California and the Nation
Amnesty International Condemns California Prisons’ Use of Indefinite Isolation
In a report released Thursday titled “The Edge of Endurance,” the human rights organization took issue with California’s 3,000+ prisoners held in high-security isolation, two-thirds of whom are separated from the general prison population for an “indeterminate” period of time.
“No other US state is believed to have held so many prisoners for such long periods in indefinite isolation,” the report says. read more
Ex-Guatemalan Soldier, Implicated in Mass Murder, Brought to L.A. on Immigration Charge
Thirty years after the infamous Dos Erres massacre in Guatemala, one of the men believed responsible for the slaughter of 250 villagers has been extradited from Canada to Los Angeles for lying on a U.S. citizenship application. read more
Lawsuit Tries to Keep Uncharged and Unconvicted Arrestees out of DNA Database
The federal government and more than half the states, including California, have laws allowing them to collect a person’s DNA and store it in a database without there being a criminal conviction.
On Wednesday, all 11 judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit sat “en banc” to hear arguments that California’s Proposition 69, passed in 2004 with strong voter support, violated the Fourth Amendment and was an unconstitutional search and seizure. read more
As U.S. Tightens Border with Mexico, Immigrants Risk the Ocean
Although more costly and perhaps more dangerous, sneaking into the United States by sea has become a popular alternative to crossing by land from Mexico for illegal immigrants.
The switch to ocean routes began after President George W. Bush signed the 2006 Secure Fence Act, which called for beefing up physical barriers in the Southwest near the border. read more
Homeless Can Keep Possessions on the Street, but L.A. Clergy Counsels Not to Feed Them There
You give up a lot of things when you’re homeless, but your constitutional Fourth Amendment right to due process isn’t one of them, according to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
In a 2-1 decision handed down last week, the court upheld a U.S. District Court ruling against Los Angeles that blocked the city from scooping up those personal possessions of homeless people left temporarily on the street, unless they are a threat to public safety or part of a criminal investigation. read more
Standoff Looms if Brown Signs TRUST Immigration Bill
The TRUST Act, known to some as the Anti-Arizona Act, is favored by the state Legislature, opposed by the federal government and splitting the ranks of local law enforcement.
The legislation cleared the Assembly Friday after some changes in the state Senate and now it’s up to Governor Jerry Brown whether California will prohibit police from detaining person on an immigration hold if they are not charged with or convicted of a serious or violent crime. read more
Feds Amp up Attack on Marijuana from Cities to the Countryside
The federal government knows a good moniker when it sees it.
Operation Mountain Sweep was the name of the 2002 U.S. military campaign conducted by the 82nd Airborne Division to hunt down Al-Queda and Taliban terrorists in Afghanistan.
Now the government is hunting for domestic bad guys across seven states, including the hills of California. read more
Two Bills to Regulate Fracking Die in the Legislature
California lawmakers won’t be taking any action in this legislative session to regulate the controversial oil-extraction method of hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking.
Two Assembly bills, AB 972 and AB 591, died in the Senate Appropriations Committee last week after intense opposition by the energy industry, according to K. Eric Adair, a legal expert on environmental issues. read more
Mosques Will Not Get Day in Court to Contest U.S. Spying
A federal judge, likening himself to a fictional Greek hero who must save all those around him at the expense of a few, elected to toss out a civil liberties case brought by California mosques that alleged the U.S. illegally spied on them. read more
California Won’t be Closing Assault Weapon Loophole Any Time Soon
In 1989, California became the first state in the nation to identify and ban assault weapons, five years before President Clinton signed similar federal legislation.
The federal law expired in 2004 and a pro-gun campaign led by the National Rifle Association prevented its renewal. read more
State OKs Ground War Against Mosquitoes as First West Nile Death Reported This Year
An 88-year-old Kern County woman became the first confirmed death from the West Nile virus in California this year, just days after the State Water Resources Board widened the ground game against its mosquito carriers. read more
State Ponders Spending Millions to Keep Polluters in Largely Unknown Cap-and-Trade Program
California is afraid it might be about to spring a leak.
As the state approaches a launch of its innovative cap-and-trade program to reduce carbon-dioxide pollution, it is worrying that big companies will leave rather than pay for the environmental costs of their pollution. So, the state is considering offering millions of dollars in free permits to certain industries to encourage their participation. read more
State Regulators “Listening” while Energy Companies Are Fracking
After failing to pass legislation to control the controversial method of oil and gas extraction called hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” the state decided instead to conduct a listening tour to catalog complaints of residents around the state.
read more
Californians React to Mass Murder and Tough Gun Laws with Record Weapons Shopping Spree
Even before the theater shooting in Colorado set off a national frenzy of gun buying, California—home to some of the toughest gun laws in the nation—was headed toward a state record in weapons sales.
Gun sales are expected to top 700,000 this year, double the total in 2005. read more
Feds Take Another Crack at Big Solar Projects
Hoping to fare better at nurturing the development of solar energy without enraging environmentalists, antagonizing financial interests and otherwise giving solar a bad name, the Obama Administration announced a change in strategy this week.
Instead of encouraging that projects be built in locations scattered around six Western states, including California, the government will offer incentives for developers to cluster their projects in large, designated areas. read more
Parents Taking Over School Whether They Want to or Not
A Superior Court judge has given parents in the poor Southern California school district of Adelanto the green light to become the first in the nation to use a petition trigger to take over a school, although a number of them have changed their minds about the move. read more