~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Los Angeles Times

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

House panel set for hearings on the terrorist threat within

The Homeland Security Committee hearings will look into the radicalization of some American Muslims. The number of Americans arrested in alleged homegrown terrorism plots has grown dramatically as Al Qaeda tries a different approach.

by Richard A. Serrano, Washington Bureau

February 9, 2011

Reporting from Washington

Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad was born Carlos Bledsoe, played high school football and attended business school. He mowed his grandmother's lawn. He converted to Islam at a Tennessee mosque, studied in Yemen, and while there reportedly fell in with a group of extremists.

By the time he returned to the U.S., federal law enforcement officials say, he had been dangerously radicalized. After he was accused of opening fire with a semiautomatic rifle on a Little Rock, Ark., Army recruiting station in 2009, he became part of a rising trend — one of 50 Americans arrested on terrorism charges in the last two years.

From May 2009 to last November, authorities broke up 22 alleged homegrown terrorism plots, compared with 21 during the previous eight years.

The House Homeland Security Committee opens hearings Wednesday into the terrorist threat in the U.S. In the weeks ahead, the panel will hold sessions on the radicalization of American Muslims.

For Al Qaeda, tapping into a new generation of potential terrorists already here is easier and cheaper than finding ways to get attackers into the country, though the result has not approached anything close to the death toll of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

"The threat is real, the threat is different, and the threat is constant," Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. said recently.

Some suspects have displayed a chilling dedication.

Muhammad, charged with killing one soldier and wounding another, has written the judge asking to plead guilty to capital murder. He is ready to die for Al Qaeda.

"I wasn't insane or post-traumatic, nor was I forced to do this act," he wrote from jail. The shootings, he said, were "justified according to Islamic laws and the Islamic religion, jihad — to fight those who wage war on Islam and Muslims."

The committee chairman, Rep. Peter T. King (R-N.Y.), has rebuffed claims from religious and civil rights groups that the hearings will unfairly target Muslim Americans.

"Al Qaeda has realized the difficulty it faces in launching attacks against our homeland from overseas," King said Tuesday. "Thus it has adjusted its tactics and is now attempting to radicalize from within our country."

Terrorism consultant Evan Kohlmann testified in the 2008 trial of Mohamad Ibrahim Shnewer, a Philadelphia cab driver convicted and given life in prison for his part in a six-man conspiracy to "kill as many Americans as possible" at Ft. Dix, an Army base in New Jersey.

Kohlmann said the Internet, videos and other electronic and digital platforms helped drive the plot.

"The information age means you don't need training camps to become a terrorist; all you need is an Internet connection," he said. "The Web is terrorism's new frontier, offering both persuasive inspiration and practical instruction. In fact, these homegrown terrorist cells come at essentially zero cost to Al Qaeda."

Only two cases have produced bloodshed since the 2001 attacks — the Little Rock ambush and the Ft. Hood, Texas, shooting in 2009 that killed 13 and injured 32.

Other purported plots were broken up by government informants or undercover agents, though in some cases defense lawyers have complained that authorities helped suspects plan their crimes and build their bombs, only to arrest them at the last minute.

Some were poorly organized and carelessly planned. Others fell apart by pure luck, such as when a car bomb failed to ignite on a Saturday evening in New York's Times Square. It was placed there by Faisal Shahzad, a naturalized U.S. citizen, Connecticut financial analyst and father of two. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life without parole. Yet he left for prison unrepentant. "Allahu akbar" (God is great), he told the court.

Mitchell D. Silber, director of intelligence analysis for the New York City Police Department, said "the vast majority" of Americans who embraced violent jihad did not start out as religious people or very knowledgeable about Islamic teachings. But eventually a person "intensifies his beliefs, wholly adopts extremist ideology and concludes, without question, that action is required," Silber said. Then "potential targets are chosen, surveillance and reconnaissance begins," and finally, "jihadization" with an assault rifle or car bomb.

In Hempstead, Texas, a window washer named Barry Walter Bujol Jr. was seen visiting his local library to go online and read the latest postings from Al Qaeda leaders, such as American-born Anwar Awlaki. He allegedly exchanged e-mails with Awlaki, who reportedly sent him an attachment called "42 Ways of Supporting Jihad."

Last year, Bujol was indicted on charges of attempting to aid terrorists; he faces 20 years in prison if convicted.

In Little Rock, Muhammad is scheduled for trial on Feb. 23, despite his wish to plead guilty. Prosecutors hope he gets what he wants — the death penalty. In one of his letters to the judge, Muhammad wrote, "I await sentencing."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-terror-hearings-20110209,0,2153626,print.story

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Public health flier warning of dangers of Ecstasy at raves to be revised

Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich is criticizing a county Public Health Department flier warning rave attendees about the dangers of Ecstasy, and has asked the agency to stop distributing it.

The flier was intended to be handed out at future raves at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Sports Arena. It tells about the effects of Ecstasy overdose and "how to minimize potential harms," including warnings that taking Ecstasy with other substances, especially alcohol, can increase risks. The flier also advises to "aim low" in dose and frequency, because "Ecstasy risks increase with larger doses."

The flier also advises rave attendees to not drive, to stay hydrated and take frequent breaks. It also advises that people "stay away" from Ecstasy, saying that "the only way to completely avoid the risks is to avoid the drug."

DOCUMENT: Read the county public health department flier warning about Ecstasy use at raves

Antonovich said the flier, created after a 15-year-old girl died of an Ecstasy overdose after attending a Coliseum rave last June, did not fit the spirit of the county's anti-drug policy.

"Counseling young people on the use of the illegal drug Ecstasy is stupid and contrary to Los Angeles County's zero-tolerance policy on drugs," Antonovich said in a statement.

RELATED: L.A. Coliseum official was paid by rave firm Insomniac Inc

According to a statement released by the county Department of Public Health, officials said the flier was intended to address the harmful effects of Ecstasy and provide potentially life-saving information to rave attendees who choose to use the illegal drug. The card was developed out of recommendations of a rave safety task force convened by the county Board of Supervisors.

"The card is funded by electronic music festival promoters, and distribution is intended solely at events for attendees, who should be over the age of 18, per task force guidelines. Along with harm-reduction messaging, this card states Ecstasy use should be avoided," the county health department statement said.

"However, based on feedback from board members and upon further review by the department, Public Health is immediately revising the card to further and more emphatically state that illegal drug use is dangerous," the statement said.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the New York Times

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a False Dawn, Anxiety for Illegal Immigrant Students

MILWAUKEE — It was exhilarating for Maricela Aguilar to stand on the steps of the federal courthouse here one day last summer and reveal for the first time in public that she is an illegal immigrant.

“It's all about losing that shame of who you are,” Ms. Aguilar, a college student who was born in Mexico but has lived in the United States without legal documents since she was 3 years old, said of her “coming out” at a rally in June.

Those were heady times for thousands of immigrant students who declared their illegal status during a nationwide campaign for a bill in Congress that would have put them on a path to legal residence. In December that bill, known as the Dream Act, passed the House, then failed in the Senate.

President Obama insisted in his State of the Union address and in interviews that he wanted to try again on the bill this year. But with Republicans who vehemently oppose the legislation holding crucial committee positions in the new House, even optimists like Ms. Aguilar believe its chances are poor to none in the next two years.

That leaves students like her who might have benefited from the bill — an estimated 1.2 million nationwide — in a legal twilight.

The president says he supports their cause, and immigration officials say illegal immigrant students with no criminal record are not among their priorities for deportation. But federal immigration authorities removed a record number of immigrants from the country last year, nearly 393,000, while the local police are rapidly expanding their role in immigration enforcement. Students often get caught.

Illegal immigrants also face new restrictions many states are imposing on their access to public education, driver's licenses and jobs. And for those like Ms. Aguilar who came out last year to proclaim their illegal status, there is no going back to the shadows.

Republicans who will lead their party in the House on immigration issues say illegal immigrant students should not be spared from deportation. Representative Lamar Smith of Texas, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, led the opposition to the Dream Act, calling it “an American nightmare” that would allow illegal immigrants to displace American students from public colleges.

Mr. Smith and other Republicans on the Judiciary Committee have pledged to block any legislation giving legal status to illegal immigrants, which they reject as amnesty for lawbreakers. Still, as Politico first reported on Monday, Senators Charles E. Schumer of New York, a Democrat, and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a Republican, have begun preliminary talks to see whether there is enough support in Congress to try to pass a comprehensive immigration overhaul in coming months.

In the weeks since the Senate vote, many young illegal immigrants are grappling with the letdown after a campaign that mobilized thousands of them for sit-in protests and text message blitzes of Congressional lawmakers.

“Many have become extremely frustrated, sad, confused and without a lot of answers as to how to move forward,” said Roberto G. Gonzales, a sociologist at the University of Washington who has surveyed young illegal immigrants. “They had a lot of hope that their activities were going to change the minds of the country. Having the door slammed in their face hit many of them really hard.”

A moment of truth, Mr. Gonzales said, comes when the students graduate from college. Many excel academically, but without work authorization, they cannot be legally employed. Some immigrants with bachelor's degrees end up busing restaurant dishes and cleaning offices, falling back on the jobs of their less educated parents, who often struggled to put them through college.

Hostility toward illegal immigrants has grown in many states. Lawmakers in Georgia and Virginia are considering measures to ban illegal immigrants from all public colleges. Bills to deny state resident tuition rates to illegal immigrants are under consideration here in Wisconsin, as well as in Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska and Indiana. Only a few states, like Colorado and Maryland, are going the opposite direction, debating measures to allow illegal immigrants to pay the lower in-state tuition rates.

In the absence of a student bill in Congress, Obama administration officials are doing little to assist illegal immigrants who might be eligible for legal status if it passed. Department of Homeland Security officials said they would continue to reject any broad moratorium on deportations for those students.

Immigration agents have been instructed to focus on arresting immigrants who are convicted criminals, implicitly steering away from students without criminal records. When students do get caught, officials are using executive powers to postpone or cancel their deportations, they said.

Brian P. Hale, the senior spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said the agency “uses discretion on a case by case basis, as appropriate.”

But senior administration officials said they did not want to make wider use of those powers for fear of deepening the conflict with Mr. Smith and other Republicans, who might try to limit the authority granted by immigration law and further stiffen their opposition to measures like the Dream Act. The officials spoke anonymously, saying they could discuss policy more freely that way.

The strategizing in Washington is doing little for Ms. Aguilar, 19, a junior at Marquette University here.

“If your name is out there immediately attached with ‘undocumented,' then there is always this fear of being deported,” she said.

But Ms. Aguilar said she was not as dispirited as many other students like her because she still felt the elation that came after she revealed her illegal status, then traveled to Washington to watch the December vote from the Senate gallery.

“I think losing the shame overshadows the fear,” she said. “I'd much rather clarify to the public that being undocumented is just a circumstance I find myself in. I'd much rather have that out in the public than just living in fear.”

Immigrant activists say that coming out may have given some protection to student leaders like Ms. Aguilar, since administration officials would prefer to avoid the furor that would follow if one of them was detained. Ms. Aguilar also admits she has not yet had to face some of the hardest consequences of her status. An honors student in her Milwaukee high school, she was accepted to Marquette, a private Jesuit university, on a full tuition scholarship.

After the Senate vote, she said, she is working with an immigrant organization here to build new support for the student bill.

“It failed and we were all like super bummed out,” she said. “So we came out of there crying, but defiant. We were like, one day we're going to pass this, don't even worry about it.”

That pluck is not shared by José Varible, 19, another illegal immigrant from Mexico, who was brought to the United States at age 9 by his parents. A student in business management at Gateway Technical College, a community college in Kenosha, Wis., Mr. Varible also held a formal coming out ceremony last summer.

Since he is not eligible for any financial aid, Mr. Varible struggles to pay his tuition. He cannot drive, since Wisconsin does not issue licenses without proof of legal United States residence. With a knack for technology hardware, he taught himself to repair computers. But without a Social Security number, he can take only odd jobs doing that work.

Combined with his new exposure as an illegal immigrant, he said, those limitations sometimes sink him into depression. He has even considered moving to Australia.

“You know, the thing is, I just don't feel welcome here,” he said. “You cannot live as an undocumented immigrant.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/us/09immigration.html?ref=us&pagewanted=print

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Former Judge Is on Trial in ‘Cash for Kids' Scheme

SCRANTON, Pa. — A former Pennsylvania judge went on trial in federal court on Tuesday, charged with racketeering, bribery and extortion in what prosecutors say was a $2.8 million scheme to send juvenile delinquents to privately run prisons.

The case against the judge, Mark A. Ciavarella Jr., who presided in Luzerne County, drew national attention for what legal experts say is a dangerous gap in the juvenile justice systems of many states — children appearing in court without lawyers.

Mr. Ciavarella, now 60, sentenced thousands of young people, funneling them into two private detention centers prosecutors say were run by his friends who slipped him payments in a “cash for kids” scheme.

Few of the young people had lawyers, a chronic problem that legal scholars say makes guilty pleas more likely, saddling them with criminal records. The state has since expunged more than 6,000 records of youths Mr. Ciavarella sentenced, some for crimes as small as stealing a jar of nutmeg.

“It was a terrible lesson,” said Laurence H. Tribe, a constitutional law professor at Harvard Law School who founded the Obama administration's Access to Justice Initiative.

He added: “It highlighted the dangers for juveniles who don't know their rights, haven't talked to a lawyer and are urged by overburdened courts to take a plea. Once that happens, future opportunities for the child are essentially gone.”

In court here on Tuesday, Gordon Zubrod, an assistant United States attorney, portrayed Mr. Ciavarella's actions over seven years as a plot to enrich himself. William Ruzzo, a lawyer for Mr. Ciavarella, denied the charges.

Michael T. Conahan, a former president judge with control over the courthouse budget, pleaded guilty in 2009 to racketeering conspiracy charges in the scheme and faces 20 years in prison.

“They turned the Court of Common Pleas into a criminal enterprise,” Mr. Zubrod said.

In 2000, Mr. Ciavarella approached Robert J. Powell, a Luzerne County lawyer and property developer about building a private alternative to a county-run detention center because the judge “didn't like” the old center, Mr. Zubrod said.

Mr. Ciavarella is charged with extorting money from Mr. Powell, who initially was unable to get financing for the centers.

Mr. Powell has pleaded guilty to being an accessory to a conspiracy, and Robert Mericle — a builder who was Mr. Ciavarella's “close friend,” according to Mr. Zubrod — pleaded guilty to failing to report a felony.

The payments to the judges included $140,000 in cash stuffed into FedEx boxes, prosecutors said. The judges were charged with laundering some of the money, buying a luxury condominium in Florida in 2004. In 2006, Mr. Powell began instructing his employees to withdraw amounts of less than $10,000, to avoid suspicion, prosecutors said.

Mr. Ruzzo said his client never tried to extort money from the developer. He argued that the judges socialized with Mr. Powell and paid more than $100,000 at various times to rent his private plane and a fishing boat.

“If you are extorting somebody, do you go and pay over $100,000 for use of their toys?” Mr. Ruzzo asked. “I think not.”

Mr. Ruzzo said Mr. Ciavarella sought to build a private detention center because the county's facility was in poor condition — with rodents, leaky pipes, broken windows — not because he wanted to enrich himself.

Mr. Ciavarella faces a maximum of life in prison if convicted of all 39 counts against him. But the fact that he is on trial at all feels like a triumph to Hillary Transue, whom he sentenced to three months for a spoof Web page mocking an assistant principal at her high school in 2007.

“People said it was impossible,” she said. “That you couldn't mess with Ciavarella. Whatever comes out of this, I'm excited he's gone to trial.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/us/09judge.html?ref=us&pagewanted=print

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Measure Would Prohibit Misuse of Body Scans

Misusing body scanner images would become a federal crime punishable by up to a year in prison under a proposal offered Tuesday in the Senate, an effort by lawmakers to address concerns raised by some travelers.

The measure would prohibit anyone with access to the scanned body images, whether security personnel or members of the public, from photographing or disseminating those images.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/us/09brfs-MEASUREWOULD_BRF.html?ref=us&pagewanted=print

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EDITORIAL

What Are They Waiting For?

We applauded back in December when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced that it was seeking an emergency rule requiring gun dealers near the Mexican border to report multiple purchases of high-power semiautomatic rifles that use a detachable magazine. It looked as if the Obama administration was finally awakening to the urgent need to combat the illegal trafficking of AK-47s and other assault weapons across the border and into the hands of violent drug cartels. It turns out that we were wrong to applaud.

The White House Office of Management and Budget must sign off on the plan, and the bureau asked it to do so by Jan. 5. When that date passed, administration officials insisted approval would be coming soon. Last Friday, the bureau's answer arrived: The White House said that gunrunning to Mexico was a continuing problem rather than an emergency and did not warrant an exception to the 90-day process for implementing regulations.

The drug wars in Mexico have claimed more than 30,000 lives since 2006. That violence is fueled by gun-smuggling operations and the fact that American dealers can make bulk sales of military-style rifles favored by cartel gunmen without having to report those sales to federal authorities.

Dealers of handguns have to report bulk sales under federal statute, but the National Rifle Association and some of its supporters in Congress have protested that requiring a limited segment of gun dealers to report multiple sales of rifles would impose an onerous burden, and exceed the authority of the A.T.F.

Administration officials say the decision had nothing to do with the gun lobby's strong opposition, adding that approval from the budget office could come by late March when the public comment period is over. These officials also say the president's upcoming budget will seek additional financing for the A.T.F. to strengthen enforcement.

We wish we could feel confident. Meanwhile, we have heard nothing from the president or his aides about closing gaping holes in the background check system for gun purchases and other gun issues raised by the massacre in Tucson. These are real emergencies. What are they waiting for?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/09/opinion/09wed3.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the Department of Homeland Security

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Readout of Secretary Napolitano's Remarks to the Homeland Security Advisory Council

February 8, 2011

Washington, D.C. - Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano today met with the Homeland Security Advisory Committee (HSAC) - an independent, bipartisan advisory board of leaders from state and local government, first responder communities, the private sector and academia - to discuss the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) ongoing initiatives and key priorities in 2011.

During the meeting, Secretary Napolitano applauded the critical role of the HSAC Homeland Security Advisory System Task Force in leading to the Department's announcement last month, during the first annual "State of America's Homeland Security" address, that it will discontinue the color-coded Homeland Security Advisory System (HSAS) in favor the new National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) based on the Task Force's assessment. Under the new system, DHS will coordinate with other federal entities to issue formal, detailed alerts when the federal government receives information about a specific or credible terrorist threat. The alerts will provide a concise summary of the potential threat, information about actions being taken to ensure public safety, and recommended steps that individuals and communities, businesses and governments can take.

Secretary Napolitano also highlighted the Department's priorities for the upcoming year - reiterating DHS' continued commitment to protecting the nation against evolving threats of terrorism, further strengthening security along the Southwest border, increasing the security of the global supply chain through DHS-led new initiatives and partnerships, and coordinating with the Department of Justice on implementing the nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting (SAR) Initiative as well as the "If You See Something, Say Something" campaign to better assist law enforcement in protecting their communities from threats.

Secretary Napolitano also officially swore in new HSAC member Bonnie Michelman, who currently serves as the Director of Policy, Security and Outside Services at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

For more information about HSAC, including a full list of members, visit www.dhs.gov/hsac.

http://www.dhs.gov/ynews/releases/pr_1297191230412.shtm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the FBI

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wanted for: Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution - Attempted Aggravated Murder (4 counts), Attempted Murder (10 counts), Assault in the First Degree, Assaulting a Public Safety Officer, Unlawful Use of a Weapon (12 counts), Recklessly Endangering Another (10 counts), Menacing (10 counts), Attempted Assault in the First Degree (9 counts), Assault in the Second Degree (3 counts), Attempted Assault on a Public Safety Officer (3 counts), Fleeing or Attempting to Elude a Police Officer (3 counts), Reckless Driving, Assault in the Third Degree

David Anthony Durham

DAVID ANTHONY DURHAM DESCRIPTION: Scars and Marks: None known Remarks: Durham is known to possess survival skills. He was wearing full green camouflage at the time of his disappearance, as well as tan or dark boots, and a dark-colored beret. In the past, he has expressed a desire to travel or is believed to have traveled to California, the Caribbean, and Thailand.

CAUTION

A local arrest warrant was issued for Durham in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for the County of Lincoln on January 27, 2011, and he was charged with the various violations listed above. A federal arrest warrant was issued in the United States District Court in Portland, Oregon, on January 29, 2011, and Durham was charged with unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.

REWARD

SHOULD BE CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS

If you have any information concerning this person, please contact your local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.

Field Office: Portland

.