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July 3, 2011

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Op-Ed

A Fourth of July primer: Born in the U.S.A.?

Independence Day traditions come from all over the globe. Here's a guide to the customs and menus of your favorite summer holiday.

There's nothing quite as American as the Fourth of July, the day our nation's founders declared independence from Britain. But like Americans themselves, Independence Day traditions come from all over the globe. That picnic you're planning, the barbecue, the corn on the cob, the apple pie and watermelon, even the fireworks have roots in other parts of the world. Here's a guide to the customs and menus of your favorite summer holiday.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-gabrick-trivia-20110703,0,2443353,print.story

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Stoned driving is uncharted territory

Experts say they don't know what level of marijuana impairs a driver, but statistics show that fatal crashes involving drugged drivers have jumped. Law enforcement puts much of the blame on the growth of medical marijuana use.

It was his green tongue that helped give away Jimmy Candido Flores when police arrived at the fatal accident scene near Chico.

Flores had run off the road and killed a jogger, Carrie Jean Holliman, a 56-year-old Chico elementary school teacher. California Highway Patrol officers thought he might be impaired and conducted a sobriety examination. Flores' tongue had a green coat typical of heavy marijuana users and a later test showed he had pot, as well as other drugs, in his blood.

After pleading guilty to manslaughter, Flores, a medical marijuana user, was sentenced in February to 10 years and 8 months in prison.

Holliman's death and others like it across the nation hint at what experts say is an unrecognized crisis: stoned drivers.

The most recent assessment by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, based on random roadside checks, found that 16.3% of all drivers nationwide at night were on various legal and illegal impairing drugs, half them high on marijuana.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-pot-drivers-20110703,0,2633169,print.story

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Ohio

City implements community policing

Tallmadge -- The Tallmadge Police Department is launching a new policing initiative in the city: neighborhood police officers, each responsible for specific parts of the city.

"The city will be divided into districts [with] officers assigned to them, which include both residents and businesses," said Police Chief Don Zesiger. "The purpose of this initiative is to strengthen the relationship between the police department and the community and to be responsive to their needs."

Nine of the department's 23 full-time officers are assigned to the city's seven neighborhood districts, which are loosely oriented around Tallmadge's four wards.

Sgt. Scott Christopher, who defined the city's neighborhood districts, is spearheading the community-policing initiative.

"The goal is for officers to spend more time in the neighborhoods getting to know the people they're serving and finding better solutions to issues we're running into in the community," said Christopher.

http://www.tallmadgeexpress.com/news/printer_friendly/5059428

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Community policing concept a first for Tallmadge

Tallmadge -- The community-policing initiative is not an entirely new concept, said Tallmadge Police Sgt. Scott Christopher, although he says the Tallmadge program could be the first of its kind in Summit County.

Christopher, 44, said his idea for the community policing initiative came from his service as an officer with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department in North Carolina.

He said that department had a neighborhood policing program because of the vast area it covered -- the department had nearly 2,000 officers when he worked there roughly 15 years ago.

Such initiatives are more prevalent in larger cities, Christopher explained, because of the larger police staffs and jurisdictions.

He said he has often entertained the idea of initiating a similar program in Tallmadge ever since leaving North Carolina.

http://www.tallmadgeexpress.com/news/article/5059444

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Wisconsin

Green Bay neighborhood policing draws mixed reviews

GREEN BAY — Green Bay police officer Mike Wanta doesn't get many visits from his new neighbors, so he has taken it upon himself to get to know them.

"Not just anyone walks up to the front door and talks to the police in this neighborhood," said Wanta, one of two officers assigned to the city's third policing center, the Olde North Community Policing Center, located at Harvey Street and N. Irwin Avenue.

"We try and cover almost every call that happens in the neighborhood so that we become familiar with names, faces and places to monitor if they become problems."

Plans for the Olde North Community Policing Center originally were announced in 2009 but the opening stalled due to funding and construction issues.

The center began operating in February and is designed to increase police visibility and build stronger relationships with residents.

http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110703/APC0101/107030532/Green-Bay-neighborhood-policing-draws-mixed-reviews

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Wisconsin

With Jacato Drive COP house, Racine police take a different approach

RACINE - Amid the clutter of apartment buildings and cracked pavement, a squat three-bedroom house sits quietly at 2437 Jacato Drive, filled with office furniture and the occasional static of a police radio.

Only the wooden sign in the front yard proclaiming the building as a Community Oriented Policing house marks the building from its surroundings.

Racine's newest COP house, the seventh of its kind in the city, poses a unique challenge for officers Walter Powell and Neil Lofy, the beat cops for Jacato Drive. Previous COP houses have opened with fanfare and purpose, their residing officers knocking on doors to introduce themselves to the neighborhood and working with homeowners for aid in crime prevention.

Instead, Powell and Lofy have spent the last six weeks on Jacato Drive slipping in and out of the house, working the streets in car and by foot and trying to establish what they term a "baseline" for how to deal with a neighborhood unlike any they've been in before.

http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/article_f66aa98a-a529-11e0-a142-001cc4c03286.html

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Cleveland crime statistics show little change in 6 months, but big drop from 2006

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland crime statistics showed no big changes during the first half of 2011 compared with the same period last year, but that's not all bad, given that crime levels plummeted between 2006 and 2010.

Violent crime fell 21 percent over those four years while property crime decreased 15 percent.

Some of the drop can be attributed to Cleveland's population slide. But officials say smarter policing, including the increased use of modern crime-fighting tools like computer analysis, and a vigorous partnership with social service agencies and the community have made a difference.

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro//print.html

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Connecticut

Community cop comeback

Waterbury police get funds for neighborhood officers

by MIKE PATRICK

WATERBURY — The police cruiser slowed down and pulled over where a gray-haired man stood beside his home. Officer Timothy Bachand got out and the two exchanged greetings, jokes, even insults.

With all the smiles and handshakes, it was obvious Bachand and the man complaining of prostitutes and drug dealers in the neighborhood knew each other well.

Bachand is one of the city's community police officers, those whose duty is to not just patrol the neighborhoods, but create a special bond with residents that earns their trust and ultimately improves their quality of life.

"To me, community policing is building these relationships with the community: the residents, the property owners and the businesses," Bachand said. "You want to establish that rapport with the people. Then, whether they like you or dislike you, they still want to talk to you."

http://www.rep-am.com/articles/2011/07/03/news/local/568625.txt

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July 2, 2011

The law, even on Texas' death row

Humberto Leal Garcia Jr., like other Mexican nationals sentenced to death, were never told they were entitled to seek help from their consulate

Humberto Leal Garcia Jr. is scheduled to be executed Thursday in Texas.

He is not a sympathetic figure — he was convicted of bludgeoning a 16-year-old girl to death with a piece of asphalt after raping her — and his gruesome crime is in many ways similar to those of dozens of other death-row inmates across the country. But here's what is different: He is a Mexican citizen, and when he was arrested in 1994, he was never told that under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, he was entitled to ask the Mexican consulate for help. By the time he found out, he was sitting in a cell on death row.

The International Court of Justice has called on the United States to review Leal's case, as well as the cases of other Mexican nationals who were never told of their rights under the treaty. Then-President George W. Bush essentially ordered Texas to comply as well. But Texas refused. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled that the treaty was legal but that only an act of Congress could require such a review.

Leal's current appeal isn't about whether the death penalty ought to be abolished. It's not even about whether he committed the crime for which he was convicted. Rather, it is a test of the United States' willingness to afford foreign nationals accused of crimes in this country the same protections it demands for Americans when they are arrested and accused overseas.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-treaty-20110702,0,3858782,print.story

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Olsen nominated to lead National Counterterrorism Center

The White House said Friday that President Obama would nominate Matthew G. Olsen, general counsel for the National Security Agency and previously a longtime Justice Department official, to be the nation's next counterterrorism chief.

Michael E. Leiter, the current director of the National Counterterrorism Center, plans to step down next week.

Olsen, 49, has been in his position at the NSA for just over a year. Before leaving the Justice Department, where he worked for 18 years, he directed the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force, overseeing the Obama administration's assessment of every detainee at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as part of its plan to close the facility.

The task force provided recommendations on whether detainees should be prosecuted, held in prolonged detention without trial, or transferred home or to third countries for resettlement. The effort was seen as a critical prelude to the closure of Guantanamo, a plan that foundered in the face of intense congressional opposition and disagreement within the administration about how to pursue the goal.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/national-security/olsen-nominated-to-lead-national-counterterrorism-center

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July 1, 2011

Another tear in the airport security net

Federal authorities and Virgin America are trying to explain how Olajide Oluwaseun Noibi was able to get through layers of airport security — and then avoid arrest for five days after officials discovered he was a stowaway.

Virgin America Flight 415 from New York to Los Angeles was already two hours into its journey when some passengers in the upscale "Main Cabin Select" section complained that the man seated in 3E reeked of body odor.

A flight attendant asked Olajide Oluwaseun Noibi for his boarding pass and was surprised to see it was from a different fight and in someone else's name. She alerted authorities, and Noibi went back to sleep in his black leather airline seat. When the plane landed, authorities chose not to arrest Noibi, allowing him to leave the airport.

On Wednesday, Noibi was arrested trying to board a Delta flight out of Los Angeles. Once again, he had managed to pass undetected through security with an expired ticket issued in someone else's name. Authorities found at least 10 other boarding passes, none of which belonged to him. Law enforcement sources told The Times they suspect Noibi has used expired plane tickets to sneak on to flights in the past. On his website, Noibi describes himself as a "frequent traveler."

Now, federal authorities and Virgin America are trying to explain how the Nigerian American was able to get through layers of security — and then avoid arrest for five days after officials discovered he was a stowaway.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0701-airport-security-20110630,0,2315584.story?track=rss

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10 Pacoima gang members arrested on weapons, drug charges

In addition to the 10 people captured in the morning raids, an additional eight have been charged by federal prosecutors. Four of those are still being sought by the task force. "The FBI remains committed to working with LAPD to identify the most violent criminal enterprises ... who control neighborhoods by operating drug networks, extorting citizens and committing violent acts to maintain that control," said Steve Martinez, the FBI assistant director in charge.

While serving nine search warrants Thursday, investigators seized $10,000 in cash, three handguns, two shotguns, one M1 rifle, two assault rifles, bags of methamphetamine and drug-related items. The gang allegedly modified weapons to be fully automatic, authorities said.

FBI officials said it was second phase of the task force's investigation aimed at the two gangs, believed to be associated with the Mexican Mafia. Previously, 24 gang members were charged in federal indictments.

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

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Kalamazoo's community policing program in jeopardy

http://www.wwmt.com/common/printer/view.php?db=wwmt&id=1392375

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Public Corruption Update

A Busy Month Comes to a Close

The FBI works plenty of high-profile public corruption cases—including the investigation of former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted Monday after previous indictments.

But many of our cases—worked closely with our investigative and prosecutive partners—don't make national news. Yet they are just as vital to our public corruption mandate—to root out those who violate the public trust. In fact, June was a particularly busy month on that front. From Florida to Arizona, there were a string of legal actions taken against public officials serving in a variety of positions.

Bribery is the most common form of corruption the Bureau investigates. But there are plenty more crimes—including extortion, embezzlement, racketeering, kickbacks, money laundering, and all sorts of fraud. A significant portion of our cases involve border corruption.

At the end of the day, the majority of public officials are honest, hard-working individuals determined to improve the lives of their fellow citizens. But a small number of elected, appointed, or contracted officials are only focused on their own good. The actions of corrupt officials—often with the help of private sector accomplices—undermine democratic institutions and threaten national security, which is why the FBI ranks public corruption as our top criminal priority.

http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2011/june/corruption_063011/corruption_063011

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June 30, 2011

10 suspected illegal immigrants arrested near Malibu

The suspected illegal immigrants were found after being dropped off by a smuggling boat in what authorities call one of traffickers' northernmost forays so far.

Ten suspected illegal immigrants were arrested Wednesday near Pacific Coast Highway after being dropped off by a smuggling boat along the coast northwest of Malibu, U.S. authorities said.

The group was spotted about 4:30 a.m. just up the coast from the Los Angeles-Ventura county line, said Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A woman with a broken nose and a man with a broken leg were hospitalized, Kice said.

The maritime smuggling attempt marks one of the northernmost forays by traffickers as they try to evade increased enforcement in San Diego County, where such activity has surged dramatically in recent years.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-malibu-human-smuggling-20110630,0,2991871,print.story

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One of U.S. Marshals' 15 'most wanted' captured in the San Fernando Valley

The U.S. Marshals Service captured one of its 15 most-wanted criminals in the San Fernando Valley, authorities said Wednesday. Keith Hasson, 45, who had been wanted since July 2005 on a warrant issued in Albuquerque, N.M., was picked up around 11:20 a.m. at an apartment near the intersection of Shoup Avenue and Victory Boulevard, according to federal authorities and Los Angeles police.

Authorities are searching for a man who fled the scene and is believed to be one of Hasson's associates. Hasson is alleged to have been the leader of drug distribution enterprise that dealt extensively in cocaine and marijuana, according to the U.S. Marshals Service website. Officials said he has an extensive criminal history that includes arrests for violent crimes including attempted murder, robbery, and assault with a deadly weapon.

The arrest comes a week after one of the FBI's most-wanted fugitives, James "Whitey" Bulger, was arrested in Santa Monica.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/06/keith-hasson.html

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Eleven arrested in undercover operation aimed at San Fernando Valley arms traffickers

Federal investigators arrested 11 people Wednesday morning in an undercover operation aimed at firearms traffickers in the San Fernando Valley. Authorities said an undercover agent working during a yearlong operation for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives infiltrated a group that sold drugs and illegal firearms. Undercover agents were able to buy stolen firearms, machine guns and silencers during the investigation, said bureau spokesman Christian Hoffman.

Seven suspects named in indictments handed down last week by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles were arrested on charges related to the illegal sale of firearms and drugs. Three others named in the indictments remain fugitives. Three people were arrested during the raids on charges unrelated to the investigation and a fourth was arrested later in the day, Hoffman said.

The ATF investigation was done in conjunction with several other state and local agencies, including the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the LAPD.

Black student chained to locker, finds noose around dummy in alleged racial bullying incident

An African American student at Santa Monica High School says fellow members of the wrestling team chained him to a locker and hung a noose around a brown wrestling dummy.

The alleged racial incident is being investigated by Santa Monica police and school officials, who sent an email to parents earlier this month calling it a "serious matter that warranted a swift and appropriate response." The students accused were given "appropriate disciplinary consequences, including suspension," Principal Hugo A. Pedroza said in the email to parents.

The student and his mother, Victoria Gray, reported the incident to police on June 21. The incident happened more than a month ago, but Gray told The Times she was never notified by the school and didn't find out about the incident until May 31, when she heard about it from a parent she did not know.

The student walked into the school's wrestling room on May 4 and found a brown practice mannequin with a noose tied around its neck, according to the report made to authorities. He then went to the locker room to change and two students restrained him in a bear hug and used a cable and lock to chain his pants to a locker, according to the report. The students allegedly made racial remarks.

Sgt. Richard Lewis said that the students could face charges of assault and battery for allegedly restraining him, and that the racial nature of the encounter could constitute a hate crime.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/06/black-student-noose-chained-locker-racial-bullying-santa-monica.html

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Recognizing the Faces of Homeland Security: Heroes on the Front Lines

One of the most gratifying parts of my job is meeting DHS employees who are dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of communities across the country. People are often surprised to learn that almost 90 percent of the men and women of DHS are not located in the Washington, DC area, but work in all 50 states and in 75 countries around the world.

Today, as part of the Department's commemoration of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, we are launching Faces of Homeland Security: Heroes on the Front Lines to tell the stories of some of the inspiring DHS employees who have gone above and beyond to prevent terrorism, secure our borders, enforce our immigration laws, safeguard cyberspace and prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.

The stories we are highlighting are just a few examples of the thousands of dedicated professionals working everyday to keep our communities safe and secure. Just as inspiring as their dedication is their spirit of cooperation with our many federal, state, local, and private sector partners. As we often say, DHS isn't the team; we are part of the team. So over the next few months, we will be spotlighting examples of these essential partnerships as well.

I hope you will take a few minutes to read some of the stories behind the extraordinary men and women of DHS and our partners across the nation.

As citizens and businesspeople, families and communities, we all share the responsibility for our security. The dedication of these men and women to service exemplifies the very best of the American spirit. Together, we are making America safer, more resilient and stronger than ever.

http://blog.dhs.gov/2011/06/recognizing-faces-of-homeland-security.html

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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the STANCE Initiative Meeting/Neighborhood Crime Prevention Event

Thank you, Steve [Dettelbach]. I appreciate your kind words, and I'm especially grateful for your outstanding leadership of this city's United States Attorney's Office. You and your colleagues are doing extraordinary work to strengthen the communities you serve; to combat gun-, gang-, and drug-fueled violence; to improve public safety; and, especially, to ensure that young people across, and beyond, Cleveland have the chance to achieve their dreams and to unlock their potential.

Of course, you are not alone in this work. And it's encouraging to see so many of your partners here today. I want to thank each of you for joining us. Let me also thank the Boys and Girls Club for hosting this important meeting.

Today, together, we have an opportunity to discuss the goals and responsibilities that we share – to reach the young people who need our help most; and to ensure that violent crime rates – here in Cleveland and across the country – continue to head in the right direction. This gathering also provides a chance for us to explore new ways to build on the progress that's been achieved through STANCE, Standing Together Against Neighborhood Crime Everyday.

http://www.justice.gov/iso/opa/ag/speeches/2011/ag-speech-110628.html

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Three Men Each Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to 25 Years in Prison for Plotting to Bomb Bronx Synagogues and Shoot Down U.S. Military Planes

Manhattan U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA said: “James Cromitie, David Williams, and Onta Williams voluntarily agreed to target synagogues and military planes using what they thought were real bombs and missiles. As reflected in the sentences imposed by Judge McMahon, these were extremely serious crimes that targeted New York and its citizens. Today's sentences ensure that the defendants will be punished for their actions.”

http://www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2011/three-men-each-sentenced-in-manhattan-federal-court

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June 29, 2011

Where are fireworks allowed? Here's a list for L.A. County

A majority of cities in Los Angeles County ban "safe-and-sane" fireworks, according to the county fire department. In the county, 49 cities and all unincorporated areas ban fireworks. Thirty-nine cities permit safe-and-sane devices -- those that do not explode or fly. The state fire marshal determines which fireworks are considered "safe-and-sane," and they are labeled with a state seal.Most cities in L.A. County say that even "safe-and-sane" fireworks can be dangerous. Sparklers, for example, can reach temperatures of 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, and can cause serious burns and fires. Below is a list of cities in Los Angeles County that permit and ban fireworks sales:

"SAFE AND SANE" ALLOWED: Alhambra, Artesia, Azusa, Baldwin Park, Bell, Bellflower, Bell Gardens, Carson, Commerce, Compton, Cudahy, Downey, Duarte, El Monte, Gardena, Hawaiian Gardens, Hawthorne, Huntington Park, Industry, Inglewood, Irwindale, La Mirada, La Puente, Lakewood, Lawndale, Lynwood, Maywood, Montebello, Monterey Park, Norwalk, Palmdale, Paramount, Pico Rivera, Rosemead, San Gabriel, Santa Fe Springs, South El Monte, South Gate and Temple City.

NO FIREWORKS ALLOWED: All unincorporated communities, Agoura Hills, Arcadia, Avalon, Beverly Hills, Bradbury, Burbank, Calabasas, Cerritos, Claremont, Covina, Culver City, Diamond Bar, El Segundo, Glendale, Glendora, Hermosa Beach, Hidden Hills, La Cañada Flintridge, La Habra Heights, La Verne, Lancaster, Lomita, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Malibu, Manhattan Beach, Monrovia, Palos Verdes Estates, Pasadena, Pomona, Rancho Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach, Rolling Hills, Rolling Hills Estates, San Dimas, San Fernando, San Marino, Santa Clarita, Santa Monica, Sierra Madre, Signal Hill, South Pasadena, Torrance, Vernon, Walnut, West Covina, West Hollywood, Westlake Village and Whittier.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/06/safe-sane-fireworks-list-legal-los-angeles-county.html#more

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Generic drug ruling leaves out consumers

How is it that the maker of a brand-name pharmaceutical has to provide information about potential side effects but the companies that produce identical drugs don't?

Even Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court justice who wrote the majority opinion saying that makers of generic drugs don't have to warn patients about newly discovered dangers, agreed that the idea made little sense. How is it that the maker of a brand-name pharmaceutical has to provide information about potential side effects but the companies that produce identical drugs don't? If this is the price the public is expected to pay for cheaper drugs, it's far too high.

In a 5-4 decision issued last week, the court rejected lawsuits by two women who suffered serious side effects from generic versions of a medication used for stomach ailments. The women claimed that state law in Minnesota and Louisiana required all drug manufacturers to update their warning labels when they have new information about potential dangers. But the court noted that federal law put the generic drug makers into a bind by requiring such medications to carry the exact same warning labels as their brand-name equivalents. Brand-name drug makers are held responsible for giving consumers updated warnings, but what happens when a generic manufacturer discovers new problems with the same medication?

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-generics-20110629,0,3571354,print.story

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Violent Video Games Accessible To Kids

Youths in Eureka and Wildwood have a First Amendment right to buy violent video games, no matter how gory or graphic, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this week. A couple of Moms Council parents and a local game shop owner weigh in.

U.S. Supreme Court judges ruled Monday that retailers and rental places cannot deny children the right to buy violent video games. With a gaming shop located in Eureka, how does this new ruling affect local consumers?

In a decision that reversed a 2005 California law, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said access to violent video games is protected under the First Amendment, regardless of the consumer's age.

"No doubt a state possesses legitimate power to protect children from harm," Scalia said in the case's majority opinion. "But that does not include a free-floating power to restrict the ideas to which children may be exposed."

Owner of Eureka-based B&B Game Shop, Jay Hathaway, said no one typically asks him about game ratings. "Most parents, I'd say 99.9 percent, don't really care. Some come in with their kids asking about games together, but about the only time that happens is for really younger children."

http://eureka-wildwood.patch.com/articles/violent-video-games-accessible-to-kids

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The Nation: The Other Face Of Illegal Immigration

Courtney E. Martin is the author of the forthcoming Project Rebirth: Survival and the Strength of the Human Spirit from 9/11 Survivors and the recently released Do It Anyway: The New Generation of Activists . She is also an Editor for Feministing.

The contentious debate over immigration was given a human face last week when Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Jose Antonio Vargas outed himself as an undocumented immigrant in a New York Times Magazine article. In a very personal essay, Vargas detailed his journey from boyhood in the Philippines to a prestigious journalism career in the United States. Vargas admitted to breaking a number of laws to conceal his citizenship status over more than a decade of working illegally for a range of high-profile publications, including the Washington Post , the Huffington Post and The New Yorker . The essay quickly rose to the top of the "Most e-mailed"list at the Times and landed Vargas, and his compelling story, on a major media sites over the weekend.

Vargas's personal story is vital because it complicates the usual terms of the immigration debate: outsiders vs. insiders, deserving vs. undeserving, legal vs. illegal. After all, one can't help but see Vargas, though undocumented, as the consummate deserving insider — an American Dream hero incarnate, transcending race and class boundaries to make a real impact through his reporting. It's nearly impossible to see a picture of the goofy adolescent, who watched "Frasier"to better his English or hear the story of his choir teacher's admiration for him, and think "criminal."

http://www.npr.org/2011/06/29/137492580/the-nation-the-other-face-of-illegal-immigration

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June 28, 2011

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich 'stunned' by conviction

He's found guilty on 17 counts of corruption, including trying to sell the Senate seat formerly held by President Obama.

At his second trial in less than a year, former Illinois Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich was convicted Monday of 17 counts of corruption, including trying to sell the Senate seat formerly held by President Obama.

The voluble Democrat who won two terms as governor before being impeached and removed from office after his arrest on federal charges had little to say after the verdict. Holding his wife's hand, he spoke to a crush of reporters at the Chicago federal courthouse.

"Patti and I obviously are very disappointed in the outcome," he said. "I, frankly, am stunned. There's not much left to say other than we want to get home to our little girls and talk to them and explain things to them and try to sort things out. And I'm sure we'll be seeing you."

They have two daughters, ages 8 and 14. The couple walked to a waiting car while some in the crowd booed.

After deliberating for 10 days, jurors found that Blagojevich brazenly abused the powers of office in a series of attempted shakedowns captured on government undercover recordings. The jury of 11 women and one man found him guilty of wire fraud, attempted extortion, bribery and conspiracy as well as trying to sell Obama's Senate seat.

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-blagojevich-20110628,0,4110530,print.story

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Mexican priest alleges mass kidnapping of Central American migrants

Father Alejandro Solalinde says witnesses told him that at least 80 people were abducted from a train by masked gunmen in Veracruz state.

A Roman Catholic priest who has long championed the cause of migrant workers denounced on Monday what he said was another mass kidnapping of undocumented Central Americans, purportedly yanked from a train by masked gunmen in southern Mexico.

Father Alejandro Solalinde, who runs the Hermanos en el Camino shelter for migrants, said at least 80 people mainly from Guatemala and Honduras were apparently abducted Friday in Veracruz state. He based his claim on information from several members of the group who said they managed to escape.

If the report is true, it would be the latest in a string of cases in which armed gangs have intercepted illegal immigrants on their voyage across Mexico to the United States. The gangs often try to extort money from the immigrants' families or force them to work as drug mules or in other tasks.

Many of those abducted have ended up in mass graves; in the worst massacre of such migrants, 72 were slain execution-style last year in Tamaulipas state, which borders Texas.

Mexico's National Human Rights Commission demanded that Solalinde's assertions be investigated swiftly and that the missing immigrants be rescued. The commission says it documented the kidnapping or disappearance of 11,333 immigrants in a six-month period last year and criticized the government for failing to improve safety conditions.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico-migrants-20110628,0,506038,print.story

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Officials warn of cocaine additive that causes 'serious skin reactions'

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is warning the public about a new additive in cocaine that scientists say has given users in Los Angeles and New York “serious skin reactions.”

Though the statement from the Sheriff's Department was quick to clarify that the information was being provided as a public service and officials did not “endorse products or services,” it included information from a June 21 article in ScienceDaily in which doctors warned of a “potential public health epidemic.”

The article cited a report in which doctors said six patients in the two cities had developed purple blotches on their ears, nose, cheeks and other body parts after using cocaine that doctors believe was contaminated with levamisole, a cheap veterinary medicine commonly used to deworm livestock.

Officials believe the medication is being used to dilute up to 70% of cocaine in the United States.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/06/cocaine-additive-warning.html#more

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Goldberg: Rage against the TSA machine

The agency's airport screening policy seems to be that you hassle everyone equally, even a 95-year-old with leukemia.

The backdrop for my favorite science-fiction novels, Frank Herbert's "Dune" series, is something called the Butlerian Jihad. Some 10,000 years before the main events of the story take place, humanity rebelled against "thinking machines" — intelligent computers — controlling people's lives. The revolution was sparked because a computer decided to kill, without the consent of any human authority, the baby of a woman named Jehanne Butler.

I bring this up because I'm wondering why we can't have a Weberian Jihad.

Its namesake would be Jean Weber, a 105-pound, 95-year-old Florida woman whose daughter claims was forced by airport security to remove her adult diaper in compliance with a body search. Weber is dying of leukemia. She did not have another clean diaper for her trip.

The Transportation Security Administration belatedly denied forcing the removal of the diaper. Sari Koshetz, a spokeswoman for the TSA, insisted that the agency was sensitive and respectful in dealing with travelers, but she also told the Northwest Florida Daily News that procedures have to be the same for everyone: "TSA cannot exempt any group from screening because we know from intelligence that there are terrorists out there that would then exploit that vulnerability."

That's apparently why Drew Mandy, a 29-year-old disabled man with the mental capacity of a 2-year-old, had his 6-inch plastic toy hammer yanked from him by TSA on his way to Disney World. Mandy used the hammer as a security blanket of sorts. But the TSA agents insisted it could be used as a weapon. "It just killed me to have to throw it away because he's been carrying this, like, for 20 years," Mandy's father told WJBK in Detroit. What his dad doesn't understand is that if Islamic terrorists can't have plastic toy hammers, no one can.

Mandy's father says he wrote to the TSA and got an apology and a promise that agents would be retrained, but horror stories like these keep mounting. I'd tell you how thorough the TSA search was of blogger and advice columnist Amy Alkon (who collects such tales), but this is a family newspaper. Suffice it to say, your government left nothing to chance.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-goldberg-tsa-20110628,0,7734612,print.column

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Drop-side cribs barred, even at garage sales

WASHINGTON — Beginning today, the government is prohibiting the manufacture, sale or resale of drop-side baby cribs, even at neighborhood yard and garage sales.

Ushering in one of the most significant changes in child safety in decades, the federal rule taking effect this week bans the manufacture, sale and resale of the cribs, which have been blamed in the deaths of dozens of children.

Another significant part of the new federal standard mandates more rigorous safety tests for cribs before they hit the market.

http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_18365795

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U.S. Plans Stealth Survey on Access to Doctors

WASHINGTON — Alarmed by a shortage of primary care doctors, Obama administration officials are recruiting a team of “mystery shoppers” to pose as patients, call doctors' offices and request appointments to see how difficult it is for people to get care when they need it.

The administration says the survey will address a “critical public policy problem”: the increasing shortage of primary care doctors, including specialists in internal medicine and family practice. It will also try to discover whether doctors are accepting patients with private insurance while turning away those in government health programs that pay lower reimbursement rates.

Federal officials predict that more than 30 million Americans will gain coverage under the health care law passed last year. “These newly insured Americans will need to seek out new primary care physicians, further exacerbating the already growing problem” of a shortage of such physicians in the United States, the Department of Health and Human Services said in a description of the project prepared for the White House.

Plans for the survey have riled many doctors because the secret shoppers will not identify themselves as working for the government.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/health/policy/27docs.html

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National HIV Testing Day 2011

Note: Today President Obama issued a statement on National HIV Testing Day

Thirty years ago, at the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, there was no test for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. For many, there was only the long and worrisome wait for the signs of infection. Once those signs appeared, no treatment for the virus was available. I personally cared for many, many patients in this era, and I am thankful that those days are over. Today, HIV testing is accurate, widely available, and often free—and treatment can help people living with HIV enjoy long, healthy lives, especially when they get diagnosed early.

The good news is that more people are being tested for HIV than ever before. It is estimated that almost 83 million American adults between 18 and 64 have been tested for HIV, as of 2009. That's an increase of more than 11 million from 2006 when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that HIV testing become a routine part of medical care for adults and adolescents.

However, more than half of American adults still have never taken an HIV test. That's why we need to spread that message that HIV testing saves lives and why today, June 27th, National HIV Testing Day, is an important reminder for us to reach as many people as possible with this life-saving information. Founded by the National Association of People with AIDS, National HIV Testing Day (NHTD) focuses on promoting HIV testing and early diagnosis of HIV across the United States. The day's theme “Take the Test. Take Control.” emphasizes that knowing one's HIV status – whether it's positive or negative – is empowering.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/06/27/national-hiv-testing-day-2011-0

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June 27, 2011

National security and a less-restrained FBI

The FBI is downplaying changes in its rules. But they add up to a substantial expansion of its power to monitor Americans.

Less than three years after the last major revision of its domestic surveillance guidelines, the FBI is preparing to loosen its restrictions on monitoring Americans. If this is not halted, we might find our privacy eroded beyond repair.

Agents are already free to search the public Internet and the federal government's vast and growing databases for information on groups or individuals — even if they aren't suspected of wrongdoing — without approval from a supervisor. Under rules implemented in 2008, they can go still further, digging up information in broader commercial databases, or consulting state and local law enforcement records, provided they open an "assessment." That isn't the same as an "investigation," which requires grounds for suspicion of criminal activity, but opening an assessment means that agents must at least create a paper trail and identify a legitimate purpose for their inquiries.

In 2008, we were told these rules would give the FBI the flexibility it needed to "proactively" ferret out national security threats. Now the FBI says these lax limits on its power are still too cumbersome: The next edition of the bureau's operational manual will give agents leeway to search all those databases with no approval or explanation, without opening an assessment and creating a paper trail.

We've heard the complaint about "cumbersome" record-keeping before. According to a 2010 report from the Office of the Inspector General, FBI analysts refused to use an electronic system that would track demands for sensitive phone and Internet records, on the grounds that entering all that data was too burdensome. In reality, the inspector general found, employees were engaged in "widespread and serious misuse" of domestic spying authorities and sought to avoid oversight and accountability.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-sanchez-fbi-20110627,0,43894,print.story

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ATF and Congress under the gun

The agency failed in a border operation that let guns fall into criminals' hands. But Congress has failed to adopt sensible laws to prevent mass 'straw purchases' of arms destined for use in crimes.

A congressional subcommittee has spent much of the last month investigating how a border security operation code named "Fast and Furious" allowed hundreds of guns to fall into the hands of criminals on both sides of the Mexican border.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives launched Fast and Furious in 2009 as part of a program to track guns sold in the United States to Mexican drug cartels. Agents were assigned to monitor some 2,000 guns that were sold to "straw purchasers" who knowingly bought weapons intended for use by others. The agency did not intercept the guns and later lost track of about 1,700 of them. Some of the guns eventually turned up at crime scenes in both countries, including two found at the site in Arizona where a federal Border Patrol agent was killed.

Buying dozens of guns at a time is legal in many states, including Arizona and Texas. But lying on a form at a gun shop about who will own the gun is a crime.

Congress is rightfully angry that the operation went awry, and it should demand an explanation. The ATF must be held accountable and must provide answers.

But it is worth noting that the ATF is charged with an impossible mission: enforcing weak laws in a nation awash in firearms, where even the most modest attempts to regulate or prevent mass straw purchases invite accusations of infringements on 2nd Amendment rights from the gun lobby.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-guns-20110627,0,87556,print.story

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TSA stands by officers after pat-down of elderly woman in Florida

(CNN) -- The Transportation Security Administration stood by its security officers Sunday after a Florida woman complained that her cancer-stricken, 95-year-old mother was patted down and forced to remove her adult diaper while going through security.

Reports of the incident took hold in social media, with scores of comments on the topic and reposts appearing hourly on Twitter Sunday afternoon.

The TSA released a statement Sunday defending its agents' actions at the Northwest Florida Regional Airport.

"While every person and item must be screened before entering the secure boarding area, TSA works with passengers to resolve security alarms in a respectful and sensitive manner," the federal agency said. "We have reviewed the circumstances involving this screening and determined that our officers acted professionally and according to proper procedure."

Jean Weber told CNN's Fredricka Whitfield on Sunday that the security officers may have been procedurally correct, but she still does not believe they were justified, especially given her mother's frail condition.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/06/26/florida.tsa.incident/

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