Revisiting the 2nd Amendment's right to bear arms

So far the courts have limited guns mostly to the home. But the National Rifle Assn. is asking the Supreme Court to clarify that the right extends further.

The 2nd Amendment's "right to keep and bear arms" is proving to be a right to keep a gun at home, but so far not a right to bear a loaded firearm in public.

The Supreme Court breathed new life into the amendment when it struck down strict handgun bans in Washington and Chicago and spoke of the "inherent right of self-defense."

But to the dismay of gun rights advocates, judges in recent months have read those decisions narrowly and rejected claims from those who said they had a constitutional right to carry a loaded gun on their person or in their car. Instead, these judges from California to Maryland have said the "core right" to a gun is limited to the home.

Now, the National Rifle Assn. is asking the high court to take up the issue this fall and "correct the widespread misapprehension that the 2nd Amendment's scope does not extend beyond the home."

Stephen Halbrook, an NRA lawyer, said "some judges have buried their heads in the sand and have refused to go one step further" than saying there is a right to have a gun at home.

The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence hailed the trend and called the high court's rulings a "hollow victory" for gun enthusiasts. "The gun lobby has tried to expand [the 2nd Amendment] into a broad right to carry any type of gun anywhere. And they have been almost unanimously rejected by the courts," said Jonathan Lowy, director of legal action. He conceded, however, that "this battle is far from over."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-court-guns-20110827,0,4304914,print.story

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Is Homeland Security spending paying off?

A decade after the Sept. 11 attacks, federal and state governments are doling out about $75 billion a year on domestic security. Whether the spending spree has been worth it is the subject of increasing debate.

On the edge of the Nebraska sand hills is Lake McConaughy, a 22-mile-long reservoir that in summer becomes a magnet for Winnebagos, fishermen and kite sailors. But officials here in Keith County, population 8,370, imagined this scene: An Al Qaeda sleeper cell hitching explosives onto a water-skiing boat and plowing into the dam at the head of the lake.

The federal Department of Homeland Security ago gave the county $42,000 to buy state-of-the-art dive gear, including full-face masks, underwater lights and radios, and a Zodiac boat with side-scan sonar capable of mapping wide areas of the lake floor.

Up on the lonely prairie around Cherry County, population 6,148, got thousands of federal dollars for cattle nose leads, halters and electric prods – in case terrorists decided to mount biological warfare against cows.

In the Los Angeles suburb of Glendale, where police fear militants might be eyeing DreamWorks Animation or the Disney creative campus, a $205,000 Homeland Security grant bought a 9-ton BearCat armored vehicle, complete with turret. More than 300 BearCats — many acquired with federal money — are now deployed by police across the country; the arrests of methamphetamine dealers and bank robbers these days often look much like a tactical assault on insurgents in Baghdad.

A decade after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, federal and state governments are spending about $75 billion a year on domestic security, setting up sophisticated radio networks, upgrading emergency medical response equipment, installing surveillance cameras and bomb-proof walls, and outfitting airport screeners to detect an ever-evolving list of mobile explosives.

But how effective has that 10-year spending spree been?

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/september11/la-na-911-homeland-money-20110828,0,2917680,print.story

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Sanctuary city? Not L.A.

It's widely asserted that Los Angeles illegally shields undocumented immigrants from federal authorities. That is utterly false.

In the ever-divisive debate over the proper role of local police in enforcing federal immigration law, there is a recurrent theme, especially as it involves Los Angeles: Critics complain that this and other municipalities have become "sanctuary cities," in which those in the country illegally are shielded from immigration authorities. That complaint is widespread — it's a regular feature of letters to the editor of this newspaper, and it crops up in politics at all levels. Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman argued it during her failed effort against Jerry Brown. Even Wikipedia lists Los Angeles as a sanctuary city.

That's widely believed. It's also utterly false. In a sanctuary city, the city government either actively protects undocumented immigrants from arrest or declines to cooperate with those who oversee deportations, sometimes by limiting the use of city funds. Los Angeles does none of that. The police regularly cooperate with immigration officials; recent joint efforts include gang and drug cases and investigations of organized crime. Every suspect booked by the LAPD or Sheriff's Department is fingerprinted, and those prints are shared with immigration authorities. Every day, men and women who are here illegally — either because they sneaked across the border or overstayed their visas — are removed from Los Angeles and sent home.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-sanctuary-20110825,0,6932117,print.story

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August 27, 2011

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Calderon calls on U.S. society to curb its drug use

Obama's statement said:

I strongly condemn the barbaric and reprehensible attack in Monterrey, Mexico, yesterday. On behalf of the American people, our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families at this difficult time.

The president called Mexico's campaign against organized crime groups "a brave fight" and said the U.S. "will remain a partner in this fight." The statement renewed a consistent American commitment since President George W. Bush's administration to support Calderon, in office since late 2006, and his government's efforts against powerful drug cartels.

On Friday, Calderon visited the site of the attack that killed more than 50 gamblers and employees at the popular Casino Royale in Mexico's wealthiest city. Calderon again issued a call to the U.S. to do more to tackle the American demand for drugs and the smuggling of weapons into Mexico.

In the prepared remarks released by the president's office, Calderon said the extortion-related attack in Monterrey was due to one primary factor, "the movement and sale of drugs to the United States."

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laplaza/2011/08/mexico-drug-war-obama-calderon-reaction-twitter-society-casino-attack.html

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'Pipeline' drug tunnel discovered in Calexico, across from Mexicali

First, it was apparently meant to be a "pipeline tunnel" where drugs could be conveyed from Mexico to the U.S. through a PVC pipe that is 4 inches in diameter. Most tunnels are much larger so bales of marijuana can be smuggled in. Second, digging began in the U.S., not Mexico. The tunnel had advanced southward about 100 yards but had not yet crossed into Mexicali, officials said.

Tunneling equipment was found, but no arrests were made. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents began investigating after neighbors complained of a possible gas leak. In March, state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris was shown a drug tunnel in Calexico and immediately vowed to add investigators to keep the Calexico area from being a corridor for massive amounts of drugs to enter the U.S.

"What happens here has impact and effect throughout the state of California," she said.

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

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Obama: 9/11 A National Day of Service, Remembrance

U.S. President Barack Obama says the 10th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks should be a National Day of Remembrance and Service.

During his weekly address Saturday, Obama urged the nation to honor the victims of the attacks with an act of service or charity.

The president says he and first lady Michelle will participate in a local service project, and he urged citizens to get involved by logging onto the website Serve.gov.

Obama is appealing to citizens to show the same compassion displayed after the September 2001 attacks, and volunteer their services as the victims are remembered.
President Obama also said he and the first lady will be joining commemorations at New York's Ground Zero, in Shanksville, Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon. Nearly 3,000 people were killed during the terrorist acts at the three locations.

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/Obama-911-A-National-Day-of-Service-Remembrance-128521108.html

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New Digital Tools: FEMA App and Text Message Updates

• Check off the items you have in your family's emergency kit,
  
  
• Enter your family emergency meeting locations,
  
  
• Review safety tips on what to do before, during and after a disaster,
  
  
• View a map of shelters and disaster recovery centers across the U.S., and
  
  
• Read our latest blog posts.

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Situational Alert Regarding Charitable Contribution Schemes

In light of Hurricane Irene, the public is reminded to beware of fraudulent e-mails and websites claiming to conduct charitable relief efforts. Disasters prompt individuals with criminal intent to solicit contributions purportedly for a charitable organization or a good cause.

To learn more about avoiding online fraud, please see "Tips on Avoiding Fraudulent Charitable Contribution Schemes" at: http://www.ic3.gov/media/2011/110311.aspx.

For updates and tIps on preparing for hurricanes and other emergencies, go to Ready America at ready.gov.

More E-Scams

http://www.fbi.gov/news/news_blog/charity_082611

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August 26, 2011

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Tripoli chaos raises fear of missiles going to terrorists

The U.S., mindful of lessons from Iraq, has urged Libyan rebels to secure weapons depots to prevent shoulder-fired missiles and others from falling into the hands of Al Qaeda and its affiliates.

In November 2002, Al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists fired two shoulder-launched missiles at a chartered Israeli passenger jet as it took off from Mombasa, Kenya.

Both shots missed, but it was an unnerving reminder that portable surface-to-air missiles have hit 40 civilian aircraft since 1975, mostly in war zones, causing 28 crashes and killing more than 800 people, according to a State Department report.

The collapse of Moammar Kadafi's regime in Libya has prompted fear that terrorists may obtain shoulder-fired missiles from Libyan weapons depots, just as Iraqi insurgents pilfered arsenals after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Pentagon officials have estimated that Kadafi's forces had 20,000 portable missiles. Most are Soviet-made SA-7s from the 1970s, however, and may not be operational. But a Russian company recently said that it had sold Kadafi's military an unspecified number of SA-24s, which are more modern.

The Obama administration has urged Libyan rebels to secure the depots and is cautioning nearby countries to watch for missiles or other munitions being smuggled across their borders.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-libya-shoulder-missiles-20110826,0,7844742,print.story

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Ariz. sues feds over Voting Rights Act

State's lawsuit claims law is unconstitutional; Holder defends requirement

Arizona is challenging the law's requirement that the state seek Justice Department approval for any changes in how elections are conducted. Many states are subject to the law's pre-clearance requirement, generally to remedy past restrictions that discouraged minority voting.

"Arizona is still penalized for archaic violations that were corrected with the implementation of bilingual ballots prior to the 1974 elections," said the state's Attorney General Tom Horne. He noted that in 1974, Arizona became the second state to elect a Hispanic governor.

The state's lawsuit claims the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional, Horne said, "because it suspects all changes to state election law, however innocuous, until pre-clearance is given by the federal government."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44280196/ns/politics-more_politics/

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Community Policing Defined

Community policing is a philosophy that promotes organizational strategies, which support the systematic use of partnerships and problem-solving techniques, to proactively address the immediate conditions that give rise to public safety issues such as crime, social disorder, and fear of crime.

Community Policing is comprised of three key components:

• Community Partnerships
  
• Organizational Transformation
  
• Problem Solving

To learn more about Community Policing, please refer to our Community Policing Defined publication.

http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/print.asp?item=36

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Opinion

Winning crime statistics but failing communities

A recently published Journal Sentinel interview with Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn over policing goals, and the subsequent support of his policy by Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, suggests that police cannot protect the community against violent crime and provide the kind of police coverage to Milwaukee neighborhoods necessary to stem the hemorrhaging of citizens' quality of life.

If that is true, the chief and mayor need to be confronted by the reality that the citizens who are paying the bills aren't happy with the decisions they have made.

It is apparently easier to quantify crime statistics than the growing fragility of communities, and it is important to point out that the delays in service result in criminals becoming emboldened. When the police actually implemented community policing, not just talked about it, they realized that homes are not just property.

For most of us, homes represent our biggest single investment and represent our personal "castles." Beyond the economic disaster of property depreciation, which we are all living through, many neighborhoods are losing their sterling reputations for being a place to live and raise families.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/128427553.html

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Facebook, Myspace Tied to Teen Substance Abuse Risk

WASHINGTON – Substance abuse is a bigger problem for adolescents who daily spend time on social networking sites such as Facebook and Myspace, as 70% of American adolescents say they do, according to a survey released Aug. 24 by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.

Of those adolescents, 26% reported drinking alcohol, 10% reported using tobacco, and 13% reported using marijuana. The numbers are much lower for adolescents who do not frequent these sites: 9% for alcohol, 2% for tobacco, and 7% for marijuana.

In addition, adolescents who had seen photos on social networking sites of children and adolescents who were drunk, passed out, or using drugs had a greater likelihood of substance abuse and were more likely to have easy access to alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drugs without a prescription.

CASA Columbia randomly selected households and surveyed more than 2,000 adolescents aged 12-17 years – and about 500 of their parents – over the telephone and the Internet. CASA conducted this 16th annual national survey during March-May 2011, not to determine the percentage of teens who smoke, drink, and use drugs, but rather to identify factors that affect the likelihood of substance abuse.

http://www.familypracticenews.com/index.php?id=2934&type=98&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=62360&cHash=da03e20e36

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August 25, 2011

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Hurricane Preparedness Tips and Resources to Help Keep Your Family Safe

Hurricane Irene is barreling down on the U.S., a monster storm packing winds of more than 100 miles per hour as it batters the Bahamas. In the next few days, the storm could hit the Outer Banks of North Carolina, or even the Mid-Atlantic and New England states.

The storm will disrupt lives. Millions of people could be affected.

Don't wait until the last minute to get ready. Now is the time to make preparations to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.

Here are some tips from the Federal Emergency Management Agency:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/hurricane-preparedness-tips-resources-family-safe/story?id=14376306

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AP Reveals Strong Ties Between New York Police, A McLean Secret Neighbor

CIA veterans helped organize NYPD intelligence unit

The Associated Press published a fascinating story Tuesday about one of McLean's most secret neighbors and its ties to the New York City Police Department's Intelligence unit.

Why is this news? The neighbors, the CIA, are prohibited by law from spying on Americans.

"The NYPD has become one of the country's most aggressive domestic intelligence agencies. A months-long investigation by The Associated Press has revealed that the NYPD operates far outside its borders and targets ethnic communities in ways that would run afoul of civil liberties rules if practiced by the federal government. And it does so with unprecedented help from the CIA in a partnership that has blurred the bright line between foreign and domestic spying," the AP reported.

A veteran CIA officer, while still on the agency's payroll, was the architect of the NYPD's intelligence programs. The CIA trained a police detective at the Farm, the agency's spy school in Virginia, then returned him to New York, where he put his new espionage skills to work inside the United States, according to the fast-paced engrossing AP story.

http://mclean.patch.com/articles/ap-reveals-strong-ties-between-new-york-police-a-mclean-secret-neighbor

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August 24, 2011

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Match.com agrees to screen for sex offenders to settle lawsuit

The plaintiff, who was assaulted after a date with a convicted sexual predator, sought no monetary compensation. But the company's promise to screen all members is expected to spark a new industry norm.

Match.com settled a lawsuit brought by a sexual assault victim by agreeing Tuesday to conduct background checks on all members to screen out known sex offenders.

Screenwriter Carole Markin proclaimed victory for the millions of singles who make use of online dating services, saying Match.com's commitment to security screening could prevent attacks such as the one she suffered last year on a second date with Alan Paul Wurtzel of Pacific Palisades, who had at least six previous sex offense convictions.

Wurtzel, 67, pleaded no contest to sexual battery last week. He faces a year in jail and five years' probation when he is sentenced Sept. 19.

Markin's suit, originally filed under the name Jane Doe, trained a spotlight on the perils of computer-generated hookups in an age when, as Match.com advertises, 1 in 5 relationships begins online.

Internet matchmaking services have long had disclaimers on their websites, warning clients that they bear no liability for physical, financial or other harm that occurs during use of their services. But legal experts said it was only a matter of time before courts recognized some responsibility of the billion-dollar operations to take affordable and readily available precautions to protect their members.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-match-20110824,0,3641265,print.story

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California mental hospitals are dangerous, legislators told

Violence is an increasing problem, as reflected by a patient's slaying of a psychiatric technician, witnesses say. More than 90% of current patients have been arrested or convicted of crimes.

Reporting from Sacramento -- At an Assembly committee hearing on safety issues at the state's mental hospitals, lawmakers Tuesday received testimony about faulty alarm systems, daily assaults and an increasing number of patients with criminal histories.

Assemblyman Michael Allen (D-Santa Rosa) convened the Select Committee on Hospital Safety to explore solutions to violence at California's five psychiatric facilities.

"All you need to know is that last year we had over 8,000 aggressive incidents and over 5,000 injuries," said Allen, a former psychiatric nurse. "Every one of those incidents is a tragedy in its own right."

The hearing came 10 months to the day after Napa psychiatric technician Donna Gross was strangled by a patient with a history of predatory violence while on the outside grounds, where alarms do not work. Gross, 54, had spent nearly 14 years caring for the mentally ill. A family friend read a letter Tuesday from her adult daughter, Anna Bock, that stressed that reform has not come fast enough.

"The damage by countless assaults on patients and staff has no doubt spread like a sickness to their families," Bock wrote. "Each moment that passes without change allows another split second for an attack to take place."

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-state-mental-hospitals-20110824,0,6638912,print.story

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Earthquake: What to Do in a Major Crisis

You're sitting at your desk, or in your kitchen, and all of a sudden the building begins to wobble. To some people, the 5.8-magnitude earthquake in central Virginia Tuesday felt like a gentle rolling. To others, closer to the epicenter, it was more violent.

And then it was over. People from New England to the Carolinas were left asking, "What was that?"

If you live in California or southern Alaska, you probably know what to do in an earthquake. But Easterners don't often feel tremors, and may not know how to react in a major emergency. The Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles in 1994 had a magnitude of 6.7 -- not quite ten times as violent as Tuesday's in Virginia -- and at least 33 people died.

Here are some pointers from FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency if you are caught in a major earthquake:

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/earthquake-caught-crisis/story?id=14367071

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Florida Court Denies Casey Anthony's Probation Appeal

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Casey Anthony must still report to serve one year's probation in Florida, after her appeal against a judge's ruling on the matter was denied Tuesday, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

Judge Belvin Perry ruled earlier in August that Anthony had until Aug. 26 to return to Florida to serve 12 months' probation for a check-fraud conviction, upholding a sentence by Judge Stan Strickland.

Her attorneys filed an appeal in Daytona Beach with Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal, arguing that she had served her probation while she was in jail awaiting her murder trial.

Anthony was acquitted of first-degree murder on July 5 in the death of her two-year-old daughter Caylee.

"The petitioner and her lawyers were well aware that her probationary placement was not to begin until her release from confinement," the court order issued Tuesday stated.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/08/24/florida-court-denies-casey-anthonys-probation-appeal/?test=latestnews

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August 23, 2011

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The 'West Memphis Three' and combating cognitive biases

The case shows we see what we expect to see. That can mean innocent people go to jail while criminals remain free.

Last week, the "West Memphis Three" were released from prison, having spent half their lives — 18 years — behind bars for crimes they almost certainly didn't commit. So what made prosecutors and investigators sure they had the right guys, and why were those beliefs, once established, so hard to reverse?

The crimes for which the three Memphis men were convicted were brutal. Three 8-year-old Cub Scouts were found dead, hogtied and apparently mutilated. The police decided early on that it was likely the boys had been victims of a satanic cult killing, which led them to consider self-described Wiccan teen Damien Echols, a young man with asymmetric black hair, a pale face and oddball taste in clothes and music. They hauled in an acquaintance of his, a minor named Jessie Misskelley, who had an IQ of 72, and interviewed him for hours without his parents or an attorney present. Finally, he confessed, implicating Echols and another friend, Jason Baldwin.

The confession confirmed what police expected to hear — that Echols was involved — which may be why they accepted it at face value. But Misskelley's account contradicted the evidence in multiple ways. The time he initially gave for the murders was noon, an hour for which the other teens had an ironclad alibi (they were in school); he said that the other suspects raped the boys, but the medical evidence showed no physical trauma consistent with rape and no semen was found in any body cavity; he said the boys were tied up with a brown rope, when they were actually found tied with their own shoestrings.

Obama's promising move on immigration

He's outlined a sensible plan that offers at least temporary relief for deserving students, veterans, the elderly, crime victims and those with family — including same-sex partners — in the United States.

When the Obama administration last week announced its intention to review the cases of 300,000 immigrants ensnared in the nation's deportation process, as well as to institute new guidelines going forward — with the goal of distinguishing between those who pose threats to public safety from those who are merely in the country illegally — reaction reverberated along well-worn lines. Enforcement hawks denounced the move as amnesty; immigration doves responded warily, worried that it would substitute for more comprehensive efforts to fix the nation's broken immigration system.

Both sides have reason for concern. Nevertheless, failing to please the extremes in this debate is hardly proof of failure. In fact, this is a sensible plan that offers at least temporary relief for deserving students, veterans, the elderly, crime victims and those with family — including same-sex partners — in the United States. It should not substitute for broader reform, but it will relieve some needless suffering until such a measure passes, as it must.

Among those who will receive the benefits of the administration's action are so-called DREAM Act students, young men and women in the country because their parents brought them here as children and who now are enrolled in American colleges and universities. To deport these students after investing in their education is neither smart nor compassionate; Obama's policy will effectively allow them to stay, at least for a time, by acknowledging the obvious fact that they are more desirable than immigrants who have committed crimes while in the United States. Illegal immigrants who have served in the U.S. military would receive the same protection.

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-immigration-20110822,0,447501,print.story

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LAPD investigates hate crime at San Fernando Valley synagogue

Los Angeles police are investigating a hate crime at a West Hills synagogue where suspects spray-painted two swastikas and "Go Home" on the congregation's property, officials said Monday.

The graffiti, which also included the numbers "666" within the swastikas, was discovered about 6:30 a.m. Monday spray painted on the corner of temporary offices at the Temple Judea satellite campus in the 6600 block of Valley Circle Boulevard, according to LAPD officials.

There was no immediate description of a suspect or suspects, police said. The incident is being investigated at a hate crime.

"Obviously, it's upsetting, but we don't feel like we are in any danger," said Ellen Franklin, executive director of Temple Judea, which has its main campus in Tarzana. "We are thankful for the immediate response by the LAPD and their investigation."

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/08/lapd-investigates-hate-crime-at-west-valley-synagogue.html

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Scotland

MoD 'old style policing' cuts crime in Helensburgh

Anti-social behaviour and youth disorder in a large housing estate have been cut by 80%, after a community policing programme was introduced.

The Churchill estate in Helensburgh houses Ministry of Defence workers from the nearby Faslane naval base.

It has been blighted in the past by high rates of petty crime.

Now the MoD police claim a community programme based on "old fashioned policing" has helped reduce trouble and cut crime rates.

The estate is one of a number of sites in the UK with houses built for MoD workers, and is home to about 1,000 military and civilian families.

Three years ago the MoD police dedicated two community police officers to the area to tackle problems including youths drinking in the streets, vandalism and petty crime.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-14616464

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Always Remember. Never Forget.

A decade has now passed since the tragic attacks of 9/11, when terrorists exploited our nation's aviation system to kill nearly 3,000 innocent men, women, and children, including citizens of more than 90 countries.

Now, ten years after the worst terrorist attacks ever on American soil, America is stronger and more resilient than ever before. But threats from terrorism persist and challengers remain.

Over the past decade, we have made great strides to secure our nation against a large attack or disaster, to protect our critical infrastructure and cyber networks, and to engage a broader range of Americans in the shared responsibility for security.

Together with our many partners across the federal government, the public and private sectors, and in communities across the country and around the world, DHS has worked to build and strengthen a homeland security enterprise that mitigates and defends against dynamic threats, minimizes risks, and maximizes our ability to respond to – and recover from – attacks and disasters of all kinds.

http://www.dhs.gov/files/9-11-ten-years.shtm

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TSA 10 Years After 9/11

http://blog.dhs.gov/2011/08/tsa-10-years-after-911.html

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Two Somali Pirates Sentenced to Life in Prison for Attack that Resulted in Murder of Four U.S. Citizens

NORFOLK, VA—Ali Abdi Mohamed, a/k/a Basher, 30, and Burhan Abdirahman Yusuf, a/k/a Burhan or Famah, 31, both of Somalia, were sentenced today in Norfolk federal court to life in prison for their roles in the pirate attack against the S/V Quest, which resulted in the murder of four United States citizens.

Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Janice K. Fedarcyk, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI's New York Field Office; Alex J. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Norfolk Field Office; and Mark Russ, Special Agent in Charge of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) in Norfolk, made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Mark S. Davis.

“Piracy is a scourge that threatens nations, commerce, and individual lives,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “This is the first case where American lives have been lost due to Somali piracy, and as Somali pirates expand their territory, the risk of violence and harm to others continues to grow. Today's sentences send a message to all those who participate in piracy that armed attacks on the high seas carry lifelong consequences.”

“The pirates' vain attempt to obtain ransom, after nine days at sea, ended in the death of four Americans. Today's life sentences will be heard throughout the pirate community—and should send a clear message—that the days of unbridled armed robbery and extortion at sea are over. The only plunder these pirates earned is life behind bars,” said Assistant Director in Charge Janice K. Fedarcyk.

http://www.fbi.gov/norfolk/press-releases/2011/two-somali-pirates-sentenced-to-life-in-prison-for-attack-that-resulted-in-murder-of-four-u.s.-citizens

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August 22, 2011

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Relief delayed for prisoners deemed wrongfully convicted

U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson failed for years to rule on a number of eligible habeas corpus petitions. In one case, the prisoner died in the sixth year of the judge's inaction.

Justice delayed was justice denied for Omer Harland Gallion. He died in prison in his sixth year of waiting for U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson to act on a decision that he had been wrongfully convicted and should be released or retried.

Anderson took no action until December, when he dismissed the matter as moot after an attorney brought Gallion's death to his attention.

Two other cases in which junior judicial officials found grounds for striking prisoners' felony convictions also languished unattended by Anderson for five and a half and eight years, respectively. Another prisoner who petitioned for relief in 2002 is still waiting for an answer.

Prisoners who appeal to federal judges with claims of wrongful conviction are rarely successful in their quests for relief, known as writs of habeas corpus, "the great writ" that is a hallmark of American justice. Only 1 in 284 petitions is approved, according to a 2006 report by a Vanderbilt University law professor. But ignoring recommendations for relief in the few meritorious cases among the 17,000 or so filed each year raises concern about a judge's objectivity, judicial scholars say.

Anderson declined to discuss the delays. Legal experts say the years-long inaction is highly unusual, even given the complexity of many habeas petitions that raise dozens of issues about the fairness of a prisoner's trial and sentence. Some attribute the delays to the court's staggering caseload and judges' obligation under the Speedy Trial Act to give priority to pending criminal cases. Others question Anderson's objectivity in prisoners' cases and speculate that he may be dismissive of their claims of mistreatment.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-judge-delays-20110822,0,1593724,print.story

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