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News Roundup

As the News Roundup noted last week, bills in the General Assembly that would require Sheriffs to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement efforts are causing some controversy.  The News & Observer reports that the Sheriffs of Mecklenburg, Buncombe, and Wake counties attended a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting this week to express their opposition to House Bill 370, proposed legislation that essentially requires local law enforcement officials to cooperate with ICE and provides a mechanism to remove officials from office for failing or refusing to do so.  This piece from the Daily Advance says that some Sheriffs in other jurisdictions have no problems with the bill.  Keep reading for more news.

Dallas Shooting.  On Monday, a man armed with an assault rifle and more than 150 rounds of ammunition launched an attack outside the Earle Cabell Federal Building in downtown Dallas, shooting at people in and around the building.  The attacker, Army veteran Brian Isaack Clyde, was immediately confronted by three officers from the Federal Protective Service who were stationed at the building.  Clyde was shot and killed.  A photojournalist who works for the Dallas Morning News, Tom Fox, happened to be at the building when the attack started and captured stunning and terrifying images of the attack as it unfolded.

Criminal Justice Data.  Because the criminal justice apparatus in the United States is not an integrated and cohesive single system but rather is the sum of fractured federal, state, and local operations, reliable data about the whole is hard to come by.  As this opinion piece notes, we simply don’t know the answers to some basic questions about the administration of justice in our country because relevant data either doesn’t exist or is difficult to compile.  As the ABA Journal explains, a new law in Florida addresses this problem by collecting certain information about criminal prosecutions, standardizing it, and publishing it online.  Two counties are piloting the effort this year and it rolls out state-wide in 2020.

NXIVM.  As CBS News reports, the leader of a purported self-improvement group that actually was a cult and pyramid scheme was convicted by a jury in federal court this week of several crimes including sex trafficking, racketeering, and conspiracy.  Keith Raniere was the leader of a group called NXIVM and prosecutors alleged that he, along with other high-ranking members, used the group to blackmail women into sexual slavery.  The trial has been in the national news in part because some members of the group are famous or wealthy.

Man in the Window.  Last year, the arrest of the man alleged to be the Golden State Killer, a prolific serial rapist, murderer, and burglar who terrorized California in the 70’s and 80’s made national news.  With the help of genealogy websites, police identified Joseph James DeAngelo Jr. as the suspect in the crime spree.  A new podcast from the L.A. Times and Wondery titled “Man in the Window” takes a deep dive into the investigation and, among other things, highlights how attitudes towards sexual assaults have changed in the years since the crimes took place.

Grease Crimes.  If you’ve got a lot of used cooking oil on hand you better lock it up.  WRAL reports that waste grease has become such a sought-after commodity that 21 people recently were indicted in federal court for conspiring to steal the oil and store it in a Durham warehouse as they waited to resell it.

5 thoughts on “News Roundup”

  1. “the Sheriffs of Mecklenburg, Buncombe, and Wake counties attended a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting this week to express their opposition to House Bill 370…Sheriffs in other jurisdictions have no problems with the bill.”

    Anybody else think that it’s a coincidence that the sheriffs of Mecklenburg, Buncombe, and Wake counties are all registered Democrats? I think not. It’s so nice to see our state and nation returning to their former morality and patriotism under the leadership and example of President Donald J. Trump.

    Reply
  2. Morality under Trump. I laughed so hard- I blew snot out of my nose. Morality – ” principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior”. I think he left out an A, amorality-“unawareness of, indifference toward, or disbelief in any particular set of moral standards or principles. and remember a mind is a terrible thing to waste!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! check 2016 for proof

    Reply
    • And yet, when you woke up this morning President Donald J. Trump was STILL YOUR PRESIDENT. Now who has the last laugh sir?

      Reply
  3. Well here’s food for though: we’ve demonized corporations in this country for some time now and turn around and vote in someone who runs many! How’s that for smart!

    Reply

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