"Bra-Lift" Searches of Female Students, Unconstitutionally Intrusive

I don't think I've ever come across the concept of the "Bra-Lift" until I saw Martha Waggoner's article at the Charlotte Observer, this morning. Here's an excerpt:

A search for pills at an alternative school that required female students to untuck their shirts and pull out their bras with their thumbs was "degrading, demeaning and highly intrusive," a divided state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.

The court ruled 2-1 that Brunswick County Academy overstepped when it required the "bra-lift" search on Nov. 5, 2008. The judges mentioned several reasons for their decision, including that the tip about pills wasn't specific and that there's no indication that the underwear of male students also was searched. They also mention that a male law enforcement officer observed all the searches, regardless of the sex of the student.

"Here, despite the complete lack of any reasonable belief that any single student possessed any pills, the Academy searched all 134 of its students," said the ruling, written by Judge Cheri Beasley. "Further, the school required all of the girls to perform the 'bra lift' even if nothing revealed during the less intrusive part of the search suggested that the student was hiding contraband in her underwear."

Brunswick County schools Superintendent Edward Pruden Jr. said Tuesday the schools plan to conform their procedures with the law.
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I generally don't get too agitated by the idea that my kid is subjected to intrusive securtiy or searches--after all he goes to a large OurTown public high school.  But this sort of intrustion is pretty outrageous, but we are voluntarily giving up our freedoms and liberty in exchange for the illusion of security.

At this link, the court's opinion.

Seminole County, Florida's Jailin' Judge

The Orlando Sentinel is reporting  on this "jailin' Judge" Seminalole County Judge Ralph Eriksson who ha jailed over 20 citizens in the last 5 months BECAUSE these indigent citizens were not able to pay their court costs.  That's not all, if the Judge doesn't like your lawyer, that's jail.

This pinhead (pic), thinks it makes sense to obligate the taxpayers  for jail services to house poor persons in flagrant violation of, let's see, how about the U.S. Constitution, the Florida Constitution, and about every other document since the Magna Carta.  An Appellate Court routinely reverses these jailings, and has ordered Eriksson to cease and desist, which as you will see from Rene Stutzman's Orlando Sentinel account, Eriksson ignores thus fra with impunity, but his day is coming:

"Seminole County Judge Ralph Eriksson improperly jailed more than 20 people during the past five months, finding them in contempt of court and locking them up for failing to pay court costs, court records show.  In each case, an appeals judge ruled Eriksson violated their constitutional rights and ordered their release.

In fact, Circuit Judge Donna McIntosh provided Eriksson with written appeal orders, explaining why he was wrong and specifying his errors.  That didn't stop Eriksson.  On Dec. 15, he jailed four more men, including 22-year-old Stephen Antonio Kelley, who lives near Casselberry and said he had not paid $600 in court costs because he could not find a job.

Asked Eriksson: 'What did you do with all of the jewelry you were wearing to court on December the 7th? ... If you wanted, you could sell that and clear [your fines].'

Said Kelley: 'That was a gift from my mother.'

Eriksson ordered Kelley to jail for 30 days. Two days later, McIntosh freed him and three others Eriksson jailed the same day for contempt.  'Kept doing it'

So far, the appellate judge has freed at least 21 inmates and halted the arrest of more than 20 others, records show. Those 20-plus people were behind on court-cost payments, something that prompted Eriksson to order them back to court. They failed to appear, and Eriksson then ordered their arrests.

The Public Defender's Office in Seminole County is fighting and succeeding in getting the inmates freed and the arrest warrants canceled.'That's what's frustrating,' said Judy Kinney, lead public defender in Seminole. 'We prevailed on all of them, and he still kept doing it.'

Eriksson, 62, a judge for 15 years, did not return repeated phone calls for comment.

What Eriksson is trying to do is get people to pay overdue court costs. Each person he found in contempt and jailed generally owed hundreds of dollars, was months behind on payments or paid nothing, court records show.His tactics sometimes work: Former defendants often see Eriksson in action, sending others to jail for contempt. At later hearings, a great many of them hold up receipts, showing they have paid off, just that morning, what they owe.Each person found in contempt by Eriksson had 'many, many, many' chances to pay, Assistant State Attorney Pat Whitaker said.

But Eriksson, despite being told repeatedly by McIntosh that he's not doing it right, persists in taking shortcuts that violate people's constitutional rights, public defenders say.'Our system of justice does not allow imprisonment for debt,' Assistant Public Defender Jeffrey Leukel wrote in court pleadings.

This is not Eriksson's first brush with controversy.  In 2008, the Judicial Qualifications Commission — a state panel that polices judges — put Eriksson on trial and concluded he should be punished for jailing a man in 2007 because he was angry at the man's attorney.

The JQC said Eriksson also should be disciplined for being 'cavalier and insensitive' to several domestic-violence victims who appeared before him and asked, without benefit of an attorney present, for court protection.The panel recommended Eriksson be publicly reprimanded. Eriksson filed an appeal, and it's unclear when the JQC will make its recommendation. Once it does, the Florida Supreme Court could decide the matter."
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Again, we are at "small law," and Judge Eriksson gives us the other side of the coin--why?  Because, if we don't care, if we don't pay attention we all lose.

Serial Killer to Self-Represent In Third Murder Trial

Long time death row inmate, and suspected serial killer Rodney Alcala, age 66, goes on trial tomorrow for the third time in the murder of Robin Samsoe (pic) according to the Orange County Register, Alcala is expected to act as his own attorney.  The Orange County Register reports that the two previous convictions of Alcala were reversed.  In the iterim years DNA testing has linked Alcala to 4 other rapes and murders of young women.  Additionally, Alcala has a lengthy prior record of rape and assault.  He has been on death row for 30 years.

Alcala a former UCLA photography student is purported to have a genuis-level IQ, and he intends to represent himself at trial--which is why this matter is notable.   Twice previously, Alcala received the death sentence for the kidnap, rape and murder of 12 year old Robin Samsoe, and the death penalty is at stake in this re-trial. 

What can we expect of "attorney" Samsoe?  Games.  Once previously, Alcala fashioned a plastic bow-tie for his prison garb, when told he would not be able to have cvilian clothes. 

Here's betting that the California courts enabled a sociopath to have fun and games, to torment the survivors of little Robin Samsoe--because the state is intent (at taxpayer's expense) upon the symbolism of death.   As we have seen, on Bad Lawyer, California so mal-administers the death penalty that in reality almost no death row inmate is ever executed! 

Already, constitutional problems have arisen in the Alcala case, although a jury is selected and the case is set to go Monday--in a colloquy with the court Alcala told the Judge that the time frame restricitions on his phone calls from prison prevented the completion of the work of expert witnesses employed by him in his defense (doubtlessly also at taxpayer expense.)

One more unitended consequence of the demagoguery of the death penalty. 

Shades of the Rampart Scandal

The Baltimore Sun is reporting on the decision of Circuit Court Judge John P. Miller to toss the witness identification evidence against Christopher Robinson, 19, who allegedly shot Brian Kinyon in retaliation for quitting the Black Guerilla Family.  Robinson is jailed, unable to make bond set at $800,000.  According to Robinson's attorney, the witness identification evidence that ahs been excluded, is the only evidence linking his clinet to the shooting. 

Why is this witness identification evidence being tossed?  The police officer who obtained the witness identification altered the photograph.  That's right, folks--a potential killer will soon be free to wander the streets of Baltimore because the police cheated.  Who did they cheat?  They cheated you!

Tricia Bishop's article at the Baltimore Sun is worth reading in its entirety.

In the 1990s Los Angeles had the Rampart scandal.  The police were horrible disgraced by one of it's anti-gang units located at the LAPD's Rampart Division.  Ultimately more than 70 LA cops were implicated in beatings, fabricaaton of evidence, planting of evidence, and faming of criminal suspects.  The city paid more than $105 million dollars in setlement sand more than a 100 wrongful criminal convictions were overturned. 

That's Law and Order, baby!