Army Chief Of Staff Presents Purple Hearts In SA
KSAT.com - San Antonio,TX,USA
General Says Health Care Level Improving, But Still Needs More
POSTED: 4:52 pm CST November 17, 2008
SAN ANTONIO -- While much has been done to improve the level of care for wounded military members, some issues still remain, said the U.S. Army's highest-ranking officer.
Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the current chief of staff of the Army and former commander of multi-national forces in Iraq was in San Antonio on Monday to bestow the Purple Heart on two Army specialists injured while serving in Iraq.
Casey Jr. said the Army has multiple conflicts when dealing with issues such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and brain injuries among its ranks.
click link for more
Monday, November 17, 2008
Soldier says faulty grenade blew hand off
Soldier says faulty grenade blew hand off
FBI agents speak out on injuries from faulty grenades
Story Highlights
Weapon emits bright flash, deafening bang that's used to shock and disorient
Three FBI agents injured when flash-bang grenade unexpectedly went off
Federal indictment says manufacturer knew weapon was defective
Pyrotechnic Specialties says "indictment is lacking in detail, vague and/or confusing"
By Abbie Boudreau and Scott Zamost
CNN Special Investigations Unit
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- The explosion happened without warning around 4 a.m. in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
FBI agents were sitting in this car when a "flash-bang" grenade on one of the agents went off without warning.
1 of 3 FBI agent Donald Bain was sitting in his car in a parking lot with two other agents. He was armed and wore a Kevlar vest. He was also carrying a "flash-bang" grenade, a nonlethal weapon that emits a bright flash and deafening bang that's used to shock and disorient criminal suspects or the enemy in combat situations.
The three agents -- Bain, Thomas Scanzano and James Milligan -- were waiting for developments on a kidnapping that had turned into a hostage stakeout.
That's when, Bain says, the flash-bang grenade in his vest just blew up.
"The car is on fire," Bain recalled. "I was told later I was on fire. Smoke billowing in the car. It was obviously chaos."
Scanzano remembers "it was like being in combat. There was smoke and fire in the vehicle, and I knew that we were in trouble."
An ambulance rushed the three agents to a nearby hospital.
"To me, it felt like someone just whacked me in the back with a baseball bat as hard as they could," said Bain, recalling the incident, which happened four years ago.
Bain suffered severe bruising, a concussion and burns to his neck and ears. All three agents said they have experienced hearing loss.
"There was smoke, and it was like a grenade going off in the car," Scanzano said.
click link for more
FBI agents speak out on injuries from faulty grenades
Story Highlights
Weapon emits bright flash, deafening bang that's used to shock and disorient
Three FBI agents injured when flash-bang grenade unexpectedly went off
Federal indictment says manufacturer knew weapon was defective
Pyrotechnic Specialties says "indictment is lacking in detail, vague and/or confusing"
By Abbie Boudreau and Scott Zamost
CNN Special Investigations Unit
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- The explosion happened without warning around 4 a.m. in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
FBI agents were sitting in this car when a "flash-bang" grenade on one of the agents went off without warning.
1 of 3 FBI agent Donald Bain was sitting in his car in a parking lot with two other agents. He was armed and wore a Kevlar vest. He was also carrying a "flash-bang" grenade, a nonlethal weapon that emits a bright flash and deafening bang that's used to shock and disorient criminal suspects or the enemy in combat situations.
The three agents -- Bain, Thomas Scanzano and James Milligan -- were waiting for developments on a kidnapping that had turned into a hostage stakeout.
That's when, Bain says, the flash-bang grenade in his vest just blew up.
"The car is on fire," Bain recalled. "I was told later I was on fire. Smoke billowing in the car. It was obviously chaos."
Scanzano remembers "it was like being in combat. There was smoke and fire in the vehicle, and I knew that we were in trouble."
An ambulance rushed the three agents to a nearby hospital.
"To me, it felt like someone just whacked me in the back with a baseball bat as hard as they could," said Bain, recalling the incident, which happened four years ago.
Bain suffered severe bruising, a concussion and burns to his neck and ears. All three agents said they have experienced hearing loss.
"There was smoke, and it was like a grenade going off in the car," Scanzano said.
Stern has also filed a civil lawsuit against PSI on behalf of Dean Wagner, a master sergeant in the Army who also said he was seriously injured by a flash-bang grenade that he says prematurely detonated and was manufactured by PSI.Earlier this year, PSI, its chief operating officer, David Karlson, and three other defendants were indicted for fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. According to the federal indictment, PSI had a $15 million contract to supply flash-bang grenades to the military before it supplied them to the FBI. Watch soldier describe losing his hand from flash bang »
An emotional Wagner told CNN he was days away from finishing his second tour in Iraq when he was putting away his flash bangs. One of them exploded, severely damaging his right hand. The injuries were so severe that he ended up having his hand amputated.
click link for more
L.A. County offers crisis counseling to fire victims
Most of you know I do videos on PTSD. There are several that should go here. More later.
First one is that while we focus on the victims, we need to remember the firefighters trying to save lives and as much property as they can. PTSD I Grieve is about firefighters and police officers who also happen to be members of the National Guard. They train to serve here and their communities, then they get deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, then come home again. They need a lot of help.
Second one is PTSD Not God's Judgment. While it was intended for warriors, it has been used to help firefighters and police officers. We tend to come out of tragedies and wonder if God just judged us after it happened. PTSD is not a judgment against anyone.
PTSD After Trauma is for the victims.
IFOC Chaplain Army Of Love is about the Chaplains who go rushing in to help and they are never really reported on. These are quiet heroes, going where they are needed and when they are needed. It does not matter what the cause of the trauma was, usually, they are right there.
For more information about the IFOC, go here
L.A. County offers crisis counseling to fire victims
Los Angeles Times - CA,USA
By Kate Linthicum
12:07 PM PST, November 17, 2008
The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health is offering free crisis counseling to victims of the Sayre and Freeway Complex fires.
"When you talk about traumatic events like these, they will be affecting people for days, weeks, months and even years after," said Ken Kondo, a spokesman for the department. "The recovery process has to start now."
click link for more
First one is that while we focus on the victims, we need to remember the firefighters trying to save lives and as much property as they can. PTSD I Grieve is about firefighters and police officers who also happen to be members of the National Guard. They train to serve here and their communities, then they get deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, then come home again. They need a lot of help.
Second one is PTSD Not God's Judgment. While it was intended for warriors, it has been used to help firefighters and police officers. We tend to come out of tragedies and wonder if God just judged us after it happened. PTSD is not a judgment against anyone.
PTSD After Trauma is for the victims.
IFOC Chaplain Army Of Love is about the Chaplains who go rushing in to help and they are never really reported on. These are quiet heroes, going where they are needed and when they are needed. It does not matter what the cause of the trauma was, usually, they are right there.
For more information about the IFOC, go here
International Fellowship of Chaplains Chaplaincy Training ...Dave and Judy Vorce
The International Fellowship of Chaplains, Inc. (IFOC) is a non profit, providing training, recognition, certification and information
Gen. George Casey said "Soldiers need more time at home"
Two points that need to be remembered here. During the presidential campaign, there were a lot of veterans upset saying they heard Senator Obama wanted to cut the size of the military because he wants to cut the budget. They wouldn't listen. The size of the Army alone is going to increase. The spending cuts are to stop spending money that does not need to be spent, as in the case of contractors in Iraq and their cost plus billing and other waste. The other part is that this is not the first time longer dwell time has been talked about. Congress held hearings on this two years ago but not much has been done to do it.
Casey: Soldiers need more time at home
By MICHELLE ROBERTS - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Nov 17, 2008 16:39:30 EST
SAN ANTONIO — After years of longer and more frequent deployments, soldiers should get more time at home as long as overall demand for troops overseas holds steady, the Army chief of staff said Monday.
Increasing the time troops have at home is probably the most important element for readying them for future assignments, said Gen. George Casey during a news conference after a Purple Heart ceremony.
With the size of the Army growing and demand holding steady, soldiers should get nearly 18 months at home starting next year. By 2011, they should get two years at home to undergo more training and spend time with their families, Casey said.
Soldiers and their families have been strained by 15-month deployments ordered as part of the surge in Iraq. Some have been getting less than a year at home between deployments and are on their second or third tour.
A reduction to yearlong deployments and the planned growth in troops should give soldiers more time away from the battlefield, Casey said. The Army plans to add 74,000 troops by 2011.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/11/ap_casey_111708/
Marine accused in disappearance hoax arrested
Marine accused in disappearance hoax arrested
By Associated Press BOULDER, Colo. (AP) - A Marine accused of faking his own disappearance to avoid returning to his unit was arrested Sunday in Port Angeles, Wash., and his father was arrested for investigation of aiding and abetting.
Acting on a tip from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office in Colorado, Port Angeles police arrested 23-year-old Lance Hering at the Port Angeles airport.
His father, Lloyd Hering, also was arrested.
Lance Hering, a lance corporal and Iraq war veteran, was on leave from Camp Pendleton, Calif., when he disappeared in 2006.
click link for more
By Associated Press BOULDER, Colo. (AP) - A Marine accused of faking his own disappearance to avoid returning to his unit was arrested Sunday in Port Angeles, Wash., and his father was arrested for investigation of aiding and abetting.
Acting on a tip from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office in Colorado, Port Angeles police arrested 23-year-old Lance Hering at the Port Angeles airport.
His father, Lloyd Hering, also was arrested.
Lance Hering, a lance corporal and Iraq war veteran, was on leave from Camp Pendleton, Calif., when he disappeared in 2006.
click link for more
Air crash in B.C. kills 7; 1 survives
Air crash in B.C. kills 7; 1 survives
One man walked away with minor injuries from a plane crash that killed all seven others aboard Sunday off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.
By Kristi Heim and Nick Perry
Seattle Times staff reporter
A remarkable story of survival is emerging from a plane crash that killed seven people Sunday off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.
The sole survivor scrambled out of the wreckage just before it burst into flames and, enduring burns to his body, hiked for several hours down a hillside to the waterfront, according to reports. There, wrapped in a yellow sheet, he was able to flag down a coast-guard boat.
The chartered plane, a Grumman Goose flown by Pacific Coastal Airlines, crashed around 10:30 a.m. on remote South Thormanby Island, 35 miles northwest of Vancouver in the Strait of Georgia, said Wayne Bamford, a Canadian coast-guard officer. It had been taking a construction crew from Vancouver International Airport to Powell River, B.C.
click post title for more
One man walked away with minor injuries from a plane crash that killed all seven others aboard Sunday off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.
By Kristi Heim and Nick Perry
Seattle Times staff reporter
A remarkable story of survival is emerging from a plane crash that killed seven people Sunday off British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.
The sole survivor scrambled out of the wreckage just before it burst into flames and, enduring burns to his body, hiked for several hours down a hillside to the waterfront, according to reports. There, wrapped in a yellow sheet, he was able to flag down a coast-guard boat.
The chartered plane, a Grumman Goose flown by Pacific Coastal Airlines, crashed around 10:30 a.m. on remote South Thormanby Island, 35 miles northwest of Vancouver in the Strait of Georgia, said Wayne Bamford, a Canadian coast-guard officer. It had been taking a construction crew from Vancouver International Airport to Powell River, B.C.
click post title for more
California firefighters make gains
MARCIO JOSE SANCHEZ / AP
California firefighters make gains
Calm winds have allowed firefighters in Southern California to make gains on two raging wildfires that destroyed hundreds of homes and forced thousands of residents to flee.
Read story
6-year-old Marysville girl shot in head Sunday has died
6-year-old Marysville girl shot in head Sunday has died
By The Associated Press
MARYSVILLE — A 6-year-old Marysville girl who was shot in the head Sunday has died, according to KING5.com.
The Snohomish County sheriff's office says the girl was shot as her father was cleaning guns.
click link for more
St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
Nov 17, 2008
St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
ST. PETERSBURG -- A police officer shot and wounded a man that pointed a gun at officers who were responding to a report of a domestic dispute Sunday night.
The shooting victim has been identified by police as Roberto Garcia Lara, 42, of 6528 12th St. N.
The incident started when St. Petersburg police received a call from an alarm company at about 9 p.m. in reference to a woman screaming.
Police said the woman may have pushed a panic button on the alarm system at the home at 6528 12th St. N. Representatives with the alarm company heard the woman yelling and notified police.
When officers arrived, they found a "very emotional" woman in the front yard, said St. Petersburg Police spokesman Bill Doniel. The woman told police her husband was suicidal.
"She told officers they were having an argument and that he wanted to kill himself," Doniel said.
click link for more
Nov 17, 2008
St. Pete police shoot armed suicidal man
ST. PETERSBURG -- A police officer shot and wounded a man that pointed a gun at officers who were responding to a report of a domestic dispute Sunday night.
The shooting victim has been identified by police as Roberto Garcia Lara, 42, of 6528 12th St. N.
The incident started when St. Petersburg police received a call from an alarm company at about 9 p.m. in reference to a woman screaming.
Police said the woman may have pushed a panic button on the alarm system at the home at 6528 12th St. N. Representatives with the alarm company heard the woman yelling and notified police.
When officers arrived, they found a "very emotional" woman in the front yard, said St. Petersburg Police spokesman Bill Doniel. The woman told police her husband was suicidal.
"She told officers they were having an argument and that he wanted to kill himself," Doniel said.
click link for more
Veterans Airlift Command reunites wounded vets and families
Giving Vets A Lift
Veterans Airlift Command is an organization that offers free flights to soldiers and their families with pilots volunteering their services, planes, and paying for the fuel costs. Chip Reid reports.
November 17, 2008
Watch CBS Videos Online
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4608140n
Veterans Airlift Command is an organization that offers free flights to soldiers and their families with pilots volunteering their services, planes, and paying for the fuel costs. Chip Reid reports.
November 17, 2008
Watch CBS Videos Online
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4608140n
1 in 4 Gulf vets has syndrome
It's easy to remember the yellow ribbon stickers hanging on the windows of businesses and the words "Support the Troops" or "Pray for the Troops" while they were trying to get the Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. People were determined to not repeat the same mistake of blaming those who serve for where they are sent to go. While the majority of the nation was behind helping the people of Kuwait, some in this country were against using our troops on foreign lands when our security was not threatened. Still, the mood of the country was that the troops deserved full support and we managed to prove it. Or so we thought we did.
Yet when the parades were over, we thought our obligation to them was over as well. We didn't pay attention to them suffering the usual wounds of war and the unique wounds of what happened in Kuwait or the oil fires. There really isn't much we did pay attention to other than the fact they won.
Today we see yellow ribbons and the words "support the troops" all over the place but do any of the people hanging these messages ever really stop to think was supporting the troops really means? Do they know it has to include taking care of them when they come home from where they are sent? This report shows exactly how little the men and women serving this nation, fighting the battles they are sent to fight actually do receive the support we claim to provide.
1 in 4 Gulf vets has syndrome
Neurotoxic exposures from first Iraq invasion rears widespread illness.
Panel finds widespread Gulf War illness
11/16/08
ANNE USHER/Cox News Service
Respond to this story
Email this story to a friend
WASHINGTON - At least one in four U.S. veterans of the 1991 Gulf War suffers from a multi-symptom illness caused by exposure to toxic chemicals during the conflict, a congressionally mandated report being released Monday found.
For much of the past 17 years, government officials have maintained that these veterans -- more than 175,000 out of about 697,000 deployed -- are merely suffering the effects of wartime stress, even as more have come forward recently with severe ailments.
“The extensive body of scientific research now available consistently indicates that ’Gulf War illness’ is real, that it is the result of neurotoxic exposures during Gulf War deployment, and that few veterans have recovered or substantially improved with time,” said the report, being released Monday by a panel of scientists and veterans. A copy was obtained by Cox Newspapers.
Gulf War illness is typically characterized by a combination of memory and concentration problems, persistent headaches, unexplained fatigue and widespread pain. It may also include chronic digestive problems, respiratory symptoms and skin rashes.
Two things the military provided to troops in large quantities to protect them -- pesticides and pyridostigmine bromide (PB), aimed at thwarting the effects of nerve gas -- are the most likely culprits, the panel found.
click link for more
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Capital punishment commission hears surprising, sobering stories
Capital punishment commission hears surprising, sobering stories
By Jennifer McMenamin
November 16, 2008
When the New Jersey legislature voted late last year to repeal the death penalty, it did so on the heels of a near-unanimous recommendation from a state commission that said capital punishment was too costly, too arbitrary and too tough on victims' families to justify the risk of an irreversible mistake.
So when Maryland lawmakers created a panel to study the issue, death penalty opponents hoped it would produce a similar recommendation and provide the boost needed to repeal the death penalty law.
Last week, they got that recommendation - but on a much closer vote than in New Jersey, where the margin was 12-1.
The Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment found, by 13-7 vote, that the state should abolish the death penalty because it carries the "real possibility" of executing innocent people and may be biased against blacks.
click link for more
By Jennifer McMenamin
November 16, 2008
When the New Jersey legislature voted late last year to repeal the death penalty, it did so on the heels of a near-unanimous recommendation from a state commission that said capital punishment was too costly, too arbitrary and too tough on victims' families to justify the risk of an irreversible mistake.
So when Maryland lawmakers created a panel to study the issue, death penalty opponents hoped it would produce a similar recommendation and provide the boost needed to repeal the death penalty law.
Last week, they got that recommendation - but on a much closer vote than in New Jersey, where the margin was 12-1.
The Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment found, by 13-7 vote, that the state should abolish the death penalty because it carries the "real possibility" of executing innocent people and may be biased against blacks.
click link for more
High Levels Of Uranium Found In Water At 2 Madison Schools
High Levels Of Uranium Found In Water At 2 Madison Schools
By DAVID FUNKHOUSER The Hartford Courant
3:32 PM EST, November 16, 2008
MADISON - Unusually high levels of uranium found in the well water of two schools has forced town officials to shut off the bubblers and provide students with bottled water while they investigate.
School officials said they have been told the contamination is not harmful.
"The state toxicologist said it shouldn't be a great concern, it's a non-problem as far as they are concerned," board of education Chairman Robert Hale said.
Hale said the Robert H. Brown Middle School and Kathleen Ryerson Elementary School off Route 79 have been supplied with bottled water fountains, and the schools will stick with bottled water for drinking and cooking until a solution can be found.
click link for more
By DAVID FUNKHOUSER The Hartford Courant
3:32 PM EST, November 16, 2008
MADISON - Unusually high levels of uranium found in the well water of two schools has forced town officials to shut off the bubblers and provide students with bottled water while they investigate.
School officials said they have been told the contamination is not harmful.
"The state toxicologist said it shouldn't be a great concern, it's a non-problem as far as they are concerned," board of education Chairman Robert Hale said.
Hale said the Robert H. Brown Middle School and Kathleen Ryerson Elementary School off Route 79 have been supplied with bottled water fountains, and the schools will stick with bottled water for drinking and cooking until a solution can be found.
click link for more
S. Florida Teen Recovering After Cougar Attack
S. Florida Teen Recovering After Cougar Attack
CBS 4 - Miami,FL,USA
PALM SPRINGS NORTH (CBS4) ― A South Florida teen is recovering at home after being mauled by a cougar in a North Miami-Dade home Saturday.
The 4-year-old cougar named Chaos belongs to retired teacher Alan Rigerman. Rigerman owns has a second cougar, who is Chaos' mother, along with several snakes, tortoises and alligators at his home in the 17 thousand block of Northwest 84th Avenue. Jorge Pino, a spokesman for The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, says Rigerman is properly permitted to keep the animals at his home.
Miami-Dade police said the incident occurred when the 16 year old entered Rigerman's home with Anthony Zitnick, 21, around 1:30 p.m. Saturday. CBS4 news partners at the Miami Herald report Rigerman said Zitnick went into the house without his permission with a key he'd given him soon after Hurricane Wilma when he did yard work for the older man.
''He helped me with my cats under my supervision,'' Rigerman told the Miami Herald. ``But never, never, never alone.''
Neighbors believe Zitnick took the girl into the house because he was trying to impress her.
Richard Miralles said he was outside when he heard the girl scream. He rushed to the house and was shocked by what he found. The girl was lying on the floor, Chaos was on top of her with the girl's head in his mouth and declawed paw on her face.
click link for more
CBS 4 - Miami,FL,USA
PALM SPRINGS NORTH (CBS4) ― A South Florida teen is recovering at home after being mauled by a cougar in a North Miami-Dade home Saturday.
The 4-year-old cougar named Chaos belongs to retired teacher Alan Rigerman. Rigerman owns has a second cougar, who is Chaos' mother, along with several snakes, tortoises and alligators at his home in the 17 thousand block of Northwest 84th Avenue. Jorge Pino, a spokesman for The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, says Rigerman is properly permitted to keep the animals at his home.
Miami-Dade police said the incident occurred when the 16 year old entered Rigerman's home with Anthony Zitnick, 21, around 1:30 p.m. Saturday. CBS4 news partners at the Miami Herald report Rigerman said Zitnick went into the house without his permission with a key he'd given him soon after Hurricane Wilma when he did yard work for the older man.
''He helped me with my cats under my supervision,'' Rigerman told the Miami Herald. ``But never, never, never alone.''
Neighbors believe Zitnick took the girl into the house because he was trying to impress her.
Richard Miralles said he was outside when he heard the girl scream. He rushed to the house and was shocked by what he found. The girl was lying on the floor, Chaos was on top of her with the girl's head in his mouth and declawed paw on her face.
click link for more
Marilyn Mock, Foreclosure Angel, not done helping
Reaching out to foreclosure victims
WFAA-TV
Marilyn Mock, the "foreclosure angel" who helped a Pottsboro woman keep her home last month, wants to help others facing the same fate.
WFAA-TV
Marilyn Mock, the "foreclosure angel" who helped a Pottsboro woman keep her home last month, wants to help others facing the same fate.
"People need to help each other, that's all there is to it," Mock said last month.
Weeks later, she kept her promise and signed the papers so Orr can move in.
"She is going to make payments on whatever she can afford," Mock explained.
And now, Marilyn Mock wants to reach out to others who are facing foreclosure. She has launched the Foreclosure Angel Foundation, a non-profit organization to help struggling homeowners.
"I am trying to set up so people can actually meet and see the people they are going to be helping," Mock said.
One by one, she hopes to bring more families back home.
click link for the rest and for the video to remind you of what happened.
Pacific Washington:Mourners keep vigil for young man shot in cold blood
Mourners keep vigil for young man shot in cold blood
This shell-shocked community came together Saturday night, keeping vigil for a young man who was shot and killed at a crowded, church-sponsored youth event on Friday. A candlelight vigil was held at a memorial that sprang up near the scene of the deadly shooting a short time after it happened.
PACIFIC, Wash. - This shell-shocked community came together Saturday night, keeping vigil for a young man who was shot and killed at a crowded, church-sponsored youth event on Friday.
A memorial sprang up near the scene of the deadly shooting a short time after it happened, and became a focal point for grieving friends and family of the victim during the day that followed.
It continued Saturday night during the vigil as people stood together, stunned, candlelight flickering across their sorrowful faces.
They came together for Shiloh Drott, 21, who was enjoying an evening with family and friends at the community center in Pacific when he was gunned down in cold blood.
Someone opened fire through a window of the community center next door to Pacific's city hall, hitting Drott in the chest. He died on the rec room floor as shocked friends and children - some reportedly as young as 4 years old - looked on.
Drott's mother, says the community center was always a special place for their family.
"Our kids grew up with the rec hall. This is their sanctuary," she said late Saturday.
Drott was well-known for his work as a youth mentor. He and his friends had just finished a basketball game and were about to eat pizza when the gunman tracked him down.
"He was like, sitting in his chair. He was like, "What's going on?" And another bullet came and hit him, he just fell on the ground," says 11-year-old Kaleb Shoute, who was sitting next to Drott when he was shot to death.
Read more »
The heroes of the wrongfully convicted
Heroes of the wrongfully convicted
For decade, NU center has shaken up justice system
By Steve Mills Tribune reporter
November 16, 2008
The Center on Wrongful Convictions at the Northwestern University School of Law has won freedom for nearly three dozen innocent people and, in that often difficult process, changed how many people think about the state's criminal justice system.
In the 10 years since the center was founded in 1998, it has played a leading role in the exonerations of 19 people in Illinois. Before that, members of its staff were crucial to 14 exonerations. Those include 13 inmates who had been under a death sentence, as well as the country's first DNA-based exoneration, Gary Dotson, who had been convicted of rape.
Among the high-profile cases the center or its founders have tackled and won are those of the Ford Heights Four, exonerated in the 1978 murders of a suburban couple, and Rolando Cruz, exonerated in the 1983 rape and murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico of Naperville. Three others are detailed on this page.
Through its work, the Center on Wrongful Convictions has made people think twice about claims that the system always works. It has prompted some top city, county and state officials to reconsider their views on the death penalty and other aspects of criminal justice
click link for more
For decade, NU center has shaken up justice system
By Steve Mills Tribune reporter
November 16, 2008
The Center on Wrongful Convictions at the Northwestern University School of Law has won freedom for nearly three dozen innocent people and, in that often difficult process, changed how many people think about the state's criminal justice system.
In the 10 years since the center was founded in 1998, it has played a leading role in the exonerations of 19 people in Illinois. Before that, members of its staff were crucial to 14 exonerations. Those include 13 inmates who had been under a death sentence, as well as the country's first DNA-based exoneration, Gary Dotson, who had been convicted of rape.
Among the high-profile cases the center or its founders have tackled and won are those of the Ford Heights Four, exonerated in the 1978 murders of a suburban couple, and Rolando Cruz, exonerated in the 1983 rape and murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico of Naperville. Three others are detailed on this page.
Through its work, the Center on Wrongful Convictions has made people think twice about claims that the system always works. It has prompted some top city, county and state officials to reconsider their views on the death penalty and other aspects of criminal justice
click link for more
4 Pacific Union College students killed in crash
4 College Students Killed In Crash
Quartet from Pacific Union College are killed late Saturday night when their speeding car skids out of control and collides with a pickup truck north of St. Helena. Demian Bulwa
15:00 PST NAPA -- -- Four students at Pacific Union College, a Christian liberal arts school in the Napa Valley, were killed late Saturday night when their speeding car skidded out of control and collided with a pickup truck north of St. Helena and just a few miles south of their campus in Angwin, California Highway Patrol officials said.
The Napa County coroner's office today identified the victims as Luke Kotazo Nishikawa, 22; Boaz Joshua Pak, 20; Chon Shin, 20; and Simon Cholin Son, 19.
click link for more
NOTE: A reader posted comment that "Chon Shin" has wrong spelling. It should be Chong Shin.
Patiently waiting on science and faith for daughter's healing
Patiently waiting on science and faith
By Billy Cox
PALMETTO - One day, Lexi Antorino was painting with watercolors, reciting her ABCs, and counting to 10 in Spanish.
Then, in a moment, her life and the lives of those who care for her were forever
The thing packs a jolt to the fingertip, like one of those concealed hand-buzzer gags. Sarah laughs; Lexi gets it in the arm twice a day, 90 minutes per session.
"She's the youngest person they've ever tried it on," Sarah says.
It's called a right median nerve stimulation (RMNS) cuff, and its effect on the brain was discovered, accidentally, by American orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Ed Cooper in the 1980s.
At his practice in Kinston, N.C., Cooper initially used neuro-stimulation therapy to reduce spasticity and increase muscle control among brain-damaged patients. By placing a cuff of electrodes along the median nerve of the right forearm in quadriplegics, he learned that the current jumped hemispheres and also strengthened the left arm.
But he also began to notice that certain patients in minimally conscious states showed signs of improvement in their cognitive abilities.
After observing the positive responses of several dozen brain-impaired patients at the University of Virginia and East Carolina University, Cooper published his results in the journals of "Neuropsychological Rehabilitation" and "Brain Injury."
Widespread research has yet to occur, but the RMNS cuff has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. With their pediatrician's approval, the Antorinos began using Lexi's cuff in July.
Now retired, Cooper has neither met Lexi nor examined her records. His remarks are cautious: "You never know about these things. Overall, I'd have to say I'm optimistic about her making some type of functional mental recovery."
Then he volunteers an observation that has nothing to do with his medical credentials but seems on-point with the views and hopes of the Antorinos.
"I've found that the kind of parents who have the most hope are conservative Christians and faithful Roman Catholics. They seem to have the deepest belief in miracles."
Web page, http://www.prayforlexi.com/,
click link for more
By Billy Cox
The Palmetto youngster was badly hurt when a swingset toppled onto her in December 2007.
PALMETTO - One day, Lexi Antorino was painting with watercolors, reciting her ABCs, and counting to 10 in Spanish.
Then, in a moment, her life and the lives of those who care for her were forever
The thing packs a jolt to the fingertip, like one of those concealed hand-buzzer gags. Sarah laughs; Lexi gets it in the arm twice a day, 90 minutes per session.
"She's the youngest person they've ever tried it on," Sarah says.
It's called a right median nerve stimulation (RMNS) cuff, and its effect on the brain was discovered, accidentally, by American orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Ed Cooper in the 1980s.
At his practice in Kinston, N.C., Cooper initially used neuro-stimulation therapy to reduce spasticity and increase muscle control among brain-damaged patients. By placing a cuff of electrodes along the median nerve of the right forearm in quadriplegics, he learned that the current jumped hemispheres and also strengthened the left arm.
But he also began to notice that certain patients in minimally conscious states showed signs of improvement in their cognitive abilities.
After observing the positive responses of several dozen brain-impaired patients at the University of Virginia and East Carolina University, Cooper published his results in the journals of "Neuropsychological Rehabilitation" and "Brain Injury."
Widespread research has yet to occur, but the RMNS cuff has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. With their pediatrician's approval, the Antorinos began using Lexi's cuff in July.
Now retired, Cooper has neither met Lexi nor examined her records. His remarks are cautious: "You never know about these things. Overall, I'd have to say I'm optimistic about her making some type of functional mental recovery."
Then he volunteers an observation that has nothing to do with his medical credentials but seems on-point with the views and hopes of the Antorinos.
"I've found that the kind of parents who have the most hope are conservative Christians and faithful Roman Catholics. They seem to have the deepest belief in miracles."
Web page, http://www.prayforlexi.com/,
click link for more
Operation Lioness, When Women Go To War
Female U.S. soldiers' role in Iraq war profiled
Documentary follows 5 troopers stationed in Ramadi in 2004
Marines preparing to leave west Iraq
Displaced Iraqis forced to live at Kirkuk Stadium
Training offers lessons in culture
By Tony Perry
Los Angeles Times
"Lioness," showing this week on PBS' "Independent Lens" series, is an up-close look at the evolving role of women in the U.S. military — not just in traditional roles as nurses and support personnel but as weapon-toting frontline troops.
The 82-minute piece, by veteran documentarians Meg McLagan and Daria Sommers, deals with five women attached to a Marine battalion in the middle of prolonged fighting in Ramadi, Iraq, in 2004.
Retired Navy Capt. Lory Manning, now of the Women's Research and Education Institute, says they were among the first U.S. women to experience combat on an essentially equal footing with men.
Federal law prohibits assigning women to direct combat, but that distinction has been blurred on the ground in the Iraq war. Among other things, U.S. troops, particularly in the combat-heavy phase of the war, were stretched thin and needed help. Also, there are Islamic cultural prohibitions against men searching Iraqi women or even talking to them.
As a solution, the Army began Operation Lioness, assigning female soldiers to accompany male troops on patrol and on checkpoint duty, although the women had not had infantry training.
Staff Sgt. Ranie Ruthig, a mechanic who never expected to fire a weapon, remembers a late-night mission in which troops forced their way into Iraqi homes to search for weapons and insurgents.
go here for more
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20081116/NEWS08/811160313/1001/NEWS
linked from
http://icasualties.org/oif/
Documentary follows 5 troopers stationed in Ramadi in 2004
Marines preparing to leave west Iraq
Displaced Iraqis forced to live at Kirkuk Stadium
Training offers lessons in culture
By Tony Perry
Los Angeles Times
"Lioness," showing this week on PBS' "Independent Lens" series, is an up-close look at the evolving role of women in the U.S. military — not just in traditional roles as nurses and support personnel but as weapon-toting frontline troops.
The 82-minute piece, by veteran documentarians Meg McLagan and Daria Sommers, deals with five women attached to a Marine battalion in the middle of prolonged fighting in Ramadi, Iraq, in 2004.
Retired Navy Capt. Lory Manning, now of the Women's Research and Education Institute, says they were among the first U.S. women to experience combat on an essentially equal footing with men.
Federal law prohibits assigning women to direct combat, but that distinction has been blurred on the ground in the Iraq war. Among other things, U.S. troops, particularly in the combat-heavy phase of the war, were stretched thin and needed help. Also, there are Islamic cultural prohibitions against men searching Iraqi women or even talking to them.
As a solution, the Army began Operation Lioness, assigning female soldiers to accompany male troops on patrol and on checkpoint duty, although the women had not had infantry training.
Staff Sgt. Ranie Ruthig, a mechanic who never expected to fire a weapon, remembers a late-night mission in which troops forced their way into Iraqi homes to search for weapons and insurgents.
go here for more
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20081116/NEWS08/811160313/1001/NEWS
linked from
http://icasualties.org/oif/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)