j’s blog

Students paid for tattling on peers - Yahoo! News

By Larry Copeland, USA TODAY Mon Apr 18, 6:27 AM ET

Last month’s school shooting in Minnesota has stirred interest in organized “snitch” programs that pay students for telling on classmates who carry guns or drugs or violate school rules.

Last week in central Georgia, the Houston County school board became the state’s first school district to enroll in the national Student CrimeStoppers program, started in 1983. Students can earn up to $500 for alerting school officials about firearms. They can get up to $100 for fingering classmates involved in vandalism, theft or drugs.

Another Georgia school, Model High School in Rome, said last week it implemented a program that pays students up to $100 for information about thefts, drugs or guns on school property. “It’s not a reaction to anything that’s happening on campus,” says Tim Hensley, spokesman for the Floyd County schools. “It’s a proactive attempt from the principal’s standpoint.”

“There’s a balance here between creating a society of snitches and creating a sense of community responsibility,” says Russ Skiba, professor of educational psychology at Indiana University in Bloomington.

Skiba, who co-chaired a U.S. Education Department project on violence prevention in 11 schools, says he worries reward programs are a “knee-jerk reaction” to the school shooting in Red Lake, Minn. Student Jeff Weise, 16, of Red Lake, killed nine people and wounded 14 before killing himself March 21.

The Model High program began before the Red Lake shootings, Hensley says. At the 650-student school, money from candy and soda sales will be used to pay $10 for valid information about campus thefts, $25 or $50 for tips on drugs, and $100 for leads on gun possession or other felonies.

A similar program at Cherryville High School in rural Gaston County, N.C., “has really worked well,” principal Stephen Huffstetler says. He implemented the program two years ago. “This year, we’ve given out $1,100,” he says. “For $100, they’ll turn their mothers in.”

He says the money was paid for tips on drug possession or sales, mainly marijuana and prescription pills. The rewards are funded partly by student-run programs, he says.

A wave of student reward programs sprang up after a rash of school shootings in the mid-1990s. Some were in place before then.

In Texas, the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District started a Student CrimeStoppers program in its three middle schools and four high schools in 1994, says Melanie Magee, supervisor of student services.

This year, the district has paid $2,144. Magee says tips have led to students getting busted for attempting to sell prescription drugs, smoking on campus and other offenses. During the 2003-04 school year, tips led to the seizures of 11 weapons.

Great-Great-Grandmother Shoots Robber - Yahoo! News

Great-Great-Grandmother Shoots Robber

By RON WORD, Associated Press Writer

A man accused of bursting into a convenience store demanding money was in the hospital Friday — shot, authorities said, by the great-great-grandmother working behind the counter.

Janet Grammer was filling in for the regular clerk Thursday afternoon when a man entered the store waving a gun and fired two shot at the back wall.

“I think he thought I was an old woman and would just give him the money,” Grammer, 64, said Friday. “My life was at stake. I thought he was going to kill me.”

So she pulled a pistol out from under the cash register and fired once, hitting the man in the chest. He fell to the ground, dropped his gun and then fled, leaving a trail of blood. Grammer fired two more shots as he was running away.

The sheriff’s report said a man fitting the suspect’s description and injury went to a hospital a short time later. He told doctors he shot himself.

The man, whose name has not been released, was being treated at Shands Jacksonville hospital Friday for a wound to the chest. Police spokesman Ken Jefferson said the man faces robbery charges.

Grammer, who has 10 children, 32 grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren, said she worried she had killed the man. “All I could think about was his poor parents,” Grammer said.

Grammer said she never had to shoot anyone during her 10 years of working as a security guard. “I’m sick over it. It was very upsetting. I’m not feeling real perky.”

Yahoo! News - Witnesses: Teen Assaulted on Videotape

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A 16-year-old disabled girl was punched and forced to engage in videotaped sexual acts with several boys in a high school auditorium as dozens of students watched, according to witnesses.

Authorities are investigating and no charges have been filed in the alleged attack last month at Mifflin High School. Four boys suspected of involvement were sent home and have not returned to class.

Also, the principal, Regina Crenshaw, was suspended and will be fired for not calling police, school officials said. And three assistant principals were suspended and will be reassigned to other schools. Crenshaw had no comment Tuesday.

The girl was forced to perform oral sex on at least two boys, according to statements from school officials, obtained by The Columbus Dispatch. Part of the alleged assault was videotaped by a student who had a camera for a school project.

School officials found the girl bleeding from the mouth. An assistant principal cautioned the girl’s father against calling 911 to avoid media attention, the statements said. The girl’s father called police.

Her father said the girl is developmentally disabled. A special education teacher said the teen has a severe speech impediment.

U.S. no slouch either.

Yahoo! News - Group: China Leads World in Executions

LONDON - China accounted for the majority of executions reported worldwide last year, but the true frequency of the death penalty is impossible to track because many of the sentences are carried out secretly, Amnesty International said Tuesday.

During 2004, more than 3,797 people were executed in 25 countries, including at least 3,400 in China, the rights group said. Additionally, more than 7,000 people were sentenced to death in 64 countries, it said.

Iran had the second highest number of executions, at least 159 people, followed by Vietnam, with 64. The United States ranked fourth on the list with 59, the report said.

“The figures released today are sadly only the tip of the iceberg. The true picture is hard to uncover as many countries continue to execute people secretly — contravening United Nations standards calling for disclosure of information on capital punishment,” the organization said.

Amnesty International said there was a worldwide trend toward ending the death penalty; during 2004, five countries — Bhutan, Greece, Samoa, Senegal and Turkey — abolished it for all crimes.

Several countries, while retaining the death penalty in law, observed moratoria on executions, including Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Malawi and South Korea, the human rights group said.

But the latest figures highlight the ongoing need for international action to outlaw the death penalty, Amnesty added.

“It is worrying that the vast majority of those executed in the world did not have fair trials. Many were convicted on the basis of ‘evidence’ extracted under torture,” it said.

Amnesty cited the case of Ryan Matthews, who in 2004 became the 115th prisoner in the United States released from death row on the grounds of innocence since 1973.

Matthews had been sentenced to death in Louisiana in 1999 for a murder committed when he was 17.

His death sentence was overturned in April 2004 after an appeal judge found that the prosecution had suppressed evidence at the trial, and also on the basis of DNA evidence that pointed to another person as the murderer.

___

On the Net:

Amnesty International, http://web.amnesty.org

U.S. Newswire : Releases : “Amnesty International’s Annual Death Penalty Report Finds Global Trend Toward Abolition”

WASHINGTON, April 4 /U.S. Newswire/ — During 2004, at least 3,797 people were executed in 25 countries and at least 7,395 were sentenced to death in 64 countries, according to an Amnesty International report released today. The United States’ contribution to the worldwide total dropped from 65 the previous year to 59 in 2004. The United States remained one of the top executing countries, along with China, Iran, and Vietnam.

“Our report indicates that governments and citizens around the world have realized what the United States government refuses to admit-that the death penalty is an inhumane, antiquated form of punishment,” said Dr. William F. Schulz, executive director, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA). “Thomas Jefferson once wrote that ‘laws and institutions must go hand in hand with the progress of the human mind;’ it is past time for our government to live up to this Jeffersonian ideal and let go of the brutal practices of the past.”

Releasing its annual worldwide statistics on the use of capital punishment, Amnesty International called on the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, currently meeting in Geneva, to condemn the death penalty as a violation of fundamental human rights. It also urged the U.S. to join the myriad countries taking steps to abolish the death penalty, and applauded the March 1st Supreme Court decision removing the United States from the list of nations that execute juvenile offenders.

“It’s alarming that the United States was the last country in the world to formally reject the application of the death penalty to minors,” said Sue Gunawardena-Vaughn, AIUSA’s director of the Program to Abolish the Death Penalty. “The United States should now join the international community in condemning the practice everywhere, and use its international clout to urge countries like China and Iran to conform to international treaties which forbid them from executing minors.”

Amnesty International also called particular attention to instances where U.S. citizens were sentenced to death for crimes they did not commit.

“The cases of Derrick Jamison and the other 118 individuals released from death row since 1973 demonstrate that no judicial system is infallible. However sophisticated the system, the death penalty will always carry with it the risk of lethal error,” Amnesty International USA said. In February 2005, Derrick Jamison became the 119th wrongfully convicted person to be released from death row on the grounds of innocence.

Five countries abolished the death penalty for all crimes in 2004: Bhutan, Greece, Samoa, Senegal and Turkey. At year’s end, 120 countries had abolished the death penalty in law or practice.

——

The higher number of executions in 2004 and the higher concentration of executions in the “top executing” countries reflect a change in the method Amnesty International uses to calculate the number of executions in China. Amnesty International believes that our current, estimated figure for China still represents only the tip of the iceberg. For example, in March 2004 a delegate at the National People’s Congress said that “nearly 10,000″ people are executed per year in China.

Whoops! Sorry…never mind. Good news, at least we changed our minds about killing you.

Yahoo! News - Jailed ‘Killer’ Freed After Wife Turns Up Alive

BEIJING (Reuters) - A Chinese man jailed and badly beaten for his wife’s murder has been freed after she turned up not only alive but with another husband, domestic media said on Monday, revealing a brutal arbitrariness to China’s legal system.

She Xianglin’s wife, Zhang Zaiyu, disappeared after a domestic dispute in 1994 and when a woman’s body was found in a local reservoir, She was detained on suspicion of killing his wife, the China Daily said.

The body was so decomposed it could not be identified, but a local court found She, a former part-time police officer from central Hubei province, guilty of murder and sentenced him to death.

A provincial court later commuted the sentence to 15 years in prison.

She, 39, was coerced into confessing to her murder and badly beaten in prison, the China Daily said.

International human rights groups say police torture is widespread in China and that suspects are held for long periods without trial. But it is rare for a victim, or the domestic media, to go public about police brutality.

She told the Beijing News that when he was first apprehended, police took him to a remote house and interrogated him for 11 days. He was given just two bowls of rice a day, nearly no water, prevented from sleeping and threatened with death.

“A policeman put his gun to my head and said, ‘Believe me, I could shoot you right now’,” She was quoted as saying from a prison hospital bed, where he was receiving a physical check before being released on Friday.

He said he did not remember making a confession, though the local court that ruled on his case was told he had.

The China Daily said photographs published since She’s release showed he had been severely beaten while in jail and his legs and fingers broken.

Zhang resurfaced in late March in eastern Shandong province, where she had gone in 1994 and later married a local man, the China Daily said.

She said he wanted compensation for his years in jail and justice to be done.

“I want those officials involved in my conviction punished,” he was quoted as saying.

Yahoo! News - N.M. Man Arrested in Dragging Assault

By ANNA MACIAS AGUAYO, Associated Press Writer

GALLUP, N.M. - A 24-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the dragging of a Hispanic man behind a vehicle, which left the victim with burn-like abrasions over half his body.

John Pete Talamante was booked Friday on charges of kidnapping, aggravated battery and assault with intent to commit a violent felony.

Talamante was being held without bond in the McKinley County Detention Center, said Gallup police Chief Sylvester Stanley. More arrests were likely, he said.

The victim, 32-year-old Fausto Arellano, remained hospitalized in critical condition. He had been bound by the ankles and pulled by a rope for some 4,000 feet on Easter morning, according to police.

Stanley said narcotics could be an “indirect motive” in the dragging, but added that officers had no indication that Arellano was involved in drugs.

The single father has two sons, ages 16 and 11.

“This man is like Superman to his sons. He is their idol,” said Pedro Andablo, Arellano’s former brother-in-law.

Police who traced the route of the dragging say the rope snapped or Arellano broke free, and he crawled to the side of the road and collapsed.

Gallup, a town of 20,000 just east of the Arizona state line, is known as one of the largest American Indian trading centers in the Southwest.

Eurell T. Malone, owner of the M & M Trading Co., where Arellano has worked for 10 years, said the crime was senseless.

“You have to be some kind of animal to drag a person behind a car,” Malone said. “Everyone’s asking, ‘Why him? He was a kind and gentle man.’”

Notice anything unusual about the report below?

On the face of it, just based on the paragraph below, the follow observations came to mind:

• Beauty Queen
• "two-timing boyfriend" not her husband
• she was obviously carrying a gun, maybe she always does. or just when visiting ‘other’ women?
• admitted she shot him
• apparently? sought out and went to the other woman’s residence
• she "thought" he was reaching for a gun
• jury made up of three times as many women as men
• only deliberated 9+ hours over a murder

At first glance, this report seems a little strange, maybe the ‘devil’s in the details’ as they say. What do you think, does any of this seem strange to you? I guess I’d have to collect a lot more information to really know what happened. This just jumped out at me as immediately odd.

Yahoo! News - Ga. Beauty Queen Acquitted of Murder

By RUSS BYNUM, Associated Press Writer

SAVANNAH, Ga. - A beauty queen who shot and killed her two-timing boyfriend was acquitted of murder Wednesday after claiming she acted in self-defense.

Sharron Nicole Redmond admitted shooting her boyfriend outside the home of another woman he was dating, but said she thought he was reaching for a gun. He did not have a weapon.

Redmond, 23, had faced an automatic life sentence if convicted of Kevin Shorter’s 2003 slaying. Four months earlier she had been crowned Miss Savannah.

The jury of nine women and three men deliberated for just over nine hours.

Redmond gasped and sobbed as she heard the verdict.

Meet the real online pirates

3/15/2005 3:40:57 PM, by Hannibal

Baseline is running a fascinating series on organized cybercrime, i.e. groups of hackers, phishers, phreakers, and the like who trade in stole credit card numbers, SSNs, and other forms of stolen identity.

Crime is now organized on the Internet. Operating in the anonymity of cyberspace, Web mobs with names like Shadowcrew and stealthdivision are building networks that help crackers and phishers, money launderers and fences skim off some of the billions that travel through the Web every day.

The players and their games change so quickly it’s hard to piece together who they are and how they work together. But that picture’s becoming more clear, as the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI and other law-enforcement agencies crack open the networks and prosecute those that run them.In this special report, writers Deborah Gage and John McCormick map out how the networks get started, how they work, what they steal, and how the feds stay on their tails.

The article likens these guys to the offline mafia, and I guess the analogy is apt in a few ways, i.e. they’re criminals, they’re organized, and they have colorful nicknames. But while the offline mob has its fingers in all sorts of unsavory pies, the number one way that the mafia has made its money since time immemorial is the protection racket. In contrast, the online thieves described by the article, who steal large amounts of personal data and sell it in underground auctions to the highest bidder, are more properly pirates. They prey on the networks that make commerce possible, and they smuggle and traffic in illicit "cargo." The problem is that "pirates" is already wrongly taken by Big Content, who use it to apply to file sharers. But whatever you call these guys, they’re costing us billions.

At any rate, I’ll end this post with a piece of advice that a surprising number of otherwise savvy people aren’t aware of: don’t ever buy anything online with a bank card; use a credit card instead. The credit card companies are way ahead of banks when it comes to dealing with identity theft. One phone call to the card company and they’ll cancel the charges, send you an affadavit to sign, and deal with getting their money back themselves. On the other hand, when crooks from Turkey steal your bank card number and clean out your bank account, which happened to me a while back, it’s a whole different story. So always use a credit card for online transactions, and watch your statements religiously.

News

Teenagers jailed for life for scythe killing on camping holiday
By Danielle Demetriou
11 March 2005

When Terry Hurst arranged to join three acquaintances on a camping expedition in remote moorlands near the Peak District, there was little indication of the violence that would ensue.

Less than 24 hours later his body was found in a ditch with a 5ft scythe embedded in his skull and more than 60 wounds across his body.

The three “friends” were jailed for life at Sheffield Crown Court yesterday after pleading guilty to a murder that has baffled detectives and relatives of the victim alike for its apparent lack of motive.

Mr Justice Andrew Smith told John Sawdon, 17, Jermaine James, 17, and 16-year-old Rebecca Peeters that they faced a mandatory life sentence. He said Sawdon would serve a minimum of 15 years before release was considered, while Peeters, who was only 15 at the time of the attack, and James would serve 13 years.

Speaking after sentence was passed, Mr Hurst’s foster mother welcomed the verdict. “I would like to say how relieved we are that justice has been done,” said Audrey Hurst. “For the past eight months his horrific murder has been with us night and day. The total disbelief of it all will take a long time to sink in, if ever. We are now going to try and bring some normality back to our lives and remember some of the fun times we shared with him.”

It was in July last year that the trio invited Mr Hurst, described by police as a Good Samaritan who loved outdoor life, on a camping expedition on picturesque moorland at the Broomhead Reservoir, near Sheffield. Although the victim did not know any of them well, as an avid camper he agreed to join the expedition. The defendants and Mr Hurst set off from the village of Bolsterstone and walked for about a mile before setting up tents.

At some point in the evening, the three defendants returned to the nearby house of Sawdon’s adoptive parents to collect some alcohol.

As they made their way back to the tents, they are thought to have picked up two large agricultural scythes from a churchyard. Upon their return, they launched a vicious attack on Mr Hurst after dragging him out of his tent wearing only his boxer shorts and socks.

“Your offence was chilling,” Mr Justice Smith said. “You knew he would be defenceless. You found him in a tent and set about him mercilessly.

“After the initial assault, Terry Hurst tried in vain to run. He couldn’t escape. You all chased him and caught him and continued the attack. You used scythes to set about him.”

As well as attacking him with the scythes, the three teenagers also placed a plastic bag over his head and stamped on it. The victim received more than 60 injuries to his body from the scythes while also suffering a broken jaw and dislodged tooth.

The judge concluded: “You intended to kill him. It was the cruellest of crimes and perhaps the more terrible because teenagers committed it. None of you showed any mercy whatsoever.”

As the judge described the violence inflicted on the victim the three defendants showed little emotion, other than Sawdon leaning back in his chair and scowling.

It emerged during the case that Sawdon, who obtained 10 GCSE passes while at school, had convictions for minor dishonesty and suffered from “emotional dislocation”. His adoptive parents said he had been bullied at school from the age of 13. The court was told that he was prone to losing his temper and to minor bouts of violence.

Peeters had no convictions but had been cautioned for a “minor matter”. Her parents told police that her behaviour had deteriorated in the months leading up to the murder during which she had become prone to violent and abusive outbursts after drinking.

According to the prosecution, she talked to one witness about Mr Hurst before the incident, saying: “Have you seen his hair - its scraggy isn’t it? I’m going to end up killing him some day.”

The court was told that James had been thrown out of his family home at the age of 16 and left to fend for himself.

His council flat had been raided and stripped, leaving him living rough in one of its cupboards, according to James’s defence counsel, Alistair McDonald.

But despite their troubled histories, the lack of apparent motive behind the savager murder left the trial judge and detectives baffled.

The victim, who suffered from learning disabilities and was fostered at 20 months, was originally from the Shiregreen area of Sheffield but had relocated to Penistone, near Barnsley, South Yorkshire.

Mrs Hurst, who fostered him from the age of 20 months, painted a picture of a young man who loved camping and outdoor pursuits.

Detective Inspector Tom Whiteley of South Yorkshire police said of Mr Hardy: “He was a good lad. He has certainly not been in trouble with the police before.

“He would help anyone out and would never cause any particular problems for anyone.”

Detective Superintendent Kevin Hardy branded the murder as “unique” as the motive remained unknown. “There is some suggestion of a young girl that Mr Hurst used to go out with who then went out with John Sawdon,” he said. “John Sawdon has been known to make threats to people about what he would like to do to Terry and mentioned he would like to kill him.

“Why that would lead to such an horrendous attack is beyond my comprehension.

“This is a unique case. To get three young people to agree to participate in such a horrendous attack is also unique. I do not think it is a reflection of society today.”

Yahoo! News - Congress to take up growing problem of identity theft

By Frank Davies, Knight Ridder Newspapers

WASHINGTON - A growing outcry over security breaches at giant information brokers - coupled with the growing sophistication of scammers - is jolting consumers with a grim threat: They’re more vulnerable than ever to identity theft.

Congress begins a series of hearings Thursday into how data-collection companies with huge databases collect, handle and sell personal information, and whether new federal regulations are needed to improve security and privacy.

Capitol Hill is responding to growing consumer anxiety fueled by two serious security breaches at large data brokers, much of whose business is unregulated.

ChoicePoint, the largest information broker, warned 145,000 people last month that criminals posing as small businesses had accessed their personal data. The firm, which is headquartered in suburban Atlanta, compiles data on millions of Americans and sells it to companies and government agencies.

At least 750 people were defrauded, but California officials who are investigating the breach estimate that more than 400,000 consumers may have had their data compromised.

And on Wednesday, Lexis Nexis announced that intruders using identification from legitimate businesses were able to get access to information on as many as 32,000 U.S. citizens in a database of Seisnet, its subsidiary.

Seisnet, based in Boca Raton, Fla., and recently acquired by Lexis Nexis’ corporate parent, Reed Elsevier Group, supplies data to a crime and terrorism database, called Matrix, for the U.S. government.

As online shopping and banking boom, consumers are becoming more exposed to identity theft, security experts warn. The Federal Trade Commission reported that it was the No. 1 consumer complaint last year.

An FTC survey in 2003 found that 9.9 million Americans had their personal data stolen.

One of those victims, Ruth Wilburn of Cocoa, Fla., discovered that someone had opened 15 credit card accounts in her name and her mother’s name. Hundreds of miles from her home, a "Ruth Wilburn" was charging high-priced clothes, jewelry and electronics.

"Fighting this is like a full-time job, and there’s no one place to go to get help - it has been a nightmare," said Wilburn, 43, who still has bad credit two years after the fraudulent accounts were opened.

Like many victims, Wilburn isn’t sure how her identity was stolen. Thieves are finding holes in computer systems, taking advantage of insecure databases and using such low-tech tricks as persuading data brokers that they’re legitimate customers.

"Identity theft is mushrooming, from college students trying to make false IDs to sophisticated criminals," said Bill Callahan, a former federal prosecutor who heads a security company called Unitel.

Several members of Congress are proposing legislation to give the FTC more authority to regulate information brokers, improve the standards for selling data and require the data companies to notify people when their personal information has been compromised.

"If we don’t do something in the law, no American will have any privacy left," said Sen. Bill Nelson (news, bio, voting record), D-Fla., whose bill would increase FTC oversight much in the way fair credit laws cover the credit industry.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., is pushing the notification bill. She said the ChoicePoint breach wouldn’t have come to light without the strong California law requiring notification.

Several members of both parties also want restrictions on the use and distribution of Social Security (news - web sites) numbers, which scammers use to set up false accounts. Rep. Joe Barton (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, has said he favors some restrictions.

Sen. Patrick Leahy (news, bio, voting record), D-Vt., warned that if criminals are finding it easier to get personal data, terrorists could do the same.

Deborah Majoras, the chairwoman of the FTC, will testify Thursday before the Senate Banking Committee - the first of several hearings - and said she’s open-minded about legislation.

"We may have some gaps in the law and there may be some need for legislation," Majoras said in a brief interview after meeting Monday with Nelson.

Consumer groups are pushing for more regulation. They also want more rights for consumers to protect data about themselves and for companies to be required to correct the information when it’s wrong.

"With the fallout from ChoicePoint, I’m optimistic Congress will act because we have two important ingredients - a scandal that woke people up and the fact that states are showing the way," said Ed Mierzwinski, who heads consumer programs for the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

Industry representatives are cautious and point out that data brokers, or aggregators as they’re called, are often compiling and selling information that’s already public.

"These companies are not the bad guys, and the industry wants to work to improve security," said Mike Zaneis, director of congressional affairs for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (news - web sites).

"I don’t think we need new regulations."

ChoicePoint has faced a wave of bad publicity. It’s disclosed that it’s under investigation by the FTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission (news - web sites). The company’s two top executives earned $16.6 million from stock sales after the security breach was discovered but before it was made public.

ChoicePoint’s CEO, Derek Smith, announced that he would support additional federal regulation and that the company would stop selling sensitive data to small businesses and instead concentrate on corporate clients and the government.

The company also hired a top security official from the government, Carol DiBattiste, to improve security and the screening of customers. DiBattiste, a former Air Force undersecretary, was deputy administrator of the Transportation Security Administration.

Seisnet and Reed Elsevier will move quickly to notify any customers affected by the security breach, a spokesman said Wednesday, and improve ID and password procedures.

Davies reports for The Miami Herald