Wrongly convicted sees rapist sentenced - The Boston Globe
"During his 12 years behind bars on rape charges, Anthony Powell staunchly maintained his innocence.
Eventually, DNA forensics, which had come of age, showed that he was telling the truth, and he was freed.
Yesterday, Powell sat in a Suffolk County courtroom as another man, Jerry Dixon, admitted in a low, gruff voice that he committed the brutal 1991 rape in question and two other, similar rapes months apart.
Powell remained expressionless throughout the proceedings and glanced only briefly at Dixon, about 30 feet away. After Dixon, 38, of Dorchester, pleaded guilty and was led out of the courtroom to begin serving a 30-year sentence, Powell, 40 and now living in New York state, declined to talk with reporters.
But Howard Friedman, the Boston-based attorney who represented Powell in a federal civil rights claim stemming from his wrongful conviction, said Powell remains upset that he has not received an apology from Judge Robert A. Mulligan, who presided over the case and is now the Superior Court’s chief justice for administration and management.
“He felt that the judge was totally hostile towards him during the trial,’’ Friedman said.
Powell settled out of court with the state and in the federal civil suit; the terms have not been disclosed.
Powell’s conviction in 1992 had come after the 18-year-old rape victim said she was positive that Powell was the man who raped her. Her error was not discovered until prosecutors agreed to have Powell’s DNA checked against the preserved DNA from her attacker.
“Nothing can return those years to him,’’ said Daniel F. Conley, Suffolk district attorney. “No amount of compensation that he may have received is going to make this right.’’
Powell was released from prison in 2004, eight years shy of the full term of his sentence."
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
BBC News - Norway's justice system faces severe test
BBC News - Norway's justice system faces severe test
"Rehabilitation of convicted felons is central to Norway's criminal justice system, which is one of the most progressive in Europe.
That system now faces a severe test, as it must consider the possibility of rehabilitating Anders Behring Breivik, the self-confessed perpetrator of last week's twin terror attacks.
Norwegians have in recent days responded to the prime minister's plea of answering Friday's brutal violence with more democracy.
They have turned out in their tens of thousands carrying flowers, united in defiance of someone who wanted to divide Norwegian society.
Mr Breivik has confessed to the attacks but not pleaded guilty Complete isolation
On Wednesday that sentiment was echoed by the man now in charge of guarding Mr Breivik, who has started his initial eight-week custodial sentence.
Knut Bjarkeid, prison governor at Ila prison, told Norway's largest tabloid VG: "This task will be a professional challenge. We must take care of him in a human way."
Mr Breivik will spend four weeks in complete isolation in a cell containing nothing but a bed, a toilet, a table and a chair.
That will be relaxed for the remaining four weeks, but he will still be allowed no access to letters, newspapers or other media. Police can then approach the courts to ask for further detention if investigations are still ongoing.
While in custody he will be assessed by two forensic psychologists.
This work could take up to three months. If he is found to be of unsound mind he could be consigned to closed psychiatric care."
"Rehabilitation of convicted felons is central to Norway's criminal justice system, which is one of the most progressive in Europe.
That system now faces a severe test, as it must consider the possibility of rehabilitating Anders Behring Breivik, the self-confessed perpetrator of last week's twin terror attacks.
Norwegians have in recent days responded to the prime minister's plea of answering Friday's brutal violence with more democracy.
They have turned out in their tens of thousands carrying flowers, united in defiance of someone who wanted to divide Norwegian society.
Mr Breivik has confessed to the attacks but not pleaded guilty Complete isolation
On Wednesday that sentiment was echoed by the man now in charge of guarding Mr Breivik, who has started his initial eight-week custodial sentence.
Knut Bjarkeid, prison governor at Ila prison, told Norway's largest tabloid VG: "This task will be a professional challenge. We must take care of him in a human way."
Mr Breivik will spend four weeks in complete isolation in a cell containing nothing but a bed, a toilet, a table and a chair.
That will be relaxed for the remaining four weeks, but he will still be allowed no access to letters, newspapers or other media. Police can then approach the courts to ask for further detention if investigations are still ongoing.
While in custody he will be assessed by two forensic psychologists.
This work could take up to three months. If he is found to be of unsound mind he could be consigned to closed psychiatric care."
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Task force to conduct federally funded study of Delaware's criminal justice system | The Republic
Task force to conduct federally funded study of Delaware's criminal justice system The Republic
"WILMINGTON, Del. — Delaware will conduct a federally funded, six-month study of its criminal justice system to find ways to curb prison growth and keep convicts from committing new crimes.
The U.S. Justice Department picked Delaware as a "Justice Reinvestment" site to evaluate the current system.
Gov. Jack Markell established a task force Monday that will suggest ways to reduce recidivism and improve public safety.
Markell says the goal is to find ways to control the rising costs of correcting bad behavior.
Over the past 10 years, the costs for taxpayers to support the state's criminal justice system have jumped.
Despite cutbacks in recent years, the Department of Correction's $254 million budget for the 2012 fiscal year is up 40 percent from 2002."
"WILMINGTON, Del. — Delaware will conduct a federally funded, six-month study of its criminal justice system to find ways to curb prison growth and keep convicts from committing new crimes.
The U.S. Justice Department picked Delaware as a "Justice Reinvestment" site to evaluate the current system.
Gov. Jack Markell established a task force Monday that will suggest ways to reduce recidivism and improve public safety.
Markell says the goal is to find ways to control the rising costs of correcting bad behavior.
Over the past 10 years, the costs for taxpayers to support the state's criminal justice system have jumped.
Despite cutbacks in recent years, the Department of Correction's $254 million budget for the 2012 fiscal year is up 40 percent from 2002."
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Federal court: If you're arrested, officials can take a DNA sample - CSMonitor.com
Federal court: If you're arrested, officials can take a DNA sample - CSMonitor.com
"A federal appeals court ruled on Monday that forcing criminal suspects to provide a DNA sample upon arrest – and prior to any conviction – does not violate constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 8 to 6 that a federal statute authorizing the warrantless collection of DNA samples from every person entering the federal criminal justice system was “reasonable and does not violate the Fourth Amendment.”
“Given the record in front of us today, we conclude that a DNA profile is used solely as an accurate, unique, identifying marker – in other words, as fingerprints for the 21st century,” wrote Circuit Judge Julio Fuentes in the majority opinion.
The six dissenting judges said forcing arrested suspects to surrender a DNA sample to the government is a “severe” intrusion of privacy.
“The government’s program of warrantless, suspicionless DNA collection from arrestees and pretrial detainees is fundamentally incompatible with the Fourth Amendment,” wrote Judge Marjorie Rendell in dissent.
The action by the Philadelphia-based appeals court overturns a US district judge’s decision, finding the statute and accompanying regulations were unreasonably intrusive of a criminal suspect’s privacy. “The extraction of DNA is much more than a mere progression [from] taking fingerprints and photographs,” District Judge David Cercone wrote in his decision. “It represents a quantum leap that is entirely unnecessary for identification purposes.”
Since 1994, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been collecting DNA samples and organizing them into a national database called the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). The FBI system is designed to allow state and local forensic laboratories to exchange DNA profiles and compare DNA found at crime scenes with DNA samples of convicted offenders on file in the CODIS system.
Collection of DNA samples from convicted felons has been upheld as constitutional by every federal appeals court to consider the issue. So far, nine appeals courts have upheld the practice when applied to convicted offenders.
In 2006, Congress expanded the DNA profile law to authorize the collection of DNA samples from arrestees and pretrial detainees. The question before the Third Circuit was whether an arrested suspect or pretrial detainee enjoys a higher expectation of privacy than a convicted criminal for purposes of DNA collection and inclusion in the government’s national DNA database."
"A federal appeals court ruled on Monday that forcing criminal suspects to provide a DNA sample upon arrest – and prior to any conviction – does not violate constitutional protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 8 to 6 that a federal statute authorizing the warrantless collection of DNA samples from every person entering the federal criminal justice system was “reasonable and does not violate the Fourth Amendment.”
“Given the record in front of us today, we conclude that a DNA profile is used solely as an accurate, unique, identifying marker – in other words, as fingerprints for the 21st century,” wrote Circuit Judge Julio Fuentes in the majority opinion.
The six dissenting judges said forcing arrested suspects to surrender a DNA sample to the government is a “severe” intrusion of privacy.
“The government’s program of warrantless, suspicionless DNA collection from arrestees and pretrial detainees is fundamentally incompatible with the Fourth Amendment,” wrote Judge Marjorie Rendell in dissent.
The action by the Philadelphia-based appeals court overturns a US district judge’s decision, finding the statute and accompanying regulations were unreasonably intrusive of a criminal suspect’s privacy. “The extraction of DNA is much more than a mere progression [from] taking fingerprints and photographs,” District Judge David Cercone wrote in his decision. “It represents a quantum leap that is entirely unnecessary for identification purposes.”
Since 1994, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been collecting DNA samples and organizing them into a national database called the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). The FBI system is designed to allow state and local forensic laboratories to exchange DNA profiles and compare DNA found at crime scenes with DNA samples of convicted offenders on file in the CODIS system.
Collection of DNA samples from convicted felons has been upheld as constitutional by every federal appeals court to consider the issue. So far, nine appeals courts have upheld the practice when applied to convicted offenders.
In 2006, Congress expanded the DNA profile law to authorize the collection of DNA samples from arrestees and pretrial detainees. The question before the Third Circuit was whether an arrested suspect or pretrial detainee enjoys a higher expectation of privacy than a convicted criminal for purposes of DNA collection and inclusion in the government’s national DNA database."
Monday, July 25, 2011
Mandatory sentences contribute to spending - pottsmerc.com
Mandatory sentences contribute to spending - pottsmerc.com
"By Caleb Taylor, PA Independent
HARRISBURG — Reforming mandatory sentencing laws is one solution to a surging prison population and soaring costs for the Department of Corrections, say some officials.
From 1980 to 2010, the state Department of Corrections, budget increased by more than 1,700 percent, from $94 million to $1.7 billion. During that same period, the prison population swelled from 8,243 inmates to 51,321 inmates. The 2011 prison population numbers were not available.
In the recently passed state budget, the Department of Corrections accounted for 7.4 percent of the general fund, or $1.89 billion, the third largest chunk behind the state departments of education and public welfare.
This crisis has some lawmakers advocating for changes to current criminal justice policies.
However, 70 percent of the Department of Corrections budget pays for employees' salaries and benefits with remaining funds going toward items such as housing inmates and prison operating costs, said Susan McNaughton, Department of Corrections press secretary.
Calls to the Pennsylvania State Correction Officers Association, the union that represents prison guards, were not returned.
The costs of housing an inmate increased from $11,447 to $32,986 during the past 30 years, $7,000 of which included food and health care for inmates, said McNaughton.
These escalating costs are in response to "some mandatory (minimum) sentences that obviously impacted our population," said McNaughton."
"By Caleb Taylor, PA Independent
HARRISBURG — Reforming mandatory sentencing laws is one solution to a surging prison population and soaring costs for the Department of Corrections, say some officials.
From 1980 to 2010, the state Department of Corrections, budget increased by more than 1,700 percent, from $94 million to $1.7 billion. During that same period, the prison population swelled from 8,243 inmates to 51,321 inmates. The 2011 prison population numbers were not available.
In the recently passed state budget, the Department of Corrections accounted for 7.4 percent of the general fund, or $1.89 billion, the third largest chunk behind the state departments of education and public welfare.
This crisis has some lawmakers advocating for changes to current criminal justice policies.
However, 70 percent of the Department of Corrections budget pays for employees' salaries and benefits with remaining funds going toward items such as housing inmates and prison operating costs, said Susan McNaughton, Department of Corrections press secretary.
Calls to the Pennsylvania State Correction Officers Association, the union that represents prison guards, were not returned.
The costs of housing an inmate increased from $11,447 to $32,986 during the past 30 years, $7,000 of which included food and health care for inmates, said McNaughton.
These escalating costs are in response to "some mandatory (minimum) sentences that obviously impacted our population," said McNaughton."
Friday, July 22, 2011
Council for American Students in International Negotiations
Interesting society doing great things. Check out their blog here: http://www.americanstudents.us/
CASIN Mission
The Council for American Students in International Negotiations is a membership-based society that strives to deepen the commitment of American students to multilateral discourse through scholarship and engagement with intergovernmental and supranational institutions and the processes that govern them.
The Organization
The Council for American Students in International Negotiations, Inc. (CASIN) is an educational non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization providing young Americans unprecedented access to the international policymaking process. Its primary activities consist of (1) organizing student delegations to meetings of supranational and intergovernmental bodies such as the United Nations, the Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Pan-American Health Organization, and the Biennial Meeting of States on Small Arms; and (2) the production of peer-reviewed scholarly journals on topics of international importance.
For information on membership, please visit: http://www.americanstudents.us/join/
CASIN Mission
The Council for American Students in International Negotiations is a membership-based society that strives to deepen the commitment of American students to multilateral discourse through scholarship and engagement with intergovernmental and supranational institutions and the processes that govern them.
The Organization
The Council for American Students in International Negotiations, Inc. (CASIN) is an educational non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization providing young Americans unprecedented access to the international policymaking process. Its primary activities consist of (1) organizing student delegations to meetings of supranational and intergovernmental bodies such as the United Nations, the Assembly of States Parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Pan-American Health Organization, and the Biennial Meeting of States on Small Arms; and (2) the production of peer-reviewed scholarly journals on topics of international importance.
For information on membership, please visit: http://www.americanstudents.us/join/
Cop Union Hires 'Goodfellas' Lawyer as Ticket Fixing Scandal Grows - DNAinfo.com
Cop Union Hires 'Goodfellas' Lawyer as Ticket Fixing Scandal Grows - DNAinfo.com
"Embroiled in a grand jury probe of widespread NYPD ticket-fixing, the city's largest police union has hired three powerhouse lawyers to deal with the possibility that the union itself could be indicted along with some of its members.
The Patrolman's Benevolent Association has quietly added Edward McDonald, the former head of the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Organized Crime Strike Force who starred as himself in the movie "Goodfellas;" Thomas Fitzgerald, the former head of the Criminal Division in the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office; and Steven Kartegener, a top criminal defense attorney who once served as head of the Bronx District Attorney’s Appeals Bureau.
The outside specialists have been added to the union's stable of in-house counsel as the PBA circles the wagons against the very real prospect of being accused of violating the state’s version of the federal Racketeering, Influence and Corruption Organization, better known as RICO, statutes.
RICO laws, as Mafia movie aficionados know, were famously created decades ago to take down crime families.
The PBA certainly isn't the mob, but if prosecutors can demonstrate that separate criminal acts — say, fixing tickets and covering up drunk driving incidents — were made by union members acting in concert, then the union could be acting like an "ongoing criminal enterprise," which is how the state law reads.
Anyone close to the investigation, or who has been reading my columns, knows there is plenty of reason for the PBA to be concerned.
Here's why.
A PBA delegate is awakened at home in the middle of the night and told there is a drunken off-duty NYPD cop who just slammed through two light poles and two parking meters. He then calls a delegate at the drunken officer’s precinct on the Upper East Side, who responds to the scene to get the crash cop to sign a document saying it was just an accident. The entire scenario, which made a DWI charge disappear, was laid out in a call from one of the delegates to a top union official.
In other recorded calls, the highest union official in the Bronx is heard calling fellow officers to kill a speeding ticket for Doug Behar, an official with the New York Yankees. After the ticket was canned, the union official then talked to yet another team exec, Sonny Hight, who he informs the ticket is killed and, by the way, he and his wife have tickets for the game but would would like to get into the exclusive Delta Club at Yankee Stadium.
Ironically, the cop whose alleged criminality launched the ticket probe was a former union delegate, but he was initially targeted for his ties to a drug dealer. When Internal Affairs probers heard him on his bugged barbershop phone looking to fix a ticket, the drug probe took off in a new direction.
And on it went.
Nearly 30 NYPD phones were bugged. Cops wanting to kill tickets for relatives and friends routinely turned to union delegates or trustees to get the job done. Hundreds upon hundreds of summonses were deep-sixed so casually that it seemed killing tickets was part of their job description. There was even worse conduct involving DWIs and domestic violence cover-ups. As many as two dozen officers face criminal charges, and hundreds more face internal NYPD disciplinary action."
Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/20110721/manhattan/cop-union-hires-goodfellas-lawyer-fend-off-possible-criminal-enterprise-charges#ixzz1Sqb289g3
"Embroiled in a grand jury probe of widespread NYPD ticket-fixing, the city's largest police union has hired three powerhouse lawyers to deal with the possibility that the union itself could be indicted along with some of its members.
The Patrolman's Benevolent Association has quietly added Edward McDonald, the former head of the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Organized Crime Strike Force who starred as himself in the movie "Goodfellas;" Thomas Fitzgerald, the former head of the Criminal Division in the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office; and Steven Kartegener, a top criminal defense attorney who once served as head of the Bronx District Attorney’s Appeals Bureau.
The outside specialists have been added to the union's stable of in-house counsel as the PBA circles the wagons against the very real prospect of being accused of violating the state’s version of the federal Racketeering, Influence and Corruption Organization, better known as RICO, statutes.
RICO laws, as Mafia movie aficionados know, were famously created decades ago to take down crime families.
The PBA certainly isn't the mob, but if prosecutors can demonstrate that separate criminal acts — say, fixing tickets and covering up drunk driving incidents — were made by union members acting in concert, then the union could be acting like an "ongoing criminal enterprise," which is how the state law reads.
Anyone close to the investigation, or who has been reading my columns, knows there is plenty of reason for the PBA to be concerned.
Here's why.
A PBA delegate is awakened at home in the middle of the night and told there is a drunken off-duty NYPD cop who just slammed through two light poles and two parking meters. He then calls a delegate at the drunken officer’s precinct on the Upper East Side, who responds to the scene to get the crash cop to sign a document saying it was just an accident. The entire scenario, which made a DWI charge disappear, was laid out in a call from one of the delegates to a top union official.
In other recorded calls, the highest union official in the Bronx is heard calling fellow officers to kill a speeding ticket for Doug Behar, an official with the New York Yankees. After the ticket was canned, the union official then talked to yet another team exec, Sonny Hight, who he informs the ticket is killed and, by the way, he and his wife have tickets for the game but would would like to get into the exclusive Delta Club at Yankee Stadium.
Ironically, the cop whose alleged criminality launched the ticket probe was a former union delegate, but he was initially targeted for his ties to a drug dealer. When Internal Affairs probers heard him on his bugged barbershop phone looking to fix a ticket, the drug probe took off in a new direction.
And on it went.
Nearly 30 NYPD phones were bugged. Cops wanting to kill tickets for relatives and friends routinely turned to union delegates or trustees to get the job done. Hundreds upon hundreds of summonses were deep-sixed so casually that it seemed killing tickets was part of their job description. There was even worse conduct involving DWIs and domestic violence cover-ups. As many as two dozen officers face criminal charges, and hundreds more face internal NYPD disciplinary action."
Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/20110721/manhattan/cop-union-hires-goodfellas-lawyer-fend-off-possible-criminal-enterprise-charges#ixzz1Sqb289g3
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Updated: Court Declines Stay for 9-11 Revenge Killer — Death Penalty | The Texas Tribune
Updated: Court Declines Stay for 9-11 Revenge Killer — Death Penalty The Texas Tribune
"5:21 p.m.: The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans declined to stay Stroman's execution.
The court said Bhuiyan's claim was untimely.
—————
U.S. Distict Judge Lee Yeakel today denied Rais Bhuiyan’s request to the stay the execution of Mark Stroman, the man who shot him and killed two others and is scheduled to die tonight for his crimes.
In the order released this afternoon by Yeakel, the judge said he lacks the jurisdiction to stay the execution and that granting the injunction it is not in the best interest of the public.
Bhuiyan was shot in the face when Stroman walked into a Dallas convenience store Sept. 21, 2001, and went on a rampage. Stroman was a methamphetamine addict and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after his half-sister was killed in the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers.
Bhuiyan, the sole survivor of Stroman’s crime, pleaded with the state to stay the execution so he could have mediation with Stroman.
“It is very important to have mediation,” Bhuiyan said, “so I can move on with my own life and have mental peace.”"
"5:21 p.m.: The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans declined to stay Stroman's execution.
The court said Bhuiyan's claim was untimely.
—————
U.S. Distict Judge Lee Yeakel today denied Rais Bhuiyan’s request to the stay the execution of Mark Stroman, the man who shot him and killed two others and is scheduled to die tonight for his crimes.
In the order released this afternoon by Yeakel, the judge said he lacks the jurisdiction to stay the execution and that granting the injunction it is not in the best interest of the public.
Bhuiyan was shot in the face when Stroman walked into a Dallas convenience store Sept. 21, 2001, and went on a rampage. Stroman was a methamphetamine addict and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after his half-sister was killed in the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers.
Bhuiyan, the sole survivor of Stroman’s crime, pleaded with the state to stay the execution so he could have mediation with Stroman.
“It is very important to have mediation,” Bhuiyan said, “so I can move on with my own life and have mental peace.”"
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
International phone hacking scandal highlights how vulnerable phone really are - KDVR
International phone hacking scandal highlights how vulnerable phone really are - KDVR
"DENVER -- The British hacking scandal is raising questions about just how vulnerable our own phones are, and just how easy it is to hack into them.
Denver computer forensics expert Charles Tendell says hacking into someone's voicemail is as easy as guessing their personal identification numbers or PINs.
"Think about how simple a 4-digit code is to guess," he says. “Easily guessable are all ones, all zeros, all fours, birth dates, street addresses. It's all information that is that freely available in different places."
And Tendell says a lot of people make it even easier because they don't even set up passwords to retrieve messages.
"Technology has become such a big part of our lives we’ve become complacent with how to deal with it,” Tendell says. “With security measures that should be there, people skip over those; “I don't want to enter in a password so I won't set one.””
Hackers can also use ID spoofing services like Spooftel.com.
The service lets hackers make it look like a call to a phone's voice mail is coming from that phone and because the phone company thinks it's the phone’s owner, it doesn't ask for a pin and sends them straight to voicemail."
"DENVER -- The British hacking scandal is raising questions about just how vulnerable our own phones are, and just how easy it is to hack into them.
Denver computer forensics expert Charles Tendell says hacking into someone's voicemail is as easy as guessing their personal identification numbers or PINs.
"Think about how simple a 4-digit code is to guess," he says. “Easily guessable are all ones, all zeros, all fours, birth dates, street addresses. It's all information that is that freely available in different places."
And Tendell says a lot of people make it even easier because they don't even set up passwords to retrieve messages.
"Technology has become such a big part of our lives we’ve become complacent with how to deal with it,” Tendell says. “With security measures that should be there, people skip over those; “I don't want to enter in a password so I won't set one.””
Hackers can also use ID spoofing services like Spooftel.com.
The service lets hackers make it look like a call to a phone's voice mail is coming from that phone and because the phone company thinks it's the phone’s owner, it doesn't ask for a pin and sends them straight to voicemail."
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Report Questions How Schools Mete Out Discipline — Public Education | The Texas Tribune
Report Questions How Schools Mete Out Discipline — Public Education The Texas Tribune
"Almost 55 percent of recent Texas public school students — a disproportionate number of them African-American or with learning disabilities — were suspended at least once between their seventh and 12th grade years, according to a statewide report released today.
The Council of State Governments Justice Center, in partnership with the Public Policy Research Institute of Texas A&M University, analyzed the individual school records of all Texas seventh grade public school students during the years 2000, 2001 and 2002. They tracked the records of nearly 1 million students for at least six years of their secondary school education.
“As much as I work in the field, I’m shocked by the numbers,” said state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston and the chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice committee.
The 121-page report details how punishment at public schools might lead to later brushes with the law by linking the disciplinary history of each student who also had a juvenile record.
Among the findings: Minorities and special education students who caused “emotional disturbances” were more likely than white students to be disciplined. In fact, nearly three-fourths of students in special education classes were suspended or expelled at least one time; 83 percent of African-American male students ended up in trouble, in comparison to 74 percent for Hispanic male students and 59 percent for white male students. Among all students, suspensions averaged about two days per offense.
After being suspended or expelled in school, students were consequently more likely to repeat a grade or drop out than their more less-sanctioned counterparts. They were also more likely to have a run-in with the juvenile justice system.
Texas Supreme Court Justice Wallace Jefferson highlighted the link between school discipline and the juvenile justice system in his January State of the State address. In an emailed statement Monday, he said the report “adds important numbers to anecdotal evidence of needed reforms.”"
"Almost 55 percent of recent Texas public school students — a disproportionate number of them African-American or with learning disabilities — were suspended at least once between their seventh and 12th grade years, according to a statewide report released today.
The Council of State Governments Justice Center, in partnership with the Public Policy Research Institute of Texas A&M University, analyzed the individual school records of all Texas seventh grade public school students during the years 2000, 2001 and 2002. They tracked the records of nearly 1 million students for at least six years of their secondary school education.
“As much as I work in the field, I’m shocked by the numbers,” said state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston and the chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice committee.
The 121-page report details how punishment at public schools might lead to later brushes with the law by linking the disciplinary history of each student who also had a juvenile record.
Among the findings: Minorities and special education students who caused “emotional disturbances” were more likely than white students to be disciplined. In fact, nearly three-fourths of students in special education classes were suspended or expelled at least one time; 83 percent of African-American male students ended up in trouble, in comparison to 74 percent for Hispanic male students and 59 percent for white male students. Among all students, suspensions averaged about two days per offense.
After being suspended or expelled in school, students were consequently more likely to repeat a grade or drop out than their more less-sanctioned counterparts. They were also more likely to have a run-in with the juvenile justice system.
Texas Supreme Court Justice Wallace Jefferson highlighted the link between school discipline and the juvenile justice system in his January State of the State address. In an emailed statement Monday, he said the report “adds important numbers to anecdotal evidence of needed reforms.”"
Monday, July 18, 2011
Young criminals in Canada victims of federal legislation - The Globe and Mail
Young criminals in Canada victims of federal legislation - The Globe and Mail
"Canada incarcerates more convicted youth than almost any similarly industrialized country.
And new federal crime legislation is poised to drive those numbers higher, even though imprisoned teens are statistically less likely to get jobs after they’re released and, if anything, are more likely to reoffend.
Years after enacting laws that have been successful in reducing youth incarceration rates, Canada still sends five times more of its convicted teens into custody than England and Wales, according to data obtained from the British justice ministry and Statistics Canada’s justice arm.
At the crux of the debate is how to treat Canada’s youngest criminals. They represent a complex cohort in a diverse country, spread out across divergent provincial justice systems. The current tool is the nine-year-old Youth Criminal Justice Act, a law meant to strike a delicate balance between getting tough on repeat, violent offenders while ensuring other youth charged with crimes stayed out of jail.
It has succeeded in lowering incarceration rates, although Canada is still high compared with other OECD countries – a comparison many argue is misleading given differences in the way countries measure those stats.
But even its proponents argue the resources needed to create alternative sentencing and rehabilitation, let alone prevent teens from getting in trouble in the first place, aren’t there. Critics point to harrowing cases of youth crime and argue the law’s too lax. As it is, the system’s still torn between a focus on punishment and deterrence on one hand, and prevention and rehabilitation on the other."
"Canada incarcerates more convicted youth than almost any similarly industrialized country.
And new federal crime legislation is poised to drive those numbers higher, even though imprisoned teens are statistically less likely to get jobs after they’re released and, if anything, are more likely to reoffend.
Years after enacting laws that have been successful in reducing youth incarceration rates, Canada still sends five times more of its convicted teens into custody than England and Wales, according to data obtained from the British justice ministry and Statistics Canada’s justice arm.
At the crux of the debate is how to treat Canada’s youngest criminals. They represent a complex cohort in a diverse country, spread out across divergent provincial justice systems. The current tool is the nine-year-old Youth Criminal Justice Act, a law meant to strike a delicate balance between getting tough on repeat, violent offenders while ensuring other youth charged with crimes stayed out of jail.
It has succeeded in lowering incarceration rates, although Canada is still high compared with other OECD countries – a comparison many argue is misleading given differences in the way countries measure those stats.
But even its proponents argue the resources needed to create alternative sentencing and rehabilitation, let alone prevent teens from getting in trouble in the first place, aren’t there. Critics point to harrowing cases of youth crime and argue the law’s too lax. As it is, the system’s still torn between a focus on punishment and deterrence on one hand, and prevention and rehabilitation on the other."
Friday, July 15, 2011
Hate crimes rose statewide in 2010, fell outside N.Y.C. | Democrat and Chronicle | democratandchronicle.com
Hate crimes rose statewide in 2010, fell outside N.Y.C. Democrat and Chronicle democratandchronicle.com
ALBANY — The number of hate-crime incidents was up 2 percent statewide last year, but there was a 27 percent increase in New York City and a 14 percent drop elsewhere in New York, according to a state report released Thursday.
The Division of Criminal Justice Services' annual report on hate crimes said police handled 699 incidents, 16 more than in 2009. Fifty percent took place in New York City, 48 percent were upstate and 2 percent were handled by law enforcement agencies that cover multiple counties.
Five counties — Erie, Nassau, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester — accounted for 63 percent of bias-motivated crimes reported outside New York City and 54 percent of the 263 arrests on hate-crime charges that were reported last year, the report said.
Eighty-two percent of the 460 reported crimes against people involved simple assault and intimidation, and 92 percent of the 239 property incidents resulted in destruction, damage or vandalism, the state found.
Hate crimes represent a small fraction of total crimes in New York, but the Department of Criminal Justice Services closely scrutinizes them and is required by law to issue a report each year, Acting Commissioner Sean Byrne said Thursday.
"A hate crime is a crime against the entire community," he said. "It is meant to have a more pernicious effect than a regular crime. It's the motivation that makes hate crimes something that we focus on.""
ALBANY — The number of hate-crime incidents was up 2 percent statewide last year, but there was a 27 percent increase in New York City and a 14 percent drop elsewhere in New York, according to a state report released Thursday.
The Division of Criminal Justice Services' annual report on hate crimes said police handled 699 incidents, 16 more than in 2009. Fifty percent took place in New York City, 48 percent were upstate and 2 percent were handled by law enforcement agencies that cover multiple counties.
Five counties — Erie, Nassau, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester — accounted for 63 percent of bias-motivated crimes reported outside New York City and 54 percent of the 263 arrests on hate-crime charges that were reported last year, the report said.
Eighty-two percent of the 460 reported crimes against people involved simple assault and intimidation, and 92 percent of the 239 property incidents resulted in destruction, damage or vandalism, the state found.
Hate crimes represent a small fraction of total crimes in New York, but the Department of Criminal Justice Services closely scrutinizes them and is required by law to issue a report each year, Acting Commissioner Sean Byrne said Thursday.
"A hate crime is a crime against the entire community," he said. "It is meant to have a more pernicious effect than a regular crime. It's the motivation that makes hate crimes something that we focus on.""
Thursday, July 14, 2011
BBC News - Dame Elish Angiolini to lead women prison inquiry
BBC News - Dame Elish Angiolini to lead women prison inquiry
"Former Lord Advocate Dame Elish Angiolini is to head an inquiry into how women are treated by the Scottish criminal justice system.
The commission will look at better ways of dealing with women offenders.
Sheriff Danny Scullion and Dr Linda de Casetecker will be the other two members of the commission,
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said.
Scotland's only women's prison, Cornton Vale, has been heavily criticised by inspectors in the past few years.
The commission is being set up in the wake of the most recent inspection report, published in June.
Brigadier Hugh Monro, the chief inspector of prisons, said he had been "very disappointed" at the lack of progress at Cornton Vale.
He inspected the prison in February 2011 as a follow up to a visit in 2009.'Pressing issue'
Many of the problems at the prison - which is designed to house 309 inmates but currently holds almost 400 - were down to overcrowding, the brigadier said.
Speaking on a visit to Cornton Vale, near Stirling, Mr MacAskill said the commission would make recommendations to tackle overcrowding and "ultimately reverse" the rise in the female prison population.
It will report back to the Scottish government by February 2012."
"Former Lord Advocate Dame Elish Angiolini is to head an inquiry into how women are treated by the Scottish criminal justice system.
The commission will look at better ways of dealing with women offenders.
Sheriff Danny Scullion and Dr Linda de Casetecker will be the other two members of the commission,
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said.
Scotland's only women's prison, Cornton Vale, has been heavily criticised by inspectors in the past few years.
The commission is being set up in the wake of the most recent inspection report, published in June.
Brigadier Hugh Monro, the chief inspector of prisons, said he had been "very disappointed" at the lack of progress at Cornton Vale.
He inspected the prison in February 2011 as a follow up to a visit in 2009.'Pressing issue'
Many of the problems at the prison - which is designed to house 309 inmates but currently holds almost 400 - were down to overcrowding, the brigadier said.
Speaking on a visit to Cornton Vale, near Stirling, Mr MacAskill said the commission would make recommendations to tackle overcrowding and "ultimately reverse" the rise in the female prison population.
It will report back to the Scottish government by February 2012."
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
As Strauss-Kahn Case Unravels, Mayor Bloomberg Reverses on Perp Walks - Metropolis - WSJ
As Strauss-Kahn Case Unravels, Mayor Bloomberg Reverses on Perp Walks - Metropolis - WSJ
"When New York police officers led then-International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on a controversial perp walk after his May arrest on sexual assault charges, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg had tough words.
“If you don’t want to do the perp walk, don’t do the crime,” he said then.
Now, following news that the state’s case against Strauss-Kahn has all but collapsed, the mayor has reversed his position on perp walks, which are staged to allow media outlets to photograph handcuffed criminal defendants. The so-called perp walk enraged many in France, who considered the treatment of Strauss-Kahn to be barbaric.
“We have done perp walks for the benefit of newspapers and television for a long time — I’ve always thought that the perp walks were outrageous,” Bloomberg said on Tuesday when asked about the images of Strauss-Kahn, looking angry and rumpled following his arrest on sexual assault charges in May.
“But that’s only my view,” the mayor said. “Nobody’s asked me. And I have no say in it. Whatever.”
Since Strauss-Kahn’s arrest, New York City prosecutors’ case has weakened considerably, and may lead to the dismissal of charges against the man once seen as a likely future president of France.
A defendant is presumed innocent until proven otherwise, said Bloomberg, “and yet we vilify them for the benefit of theater, for the circus. They did it in Roman times. There’s nothing new.”
The mayor’s remarks about perp walks seem to differ significantly from what he said in May when reporters first questioned him about Strauss-Kahn’s infamous walk. At the time, the mayor said, “I don’t have a lot of sympathy for that,” calling the walk “humiliating.”
At the time, though, the mayor did express sympathy for defendants who are proven not to be guilty.
“The real sad thing is if somebody is accused, does the perp-walk, and turns out not to be- have been guilty,” he said then. “And then society really does — should look in the mirror and say, you know, ‘We’d better be more careful the next time.’”
"When New York police officers led then-International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on a controversial perp walk after his May arrest on sexual assault charges, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg had tough words.
“If you don’t want to do the perp walk, don’t do the crime,” he said then.
Now, following news that the state’s case against Strauss-Kahn has all but collapsed, the mayor has reversed his position on perp walks, which are staged to allow media outlets to photograph handcuffed criminal defendants. The so-called perp walk enraged many in France, who considered the treatment of Strauss-Kahn to be barbaric.
“We have done perp walks for the benefit of newspapers and television for a long time — I’ve always thought that the perp walks were outrageous,” Bloomberg said on Tuesday when asked about the images of Strauss-Kahn, looking angry and rumpled following his arrest on sexual assault charges in May.
“But that’s only my view,” the mayor said. “Nobody’s asked me. And I have no say in it. Whatever.”
Since Strauss-Kahn’s arrest, New York City prosecutors’ case has weakened considerably, and may lead to the dismissal of charges against the man once seen as a likely future president of France.
A defendant is presumed innocent until proven otherwise, said Bloomberg, “and yet we vilify them for the benefit of theater, for the circus. They did it in Roman times. There’s nothing new.”
The mayor’s remarks about perp walks seem to differ significantly from what he said in May when reporters first questioned him about Strauss-Kahn’s infamous walk. At the time, the mayor said, “I don’t have a lot of sympathy for that,” calling the walk “humiliating.”
At the time, though, the mayor did express sympathy for defendants who are proven not to be guilty.
“The real sad thing is if somebody is accused, does the perp-walk, and turns out not to be- have been guilty,” he said then. “And then society really does — should look in the mirror and say, you know, ‘We’d better be more careful the next time.’”
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Three Strikes Law Under Fire | Correctional News
Three Strikes Law Under Fire Correctional News
"SACRAMENTO — Some criminal justice experts are pushing for an overhaul of California’s three-strikes law, saying it has increased incarceration costs, contributed to the state’s prison crowding problem and resulted in harsher sentences than were warranted.
They say now is the time to change the law, particularly because California faces chronic deficits and a court order to reduce its prison population by 37,000 over the next two years.
The Legislature and voters approved three strikes a year after repeat felon Richard Allen Davis abducted and murdered 12-year-old Polly Klaas in 1993. Polly’s murder outraged the nation when it was revealed that Davis was a repeat felon and had been wanted on a parole violation. The California law, intended to keep habitual violent offenders behind bars, became one of the harshest sentencing laws in the nation.
The law requires enhanced punishment for repeat offenders: Second strikers face double the normal sentence while third strikers can get sentences of 25 years to life, regardless of whether the third crime is violent or serious.
About 41,100 of the state’s approximately 143,500 prison inmates are second and third strikers.
Supporters say it’s crucial to lock up repeat offenders even if their third crime is not serious because career criminals commit the majority of crimes. They say the three-strikes law is sparingly used by prosecutors and has been a major factor in reducing crime rates, which peaked in 1992 and have been declining since.
But critics say that crime rates began falling around the nation before the law passed, and that states without similar laws have similar or even larger declines in crime."
"SACRAMENTO — Some criminal justice experts are pushing for an overhaul of California’s three-strikes law, saying it has increased incarceration costs, contributed to the state’s prison crowding problem and resulted in harsher sentences than were warranted.
They say now is the time to change the law, particularly because California faces chronic deficits and a court order to reduce its prison population by 37,000 over the next two years.
The Legislature and voters approved three strikes a year after repeat felon Richard Allen Davis abducted and murdered 12-year-old Polly Klaas in 1993. Polly’s murder outraged the nation when it was revealed that Davis was a repeat felon and had been wanted on a parole violation. The California law, intended to keep habitual violent offenders behind bars, became one of the harshest sentencing laws in the nation.
The law requires enhanced punishment for repeat offenders: Second strikers face double the normal sentence while third strikers can get sentences of 25 years to life, regardless of whether the third crime is violent or serious.
About 41,100 of the state’s approximately 143,500 prison inmates are second and third strikers.
Supporters say it’s crucial to lock up repeat offenders even if their third crime is not serious because career criminals commit the majority of crimes. They say the three-strikes law is sparingly used by prosecutors and has been a major factor in reducing crime rates, which peaked in 1992 and have been declining since.
But critics say that crime rates began falling around the nation before the law passed, and that states without similar laws have similar or even larger declines in crime."
Monday, July 11, 2011
Honolulu Civil Beat - 'Justice Reinvestment' Plan An Easy First Phase - Article
Honolulu Civil Beat - 'Justice Reinvestment' Plan An Easy First Phase - Article
"It could have been a huge embarrassment.
Just 48 hours before Gov. Neil Abercrombie was set to unveil a major initiative to overhaul Hawaii's criminal justice system, four inmates escaped from the minimum-security Waiawa Correctional Facility on Oahu.
Fortunately for the administration, the four inmates were quickly recaptured, including two in the early hours of June 28 — the very day the governor introduced his "Justice Reinvestment" plan.
As the state embarks over the next six months on Justice Reinvestment — a data-driven approach to reducing corrections spending and decreasing crime successfully used in more than 10 states — it is not only a first step but relatively inexpensive and easy step toward criminal justice reform.
The hard part, however, will come when the administration takes its recommendations before lawmakers next session. The recommendations will likely include establishing treatment and training centers in residential neighborhoods to help prisoners re-enter society, something that could be of concern to constituents.
As the Waiawa escape underscores, as well as an attempted escape from Oahu Community Correctional Center just this week, residents may cast a skeptical eye on fixing a long-troubled system when it involves their own back yard."
"It could have been a huge embarrassment.
Just 48 hours before Gov. Neil Abercrombie was set to unveil a major initiative to overhaul Hawaii's criminal justice system, four inmates escaped from the minimum-security Waiawa Correctional Facility on Oahu.
Fortunately for the administration, the four inmates were quickly recaptured, including two in the early hours of June 28 — the very day the governor introduced his "Justice Reinvestment" plan.
As the state embarks over the next six months on Justice Reinvestment — a data-driven approach to reducing corrections spending and decreasing crime successfully used in more than 10 states — it is not only a first step but relatively inexpensive and easy step toward criminal justice reform.
The hard part, however, will come when the administration takes its recommendations before lawmakers next session. The recommendations will likely include establishing treatment and training centers in residential neighborhoods to help prisoners re-enter society, something that could be of concern to constituents.
As the Waiawa escape underscores, as well as an attempted escape from Oahu Community Correctional Center just this week, residents may cast a skeptical eye on fixing a long-troubled system when it involves their own back yard."
Friday, July 8, 2011
Criminal Minds Comment on Casey Anthony
Criminal Minds Comment on Casey Anthony
"The dean of FSU's College of Criminology and Criminal Justice is weighing in on the Casey Anthony verdict and sentence.
Tom Blomberg fears the not guilty verdicts for murder, manslaughter and child abuse will mistakenly lead people to believe that the system doesn't work.
"Who is the likely culprit? Many people felt it was the mother and she got off. And what this does is undermine the moral authority of our legal system because many citizens will conclude that it doesn't work," Blomberg said.
"When we see the pictures of little Caylee, it's emotional and so it's logical that we're troubled by that," Blomberg said. "Not that we are revenge seeking or anything else, but are there not consequences for behavior? And I think what the public is saying is there were not enough consequences in this particular case," the dean said.
"If you look at all the circumstantial evidence, you add it together, it paints a picture. Does it paint a picture beyond all reasonable doubt? Apparently not."
FSU Criminology professor Dan Mears says the Anthony case clearly taps into the protectiveness the public feels about children and the anger they feel towards irresponsible parents."
"The dean of FSU's College of Criminology and Criminal Justice is weighing in on the Casey Anthony verdict and sentence.
Tom Blomberg fears the not guilty verdicts for murder, manslaughter and child abuse will mistakenly lead people to believe that the system doesn't work.
"Who is the likely culprit? Many people felt it was the mother and she got off. And what this does is undermine the moral authority of our legal system because many citizens will conclude that it doesn't work," Blomberg said.
"When we see the pictures of little Caylee, it's emotional and so it's logical that we're troubled by that," Blomberg said. "Not that we are revenge seeking or anything else, but are there not consequences for behavior? And I think what the public is saying is there were not enough consequences in this particular case," the dean said.
"If you look at all the circumstantial evidence, you add it together, it paints a picture. Does it paint a picture beyond all reasonable doubt? Apparently not."
FSU Criminology professor Dan Mears says the Anthony case clearly taps into the protectiveness the public feels about children and the anger they feel towards irresponsible parents."
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Did 'CSI' effect sway Anthony jury? - CNN.com
Did 'CSI' effect sway Anthony jury? - CNN.com
"(CNN) -- Did the "CSI" effect have an influence on the verdict in the Casey Anthony trial?
Programs such as "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," in which forensics play a key role in solving crimes in 60 minutes or less, are thought by many prosecutors and legal analysts to create unreasonable expectations for jurors deciding fates in the real world. Jurors, for the most part, have no legal training or real-life experience with the criminal justice system. They are without any frame of reference for how trials operate beyond what they see on television.
Prosecutors have long argued that the "CSI" effect is real and creates unreasonable expectations in the minds of jurors. They maintain that the standards for obtaining a conviction these days have been raised because jurors now expect and want scientific evidence linking the defendant to the crime, especially in a circumstantial case.
To combat this problem, many prosecutors try to lower the bar during jury selection by telling potential jurors not to expect what they see on television to be played out in the courtroom.
In addition, some prosecutors present forensic evidence that neither proves nor refutes the defendant's guilt but is intended to demonstrate to the jury the thoroughness of the prosecutor's investigation. Other prosecutors use so-called "negative evidence" such as the testimony of experts to assure jurors that it is not abnormal for crime scene investigators to fail to find certain types of evidence. Finally, a few prosecutors seek help from the court by way of jury instructions."
"(CNN) -- Did the "CSI" effect have an influence on the verdict in the Casey Anthony trial?
Programs such as "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," in which forensics play a key role in solving crimes in 60 minutes or less, are thought by many prosecutors and legal analysts to create unreasonable expectations for jurors deciding fates in the real world. Jurors, for the most part, have no legal training or real-life experience with the criminal justice system. They are without any frame of reference for how trials operate beyond what they see on television.
Prosecutors have long argued that the "CSI" effect is real and creates unreasonable expectations in the minds of jurors. They maintain that the standards for obtaining a conviction these days have been raised because jurors now expect and want scientific evidence linking the defendant to the crime, especially in a circumstantial case.
To combat this problem, many prosecutors try to lower the bar during jury selection by telling potential jurors not to expect what they see on television to be played out in the courtroom.
In addition, some prosecutors present forensic evidence that neither proves nor refutes the defendant's guilt but is intended to demonstrate to the jury the thoroughness of the prosecutor's investigation. Other prosecutors use so-called "negative evidence" such as the testimony of experts to assure jurors that it is not abnormal for crime scene investigators to fail to find certain types of evidence. Finally, a few prosecutors seek help from the court by way of jury instructions."
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Protect Funding for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act
Forensic Mental Health Association of California
This message comes courtesy of Jay Nelson at the Council of State Government's Justice Center.
Protect Funding for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act
The Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA) provides states and local governments with resources to plan and implement initiatives for people with mental illnesses involved with the criminal justice system in order to increase public safety and improve the lives of people with mental illnesses in the criminal justice system and their families.
This critical program is in jeopardy. The President's 2012 budget proposed the consolidation of MIOTCRA into a single problem-solving courts initiative, which would exclude many of the key elements of MIOTCRA. This policy shift would eliminate MIOTCRA and terminate over 60 percent of its program areas.
We need YOUR help. Contact your Members of Congress and ask them to support funding for MIOTCRA.
Congress is working on the appropriations bills for FY 2012. To ensure MIOTCRA is funded, Members of Congress need to hear from you about the program immediately.
The Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA) was signed into law in 2004, and authorized a $50 million grant program to be administered by the United States Department of Justice. In 2008, Congress reauthorized the program for an additional five years. The reauthorization bill expanded training for law enforcement to identify and respond appropriately to individuals with mental illnesses. The program received $10 million in FY 2009; $12 million in FY 2010; and $9.6 million in FY 2011.
Please forward on this message to your colleagues, friends and networks and encourage them to take part in contacting their Members of Congress as well. Visit http://www.capwiz.com/csgjusticectr/home/ to learn more or send a letter of support for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act.
This message comes courtesy of Jay Nelson at the Council of State Government's Justice Center.
Protect Funding for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act
The Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA) provides states and local governments with resources to plan and implement initiatives for people with mental illnesses involved with the criminal justice system in order to increase public safety and improve the lives of people with mental illnesses in the criminal justice system and their families.
This critical program is in jeopardy. The President's 2012 budget proposed the consolidation of MIOTCRA into a single problem-solving courts initiative, which would exclude many of the key elements of MIOTCRA. This policy shift would eliminate MIOTCRA and terminate over 60 percent of its program areas.
We need YOUR help. Contact your Members of Congress and ask them to support funding for MIOTCRA.
Congress is working on the appropriations bills for FY 2012. To ensure MIOTCRA is funded, Members of Congress need to hear from you about the program immediately.
The Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA) was signed into law in 2004, and authorized a $50 million grant program to be administered by the United States Department of Justice. In 2008, Congress reauthorized the program for an additional five years. The reauthorization bill expanded training for law enforcement to identify and respond appropriately to individuals with mental illnesses. The program received $10 million in FY 2009; $12 million in FY 2010; and $9.6 million in FY 2011.
Please forward on this message to your colleagues, friends and networks and encourage them to take part in contacting their Members of Congress as well. Visit http://www.capwiz.com/csgjusticectr/home/ to learn more or send a letter of support for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act.
Joel Cohen: DSK and the Rest of Those on the Criminal Docket
Joel Cohen: DSK and the Rest of Those on the Criminal Docket
"The case appears to be over. Dominique Strauss-Kahn will return to France a free man and be acclaimed for his triumph over the egregious elements of so-called U.S. legal justice. In fact, he may even be guilty of a violent attack on a hotel chambermaid. But that doesn't really doesn't matter anymore. The "alleged" victim (one must continue to use "alleged") is a liar -- and provably so -- and whether she lied also about the ultimate issue in the case (i.e. whether she was forced to give him sex) is now beside the point now. She has done irreparable damage to her own credibility and, perhaps more importantly, to rape victims everywhere. They will now know the cost of coming forward with rape complaints when it is they, perhaps even more than the accused, who will become the target. Indeed, legal protections of rape victims by rape shield laws and removing corroboration requirements may be in jeopardy.
Nor does it matter whether it was the prosecutors, the world-wide press, or the defense attorneys who discovered the maid's litany of lies. It appears, at least at the moment, that the prosecutors themselves either became suspicious or were told of some problems in her story by her own attorney. It was inevitable that DSK's able attorneys would have for use at trial at least some of the extremely-exculpatory material -- the false claims on her asylum petition; the phony tax deduction; the false account of her hiding just before she complained; the relationship with a drug dealer and multiple telephone numbers; the suspicious deposits to her bank account; and the recorded bragging that she knew how to deal with the "rich guy."
Why? First, the press was all over this case. The French press even had the victim's name in print (something that wouldn't occur but for Strauss-Kahn's status in France) which the prosecutors knew would yield "unhelpful" personal information about her coming out of the woodwork on both sides of the Atlantic. And second, in this "rich man's case," the defense simply had unlimited resources to investigate her, with or without the press's assistance. And the prosecutors surely knew how deadly that combination can be for a successful prosecution.
It is unimportant now whether DSK did indeed have a sexual encounter with the victim. His lawyers pretty much admitted that from Day 1. And likewise we shouldn't be concerned that it is much-more-than-likely that cash was somehow involved. However, charming or powerful DSK might be, one suspects that his charm or power would not have been the driving force in the victim's "willingness" to have sex with him, if indeed it was a willingness. So, if the French are willing to forgive DSK for his own personalized version of pay-for-play, why should it be any of our business? "
"The case appears to be over. Dominique Strauss-Kahn will return to France a free man and be acclaimed for his triumph over the egregious elements of so-called U.S. legal justice. In fact, he may even be guilty of a violent attack on a hotel chambermaid. But that doesn't really doesn't matter anymore. The "alleged" victim (one must continue to use "alleged") is a liar -- and provably so -- and whether she lied also about the ultimate issue in the case (i.e. whether she was forced to give him sex) is now beside the point now. She has done irreparable damage to her own credibility and, perhaps more importantly, to rape victims everywhere. They will now know the cost of coming forward with rape complaints when it is they, perhaps even more than the accused, who will become the target. Indeed, legal protections of rape victims by rape shield laws and removing corroboration requirements may be in jeopardy.
Nor does it matter whether it was the prosecutors, the world-wide press, or the defense attorneys who discovered the maid's litany of lies. It appears, at least at the moment, that the prosecutors themselves either became suspicious or were told of some problems in her story by her own attorney. It was inevitable that DSK's able attorneys would have for use at trial at least some of the extremely-exculpatory material -- the false claims on her asylum petition; the phony tax deduction; the false account of her hiding just before she complained; the relationship with a drug dealer and multiple telephone numbers; the suspicious deposits to her bank account; and the recorded bragging that she knew how to deal with the "rich guy."
Why? First, the press was all over this case. The French press even had the victim's name in print (something that wouldn't occur but for Strauss-Kahn's status in France) which the prosecutors knew would yield "unhelpful" personal information about her coming out of the woodwork on both sides of the Atlantic. And second, in this "rich man's case," the defense simply had unlimited resources to investigate her, with or without the press's assistance. And the prosecutors surely knew how deadly that combination can be for a successful prosecution.
It is unimportant now whether DSK did indeed have a sexual encounter with the victim. His lawyers pretty much admitted that from Day 1. And likewise we shouldn't be concerned that it is much-more-than-likely that cash was somehow involved. However, charming or powerful DSK might be, one suspects that his charm or power would not have been the driving force in the victim's "willingness" to have sex with him, if indeed it was a willingness. So, if the French are willing to forgive DSK for his own personalized version of pay-for-play, why should it be any of our business? "
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
BusinessDay - Weak controls in recession ‘aid staff fraud’
BusinessDay - Weak controls in recession ‘aid staff fraud’
"EMPLOYEES committed undetected economic crimes, such as procurement fraud, during recessions because companies inadvertently weakened their internal controls, warned a forensic specialist last week.
White-collar crime, including fraud is estimated to cost the South African economy billions of rands annually. According to a recent study carried out among KPMG’s top 100 clients in Africa , about 30% of businesses said employee fraud had the highest effect on their business.
According to recent South African Police Service crime statistics, 84842 cases of commercial crime were reported from April 2009 to March last year, a 51,8% rise since 2003 .
US companies are also losing about 7% of their annual revenue to procurement fraud each year, according to international studies conducted recently.
Dave Loxton, a forensics specialist and director at Werksmans Attorneys, said procurement fraud was one of the most costly types of economic crime and tended to go unnoticed.
Procurement fraud affected businesses across a broad range of industries. It usually involved price-fixing, mischarges of goods and bid-rigging.
Mr Loxton said the global economic recession had placed increasing pressure on employees and directors to commit fraud.
It tended to be easier to commit an undetected economic crime, such as procurement fraud, during a recession because companies, in an effort to cut costs, often weakened their own internal controls through injudiciously targeted retrenchment.
He said this was ill-advised as it removed the segregation of duties, which was a crucial element of good internal control.
Among the many varieties of white-collar fraud prevalent in SA , the three most common were theft, financial statement fraud, and bribery and corruption."
"EMPLOYEES committed undetected economic crimes, such as procurement fraud, during recessions because companies inadvertently weakened their internal controls, warned a forensic specialist last week.
White-collar crime, including fraud is estimated to cost the South African economy billions of rands annually. According to a recent study carried out among KPMG’s top 100 clients in Africa , about 30% of businesses said employee fraud had the highest effect on their business.
According to recent South African Police Service crime statistics, 84842 cases of commercial crime were reported from April 2009 to March last year, a 51,8% rise since 2003 .
US companies are also losing about 7% of their annual revenue to procurement fraud each year, according to international studies conducted recently.
Dave Loxton, a forensics specialist and director at Werksmans Attorneys, said procurement fraud was one of the most costly types of economic crime and tended to go unnoticed.
Procurement fraud affected businesses across a broad range of industries. It usually involved price-fixing, mischarges of goods and bid-rigging.
Mr Loxton said the global economic recession had placed increasing pressure on employees and directors to commit fraud.
It tended to be easier to commit an undetected economic crime, such as procurement fraud, during a recession because companies, in an effort to cut costs, often weakened their own internal controls through injudiciously targeted retrenchment.
He said this was ill-advised as it removed the segregation of duties, which was a crucial element of good internal control.
Among the many varieties of white-collar fraud prevalent in SA , the three most common were theft, financial statement fraud, and bribery and corruption."
Friday, July 1, 2011
Laura W. Murphy: Justice Is Served
Laura W. Murphy: Justice Is Served
"Today is an exciting day for the ACLU and criminal justice advocates around the country. Following much thought and careful deliberation, the United States Sentencing Commission took another step toward creating fairness in federal sentencing by retroactively applying the new Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) guidelines to individuals sentenced before the law was enacted. This decision will help ensure that over 12,000 people — 85 percent of whom are African-Americans — will have the opportunity to have their sentences for crack cocaine offenses reviewed by a federal judge and possibly reduced.
This decision is particularly important to me because, as director of the ACLU's Washington Legislative Office, I have advocated for Congress and the sentencing commission to reform federal crack cocaine laws for almost 20 years. In 1993, the ACLU lead the coalition that convened the first national symposium highlighting the crack cocaine disparity entitled "The 100 to 1 Ratio: Racial Bias in Cocaine Laws." Now, 25 years after the first crack cocaine law was enacted in the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act, the sentencing commission has taken another step toward ending the racial and sentencing disparities that continue to exist in our criminal justice system."
"Today is an exciting day for the ACLU and criminal justice advocates around the country. Following much thought and careful deliberation, the United States Sentencing Commission took another step toward creating fairness in federal sentencing by retroactively applying the new Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) guidelines to individuals sentenced before the law was enacted. This decision will help ensure that over 12,000 people — 85 percent of whom are African-Americans — will have the opportunity to have their sentences for crack cocaine offenses reviewed by a federal judge and possibly reduced.
This decision is particularly important to me because, as director of the ACLU's Washington Legislative Office, I have advocated for Congress and the sentencing commission to reform federal crack cocaine laws for almost 20 years. In 1993, the ACLU lead the coalition that convened the first national symposium highlighting the crack cocaine disparity entitled "The 100 to 1 Ratio: Racial Bias in Cocaine Laws." Now, 25 years after the first crack cocaine law was enacted in the 1986 Anti-Drug Abuse Act, the sentencing commission has taken another step toward ending the racial and sentencing disparities that continue to exist in our criminal justice system."
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