Tragedy and tourism: 9/11 memorial draws millionth visitor

According to a post on the memorial's website, visitors came from all 50 U.S. states and from 120 countries to view the memorial since it opened to the public on Sept. 12.

“For 10 years, people were only able to walk the perimeter of the World Trade Center site, stealing glances at the progress through construction fences,” 9/11 Memorial President Joe Daniels stated. “More than 1 million people have returned to this sacred ground to pay their respects, and are able to witness the rebuilding of the World Trade Center all around them. It humbles us to see that the public's will to commemorate the victims of 9/11 is as strong as ever.”

Nearly 3,000 people died in the coordinated attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, when four passenger jets were hijacked by 19 terrorists from Al Qaeda. Two planes were crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, and both towers collapsed within hours.

A third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. Passengers attempted to retake control of the fourth plane before it could reach Washington, D.C., forcing it to crash in a field near Shanksville, Penn.

There have been annual commemorations at all three sites but this year's was especially poignant, with President Obama and his predecessor, President Bush, leading the nation in mourning on the 10th anniversary. The next day, the site opened to the public.

The number of visitors has grown quickly, but there are still some questions associated with the tribute.

Work at a planned museum at the World Trade Center site has been halted because of a financial dispute, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg said this week that the museum likely will not open on time next year.

The museum was supposed to open on Sept. 11, 2012, but the National September 11 Memorial & Museum foundation has been fighting with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey over who is responsible for infrastructure costs related to the project.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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

Visitor to 9/11 memorial told police of loaded gun, was arrested

A Tennessee tourist who says she unwittingly broke New York's weapons laws by visiting the 9/11 memorial with a loaded gun -- legal in her home state -- faces 3 1/2 years behind bars for the error, which came to light when she asked guards where she could store her weapon while touring the memorial.

The Dec. 22 incident underscores the disparity in gun-carrying laws among states; some, like New York, ban the carrying of loaded guns and don't recognize the permits issued in other states for visitors carrying weapons. Opponents of strict gun laws argue that the right to bear arms, as outlined in the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution, should take precedence and that it is unfair for people like the tourist, Meredith Graves, to be caught in the middle of different states' regulations.

Local media reports have described Graves as a 39-year-old medical student who was in the area for a job interview and decided to visit the site of the fallen World Trade Center towers with her husband, and her loaded .32-caliber pistol. When she saw the signs reading "No guns allowed," Graves asked a security guard where she could check the loaded weapon in her purse, according to the New York Post.

Graves was arrested on suspicion of carrying a loaded weapon. She could face a minimum of 3 1/2 years in prison. She was freed on bail Wednesday and is due to appear in court in March.

Tennessee's Knoxnews.com said Graves got her permit to carry a loaded gun in August 2008 and that it was due to expire in 2012.

New York City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr., who is chairman of the Public Safety Committee, said prosecuting people like Graves will spur gun advocates to fight harder against restrictions on weapons.

"By prosecuting this woman and seeking 3 1/2 years of jail, we are shooting our own [gun-control] efforts in the foot and giving the rest of the country ammunition," Vallone said, according to the New York Post. "Clearly the laws are too strict here," he added.

But a Tennessee firearms instructor expressed surprise that Graves would not have checked New York's laws before carting her loaded weapon into the city and said it was the responsibility of individuals to check each state's laws before traveling with their weapons.

“There are about 50 different sets of rules. We tell our students to call ahead before they travel with a gun,” David Dukes, the firearms instructor at Gunny's in Maryville, Tenn., told Knoxnews.com. He noted that most states' information is available on the Internet.

Whatever New York's laws might be, the president of the memorial, Joe Daniels, said it should be clear to anyone that loaded weapons would not be permitted at a highly secured site dedicated to the memory of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. "It's so obvious -- you shouldn't have to say it," Daniels said.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/

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

From Google News

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

Two doctors charged with murder under Md. fetal homicide law

by Peter Hermann

Two doctors who Maryland authorities say botched an abortion last year in Elkton have been indicted on murder charges — in what appears to be the first use of the state's fetal homicide law involving a medical professional performing surgery.

“We're in uncharted territory,” Cecil County State's Attorney Edward D.E. Rollins said Friday. He declined to comment further because the indictment will remain sealed until the suspects are arraigned in Maryland. They were arrested Wednesday in New Jersey and in Utah.

Steven Chase Brigham, 55, of Voorhees, N.J., faces five counts of first-degree murder, five counts of second-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit murder. Nicola Irene Riley, 46, of Salt Lake City faces one count each of first- and second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

Authorities would not describe the indictment in detail. A statement from Elkton police says some of the charges relate to the abortion that went awry 16 months ago. Detectives investigating that case — in which a teenager was rushed to a hospital and survived — said they found almost three dozen late-term aborted fetuses in a freezer at the doctors' Elkton clinic.

Maryland is one of 38 states with a fetal homicide law. But unlike many, Maryland does not define when it is too late to perform an abortion. The law, enacted in 2005, says it's illegal to abort a fetus deemed viable or showing signs of healthy development.

Prosecutors in Maryland have used the law several times, mostly in cases involving the shootings or beatings of pregnant women.

The Elkton case prompted the Maryland General Assembly to debate whether stricter regulation of abortion clinics is needed, and state health officials are in the process of drafting new guidelines to exert greater control over doctors who perform abortions.

An antiabortion group said the charges in Cecil County prove that Maryland's liberal abortion laws are incapable of regulating the practice and need to be overhauled to prevent similar problems. A group that represents abortion clinics nationwide called the Elkton suspects “outliers” and said the charges show that the laws are adequate to handle cases outside acceptable medical standards.

Attorneys for the suspects say the charges as unwarranted. The two doctors are being held in their respective states pending extradition to Maryland.

“We believe the charges are without legal merit,” said Riley's Baltimore attorney, Sharon Krevor-Weisbaum.

Brigham's attorney, C. Thomas Brown of Elkton, issued a statement saying his client has “fully cooperated with this investigation” and that there was an agreement with the state's attorneys office for Brigham to surrender. Rollins denied that he had made a deal for Brigham to sur

The Elkton case broke in August 2010 when an 18-year-old from New Jersey suffered a ruptured uterus and other internal injuries during a procedure at the American Woman's Services clinic on East High Street.

The Maryland Board of Physicians found that the woman, who was 21 weeks pregnant, had initially been treated in Voorhees, N.J., where her cervix was dilated. The woman was then told to travel in her car to Elkton, a distance of about 60 miles, so doctors could complete the procedure.

After the woman's uterus ruptured, Riley put her in Brigham's rented car and drove her to Union Hospital in Elkton, officials said The woman was flown that day to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for further treatment.

Maryland's abortion law, which is less restrictive than in nearby states, may explain why the procedure was initiated elsewhere and completed in Elkton. Other states require that later abortions be performed at a surgical center or hospital rather than at a doctor's office. In New Jersey, pregnancies after 14 weeks cannot be ended at a doctor's office.

Elkton police said they searched the clinic on East High Street but could not located medical records for the woman. But police said they found 35 later-term fetuses, about 20 to 35 weeks old, in a freezer.

Maryland authorities suspended Riley's medical license in September 2010. Brigham, who did not have a Maryland license, was barred from practicing in the state. Both doctors had previously lost their licenses to practice medicine or run clinics in several states, including New York and Pennsylvania.

State authorities said Brigham ran clinics in several states, including Pennsylvania and New York. His Maryland clinics were in Elkton, Baltimore, College Park, Frederick and Cheverly.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/two-doctors-charged-with-murder-under-md-fetal-homicide-law/2011/12/30/gIQAFkIURP_story.html

One out of 10 teen drivers say they have driven while drunk on New Year's Eve, according to a new survey. It's the worst holiday night of the year for driving after drinking, they say. The Fourth of July was in second place.

The Liberty Mutual insurance survey of nearly 2,300 11th and 12th graders also found a large majority, 94%, of teen drivers say that they would stop driving under the influence of alcohol or marijuana if asked by a passenger. Some 87% of teen passengers say they would ask a peer to stop driving after drinking. That's more than marijuana, which was 72%.

"New Year's Eve is a time to celebrate both the past year and the possibilities of the year to come, yet far too often poor decisions by teens result in tragic injuries and deaths," said Stephen Wallace, senior advisor for at Students Against Drunk Drivers, or SADD. "To avoid a fatal start to the New Year, teen passengers need to use their voices if they have concerns about their friends' behaviors. They will be heard."

Liberty Mutual and SADD say teens are less likely to drive drunk when parents lay down concrete ground rules.

"Prior to New Year's Eve, parents need to have a conversation with their teen drivers about the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol and fatigue as well as how to be a good driver and a good passenger," said Dave Melton, a driving safety expert with Liberty Mutual and managing director of global safety.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2011/12/one-of-10-teens-admit-to-drunk-driving-on-new-years-eve/1

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

Feds: Phoning, texting killed 3,092 in car crashes last year

The government says that 3,092 people died last year in "distraction-affected" crashes, a newly refined measurement meant to tally the effect of texting, phoning or simply answering a call while driving.

That was one of every 11 U.S. traffic deaths.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it refined and narrowed how it counts distraction crashes, so the 2010 tally can't be directly compared to 2009's 5,474 "distraction-related" traffic fatalities.

Also in Drive On: NHTSA says fatality rate on U.S. roads last year an all-time low

Distraction can include hands-free phone use, says the NHTSA.

Results of a nationwide NHTSA survey suggest that reducing fatal wrecks caused by calling and texting could be tough.

Most unsettling finding: More than three-fourths of drivers said they are willing to answer calls on all, most, or some trips. Drivers also report that they rarely consider traffic situations when deciding when to use their phones.

But nearly all those same drivers said they would feel unsafe as passengers if the driver were texting or calling.

The NHTSA survey was conducted by telephone. Many respondents were contacted on their cell phones. One can only hope they weren't also driving.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2011/12/nhtsa-cell-phones-killed-3092-car-crashes-/1?csp=obinsite

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

A year without murders unlikely to last

It is, of course, reason to celebrate that Flagstaff is on track to finish 2011 without a single murder inside the city.

Flagstaff is hardly Mayberry, RFD, but violent crimes of all types have plummeted in recent years, thanks to more community policing and better use of neighborhood-level police reports.

We'd like to think that the absence of a murder so far this year is due, in part, to those initiatives by the police and community leaders.

But we are also realistic enough to know that lethal violence in a state with lax gun laws is hard to keep at a zero level for long. As every study shows, more guns mean more gun violence, everything else being equal. But with every state, city or region being different, establishing direct causation between restrictive gun laws and lower crime is like hitting a moving target. Other socioeconomic factors, like poverty and education, also play key roles in gun violence rates.

FEELING DISEMPOWERED

If Arizona's cities, counties and even universities were in control of their own fates on gun access, at least local citizens would feel more empowered to demand change at the local level when gun policies don't work out.

But the Republican majority in the Legislature, marching in lockstep with the National Rifle Association, has gradually removed that local control even as they rail against federal interference in state affairs. Although many of them campaign as law-and-order candidates, they routinely tie the hands of police chiefs and county attorneys on proven ways to reduce or penalize gun violence, including background checks of gun show purchases and mandatory training for carriers of concealed weapons.

Two years ago, GOP lawmakers pushed through a bill that dropped permit requirements -- including background checks -- for any carrier of a concealed weapon. Cities were prohibited from enacting their own permit systems.

Then, again over the opposition of local police, they allowed the owner of a handgun with a concealed weapons permit to carry it into a bar unless the bar owner complied precisely with detailed posting rules.

GUNS IN LIBRARIES?

Last year, the GOP majority tried to force local libraries and other public agencies to allow in people carrying guns unless the agencies posted armed security guards -- a cost they knew cities and counties couldn't afford. Gov. Brewer vetoed the bill, saying it was unclear whether schools would be included, even though federal law already bans all weapons at K-12 schools. Look for a similar bill to return next session.

Brewer also vetoed a bill that would have allowed anyone to carry a weapon onto a university campus public right-of-way (buildings were exempted in the face of strong opposition by campus police and university presidents). Now lawmakers are planning to return with a bill allowing carriers of concealed weapons permits to bring a weapon into a university parking lot. Buildings would be exempt if signs were posted and gun storage provided.

SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS

Proponents of looser gun restrictions contend that citizens have a right to defend themselves in public spaces -- or be protected by armed guards. Further, the Second Amendment right to carry a gun largely unregulated by the government outweighs both the responsibility to learn how to use it safely and the downside resulting from unsafe use in a crowded situation.

But nearly every law enforcement official in Arizona says that more guns mean less public safety. Critics say police will always want to retain their advantage in weaponry, but police point out they are first in the line of fire in many confrontations -- five officers in Arizona were killed in the line of duty in 2011, 10th highest in the nation. Police also contend that the risk of injury caused by more guns inside a building is far greater than if guns are banned, with stiff penalties serving as a strong deterrent.

Further, if a shooting were to occur, untrained bystanders -- Arizona has dropped its training requirement -- firing their weapons would almost surely cause more injuries.

We suppose the fact that Republican lawmakers now only want guns on campus if they are carried by those with concealed weapons permits shows they are listening. But every expert who has testified says that allowing anyone with a gun inside a college classroom filled with sleep-deprived, hair-trigger young adults is a prescription for disaster.

WILD WEST LEGACY

The lesson of Virginia Tech and the Gabrielle Giffords shootings is that unhinged individuals bent on mass murder need to be identified early, isolated and treated, if necessary. That is tough work and it involves everyone, including family, friends, teachers and health professionals. Simply assuming that the problem of lethal gun violence in our society will be solved by turning bystanders inside a library or a classroom loose on a gunman shows neither understanding nor compassion. As Arizona approaches its centennial year as a state, it's time we overcome our Wild West legacy of violence and retribution, not replicate it.

.