tagged w/ Criminal Justice System
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The Army Times is reporting exclusively that an anonymous note threatening a massacre similar to the Nov. 5 attack at Fort Hood, Texas, was discovered Thursday -- along with a box of 20 hollow-point bullets -- in a motor pool area at Columbus' Fort Benning.
The discovery coincided with a visit from Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, who was in town for Officer Candidate School graduation. The threat prompted a criminal investigation and greater police presence on the Army base, the Army Times reports.
According to a witness on the scene, a box of 20 hollow-point shells and a handwritten note were found under the 197th Infantry Training Brigade.
“The note said ‘tell the commanding general to call off all charges or there will be a re-enactment of Fort Hood,’ ” a witness told Army Times. Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan is charged in the Nov. 5 shooting deaths of 13 fellow service members.
The newspaper, which serves an audience of Army personnel, active and retired, said military police acted quickly on the threat, cordoning off a 20-foot perimeter around the box.
“They’re talking with anyone with a pending [Uniform Code of Military Justice] charge and people who are getting chaptered out to see if they can find out who it is,” the witness told the Army Times.
Fort Benning officials refused comment on the specifics of the letter but confirmed “an ongoing investigation into a general threat at Fort Benning.”
“A suspicious package and note were found,” post spokeswoman Elsie Jackson said. “The soldier notified a noncommissioned officer, who alerted 911. The area was secured as is normal in these types of incidents.”
Soldiers in the unit are being questioned about the threat, the witness told the Army Times. The Kelley Hill area of Fort Benning was on lockdown for part of the day Friday, according to the witness, who noted an increase in military police patrols on the post.
The Fort Benning spokeswoman said “appropriate force protection measures are in place while an investigation is underway to determine if this is a viable threat.”The Army Times is reporting exclusively that an anonymous note threatening a massacre... more
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"On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider legislation designed to overhaul the nation’s criminal justice system by creating a commission to examine that system and make reform recommendations to Congress. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Jim Webb (D-Va.) and Arlen Specter (D-Pa.)
One focus of the commission’s review, sponsors say, will necessarily be the sentencing policies surrounding the decades-old “war on drugs,” which critics argue has packed the nation’s prisons needlessly with non-violent offenders.
Some Republicans, however, are wary of taking any steps toward a legalization of drugs. And they’re lining up with amendments to prevent that from happening. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), for example, has been weighing a provision that would prevent the newly formed commission from even studying the effects that drug legalization would have on the criminal justice system.
“The point is, for them to do what we tell them to do,” Grassley said...."
http://washingtonindependent.com/66600/grassley-hoping-to-keep-medical-marijuana-illegal"On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider legislation designed to... more
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Gouldsboro, Maine — Nathaniel Church, 19, was arrested Oct. 11 on charges of domestic assault and disorderly conduct, police said.
Police said a family member called to complain that Church was threatening to kill his dog, a pit bull that the caller said was very aggressive and had bitten Church the week before.
The caller told police Church was screaming, “Where’s my machete so I can kill the dog.”Gouldsboro, Maine — Nathaniel Church, 19, was arrested Oct. 11 on charges of... more
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New York; (October 21,2009) Joined by Civil Rights advocates, Sen. Eric T. Scheneiderman (D-Manhattan/Bronx) and Assm. Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn) today unveiled legislation to help exornerate innocent people who are wrongfully convicted in cases that lack DNA evidence. The "Actual Innocence Act of 2009" establishes "actual innocence" as a lawful basis for vacating a prior conviction and removes certain roadblocks that can prevent the wrongfully convicted from presenting proof that conclusively establishes their innocence.
"New York is behind the curve when it comes to giving the courts an opportunity to reverse wrongful convictions in non-DNA cases. Experts have proven that DNA exonerations represent only a small fraction of all wrongful convictions, that's why innocence claims must be fully and fairly aired," said sponsor Sen. Eric T. Scheiderman, Chair of the Senate Codes Committee and member of Chief Justice Lippman's task force on wrongful convictions. "This 'actual inocence' legislation is about justice and fairness - it ensures that innocent people don't spend decades behind bars while the real criminals go free."
For wrongfully convicted individuals in these non-DNA cases - even when new evidence comes to light - New York State law offers only limited hope for relief by establishing procedural obstacles that can deprive them of having an innocence claim thoroughly heard. The tragic result - as demonstrated in hundreds of DNA exoneration cases throughout the country - is that an innocent person can spend years in jail while the real perpetrator is free to commit more crimes and terrorize countless victims.
"In many cases, those convicted of serious crimes do not have access to attorneys with the experience and expertise to help prove their innocence. This legislation levels the playing field and will ensure that in non-DNA cases, the wrongfully convicted will have a greater opportunity to prove that they were actually innocent," said Assm. Hakeem Jeffries, the bill's Assembly sponsor.
The Scheiderman/Jeffries bill (S.6234) creates a freestanding ground of "actual innocence" upon which a criminal court could grant a post-conviction motion to vacate its prior judgement of conviction. The motion can be granted only where a defendent is able to present "reliable and relevant" proof that "conclusively establishes" the defendant's actual innocence of the crime os which he or she was convicted.
To ensure that a defendent cannot benefit from prior inaction or delay aimed at "gaming" the system, the bill would specifically permit the court to deny relief where it determines that the defendent's failure to act was intentional.
"Prolonged and unnecessary incarceration of the innocent is detrimental to all - the wrongfully incarcerated, society, the criminal justice system and the victim. I can only hope that the proposed legislation ensures the others wrongly incarcerated like me, never have to suffer like I did in securing their freedom through the criminal justice system," said Marty Tankleff, who was wrongfully convicted for murder of his parents based on false confession.
"New York State's criminal justice system, like many other states,' has too often stressed the 'criminal' more than the 'justice,' sometimes resulting in innocent people being convicted and incarcerated. But, new tools are available to prove the innocence of the wrongly convicted, and I am proud to co-sponsor this legislation which will make them more fully available in New York State," said Sen. Velmanette Montgomery (D-Manhattan). "If the bill provides for the exoneration of just one person it will be worth it."New York; (October 21,2009) Joined by Civil Rights advocates, Sen. Eric T.... more
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suspect will voluntarily answers questions for 4th day, even as u.s. intelligence officials played crucial role in intended terrosist attack.suspect will voluntarily answers questions for 4th day, even as u.s. intelligence... more
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"'Hero' Greek woman sets fire to drunken Briton's genitals
A 26-year old Greek woman has become an overnight national hero after setting fire to the genitals of a 23-year old drunken Briton who allegedly tried to sexually assault her in a crowded bar.
According to a police statement issued last night the incident occurred at a club in the notorious coastal resort of Malia, which is dominated by young Britons seeking all-night revelry.
It alleged the Briton took down his trousers and started waving his genitals at a number of girls. He then specifically "forcefully fondled" the 26-year old Greek woman, asking her to take hold of his genitals.
After asking him to stop harassing her, the police said, she poured the alcoholic drink Sabucco on his genitals (an Italian brand type of Greek ouzo or French Pernod drink).
This again allegedly failed to stop his advances, so the woman seized a lighter and set fire to the alcohol-drenched genitals, local press reports said."
This story gives new meaning to the famous advice, 'keep your dick in your pants'!!!"'Hero' Greek woman sets fire to drunken Briton's genitals
A 26-year old Greek woman... more
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By James Slack
05th August 2009
Pupils as young as five will be taught about the evils of 'wife beating' and the need to form healthy relationships. The lessons are part of a controversial drive, unveiled today, to reduce violence against women and young girls.
They will include teaching boys that they must not beat their partners or any other female.
Last night, critics warned that ministers are cramming the already over-stuffed National Curriculum with lessons that should be taught in the home or in the community.
Others say the plan is part of the feminist agenda led by Harriet Harman in her role as Equalities Minister.
They pointed out the new classes will not cover violence against men, who are far more likely to be the victims of violent crime.
In the past few days alone, Miss Harman has blamed men for the banking crisis, and suggested the Labour Party should always have a female in one of its top two posts.
Under controversial plans, schoolboys will be taught not to beat their partners or any other female. The lessons will be part of the National Curriculum and are likely to be taught in Personal, Social and Health Education classes, which are attended by children from the age of five.
The Government claims that violence against women is costing Britain an astonishing £40billion. It has emerged they are carrying out five separate reviews into the causes and how women can be better protected. This is despite evidence showing that boys and young men are more than twice as likely to fall victim to violence, and that young women are becoming increasingly aggressive.
In a document peppered with the language of Miss Harman's equalities-agenda, the Government says the first ever Violence Against Women and Girls strategy is in production by departments across Whitehall 'Our vision is a society where women and girls feel safe and confident in their homes and communities so that they can develop fully, live freely, contribute to society, and prosper in their daily lives. We want to overcome women's and girls' fear of crime and the gender-based violence that they experience.'
As well as the lessons, the already stretched Health Service has been ordered to conduct studies into As well as the lessons, the already stretched Health Service has been ordered to conduct studies into how it can improve treatment of women at risk of violence, and police must carry out a review of domestic violence incidents.
It comes despite a separate Whitehall action plan on youth crime last month warning that girls needed to be targeted with special lessons to stop them being the aggressors in violent crimes - not the victim. A quarter of all violent assaults in England and Wales are carried out by women, and it is the most common reason for females to be arrested, recently overtaking theft and handling stolen goods.
Police figures reveal a massive rise in the number of women arrested for 'violence against the person' offences which more than doubled from 37,000 ten years ago to 88,000 last year.By James Slack
05th August 2009
Pupils as young as five will be taught about the... more
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Tony Martin: Crime and controversy
Martin killed a burglar and sparked fierce national debate. Farmer Tony Martin became a focus of huge national debate after shooting dead a teenager who was burgling his home.
The incident ignited a furore in Britain over issues such as rural crime and the rights to defend property.
The episode began in August 1999 when 16-year-old Fred Barras, and 33-year-old Fearon, broke into Martin's remote, semi-derelict farmhouse in Emneth Hungate, Norfolk.
Martin's farm was extremely remote and had been burgled many times Martin, who was in the house at the time, opened fire with an illegally-held pump-action shotgun.
Barras was shot in the back and died at the scene, while Fearon was shot in the leg and recovered after treatment in hospital.
Three days later, Martin was taken into police custody and charged with murder and wounding with intent.
The case caused an immediate furore, with local supporters protesting outside the remand hearing.
It became apparent that Martin's orchard farm and home, called Bleak House, had been plagued by crime for years.
Martin had been burgled so many times that he had set up an elaborate network of look-out ladders and traps, even removing a stair to hinder intruders.
Three months before the shooting, crooks had broken into the house and taken £6,000 worth of furniture.
Martin distrusted the police and was said to have begun fearing for his life. He slept with his clothes and boots on and reportedly kept his gun primed and ready by his bedside.
When his trial began in April 2000 Martin argued that he had genuinely been acting in self-defence.
But it emerged the pair had been shot as they tried to flee through a window.
Fearon, who was injured, tried to sue Martin for loss of earnings Norwich Crown Court decided he had gone beyond self-defence, and convicted him of murder - for which he was automatically sentenced to life. The verdict sparked even more argument, with campaigners calling it "monstrous". Martin received thousands of supportive letters in prison.
He began an appeal immediately. In court he argued he had suffered from a paranoid personality disorder which diminished his responsibility.
His barrister told the court Martin had suffered sexual abuse as a child and "considered himself a boy of about ten".
The court found in Martin's favour and in October 2001 his offence was downgraded to manslaughter and his sentence reduced to five years.
Martin's appeal lawyers said he was like a child but the controversy did not end there.
Fearon, who had more than 30 criminal convictions, is now trying to sue Martin for damages as a result of being shot.
He has asked for a reported £15,000 for loss of earnings, claiming he can no longer enjoy sex or bear to see shootings on television.
Fearon is himself currently in jail, after being convicted in February of this year on drugs charges and jailed for 18 months.
The case is likely to be heard once both Fearon and Martin have been freed.
Martin has also continued to make front pages as he has wrestled with the parole board for early release from prison.
He is due for automatic release on 28 July, when he will have served two-thirds of his sentence, but this could have been brought forward to as early as September last year.
The parole board, however, has continually refused him early release - saying he has shown no remorse and would continue to pose a danger to any other burglars.
Martin argues he has made plans to ensure peace and security on his eventual return home.
He has discussed protecting his home with electronic gates and an air raid siren, and has been given a specific police contact to call in case of trouble.Tony Martin: Crime and controversy
Martin killed a burglar and sparked fierce... more
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Teachers are losing their jobs because students make false allegations against them. Even when investigation prove accusations where false teachers are unable to find a teaching job.Teachers are losing their jobs because students make false allegations against them.... more
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Jury Instructions are biased towards the accuser. In the past, the jury was instructed that rape allegations were easy to make but difficult for the defendant to disprove. Today, this instruction is no longer given--instead, juries are informed that medical evidence is not necessary to prove rape, and no witness is necessary, other than the alleged victim. Imagine! Could anyone escape a guilty verdict under these circumstances?
Rape Shield Laws do not allow a defendant to introduce the prior sexual conduct of the complainant. Thus, Rape Shield Laws that are intended to encourage more woment o come forward and testify have simply made it easier to falsely accuse and convict an innocent man. The testimony of any other woman who says a man has assaulted her is admissible in court, without evidence or corrobroation and whether she has ever reported the alleged crime to anyone or not.
Rape Trauma Syndrome is a name used in court to prove that a woman has been traumatized by rape, but is a term used to help convict men unfairly. If a woman immediately reports a rape, that is consistent with Rape Trauma Syndrome. If she waits months to report it, that behavior is also consistent with Rape Trauma Syndrome. If she cries, that signals Rape Trauma Syndrome. If she doesn't cry, that also signals Rape Trauma Syndrome. In short, the term, which is not a true diagnosis but a set of emotional responses, is used to the advantage of the accuser.
"To my considerable chagrin, we found that at least 60 percent of all the rape allegations were false." --Dr. Charles P. McDowell, Supervisory Special Agent, U.S. Air Force, Office of Special Investigations.
http://www.falserape.net/guilty.htmlJury Instructions are biased towards the accuser. In the past, the jury was instructed... more
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By Steve Rendall
There is money to be made from fear—and business has been good for those hawking the online child predator threat.
Exploiters of the scare range from the Internet-policing groups who ferret out suspects and share information with authorities (and sometimes, for a fee, with journalists) to vendors of software intended to help parents monitor and restrict web use. Some of the biggest beneficiaries are TV companies that feature salacious segments on how predators stalk the web in hopes of arranging live liaisons with their young prey. Of course, it’s all in the spirit of public service and protecting the children, right?
… NBC show that gets the top award for ceaseless flogging of the theme.
If you wanted to watch something besides football last Super Bowl Sunday, you could tune into MSNBC’s “Predator Bowl”—12 hours of wall-to-wall episodes of NBC Dateline’s popular (if critically scorched) To Catch a Predator. The show features men who have talked dirty on the Internet with actors posing as minors. The men are lured by the actors to supposed live liaisons, where Dateline anchor Chris Hansen grills them about their motives and reads their smutty letters back to them—and, voyeuristically, to the viewers. Each episode ends with the subject being tackled by waiting police.
The show was always a mess from the point of journalism. It created news rather than reporting it, it surrendered its independence by working hand-in-glove with police agencies, and it paid sources. (NBC paid hundreds of thousand of dollars to the online policing group Perverted Justice for information and help in setting up stings.) Moreover, the show’s week-in and week-out pounding on the same theme suggested it had less to do with journalism and public service than with pandering for ratings through salacious exploitation.
But appeals to journalism ethics left NBC News executives unmoved until one of the show’s stings resulted in the suicide of a target: a former Texas prosecutor who had allegedly engaged in online sexual conversations with one of Dateline’s “minors.” When the subject failed to show at the arranged rendezvous/sting, he was tracked by police and NBC to his home. As they arrived, he shot himself to death (New York Times, 6/26/08).
In addition to the suicide, for which NBC paid an out-of-court settlement, there were embarrassing reports that many of the “cases” in which Dateline had been involved had been thrown out of court, reportedly because NBC’s and Perverted Justice’s involvement interfered with proper police evidence-gathering procedures (20/20, 9/7/07; AP, 6/28/07).By Steve Rendall
There is money to be made from fear—and business has been good... more
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Ask yourself: should the police be involved when tipsy teen girls e-mail their boyfriends naughty Valentine's Day pictures?
Teens, Nude Photos and the Law
Say you're a middle-school principal who confiscated a cell phone from a 14-year-old boy, only to discover it contains a nude photo of his 13-year-old girlfriend. Do you (a) call the boy's parents in despair; (b) call the girl's parents in despair; or (c) call the police? More and more, the answer is (d) all of the above. Which could result in criminal charges for both of your students, and their eventual designation as sex offenders. "Sexting" is the clever new name for the act of sending, receiving or forwarding naked photos via your cell phone, and I wasn't fully convinced that America was facing a sexting epidemic, as opposed to a journalists-writing-about-sexting epidemic, until I saw a new survey done by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. One teenager in five reported having sent or posted naked photos of themselves. Whether all this reflects a new child-porn epidemic, or just a new iteration of the old teen narcissism epidemic, remains unclear.Ask yourself: should the police be involved when tipsy teen girls e-mail their... more
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Criminalizing Child’s Play by Marshall Burns, Ph.D.
http://cfcamerica.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=136
"What used to be called “playing doctor” for young children or thought of as normal sexual experimentation for older teens is now enough to get a kid arrested, taken away in handcuffs, put in juvenile jail, subjected to draconian psychological “treatment,” and put on a sex offender registry, often for the rest of his or her life! This is not just for aggressive or violent behavior, but for innocent, consensual play among giggling kids.
This report presents statistics on juvenile sex offenders, as well as details and references on 66 cases of the formal admonishment of children as young as FOUR for behavior interpreted as sexual and criminal prosecution of children and teenagers for consensual sexual activity. This is a small sample of tens of thousands more cases like them across the United States and in some other countries."
One of many examples, Justin, age 10, Texas
“Justin's stepmother caught him and his 5 year old younger brother 'looking at each other naked.' They were comparing pee pees. Justin was given one year probation, he had to complete 'crisis counseling', and he was required to register as a sex offender for 10 years.”
The criminal justice system follows suit. http://www.ethicaltreatment.org/criminalization.htm
”Even children under age 12 are prosecuted for rape first degree and sodomy first degree for sexual conduct with each other. Furthermore, it is not uncommon for a 13 year old who has sexual contact with an 11 year old to be prosecuted for a class A felony...A youthful offender convicted of rape or sodomy in the first degree is a "violent offender" who must serve at least 85% of his sentence before he can be paroled...Youthful offenders are subject to "Megan's Law" requirements.” --Attorney Gail Robinson
”Their names, addresses, and pictures are all on-line, on the state's Sexual Offender's page. Seemingly, they are pre-pubescent predators, but juvenile probation officer Richard Garcia says, 'We got kids on probation for doing stuff that all of us did at one time or another'...it can end with a child labeled as a deviant, stuck with the stigma through their adult years...81% of San Antonio adults say all sex offenders, regardless of age, should be registered, and their information should be public.”--WOAI-TV
“A ten-year-old kid plays doctor with his kid sister. A senior in high school has consensual sex with his sophomore girlfriend. Dangerous sex offenders? Yes, say the nation's toughest sex laws. And some states' punishments include posting the juvenile offenders' pictures on websites for the rest of their lives.”--Journalist Seamus McGraw, runner-up for the 2002 Casey MedalCriminalizing Child’s Play by Marshall Burns, Ph.D.... more
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Did you know that lobbyists and representatives for the private prison industry actually involved in making the laws and sentencing guidelines?
Also,
"Corporations are running many Americans prisons, but will they put profits before prisoners?
A grim new statistic: One in every hundred Americans is now locked behind bars. As the prison population grows faster than the government can build prisons, private companies see an opportunity for profit.
This week, NOW on PBS investigates the government's trend to outsource prisons and prisoners to the private sector. Critics accuse private prisons of standing in the way of sentencing reform and sacrificing public safety to maximize profits. " http://www.pbs.org/now/Did you know that lobbyists and representatives for the private prison industry... more
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Woman charged with possession of child pornography for Taking photos of herself breastfeeding!
News - News
When does a snapshot of a mother breast-feeding her child become kiddie porn? Ask the Richardson police.By Thomas Korosec
The service was fast, the judgments even hastier. Never did Jacqueline Mercado imagine that four rolls of film dropped off at an Eckerd Drugs one-hour photo lab near her home would turn her life inside out, threaten to send her to jail and prompt the state to take away her kids.Woman charged with possession of child pornography for Taking photos of herself... more
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PART II
This is a brief preview of an incomplete documentary about the abuses of America's Justice system, particularly in the family courts. Your donations are needed to complete the documentary which will include mind blowing evidence of case accounts.
Your donations will also serve as proof:
1. to Justice workers, that we Americans know what they're up to,
2. to broadcasters, that this is a big enough concern to us that we, the American public will not allow the press to be punished by the courts for airing the truth, and
3. to politicians that we want them to do what we put them in their positions of power for; to look out for the best interests of the American people.PART II
This is a brief preview of an incomplete documentary about the abuses of... more
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PART I
This is a brief preview of an incomplete documentary about the abuses of America's Justice system, particularly in the family courts. Your donations are needed to complete the documentary which will include mind blowing evidence of case accounts.
Your donations will also serve as proof:
1. to Justice workers, that we Americans know what they're up to,
2. to broadcasters, that this is a big enough concern to us that we, the American public will not allow the press to be punished by the courts for airing the truth, and
3. to politicians that we want them to do what we put them in their positions of power for; to look out for the best interests of the American people.PART I
This is a brief preview of an incomplete documentary about the abuses of... more
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Last July, a homeless man named Hubert Lindsey was stopped by police officers in Gulfport, Miss., for riding his bicycle without a light. The police soon discovered that Lindsey was a wanted man. Gulfport records showed he owed $4,780 in old fines. So, off to jail he went.
Legal activists now suing the city in federal court say it was pretty obvious that Lindsey couldn't pay the fines. According to their complaint, he lived in a tent, was unemployed, and appeared permanently disabled by an unseeing eye and a mangled arm. But without a lawyer to plead his case, the question of whether Lindsey was a scofflaw or just plain poor never came up. Nor did the question of whether the fines were really owed, or if it was constitutional to jail him for debts he couldn't pay. Nobody, the activists say, even bothered to mention alternatives like community service. The judge ordered Lindsey to "sit out" the fine in jail. That took nearly two months.
Lindsey isn't the only poor American to face a judge on dubious charges without adequate legal representation. Far from it. More than 40 years after the Supreme Court ruled that competent counsel was a fundamental right of all Americans accused of crimes, the American Bar Association says thousands of indigent defendants still navigate the court system each year without a lawyer, or with one who doesn't have the time, resources, or interest to provide effective representation. Whether they face serious felony charges or misdemeanors, the poor often find themselves alone in a sometimes-Kafkaesque system where they have little, if any, voice.
Without advocates, some poor defendants serve jail time longer than the law requires or plead guilty to crimes they didn't commit just to get out of jail. A few, as has been documented, receive the death penalty or life in prison because their court-appointed lawyers were incompetent, lazy, or both. Most shocking, says Norman Lefstein, who chaired the American Bar Association's Indigent Defense Advisory Group, "is the lack of overall real success, the lack of progress" given the overwhelming evidence that inadequate counsel often leads to wrongful conviction. The many cases we know about "likely are only the tip of the iceberg," he says. "This is an enormous problem."Last July, a homeless man named Hubert Lindsey was stopped by police officers in... more
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A look at the false allegation industry as practiced in western culture. Please show this to your sons. They need to know what can happen.A look at the false allegation industry as practiced in western culture. Please show... more
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Gone is the vacant stare, straggly bleached locks and darkened roots from Sandy's September mug shot, when she was arrested for the statutory rape of a 17-year-old student. (Age of consent in Tennessee is 18.) She now sits comfortably with an almost serene glow, her salon-cut hair a glossy auburn as she prepares to deliver her defense: It was she who was raped...
It's a puzzling assertion from a rape victim, this emphasis on the student's near-adult status and the insistence that only one interaction took place. Absent is the rage of a victim or the defiance of someone wrongly accused. Instead, Binkley fidgets with her fingernail, answering questions with an embarrassed smirk. "It's very absurd," she says with an almost imperceptible laugh. "It's very hard to believe someone would accuse me of this."
"Did you resist?" the reporter asks Binkley in the broadcast.
"Yes I did," she says matter-of-factly. "But he crossed the boundary and there was nothing I could do."
Since that TV interview, Judge David Gay has placed a gag order on all participants in the Binkley case. But it's easy to discern from court documents that prosecutors will tell a different story. They will likely portray an educator dubiously popular with students—the sort of hip teacher who maintained a Facebook page and courted students as friends, even working out with some at a local gym.
They will argue that she had sex with not one, but three different boys—two of whom are brothers. Together, the official complaints describe multiple encounters over nearly two years—sex in storage closets, classrooms, in Binkley's car on rural roads and even in the driveway of one student's home—from early 2007 to late 2008.
They will emphasize that she never filed a complaint about the alleged rape at Portland High. "She only reported the encounter as rape when faced with the evidence that we had proving that sexual activity did occur between her and the victim on school campus," reads a statement from Assistant Police Chief Richard Smith. "Her story is not consistent with a rape victim."
They will point out that a rape victim doesn't usually continue to text message, call and hang out with their assailant, as Binkley did. Nor do they typically buy their rapist expensive graduation presents.
Perhaps they will paint her as unhappily married, seeking out the comfort of boys—her bubbly, outgoing persona merely a mask to hide a troubling depression.
If they draw at all from the prosecution of other female sex offenders, they will show her as a dangerous sexual predator who groomed her victims, forming intense friendships with students she fancied until they let their guard down so she could seduce them.
They will point to the words of a 17-year-old, who said he knew Binkley intimately enough to know her tubes were tied, so he didn't need to wear a condom.
"She laid down on the desk and I began to have intercourse with her," he said at one hearing. ". . . She said this isn't what you expected when you signed up for a teacher's aid."
Binkley would only be caught after a student's mother found a confusing text message on her son's cell phone. "I'll have to mark you absent," it said. The mother dialed the number and got Binkley's voicemail. She wondered why the teacher would text a student rather than call his parents, so she got in touch with administrators and police.
The evidence seems mounted against her as she heads for a September trial on seven counts of statutory rape and two counts of sexual battery by an authority figure. But if the past offers any prediction, she's almost sure to get the female discount if she's convicted.
Reported sex offenses by women increased tenfold from the '80s to the '90s, yet their prison time remains but a fraction of what men receive. A Kansas State professor found that, on average, male teachers faced up to 20 years in prison for sex abuse, while female teachers were handed probation, house arrest or a maximum oGone is the vacant stare, straggly bleached locks and darkened roots from Sandy's... more
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