The other day I was in Seattle Municipal Court and I had the chance to watch a couple of DUI arraignments while I was waiting for my clients case to be called. In case you don't know the arraignment is the first court hearing that someone faces after their arrest. So in Seattle Municipal Court generally the arraignment happens a few days after a DUI arrest in Seattle. Obviously this is a
Why bring a DUI Attorney to your DUI Arraignment
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In Dog We Trust
<font style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" face="arial">When the Supreme Court <a href="http://blog.simplejustice.us/2012/11/07/to-the-dogs.aspx">granted certiorari</a> to the Florida Supreme Court in
<a href="http://blog.simplejustice.us/2011/04/27/the-reliable-magic-sniffing-dog.aspx?ref=rss">Harris v. Florida</a>, there were two possibilities. It could have been because they wanted to
drive the final nail in the coffin of the dog sniff myth, seizing upon the Florida court's revelation that we've been laboring under falsehood for decades that allowed the police, provided they
brought a puppy with them, to have their way with ...</font>
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Sixth Circuit Hears TN Case About 13-Year-Old Child Abuser
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided, Tonia Wright v. Kathryn O’Day, a case out of Tennessee involving a 13-year-old child abuser.The case, concerning a young boy known as D.W., was brought by the child’s mother who sued the Governor of Tennessee and the Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services claiming that they violated the boy’s due process rights by including him on the state’s child abuse registry without first offering him an administrative hearing to challenge the listing. The issue arose after D.W. was accused by another child, L.M., of touching him inappropriately. D.W. denied the allegations during an interview with Children’s Services, but was later told that he would be indicated as a perpetrator of child abuse in the state’s official registry. D.W. and his mother asked for a formal review of their case, but were never told what evidence had been collected against the boy. He was also denied an administrative hearing because the Children’s Services office claimed the designation would not affect his employment. D.W. pointed out that the designation would not disappear when he turned 18, but would instead follow him for life. When the case was brought before a lower court, the Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services filed a motion to dismiss, arguing that any claim based on the child abuser designation’s effect on D.W.’s employment did not present a justiciable case or controversy because D.W.’s claim of injury was speculative. The district court agreed with the Commissioner and decided to dismiss the case, saying that the harm caused by the designation was in the future and was thus not justiciable. The Sixth Circuit disagreed, holding that the designation as a child abuser is essentially permanent and that this amounts to a concrete injury. Given this injury, the child should not have to wait until he is denied an employment opportunity to bring the challenge. The Sixth Circuit made clear that because the classification as a child abuser leads to actual injury, D.W. has standing to challenge the classification. To read the full opinion, click here. See Our Related Blog Posts:Court Rules Against Sex Offender Facebook BanNew Tennessee Law Prevents Discussion of “Gateway Sexual Activity”
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Litigating Health Rights
Colleen Flood, Charter Rights and Health Care Funding: A Typology of Canadian Health Rights Litigation, 19 Annals Health L. 479 (2010).Tim JostWhen lawyers (or, at least, U.S.-trained lawyers) think of legal rights, they think of rights enforceable in courts. While a “right to health” or “right to health care” is widely recognized in international legal conventions and national constitutions, judicial decisions effectuating these rights are quite uncommon. Moreover, it is not altogether clear that litigation is the most effective [...]
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Hot Mess in Montgomery County
<font style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" face="arial">The Dayton police "knew" all about Jeffrey "On The Lam" Lam. Oh yes, they knew him well. We know this is true because <a href=
"http://www.thenewspaper.com/rlc/docs/2013/oh-turnsignalentry.pdf">the court said so</a>.<br>
<br></font>
<blockquote><font style="FONT-SIZE: 12px" face="arial">The events which led to Lam’s arrest began when Dayton police officers approached his brother, Jeffrey Lam (“Jeffrey”), regarding a traffic
violation. On the evening of December 12, 2011, Officers Michael Saylors and Randy Beane observed Jeffrey driving a gold Intrigue near the intersection of Hodapp ...</font></blockquote>
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US cybersecurity firm releases report on Chinese army hacks of American companies
Mandiant, a United States cybersecurity firm, released a report on Tuesday detailing its findings of what it believes to be a series of hacks conducted by the Chinese army. They believe they have detected the hacks of "141 companies spanning 20 major industries."
Here's an except from the executive summary:
The activity we have directly observed likely represents only a small fraction of the cyber espionage that APT1 has conducted. Though our visibility of APT1’s activities is incomplete, we have analyzed the group’s intrusions against nearly 150 victims over seven years. From our unique vantage point responding to victims, we tracked APT1 back to four large networks in Shanghai, two of which are allocated directly to the Pudong New Area. We uncovered a substantial amount of APT1’s attack infrastructure, command and control, and modus operandi (tools, tactics, and procedures). In an effort to underscore there are actual individuals behind the keyboard, Mandiant is revealing three personas we have attributed to APT1. These operators, like soldiers, may merely be following orders given to them by others.
Our analysis has led us to conclude that APT1 is likely government-sponsored and one of the most persistent of China’s cyber threat actors. We believe that APT1 is able to wage such a long-running and extensive cyber espionage campaign in large part because it receives direct government support. In seeking to identify the organization behind this activity, our research found that People’s Liberation Army (PLA’s) Unit 61398 is similar to APT1 in its mission, capabilities, and resources. PLA Unit 61398 is also located in precisely the same area from which APT1 activity appears to originate.
Mandiant also released a video demonstrating a method used by APT1 to hack American companies.
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson responded, "To make groundless accusations based on some rough material is neither responsible nor professional."
The findings have been widely reported including by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and ABC News.![]()
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Will I go to Jail for Virginia Reckless Driving?
One question on many people’s minds when they’re facing a Virginia reckless driving charge is whether or not they’re going to go to jail. A lot of attorney websites and marketing materials talk about JAIL, JAIL, JAIL. The best advice I can give you is to talk with a reputable, local, experienced traffic attorney who [...]
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GA: Validity of stop objection didn't preserve the lack of PC argument on appeal
Objection in the trial court to the stop of the car didn’t include lack of probable cause for issuance of the search warrant for the car, so that issue is waived on appeal. Thomas v. State, 2013 Ga. LEXIS 144 (February 18, 2013).*
LPN reader alert provides probable cause for a stop. Rodriguez v. State, 2013 Ga. App. LEXIS 72 (February 19, 2013).
2255 petitioner’s search and seizure arguments were barred from collateral review. United States v. Larsen, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20977 (E.D. Wis. February 14, 2013).*
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Colorado's marijuana task force (wisely?) decides not to try to prohibit pot tourism
As reported in this new AP piece, headlined "Colorado marijuana regulators sign off on pot tourism," the task force working through the range of new issues raised by marijuana legalization in Colorado has reached a significant decision about how to...
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WITHHOLDING OF ADJUDICATION SENTENCE MEANS YOU WERE NEVER FOUND GUILTY UNDER FLORIDA LAW
What does it mean when a Judge withholds adjudication in a criminal case in Florida?Your favorite Clearwater Criminal Defense Attorney recently asked to provide a letter for a man who told me that he often has difficulty establishing that he's never been convicted of a crime even though under Florida law he was never found guilty in court.Here's what he asked me:A few years ago I was given a disposition of Adjudication Withheld on a felony criminal case in Tampa Bay, Florida. ![Van gogh's portrait of Alexander Reid shows the type of somber man in need of a withholding of adjudication from a Tampa Bay, Florida Judge.]()
Van Gogh, AdjudicationSince then I've been confronted by prospective employers and even prospective landlords with the public information about my case. Despite the fact that the information they find on the case clearly indicates that I received an Adjudication Withheld, they seem to believe that I was guilty of a felony. Could you send me a letter that I can use to establish that I was never convicted of a felony?How could I say no? This kind of problem often could be avoided if after a case is resolved immediate action is taken to seal or expunge the case. For those cases that can't be sealed or expunged here's a portion of the letter which I provided for him that could serve the purposes of anyone in his situation:Under Florida Statutes Section 948.01(2) an Adjudication Withheld is not a conviction. Florida Judges are vested with authority to grant a Withholding of Adjudication whenever the facts and circumstances of a case establish that there should be no finding of guilt in the case. When a Florida Judge sentences someone with Adjudication Withheld it literally means the Court does not make a finding of guilt, because the law enables the Judge to "stay or withhold the adjudication of guilt."Since there was no finding of guilt, anyone treating the case as though there were a finding of guilt may find themselves subject to civil liability under Florida law.If that isn't enough, have them give your favorite Clearwater criminal lawyer a call and I'll explain it to them or drag them kicking and screaming to this web page.
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Fraud, Overtime and the Sheriff’s Computer System
After she was convicted of “engaging in an organized scheme to defraud, in violation of section 817.034(4), Florida Statutes”, Kathy Dent appealed. Dent v. State, __ So.3d ___, 2013 WL 440117 (Florida Court of Appeals 2013). The scheme at issue involved a computer program that Deputies in the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office used to sign up for overtime work. Dent v. State, supra. According to the opinion, the Sheriff’s Office provides deputies for hospital duty to guard an inmate or arrested person who is admitted to a hospital. Initially, a deputy on the current shift is assigned to the hospital when the prisoner is admitted, and that deputy serves until the end of his or her shift, at which time it becomes an overtime assignment. To fill these assignments, the Sheriff's department utilizes a computer program which allows deputies to sign up to work overtime shifts. The lieutenant on the shift when the prisoner is admitted to the hospital creates a computer record of the prisoner's admittance. It generates a weekly list of overtime shifts for the week for that prisoner, although if the prisoner is released from the hospital those overtime shifts would not be used. The positions for new overtime shifts become available for signup at midnight on Sunday night for the following week. To obtain the right to work one of these shifts, deputies must log into the system and sign up for one shift at a time. Once the deputy signs up for a shift he/she must wait 48 hours before signing up for another one. No one is allowed to sign up another person for an overtime shift except supervisors who are signing deputies to cover a present shift. Lieutenants can also sign up others for overtime shifts. Complaints were raised because several deputies noticed that . . . Kathy Dent was already assigned to work various overtime shifts when the shifts became available at midnight on Sunday night. An investigation revealed that Dent was assigned on the computer system to a hospital overtime shift 388 times. Dent's friend, Lieutenant Sandra Nealy, assigned Dent to work 100 hospital overtime shifts during a one-year period. Although Dent did not work all the overtime shifts she was assigned, she earned more than $18,000 working hospital overtime shifts. Dent v. State, supra. The investigation resulted in Dent’s being charged, as noted above, with engaging in a scheme to defraud in violation of Florida Statutes § 817.034(4), which makes it a crime to “engage[] in a scheme to defraud and obtain[] property thereby”. Dent v. State, supra. The statute defines “property” as “anything of value,” and defines “scheme to defraud” as a systematic, ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud one or more persons, or with intent to obtain property from one or more persons by false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises or willful misrepresentations of a future act. Florida Statutes § 817.034(3)(c)-(d). The information that was used to charge Dent alleged that she “`did engage in a scheme constituting a systematic, ongoing course of conduct with intent to defraud one or more persons, or to obtain property from one or more persons by false or fraudulent, representations, or promises, and did obtain property from one or more of such persons. . . .’” Dent v. State, supra. And the Court of Appeals’ opinion notes that [a]t trial, the state presented its theory that Dent's manipulation of the computer overtime signup system prevented other Sheriff's deputies from signing up for overtime, and that other deputies lost the opportunity to get these assignments and earn overtime pay. Dent earned over $18,000 in overtime pay for overtime shifts that she actually worked. This was not a case, however, where she was paid for shifts that she did not work. The jury convicted her of a third degree felony, prompting this appeal. Dent v. State, supra. On appeal, Dent argued that the state failed to prove that she obtained `property’ within the meaning of the statute when all the state proved was the inability of other deputies to sign up for the opportunity to obtain overtime. In other words, her conduct did not amount to a crime Dent v. State, supra. The Court of Appeals began its analysis of her argument by noting that in adopting Florida Statutes § 817.034, entitled the “Florida Communications Fraud Act,”, the Florida legislature “specifically” articulated “its intent in adopting this criminal statute”: `(1) Legislative intent.— (a) The Legislature recognizes that schemes to defraud have proliferated in the United States in recent years and that many operators of schemes to defraud use communications technology to solicit victims and thereby conceal their identities and overcome a victim's normal resistance to sales pressure by delivering a personalized sales message. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature to prevent the use of communications technology in furtherance of schemes to defraud by consolidating former statutes concerning schemes to defraud and organized fraud to permit prosecution of these crimes utilizing the legal precedent available under federal mail and wire fraud statutes.’ Dent v. State, supra. Since the Florida Legislature directed it to use federal cases involving fraud prosecutions under federal law as a source of guidance in interpreting this statute, the Court of Appeals noted that “we look to those precedents and conclude that the opportunity to sign up for overtime, which was deprived to other deputies by Dent's conduct, is not “property” within the meaning of the statute.” Dent v. State, supra. It began with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit’s decision in U.S. v. Henry, 29 F.3d (1994), in which two public officials were charged with bank fraud and wire fraud for corruption of the process by which banks were chosen as depositories for funds from various toll bridges. The commission in charge of the funds conducted a competitive bidding process with various banks for their short-term deposits. The two public officials interfered with the process by notifying one bank of the bid information in advance, allowing that bank to outbid the other banks. . . . In return, the public officials received campaign contributions and favorable treatment on loans from the bank. The government asserted that what the other banks lost in this scheme was a fair opportunity to bid in the process. The court concluded, however, that this loss of opportunity was not `property’ within the meaning of the bank and wire fraud statutes. `Here, . . . the money had not yet been deposited, and there is no way of knowing to which, if any, of the bidding banks it would have gone. . . . The issue . . . is whether the competing banks' interest in having a fair opportunity to bid for something that would become their property if and when it was received is in itself property. . . . `. . . .[T]o determine whether a particular interest is property for purposes of the fraud statutes, we look to whether the law traditionally has recognized and enforced it as a property right. . . .The competing banks' interest in a fair bidding opportunity does not meet this test. Clearly, each bidding bank's chance of receiving property -- the deposits if its bid were accepted -- was, at least in part, dependent on the condition that the bidding process would be fair. This condition, which is all that the bidding banks allegedly lost, was thus valuable to them, but it is not a traditionally recognized, enforceable property right. . . . Violation of this condition may have affected each bidding bank's possible future receipt of property, but that does not make the condition property.’ U.S. v. Henry, supra. The Court of Appeals noted that in the Henry case, the “loss of an opportunity interest did not constitute `property’ within the meaning of the wire and mail fraud statutes,” which “govern the interpretation of § 817.034.” Dent v. State, supra. It also noted that another federal court applied the same reasoning in U.S. v. Alsugair, 256 F.Supp.2d 306 (U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey 2003). Dent v. State, supra. In Alsugair, the defendant “was charged with wire fraud in a scheme to defraud English skills testing services by allowing imposters to take English tests for foreign students” under a statute that “made it a crime to engage in a scheme to obtain money or property by false pretenses.” Dent v. State, supra. The Alsugair court explained that in order to `”determine whether a particular interest is property for purposes of the fraud statutes, we look to whether the law traditionally has recognized and enforced it as a property right.”’ U.S v. Henry, supra. Two of the hallmarks of traditional property are exclusivity.’ U.S. v. Alsugair, supra. The Court of Appeals noted that what was “[i]mportant to this case” in the Alsugair court’s reasoning was its “reiteration of the hallmarks of property, namely exclusivity and transferability, neither of which are present in the lost opportunity of working overtime, which is what the state sought to prove in this case.” Dent v. State, supra. It also noted that it had “determined that expectation interests do not constitute property under similar definitions of property in the theft statute.” Dent v. State, supra. In Balcor Property Management, Inc. v. Ahronovitz, 634 So.2d 277 (Florida Court of Appeals 1994), the court found that to have a cognizable interest in property, “the `owner’ must be capable of having `an interest in the property upon which another person is not privileged to infringe without consent’”. Dent v. State, supra (quoting Florida Statutes § 812.012(5)). Section 812.012(5) defines “property of another,” as used in Florida theft statutes, as “property in which a person has an interest upon which another person is not privileged to infringe without consent, whether or not the other person also has an interest in the property.” The Court of Appeals then found that in this case, what the state alleged was lost was the opportunity for other deputies to work for overtime pay. This opportunity did not belong to any one of them. It simply does not fit the definition of property traditionally used in criminal prosecutions and specifically not used in similar federal statutes. See U.S. v. Henry, supra. While Dent's manipulation of the signup system for overtime duty may have violated the policies of the department, and may be grounds for discipline or termination, she did not obtain `property’ within the meaning of the statute. Therefore, no violation of section 817.034 occurred. Dent v. State, supra. It therefore reversed Dent’s conviction and directed that the sentence imposed on her be vacated. Dent v. State, supra. According to the news story you can find here, she was one of “seven jail supervisors” who were fired and charged with fraud. For more on the impact this decision will have on other pending and completed cases, check out the story you can find here.
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Prison and the Poverty Trap
New York Times
WASHINGTON — Why are so many American families trapped in poverty? Of
all the explanations offered by Washington’s politicians and economists,
one seems particularly obvious in the low-income neighborhoods near the
Capitol: because there are so many parents like Carl Harris and
Charlene Hamilton.
For most of their daughters’ childhood, Mr. Harris didn’t come close to
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NY: No expectation of privacy from pinging of cell phone
Defendant did not have standing in the place he was found, but he had standing to challenge the search of his backpack that was with him, right up to the time he abandoned it. Defendant was found by pinging his cell phone, and he had no reasonable expectation of privacy in the signal emitted by the phone to the provider, analyzing Jones and Smith and coming down with Smith. People v Moorer, 2013 NY Slip Op 23048, 2013 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 632 (Monroe Co. February 8, 2013):
In Smith v Maryland (442 U.S. at 742-743), decided in 1979, the Supreme Court held that the installation of a pen register was not a search within the Fourth Amendment. It noted that while most people may be oblivious to a pen register's esoteric functions, they presumably understand that one common use is to aid in the identification of individuals making annoying or obscene phone calls; to that end, the Court stated that while subjective expectations of privacy cannot be scientifically gauged, it is too much to believe that telephone subscribers harbor any general expectation of privacy that the numbers they dial will remain secret. The Court observed that all telephone users realize that they must "convey" phone numbers to their telephone company, since it is through the company switching equipment that telephone calls are completed. The Court further observed that all subscribers also realize that the telephone carrier has facilities for making permanent records of all numbers dialed, because their monthly bills contain a list of their long-distance toll calls. Thus, the Court concluded that, even if a defendant harbored some subjective expectation that the phone numbers he dialed would remain private, his expectation was not one, under the Katz analysis, that society was prepared to recognize as reasonable. The Court also noted that it is well settled that a person has no legitimate expectation of privacy in information he voluntarily turns over to third parties and that by making a phone call, he had to convey the number to the phone company if he wished to complete his call (id.). Thus, while a person may have calculated that the contents of his conversation would remain private, no one could rationally think that the number dialed would remain private (id).
Analogous here, more than thirty years later, this Court concludes, similarly, that a subscriber's signal (the transmission of it), necessary to make a call from his cell phone, does not entitle the subscriber to a reasonable expectation of privacy.
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Appeals Exhausted for Nathan Dunlap
The Colorado Independent
Appeals Exhausted for Colorado Chuck E. Cheese’s Killer
Decision to execute now rests with Gov. Hickenlooper
By
Tuesday, February 19, 2013 at 4:36 pm
0 Comments
The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear the
appeal of death-row prisoner Nathan Dunlap, the Colorado man convicted
of the 1993 murder of four employees at
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Unlikely Pair Arrested in Multiple Burglaries
When you think about cohorts in crime, various images may come to mind. A recent report on activities in Chandler has resulted in a finger being pointed in the direction of an unusual pair of alleged thieves – a mother … Continue reading →
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Bell County Sheriff Office allegedly faked training results, TCLEOSE oversight failed to catch it
An investigative report by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education (TCLEOSE), which regulates peace officers' licensure and training, alleges that the Bell County Sheriff's Lt. Danny Kneese, the department's training coordinator, provided training for deputies and even officers from other agencies by letting them take materials home instead of sitting in a classroom, then faked test results that were sent to TCLEOSE. A local TV station reported that the agency "revoked the Bell County Sheriff's Department’s training license for two years," but looking at the full report (pdf), that's just the tip of the iceberg.Just-elected Sheriff Eddie Lange first reported the problem to TCLEOSE last fall, but from the beginning investigating officer Mike Hobbs was "suspicious of his motives" and "his actions." Lange had allegedly promised Kneese a position as Jail Administrator and Kneese, anticipating Lange would become Sheriff and need the training hours for his license, allowed Lange to take the training materials home for credit. But Lange's role allegedly extended beyond that of a supposed whistleblower. Upon interrogation, Lt. Kneese admitted to not holding classroom trainings as he'd reported to TCLEOSE but initially refused to give a written statement, instead requesting a lawyer. After consulting with Lange, who was then a county commissioner but at the time was running for Sheriff, Kneese came back later with a typed statement in which he took full blame and insisted Lange "did not know that being given a packet to learn core courses was illegal." However, wrote Hobbs, "it was clear to me that it was not a truthful statement but one that had been well thought out and prepared by either a legal team or someone other than Kneese." He also expressed the belief that Lange "is not being honest with me during this investigation. It is clear to me that he his coaching" Lt. Kneese, said the report. "It is clear to me at this point that Eddie Lang (sic) contacted TCLEOSE knowig that we would find issues with the training and that if we found issues we would have to investigate." Wrote Hobbs, "It is likely that Lang (sic) and Kneese were working together." He surmised that Lange, "became afraid of his campaign being affected" and "let Kneese take the fall for the entire incident." Kneese has since surrendered his peace officer's license.The reasons behind the revocation of training authority are flat-out startling, particularly the allegations of faked course examinations:Almost all the examinations and evaluations were typed on the same computer and were all exactly the same. In almost every case I found a typo on the examinations and evaluations and all of them had the same typo. That means every student would have had to type the same typo. This is highly unlikely and with Kneese admitting to teaching courses by packets it is clear that the test and evaluations are made up on his computer and completed by him all at one time.That's the sort of thing that could get somebody indicted - you'd think the local TV news coverage might have mentioned it! People were getting credit for physical fitness training by signing workout logs in the gym. Indeed, the scope of training-related misconduct was so great that TCLEOSE decided to limit its investigation so the results wouldn't impact the training hours of "every Jailer and every Peace Officer working for Bell County." Again from Hobbs' report:As I continued my investigation I realized that every Jailer and every Peace Officer working for Bell County could be affected by this illegal training and could end up losing hours.If this were to occur then the most likely scenario would be that none of them would have time to catch up on hours. After discussing this with Deputy Director John Helenburg it was decided that we would focus only on Intermediate Courses and two other courses that Bell County reported to us. Those courses are 3512 Health and Safety, and 6012 Health and Physical. So TCLEOSE is protecting the probably improper training hours of most of the Bell Sheriff's uniformed staff through essentially a "don't ask, don't tell" approach. If they dug deeper, it's possible few if any jailers or deputies would have sufficient training hours to justify their licensure. That decision seems problematic, though as a practical matter it's understandable as an alternative to, say, shutting down the jail while everyone retakes all the training they missed. If all or most of the training was faulty, how could the department ever make it all up? What a mess. Grits won't be surprised if defense counsel down the line begin challenging the legal status of Bell County Sheriff's deputies based on failure to meet state training requirements.One wonders, would TCLEOSE have ever discovered this if Lange hadn't contacted them? Are there other agencies doing the same thing, and if so, could TCLEOSE even tell? ¿Quien sabe?
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CANADA - The sex offender in your neighbourhood
Original ArticleIt's a fact that publishing personal information online is always abused and vigilantism is a major problem with the online sex offender list, but the media continues to ignore it!02/20/2013By Dan DakinST. CATHARINES - “It’s not the people on the registry that worry me, it’s the ones we haven’t caught yet,” said Det. Const. Stephen Canton.
That’s his answer to comments from people who say the locations of registered sex offenders in Niagara should be made public.
For the past eight years, Canton has been the man behind the Niagara Regional Police sex offender registry.
There are currently 290 people on the list. Their names, addresses and crimes all remain confidential.
Is there a sex offender living in your subdivision?
Canton said the answer is most likely yes.
“I get calls with people asking, ‘Is there a sex offender in my neighbourhood?’ I tell them, ‘They’re in every neighbourhood,’” Canton said.
One of the reasons the list isn’t public is to curtail vigilante justice. But some feel that’s backward thinking.
“They shouldn’t worry so much about protecting the offenders as protecting the children,” said a woman whose daughter was the victim of a sex crime at the hands of a previously convicted sex offender.- The online hit-list doesn't just put the ex-offenders life in danger, it also puts their family and childrens lives in danger.Christopher’s Law
On April 23, 2001 Christopher’s Law was proclaimed, making Ontario the first province in Canada to have a sex offender registry.
It’s named for Christopher Stephenson, who was 11 years old when he was abducted from a mall in Brampton on Father’s Day weekend in 1988 by a convicted child molester, sexually assaulted and murdered.
A five-month inquest into the boy’s death resulted in the creation of both the provincial and a national sex offender registry. In Niagara, the registry had existed for three years before Canton took over running it in 2004. Since then, he has processed hundreds of convicted sex offenders.The Awkward Room
When a person is convicted of committing a sex crime, they are automatically placed on Ontario’s Sex Offender Registry, and if they live in Niagara they must report to Canton at NRP headquarters in St. Catharines.
They’re photographed, then interviewed by the 35-year veteran inside a nondescript two-metre by three-metre room in the basement of the NRP building at 68 Church St.
It’s a grim place that Canton calls his office — three chairs, a small desk with a computer and a printer; a shelf with a few books and binders and a single 8.5 x 11 Christopher’s Law poster.
There’s also a well-worn police baton, hanging from a door handle. It dates back to Canton’s days on foot patrol and only adds to the ominous nature of the room.
He calls it the awkward room, because family members who accompany the offenders to the interviews often find out more about the crimes than they realized had happened.
“There have been a couple of times where the (relatives) were ‘told everything,’ and by the end it’s obvious they didn’t know everything,” Canton said.
It’s from this room that Canton tracks Niagara’s registered sex offenders.
Every year, they have to come in to have a new photograph taken. When they move, they have to tell him.
It’s also from within this room that Canton sometimes has to play therapist — doing what he can to keep these convicted criminals from reoffending.
“We collect as much data as we can, so it’s an excellent investigative tool,” he said.
Among the information collected is what stressers or triggers have led to a particular offender’s crimes in the past.
“They know why they’re here and they’re not happy about it, but they know they’re legislated to be here,” he said, adding there’s a 99.6% compliance rate with the registry in Niagara.Vigilante Justice
When people hear there are nearly 300 registered sex offenders living in Niagara, the first reaction is often to want their locations made public. People want to know if they’re living next door to a criminal.
In Florida, you can enter your address into a database and get a map of all the sex offenders living around you, complete with pictures. You can even join an e-mail list to have updates sent when sex offenders come and go.
“I don’t really agree with that,” said Canton. “When you start to identify offenders, you start to get less compliance and it pushes them underground.”
In Ontario, he said, the registry is meant to be more of an investigative tool for police than a way for residents to track criminals.
“It’s to maintain the whereabouts of the offender. The registry works the way it’s supposed to,” he said.Since most sex offenders are known to their victims — they’re typically family members or family friends — identifying the offender could also risk identifying the victim.
“Eighty-six percent of children sexually assaulted were assaulted by someone they knew or had a relationship with,” said Donna Christie, public education co-ordinator for the Niagara Region Sexual Assault Centre. “So you have to be careful about releasing that information.”
And then there’s vigilantism.
“As soon as someone hears sex offender, they think pedophile,” said Canton. “You start branding those people and you have the possibility of vigilantes.”
Christie agrees.
“I think having it available to the general public can certainly put people in jeopardy,” she said.
In 2006, a 20-year-old from Nova Scotia drove to Maine and murdered two sex offenders whose names he found on the state’s public registry.Gary Blanton - Killed by law - Due to online public hit-list!
Canton also believes publicizing the location of registered sex offenders would create a “false sense of security.”
“There are hundreds of potential candidates that, if the registry had started earlier, they would be on the list,” he said. “You would think you know all the sex offenders in your neighbourhood, but there could be one next door that doesn’t have the requirements.”Is it enough?
The question of how much information is enough is something Christie struggles with.
“The public has a right to know when there is someone living in their community, but I’m not sure how the police would monitor that,” she said.
While Christie believes the list shouldn’t be made entirely public, she does think families of victims should be kept better informed.
“I think families that have had something happen should be told when people are going to be released or are in their community, out of respect to them,” she said.Who’s being protected?
One St. Catharines woman believes that had she known where a sex offender lived, she might have been able to keep her daughter from being victimized.
A known sex offender pleaded guilty to sexual interference involving the woman’s daughter at a St. Catharines apartment that was largely occupied by parents with young children. Unknown to the residents, the man with a criminal past was living in the same complex as them.
“I probably wouldn’t have been living here,” the woman said. “Maybe that’s why they don’t do it, because I’m sure they would have a lot of vacancies.”
The woman, who is now fighting to have the registry rules changed, said she thinks the wrong people are being protected by keeping the registry private.
“They do a whole lot more to protect sex offenders than innocent children or to try and protect other people from becoming victims,” she said.Won't somebody please think of the children?© 2006-2013 | Sex Offender Issues
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Pacific Beach Crash Could Lead to Multiple DUI Charges
If you choose to drink and drive, you’re probably aware of some of the consequences that may result if you are arrested and convicted. Misdemeanor DUI carries significant penalties, typically including: Loss of driver’s license; Fines; Insurance surcharges; Probation; Possible … Continue reading →The post Pacific Beach Crash Could Lead to Multiple DUI Charges appeared first on .
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CA6: consent wasn't an issue in trial court, so it's waived on appeal
Whether consent was properly given wasn’t addressed in the District Court, so it is not properly before the appellate court. United States v. Fields, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 3330, 2013 FED App. 0163N (6th Cir. February 13, 2013).*
Exigent circumstances were presented by defendant’s alleged use of a laser pointer on an aircraft. The government did not have to produce expert testimony on the effects of laser pointers on pilots to show exigency. [There’s a federal law against it for a reason, and it’s not a speculative reason.] United States v. Smith, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 22100 (D. Neb. February 19, 2013).*
When the owner of a vehicle has a license revoked, and that is determined from reading the LPN, the officer has an objective basis for stopping the car and does not have to ascertain that the owner is actually driving first. State v. Hicks, 2013 N.M. App. LEXIS 21 (February 18, 2013).*
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MN - Violence Inside State Sex Offender Program Could Mean Prison Transfer
Original Article02/20/2013By Nick Winkler
State lawmakers are now looking to punish sex offenders who are convicted of felonies while in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP).
Lawmakers tell 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS civilly committed sex offenders are assaulting program staff members, sexually assaulting one another, and making terroristic threats.
They also tell us the Department of Human Services referred more than 50 cases at the MSOP Moose Lake facility for criminal prosecution in 2012.
However, public defenders say the problems run even deeper.
Lawmakers say data provided by public defenders reveal MSOP patients are committing between 17-22 felonies each month. Right now, those convicted simply remain at MSOP.
That may soon change though.
Rep. Debra Hilstrom, (DFL) Brooklyn Center, is sponsoring a bill that would send civilly committed sex offenders who commit felonies at the MSOP to prison. After offenders complete their prison sentences, the Department of Corrections would send the offender back to the MSOP.- Come on! Why is another law needed for this? A crime is a crime, and if they commit a crime, they should be arrested and sent to jail to await a trial like anybody else who commits a crime, it shouldn't matter if they are in civil commitment, jail or prison! This, in our opinion, is just a way for a politician to put their name on something to make themselves look "tough!"
Hilstrom says if the bill becomes law it could save taxpayers millions of dollars since it is so much cheaper to house people in state prisons (approximately $85/day) rather than the sex offender program (approximately $350/day).
Hilstrom says several influential republicans support the bill which will be introduced Wednesday.
News of violent felonies being committed at MSOP comes as the state considers whether to release civilly committed sex offenders to less secure facilities around the state.© 2006-2013 | Sex Offender Issues
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