to be around."
Williams, Jan-Michelle Kearney said, is still very close to Michelle Obama; the two of them were mock trial partners at Harvard Law School.
"Whenever Michelle was in town, she'd ask for some private time with Verna," Jan-Michelle Kearney said.
Williams declined a request to be interviewed and the Obamas could not be reached for comment on their relationship with the Cincinnati couple, but Singleton spoke recently about his law school friend. He made it clear that while he supports Obama and believes he will make a good president, he himself is satisfied to watch from afar.
It is easy to picture Singleton, who lives in Kennedy Heights with his wife and daughter, playing a role in an Obama Justice Department or elsewhere in the administration. But Singleton said that is not going to happen. He and his wife have tickets to the inauguration and are looking forward to watching their friend be sworn in as the 44th president, but, when it is over, they will come home to Cincinnati.
"This is where I am meant to be," said Singleton, sitting in his cluttered office at the center's East Ninth Street headquarters.
"I think the world of Barack Obama," Singleton said. "Nothing has pleased me more than to watch him succeed. And I think he will succeed as president. But my place is here. This is where we are raising our family. This is where I can do the work I want to do."
'Couldn't stand' Cincinnati
Singleton did not always think so highly of Cincinnati.
The Asheville, N.C., native left Harvard Law School 17 years ago and took a career path similar to Obama's in many ways. He, like Obama, could have landed a high-paying job in a Wall Street law firm. Instead, he worked for three years at the Legal Action Center for the Homeless in New York City and then spent seven years as a public defender in Harlem and Washington, D.C.
Singleton came to Cincinnati in 2001 when his wife was hired to teach at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. He worked at a private law firm before being named executive director of the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, a nonprofit funded by foundation grants and individual contributions.
Back then, he could not have imagined a day when he would say that he would want to make Cincinnati his home forever.
"I couldn't stand this community when I first came," Singleton said. "It was a harsh transition. I just saw it as a place of narrow-mindedness, a hidebound legal system. Not the kind of place where people who do my kind of work would be welcome."
But he said that he quickly found that there are other lawyers in town who shared his passion for justice, and learned that a lawyer who speaks for prisoners' rights could have a fair hearing.
"I've seen us make tremendous progress," Singleton said. "There is much more to do. And I want to stay here and do it."
The center had a major legal victory earlier this year when the Ohio Supreme Court decided that an Ohio law banning convicted sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school or day care center could not be applied retroactively to those who were convicted before the law was passed in 2003. Singleton's firm had represented two such convicted sex offenders in the case.
"That was satisfying, to see justice done," Singleton said. "The single biggest problem we have at the center is the perception that we are a prisoners' rights law firm. That is not what it is all about. It is about seeing that prisoners have a chance to rehabilitate and become a part of society again."
Singleton said he believes Obama would understand his desire to stay here and continue his work.
"I think it is possible that, if I wanted to, I could go to Washington and work in the new administration," Singleton said. "Barack Obama doesn't need people who support him just in Washington. He needs them in places like Cincinnati, too." ..News Source.. by Howard Wilkinson • hwilkinson@enquirer.com
DC- Another first; Obama to webcast inaugural ball
There is no doubt that Obama sees the importance of the Internet in daily life. That fact may play an important part in future laws governing sex offenders, and may be used as a defense against harsher Internet laws when they are not needed. Take note!
1-6-2009 Washington DC:
On inauguration night, Barack and Michelle will make their first stop – and dance their first dance – at a ball that will be Webcast to living rooms and community centers around the country as part of the Presidential Inaugural Committee’s plan to make this the most accessible swearing-in in history.
Some of the tickets will go free to District of Columbia residents, and some will be offered to grassroots supporters around the country.
Planners are borrowing from the house-party concept that the Obama campaign used to bring the excitement of the trail into the homes of grassroots supporters.
"This is an Inauguration for all Americans," Obama said in a statement. "I wanted to make sure that we had an event that would be open to our new neighborhood here in Washington, D.C., and also neighborhoods across the country. Michelle and I look forward to joining our fellow Americans across the country during this very special event."
The event, one of 10 official inaugural balls, will be held at the Washington Convention Center.
The Presidential Inaugural Committee is calling it “the premiere event” of the night, and trying to validate that by making it the new president’s first stop.
“The ball will also feature a robust interactive component, including webcasting and text messaging,” the committee said in its announcement. “The PIC will release more details soon about using technology to allow Americans who are attending neighborhood balls across the country to participate actively in this celebration.” The idea is to bring the excitement of the ball to unofficial celebrations in living rooms and municipal centers around the country.” ..News Source.. by MIKE ALLEN
VT- Fiscal crisis to dominate legislative session
1-6-2009 Vermont:
BENNINGTON — State lawmakers will not converge on the statehouse to launch the new legislative session until Wednesday. One thing is already abundantly clear, however — a fiscal crisis that is deepening by the day will dominate the beginning of the new biennium.
Difficult decisions
A $66 million budget deficit caused by rapidly declining state revenues and upward budget pressures will require Republican Gov. James Douglas and the heavily Democratic Legislature to make difficult decisions as they look to trim the 2009 fiscal year budget. They must also craft a 2010 fiscal year budget amidst gloomier projected economic forecasts.
"There's no question that the economy and job loss is going to dominate our thinking. I believe that this will test our values as legislators," said Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin, D-Windham. "We have to find efficiencies, reduce spending and remain loyal to the most vulnerable Vermonters who need us more than ever in this difficult time."
As a result, issues that some lawmakers once thought would be highlights of the new session — stronger sex offender laws, the fate of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant, and gay marriage — are likely to play second fiddle as Vermonters await the full impact of the growing fiscal crisis.
Last month, select lawmakers, members of the Legislature's Joint Fiscal Committee, agreed to about $20 million in budget cuts that hit departments across state government. Economists and lawmakers said the measure is just a start, though. More dramatic revenue shortfalls, upwards of $200 million, are expected in the 2010 fiscal year.
Some state programs are likely to be heavily scaled back, and some may be eliminated as the state works to balance its budgets. Douglas and lawmakers are likely to face strong resistance to further budget cuts.
In fact, the Vermont State Employees'Association announced Monday the start of a six-week television ad campaign to remind Vermonters that "they matter and so do their quality public services." About 50 state jobs have already been cut as part of the action taken in December, and the union said it is concerned with future cuts.
"If our leaders continue to just cut and cut — while tabling discussion about alternatives to cuts or ways to generate new revenue — some of our public services are probably in danger of being eliminated altogether," said VSEA Director Jes Kraus said. "Vermont state employees aren't blind — or immune — to the economic pain being suffered throughout our state. They care about their clients and they care about their co-workers. Hopefully, the VSEA ads will encourage more Vermonters to join the union's efforts to save Vermont's quality public services before it's too late."
When fiscal decisions will be made is still up in the air.
Lawmakers have indicated a desire to wait on budget decisions until President-elect Barack Obama is sworn in and the design of a federal stimulus package is finalized, which could be in late January or early February. Both Douglas and state lawmakers believe federal dollars will be available for roads and bridges, schools and the Medicaid program.
"Some of the things that the Bush administration wouldn't allow we hope the Obama administration will allow," said Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington, a member of the Joint Fiscal and Senate Appropriations Committees. "We're hoping they'll help, but there's a lot of people with their hands out."
Shumlin had suggested that legislators recess for two or three weeks following the opening of the session Wednesday until the federal stimulus package is complete, but "lost that battle."
Instead, legislators will likely address issues eclipsed by fiscal woes that may have otherwise headlined the session.
Sears, who serves as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he intends to immediately move forward with legislation strengthening the state's sex offender laws. The committee held several hearings and meetings over the summer and fall following the death of Brooke Bennett, a 12-year-old Braintree girl who was allegedly sexually assaulted and killed by her uncle in June.
"I expect the sex offender law to have movement next week ... and to be on the governor's desk by Town Meeting day," he said.
It remains unclear whether Democratic leaders will move to address gay marriage during the session, though. If the issue is broached, it is unlikely to move through the Legislature with urgency.
Sears said Monday that he was not prepared to comment on whether his committee will attempt to move legislation that would allow gay marriage in Vermont.
"I'm not ready to answer," Sears said. "It's obvious it will be a very controversial issue."
Proponents of gay marriage are hoping lawmakers will push the bill through this session after Sen. John Campbell, D-Windsor, who serves as vice chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced last year his intention to introduce such a bill. Sears said he must first consult with Campbell, Shumlin and members of the House leadership to determine what will happen.
Shumlin, too, said he was unsure of how gay marriage will fare.
"There's probably 200 issues that need our attention. Until we have a road map on the stimulus package and these other pressing problems, I can't tell you what else we're going to do yet," he said.
Douglas has already indicated his strong opposition to the idea. Debate over the bill, if addressed, could be contentious and divisive, much like the debate that occurred in 2000 when the Legislature made Vermont the first state to allow civil unions.
Relicensing Vermont Yankee, the state's onlynuclear power plant, was also expected to be a high-profile issue in 2009. The plant's owner, Entergy Nuclear, is seeking a decision from the Legislature on whether the plant will be allowed to continue operations after its existing 40-year license expires in 2012.
But Shumlin said a vote by the 180-member General Assembly is no longer expected this session because Entergy Nuclear has not reached a rate agreement with Vermont electrical utilities that lawmakers had expected in December.
"We need to know what the deal is within the next week in order to reasonably be expected to pass judgment on the deal, how that rate will effect Vermonters," he said. "I can assure you that we can't make a judgment in the first half of the biennium unless we have a rate agreement expeditiously."
Lawmakers may also ask Douglas to sign into law legislation aimed at spurring economic development through emerging renewable energy technology.
"I believe that the economic revitalization of the country is going to come from the jobs and economic opportunities that emerge as we move to new energy technologies," Shumlin said. "Vermont needs to position itself to get a piece of that action. I really believe we need to focus on that this winter."
For his part, Douglas has shown an interest in rekindling the debate over the state's development review process, and pushing for permit reform. Some ideas that have surfaced would simplify the environmental permitting process, but have been previously rejected by the Legislature.
Shumlin said he is open to the discussion, but does not want to revisit old ideas.
"I would hope that it wouldn't be regurgitated ideas that have already been rejected," Shumlin said. "If there is one reason that Vermont is not experiencing the real estate crisis that you see from New York to Las Vegas to Los Angeles, it is because we do not allow for unfettered speculation and greed by speculators in Vermont. I think that has served us well."
Rep. Patti Komline, R-Dorset, the House minority leader, said her caucus will be looking first to address the state's economic woes, followed by escalating property taxes and public safety issues.
Other "boutique" issues, like non-binding resolutions opposing the war in Iraq and seeking the impeachment of President Bush, which were passed last year by the Legislature, should not be considered this year," Komline said. Rather, the Legislature must complete its work as quickly as possible and adjourn to save taxpayers as much money as possible, she said.
Shumlin said he and incoming House Speaker Shap Smith, D-Morrisville, intend to consolidate the session as much as possible.
"I think Speaker Smith and I will work diligently to make sure that the Legislature does extraordinary work and that we reduce the session from 18 weeks to 16 weeks," he said. ..News Source.. by Neal P. Goswami
DC- President-Elect Obama Announces Key Department of Justice Posts
These are the people in Washington which will have the most influence in administering laws and court cases affecting sex offenders during Obama's time in office.
1-6-2009 Washington:
WASHINGTON - Today, President-elect Barack Obama announced that he intends to nominate the following individuals for key posts at the United States Department of Justice: David Ogden, Deputy Attorney General; Elena Kagan, Solicitor General; Tom Perrelli, Associate Attorney General; and Dawn Johnsen, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel.
President-elect Obama said, "These individuals bring the integrity, depth of experience and tenacity that the Department of Justice demands in these uncertain times. I have the fullest confidence that they will ensure that the Department of Justice once again fulfills its highest purpose: to uphold the Constitution and protect the American people. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead."
The announcements made today are below:
David Ogden, Deputy Attorney General
Ogden is currently a partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr and serves as the Department of Justice Agency Review lead for the Obama-Biden Transition Project. Ogden was nominated by President Clinton to serve as Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division from in 1999 and served in this capacity until 2001. He was awarded the Edmund J. Randolph Award for Outstanding Service in 2001. From 1998 - 1999, he served as Chief of Staff to Attorney General Janet Reno and as Counselor to the Attorney General from 1997-1998. From 1995-1997, Ogden served as Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice, and from 1994 -1995 served as Deputy General Counsel, Legal Counsel at the U.S. Department of Defense. Ogden was a partner at Jenner and Block in Washington, DC from 1988-1994 and worked at the law firm of Ennis Friedman & Bersoff from 1983-1988. He clerked for Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun in the U.S. Supreme Court from 1982-1983 and for Judge Abraham D. Sofaer in the Southern District Court of New York from 1981-1982. He received his B.A. in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania in 1976 (summa cum laude) and his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1981 (magna cum laude). He served on the Harvard Law Review from 1979-81.
Elena Kagan, Solicitor General
Kagan, the Charles Hamilton Houston Professor of Law, is currently the 11th Dean of Harvard Law School. Kagan first came to Harvard Law School as a visiting professor in 1999 and became Professor of Law in 2001. She has taught administrative law, constitutional law, civil procedure, and seminars on issues involving the separation of powers. She was appointed Dean of the Law School in 2003. From 1995 to 1999, Kagan served in the White House, first as Associate Counsel to the President (1995-96) and then as Deputy Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy and Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council (1997-99). In those positions she played a key role in the executive branch's formulation, advocacy, and implementation of law and policy in areas ranging from education to crime to public health. Kagan launched her scholarly career at the University of Chicago Law School, where she became an assistant professor in 1991 and a tenured professor of law in 1995. Kagan clerked for Judge Abner Mikva of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit from 1986 to 1987. The next year she clerked for Justice Thurgood Marshall of the United States Supreme Court. She then worked as an associate in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Williams & Connolly from 1989 to 1991. Kagan received her bachelor's degree from Princeton in 1981 (summa cum laude). She attended Worcester College, Oxford, as Princeton's Daniel M. Sachs Graduating Fellow, and received an M. Phil. in 1983. She then attended Harvard Law School, where she was supervising editor of the Harvard Law Review, and graduated magna cum laude in 1986.
Tom Perrelli, Associate Attorney General
Perrelli is currently Managing Partner of Jenner & Block's Washington, DC office. He is Co-Chair of the Firm's Entertainment and New Media Practice and is a member of the Firm's Litigation Department. From 1997-99, Mr. Perrelli served as counsel to Attorney General Janet Reno, supervising a variety of civil matters at the Department of Justice. He subsequently rose to Deputy Assistant Attorney General (1999-2001), supervising the Federal Programs Branch of the Civil Division. In 2005, Perrelli was named one of the nation's 40 most promising lawyers under 40 by The National Law Journal for exhibiting "extraordinary achievements" in his career. He has been recognized as one of the leading media and entertainment lawyers in the United States by Chambers & Partners USA, named as one of 500 "New Stars" by Lawdragon in 2006, and named Best Intellectual Property Lawyer in Washington D.C. by the Washington Business Journal in 2008. Prior to joining Jenner & Block, in 1991-92, Perrelli clerked for the Honorable Royce C. Lamberth of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Perrelli graduated from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude, in 1991, where he was managing editor of the Harvard Law Review. He received an A.B. in History from Brown University in 1988.
Dawn Johnsen, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel
Johnsen is currently a Professor of Law at the Indiana University School of Law--Bloomington, where she teaches and writes about issues of constitutional law. Her recent publications on issues of presidential power include Faithfully Executing the Laws: Internal Legal Constraints on Executive Power, 54 UCLA L. Rev. 1559 (2007) and What's a President to Do? Interpreting the Constitution in the Wake of the Bush Administration's Abuses, 88 Boston U. L. Rev. 395 (2008). She serves on the board of directors of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy. She served in the Office of Legal Counsel, U.S. Department of Justice, as the acting assistant attorney general heading that office (1997-98) and as a deputy assistant attorney general (1993-96). In that capacity, she provided constitutional and other legal advice to the attorney general, the President, and the general counsels of the various executive branch agencies. From 1988-93, she was the legal director of the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL). She clerked for the Honorable Richard D. Cudahy, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She received a B.A from Yale University in 1983 and a J.D. from Yale Law School in 1986.
..News Source.. by TPM
MI- State must do more to prevent prison suicides
NOTE: To the commenter who wants to get involved, pleae contact eAdvocate@yahoo.com Thank you.
All suicides mentioned occurred in DECEMBER a bad time for inmates.
1-6-2009 Michigan:
A new administrator charged with improving Michigan's dysfunctional prison health care system has a lot on her plate in 2009, but looking into prison suicides must become an immediate priority.
Three state prisoners committed suicide within one week during late December -- as many as committed suicide in all of 2007. The Michigan Department of Corrections must ensure that prison staff are trained to spot signs of dangerous depression and know when to make appropriate referrals to mental health professionals. Ensuring such training and competence falls squarely on the department's health care quality assurance administrator -- a new position that reports directly to MDOC Director Patricia Caruso.
An estimated one in four of Michigan's nearly 50,000 inmates is mentally ill, increasing the risks of suicide. Those risks naturally increase during periods of stress, including the holidays, parole denials, initial incarceration, or following a return to prison.
Tina Marie Schleben, 29, serving 1-15 years for forgery, larceny and drug convictions, hung herself with sheets at the Huron Valley women's prison in Ypsilanti on Dec. 27. She died the next day, said MDOC spokesman Russ Marlan.
Gary R. Whited, 37, serving 7 to 15 years for criminal sexual conduct, died in an apparent suicide at Parnell Correctional Facility in Jackson on Dec. 23. The Department of Corrections and Michigan State Police are investigating, but pills were found in Whited's cell.
On Dec. 29, Eric Snider, 43, serving a life sentence for murder at Alger Maximum Correctional Facility in Munising, also hung himself with sheets.
One inmate said Schleben had been severely depressed, after she returned to prison for parole violations three months ago, but that corrections staff did not take her condition seriously. MDOC's internal affairs staff and the health care quality assurance administrator will investigate the suicides, Marlan said, and determine whether mental health care staff interacted with the inmates.
Over the last decade, Michigan's prison system has averaged seven suicides a year. To be sure, the problem is not unique to Michigan. In fact, a U.S. Department of Justice report in 2005 showed that Michigan was slightly below the national average in prison suicides. MDOC has not yet compiled suicide statistics for 2008.
Still, a rash of suicides at year's end is especially troubling given the department's record on health care in general. It should prompt the department to thoroughly investigate whether staff could have prevented these deaths and make whatever changes are necessary to help prevent them in the future. ..News Source.. Opinion of the Detroit Free Press
SC- Teen 'sexting' risky behavior
1-6-2009 South Carolina:
Across the Lowcountry, kids are returning to school this week, and many have powerful new weapons in their pockets, purses and book bags that they received over the holidays: cell phones with built-in cameras and text-messaging capabilities.
About 80 percent of teens and nearly half of all kids ages 8 to 12 have a cell phone, according to a recent Nielsen report. That number soars to 93 percent for the 18- to 24-year-old age group.
"Our kids have grown up with cell phones," says Ashley Camp of Charleston. "Many people don't even have home phones anymore. Gone are the days of everyone running for the phone because it might be for them. Now everybody in the family has their own phone, and they all have different ring tones."
And that means parents often don't know what their children are up to.
A recent study revealed that a shockingly high percentage of the teens and young adults have engaged in "sexting," a word that has been coined to describe the practice of sending sexually suggestive text messages or revealing pictures via cell phone.
Think of it as high-tech flirting, only worse. That's because sending such messages could be illegal, and the sender — and in some cases, the recipient — could end up involved in a family court or civil court case or being evaluated as a sexual offender, says Sgt. Trisha Taylor of the Charleston Police Department's sexual exploitation unit.
"Unfortunately, most of these cases don't get reported," she says.
But those who are involved could be charged with possessing child pornography or sending obscenity. Those crimes range from misdemeanors to felonies.
And if you think your child would NEVER, EVER do it, consider this:
One in five teens and about a third of adults ages 20-26 say they've sent or posted naked or semi-naked photos or videos of themselves, and 39 percent of teens and 59 percent of those ages 20-26 say they've sent suggestive messages, according to the "Sex and Tech" survey by the nonprofit National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and CosmoGirl.com. The survey was performed by Teenage Research Unlimited from Sept. 25-Oct. 3.
"As parents, we know that kids are impulsive," says Camp, a mother of daughters ages 11 and 15. "They are irresponsible. We can talk till we are blue in the face, but they already know everything. We have to keep a close eye on what they are doing to save them from themselves. But I think if you ask most parents, they have no idea who their kids are texting or what they are texting about."
Behind screens — computer, phone or otherwise — folks tend to be braver. In fact, 22 percent of teens and 28 percent of young adults say they are "more forward" digitally than "in real life."
While it is possible for parents to set restrictions on phone and computer usage through their carriers, the study suggests that parents should make sure they are clear with their teens about what is considered appropriate behavior and give them reminders from time to time. Many pictures that don't seem inappropriate still can be damaging, such as photos of mooning, flashing, going to the bathroom or even dressing up in suggestive outfits for fun.
Not only should children be told not to send such communications, but they also should be taught ways to avoid receiving it.
"You want to give your child access to this technology, but it's scary when you don't understand it yourself," Summerville parent Brent Kay says. "If you've ever been on Facebook or MySpace, you can tell there are a lot of kids on there who aren't monitored by their parents, and those are public forums. You can only imagine what kids are doing when they think they have a degree of anonymity, like with texting."
Monica Vila, founder of TheOnlineMom.com, a resource for parenting in a digital age, suggests setting these rules for kids:
--Never e-mail or IM your picture to someone you don't know; they may not be who they say they are.
--Never open a picture a stranger has sent you by e-mail or IM (strangers include people you've met online but don't know in person).
--Never post sexually provocative pictures.
--Don't use Webcams without parental supervision. When using them, always know what's in their field of vision, and always turn them off and close their lenses when you're finished.
--Never post pictures of anyone else without their permission.
Although 73 percent of the survey's respondents said they know sending sexually suggestive content "can have serious negative consequences," another 22 percent said it's "no big deal."
"That just goes to show the world our kids live in," Kay says. "To me, just the thought of what could happen would be enough to keep a kid from doing it. In our day, something like that would be devastating, but that's not the case anymore. Our kids have seen so many famous people get in scandals and come out unscathed that they aren't afraid of embarrassing themselves."
Also in the survey, 48 percent of teens and 64 percent of young adults said they have received sexually suggestive text messages.
And often, those who receive them share them with others.
"Last year, my friend's girlfriend sent him some pretty amazing photos of herself," says one Summerville High School teen. "He showed them to me and a couple of other friends."
A third of teen boys and 40 percent of young men say they've seen nude or semi-nude images sent to someone else; about a quarter of teen girls and young adult women have, according to the survey.
"Most guys I know have seen stuff like this," he says, and it's even worse after the couple breaks up. "When they aren't going out anymore, lots of times, people will show you stuff to be vindictive. People don't think about the future when they send these things." ..News Source.. by Staff report The Post and Courier
What they said in the survey:
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WA- Puyallup mom who attacked child molester with baseball bat pleads guilty to assault
See earlier story from June 2008, and hundreds of other attacks on persons involved with sex offenses.
1-6-2009 Washington:
A Puyallup woman who became an Internet hero after she beat a convicted child molester with a baseball bat pleaded guilty Monday to assault.
A Puyallup woman who became an Internet hero last year after she beat a convicted child molester with a baseball bat pleaded guilty Monday to assault.
Tammy Lee Gibson pleaded guilty to third-degree assault, according to Pierce County Deputy Prosecutor Sunni Ko. She was originally charged with second-degree assault and felony harassment.
Gibson will be sentenced on Feb. 27 and could face a sentence of three to eight months in jail, Ko said.
The 40-year-old woman said she attacked William Baldwin, 24, in June after hearing from Pierce County Sheriff's Department that a registered sex offender had moved into a nearby trailer park.
Gibson remembered seeing Baldwin speak to her 10-year-old daughter a year earlier and went to his home, threatening to kill him. She then struck the 7-foot-3 man with an aluminum bat several times.
Baldwin was also arrested after the attack for failing to notify police of his new location. He had earlier been convicted of two counts of first-degree child molestation for sexually assaulting two girls when he was a teenager.
Gibson had been previously arrested for drug possession.
After the attack on Baldwin, Gibson was celebrated on message boards and blogs for protecting her daughter. Prosecutors and police, however, condemned the attack, warning others not to take the law into their own hands.
At the time, Gibson told The Seattle Times that she had one regret about the attack: She said she wished she had done more damage.
"I go nuts in jail, but I straight would not do anything different," she said in a June interview. ..News Source.. by Sharon Pian Chan, Seattle Times staff reporter
UK- Police to hack personal computers without court warrants
1-6-2009 United Kingdom:
In a move likely to incite fervent reaction from privacy advocates, police authorities in the United Kingdom have this week been given the power to ‘hack’ into the computers of suspects without first securing a search warrant.
The British Home Office, which granted the permission, is also reportedly drawing up plans that will increase levels of access so that police across the European Union (EU) are able to gather information from computer hardware based in the British Isles.
A hack by any other name, the practice of “remote searching” involves the installation of a key-logging device into a suspect’s computer, or the dispatch of an e-mail equipped with a hidden virus that invades the suspect’s system and relays private information to a waiting remote surveillance team.
According to police authorities in Britain, remote searching has become a vitally important tool in helping track down online criminals and sex offenders.
The Independent reports that, while the practice has thus far been applied sparingly, civil liberty groups are concerned such permissions could drastically expand its usage and contribute to the erosion of privacy.
Responding to the Home Office’s decision, which will hand power of assessment and approval to a police chief constable, human rights group Liberty has said it has strong legal grounds in the UK and the EU to challenge remote searching.
According to the organisation’s director, the police should still be required to seek a court-approved warrant prior to hacking someone’s personal computer, and any expansion of power handed to the police should be subject to parliamentary regulation.
Allowing the police to hack computers without court-secured approval is yet another move in what many see as the UK becoming something of a nanny state.
Specifically, the country already has genetic details of more than four million residents registered on a national DNA database and is expected to begin issuing biometric identity cards at the end of 2009. ..News Source.. by Stevie Smith
Monday, January 5, 2009
UK- 'Suspects On The Run With A Body'
UPDATE on story from 12-30-08 re: "Sex Offender" murdered but no body found.
1-5-2009 United Kingdom:
Detectives investigating the murder of a sex offender in Lancashire believe his attackers may be on the run with his body.
Blood and DNA found in a house near Burnley in December have convinced police that Alan Street, a convicted rapist, was beaten to death.
Officers were called to an address at Stockbridge Road, Padiham, after blood-stained clothing was discovered.
They believe the attackers may have taken the body with them and are currently on the run.
Long-distance lorry driver Alan Palmer, 43, and Peter Leonard, 51, have not been seen since December 20 - police think they may be together.
Detective Superintendent Neil Hunter said: "I would urge Mr Leonard and Mr Palmer, or anybody who knows of their whereabouts or has been contacted by them or been in their company recently, to contact police immediately. We need to speak to them as a matter of urgency.
"Due to Mr Palmer's employment, I cannot rule out that he and Mr Leonard may well be anywhere in the country."
Police would not comment on Street’s criminal history, but Sky News has learned he has a conviction for rape.
Palmer has several tattoos on his left arm of a snake head, bull, eagle and swallow.
On his right arm he has a snake and skull with two flower designs featuring the words 'Mam' and 'swallow'.
Leonard has a two-inch scar on his nose and the words 'love' and 'Heidi' tattooed on his hands. ..News Source.. by Mike McCarthy, North of England correspondent
VT- Is Your Child "Sexting?"
1-5-2009 Vermont:
The South Burlington Rebels are one player short these days. Seventeen year-old Isaac Owusu was recently suspended from the basketball team after allegedly sexually assaulting two teenage girls while on school grounds.
But the case is also highlighting a disturbing trend taking place amongst teenagers. It's called "sexting." Teens use cell phones to willingly send explicit, nude photos of themselves to others. Several young girls sent nude photos of themselves to Owusu, and teens say it happens every day. "It happens a lot actually," said Essex Freshman Verity Mendes.
"If you were to check every guys phone, you'd probably find it on 97 percent of the guys phones," said South Burlington High School freshman Rachelle Bedard.
A Chicago based trend analyst firm called Teenage Research Unlimited recently surveyed 1200 students about "sexting." One out of every five students told researchers they had used their cell phones to send sexy or nude photos of themselves.
Some adults say they're shocked. "This is all news to me. I didn't realize you could do that and that they did that," said South Burlington resident Michael Cassidy, a father of three.
"It bothers me from both sides, both boys and girls," added Linda Laberge of South Burlington.
Students say "sexting" is nothing new -- common amongst both boys and girls -- and taking place as young as middle school. Authorities are now urging parents to discuss sexting with their children, and to closely monitor activity on their cell phones and computers.
"Be open. Discuss it with them. Talk about these things throughout their adolescence so they know when something happens they can come to you, and don't over-react or you'll lose your child," cautions Art Cyr of the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations.
Cyr also says sexting isn't just a disturbing trend, it could also potentially land students in jail if the pictures fall into the wrong hands. Police say if the people in the pictures are under 16 it can be considered child pornography, and that's something they're looking into with the Owusu case. ..News Source.. by Keagan Harsha - WCAX News
MI- PART-2 -- For female inmates and lawyer, a lot at stake as rape trial starts
Click for the Human Rights Watch report on Michigan prison abuses.
1-5-2009 Michigan:
The story so far
Toni Bunton landed in a Michigan prison after being convicted for participating in a drug deal that led to a murder. She and other female inmates say they became victims there, helpless to defend themselves against male guards’ sexual advances.
Last January, one day before her civil lawsuit went to trial, Toni Bunton sat on the top bunk in her prison cell at Scott Correctional Facility, a place she had lived almost half her life.
The place where she said she was raped, over and over, by prison guards.
She cried and prayed and wrestled with old doubts that swirled through her head.
Should she stand up in court and tell the world what happened to her? Should she risk her freedom at a time when she was seeking to have her 25- to 50-year sentence commuted? Or should she keep her mouth shut, once more, and hope that her silence was the key to getting out?
She felt trapped.
Once a meek teenager who had silently endured assaults by male guards, Bunton had grown into a confident and respected member of the prison population at Scott, on the border of Northville and Plymouth townships. Even so, she was a convict. With no physical evidence to support her, would jurors believe she had been raped? Would they even care? Bunton was among 500 women who claimed in a lawsuit that prison officials had willfully ignored years of sexual abuse by male guards.
Now, at 34, Bunton was among the first 10 prisoners to reach a courtroom.
"Some people are telling her to lay low, keep your head down until you get out," Dick Soble, one of the lawyers in the prisoners' suit, said of Bunton's fears.
Would the lawsuit help her pitch for commutation or kill it? Even on the eve of her court testimony, the old doubts resurfaced.
The following morning, Jan. 15, Deborah LaBelle woke in a panic, worried about what she would say in her opening statement.
For several days, LaBelle had tried to find the right words, forming thoughts and writing ideas on paper, but she couldn't get it right. She feared her statement was flat, lacking the passion she felt for a case that had consumed her for 12 years.
LaBelle handles civil rights cases from her Ann Arbor office, many involving female inmates. It was while meeting with inmates on visitation and education issues that LaBelle began to hear complaints of sexual abuse. Over the years, as the prison case grew and became more complex, she added likeminded attorneys in private practice.
The chance to speak up
As she prepared for trial, LaBelle knew she had to set the right tone from the start, there was so much at stake. She felt pressure to honor these women, who had waited so long to tell their stories.
So she scribbled on a legal pad, writing and rearranging her notes. As she walked down the sidewalk to the Washtenaw County Courthouse, she was still writing.
Dressed in a simple black dress and coat, intended to convey her serious and somber message, LaBelle continued to scribble as lawyers and spectators filed into the courtroom.
The Department of Corrections had fought the case for years, arguing variously that the statute of limitations had expired on the women's claims; that it should not be considered a class-action; that the hundreds of women in the suit should have their trials held separately; that prisoners don't have the same rights as normal citizens. The appeals went all the way to the Michigan Supreme Court.
Five days earlier, Allan Soros, an assistant state attorney general representing the prison system, filed a motion seeking 10 separate trials for the women. Judge Timothy Connors denied the motion.
LaBelle finished writing as the court was called into session for opening statements. She faced the jury and cleared her throat.
"OK," she said. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen."
Behind her, against the wall, the 10 women sat in chairs, dressed in civilian clothing -- pink sweaters, blouses, dress pants -- the kind of clothing seen at a PTA meeting. Seven of the women, including Bunton, were still prisoners. They had changed from their prison garb at the courthouse.
"We've all been waiting for this trial for a very long time," LaBelle told jurors.
Her voice was calm. Her mind was racing, trying to find the right balance of emotion. She wanted to scream out loud about how the guards preyed on the pretty ones, the ones who were small and weak, the ones who had been abused as children; how the women had to see the guards every day, yet couldn't report what happened to them, couldn't say no and couldn't fight because guards had all the power.
But the suit wasn't against the guards. They didn't create the system. They didn't have money to pay for damages.
Instead, this lawsuit was filed against the Department of Corrections, former DOC Director Kenneth McGinnis and former Scott Correctional Warden Joan Yukins.
To win, it would not be enough for LaBelle to show the guards had abused the women. LaBelle and her legal team had to convince jurors that prison officials knew about the abuse and did nothing to stop it.
The 1st hurdle: Jury selection
All of the women said they were touched inappropriately -- some, several times a day -- as the guards filled a daily pat-down quota. LaBelle contended that this constant touching emboldened some guards to sexually molest the prisoners.
On the other side of the room, the 10 jury members listened closely. Normally, in a civil trial, six jurors are used and five are needed for a verdict, but Connors said that the trial would last so long that he would lose a few. He kept 10, just in case.
Jury selection took 11 hours.
Several potential jurors said prisoners deserved whatever they got, even though it is a crime for a guard to have sexual contact with a prisoner. Others were dismissed because they said they themselves were sexually abused.
The case against the state
"I want to start with a little history and context," LaBelle told the jury. "Historically, in Michigan ... women used to be supervised in their cells and in their living units and in their showers and in their bathrooms by women. That is the way it was."
But that changed in 1986, when the DOC assigned men to work closer with female inmates.
LaBelle glanced at her notes, but spoke from memory.
She looked into the eyes of the jurors to make sure they were listening, to see whether they were engaged.
"You will hear that these guards -- not all of them, certainly not all of them -- these male guards went further," LaBelle said. "They sexually assaulted these 10 women. After the gropings, after the viewing, after the watching, then they assaulted them. They assaulted them over a period of years.
"Michigan, you will hear, invited men into the women's prison unit areas without training, without restriction and without precautions for these women's safety."
LaBelle told jurors how prison officials had ignored years of warnings.
The Michigan Women's Commission, a governor-appointed group, reported in 1993 an alarming level of sexual abuse and sexual harassment by prison guards. Two years later, the U.S. Department of Justice called it "pervasive." One year after that, Human Rights Watch, the international watchdog group, released a report that said there was a "highly sexualized and excessively hostile" environment.
"Had the wardens and directors looked, they would have seen," LaBelle said. "Had they read, they would have known. Had they listened, they would have heard."
After 47 minutes, she was done.
The state's defense
It was the state's turn.
Soros rose.
Speaking in a dry, steady voice, with little flash or emotion, Soros explained that he represented the prison system and its top officials, not the guards.
Soros, too, offered jurors a history of Scott, and how the facility switched to female prisoners in late spring 1992. At the time of the alleged assaults, there were 860 female inmates and nearly 400 employees.
Admittedly, he said, there are problems in every prison.
"You cannot have a perfectly running correctional facility. There is always going to be some problem that needs to be addressed."
He said the department knew of some allegations of sexual assault and made changes, improving the way it investigates abuses. He added: "You can't solve everything."
He then stressed what would become the backbone of the state's defense: The women had had opportunities to tell the warden and others that they had been assaulted years earlier.
"They didn't report their allegations in a timely manner," he said. "That's crucial."
Over and over, he repeated the point: "You have to know about a problem before we can help resolve it. We didn't get notice. We couldn't do anything about it.
"And we are not at fault." ..News Source.. by JEFF SEIDEL • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
