by Last Night in Little Rock

A month ago today, Justice Scalia justified cutting back on the exclusionary rule in Hudson v. Michigan using this rationale, obviously culled from the state's amici briefs (playing into Scalia's hand) with no basis in fact:

Moreover, modern police forces are staffed with professionals; it is not credible to assert that internal discipline, which can limit successful careers, will not have a deterrent effect. There is also evidence that the increasing use of various forms of citizen review can enhance police accountability.

Not necessarily so in our fastest growing metropolitan area: Las Vegas.

Today, the LA Times reports in Many Possible Triggers in Rash of Police Shootings in Las Vegas that the unusually young LVPD is coping with its first cop killing in 17 years. Not likely coincidentally,

This year, they have fired at suspects in 19 incidents, killing nine people. If that rate continues, the total police-involved shootings for the year would far surpass those in each of the previous five years, according to police data.

...

The rash of shootings has triggered an FBI investigation into one case, prompted a local review of the inquest system that has repeatedly cleared officers of wrongdoing, and caused outcry from civil rights organizations.

This is a revealing article about a police department policing its own when they are admittedly so young and inexperienced.

by Last Night in Little Rock

Pending in U.S. District Court in San Francisco is a suit against AT&T accusing it of collaborating with the Justus Department in the illegal surveillance of U.S. Citizens.

Thursday, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) introduced a bill to remove that case and any like it to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review in Washington where it could be heard in secret and only the Justice Department could be heard.

So much for transparency in government and open courts. Specter is no longer his own man, if he ever was one. He's now just another Bush Administration cover-up artist.

Media Matters has a round-up of the reporting on Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame Wilson's lawsuit against Rumsfeld, Rove, Libby and others as yet unknown. Prime offenders:

• Good Morning America and Special Report

• ABC's World News Tonight and CBS Evening News ignored the lawsuit while devoting airtime to Shakespeare and the Kentucky Derby.

• On CNN, John King and Darren Kagan repeated false statements by Republicans about Wilson's trip to Niger. echoed Republican falsehoods on Wilson's trip to Niger. [corrected on my part to reflect John King, not the other King.]

Crooks and Liars has the video of the Wilsons' news conference yesterday. It's the first time Valerie Plame Wilson has spoken publicly about the damage done to her by the leak of her identity and employment, and she's very impressive. If you'd like to lend a hand to the Wilsons, contributions to the Joseph and Valerie Wilson Legal Support Trust can be given here or sent to P.O. Box 40918, Washington, D.C. 20016-0918.

A few weeks ago I wrote about federal Judge Fernando Gaitan Jr. in Missouri who ordered the cessation of executions in that state due to the "unconstitutional pain and suffering" the inmate may experience from the drug cocktail used, and because the lone doctor mixing the drugs was dyslexic. He gave the Department of Corrections 15 days to find another protocol.

The 15 days is up today. Last night, the Department of Corrections told Judge Gaitan it had failed to find a board-certified anesthesiologist.

In the state's filing last night, officials said they had sent letters to 298 certified anesthesiologists who reside anywhere near the state's death chamber in Bonne Terre, and were turned down by all of them.

"A requirement of using a board-certified anesthesiologist is a requirement that cannot presently be met," Attorney General Jeremiah W. Nixon wrote. "To enforce it may effectively bar implementation of the death penalty in Missouri. Surely that is not what the court intended."

Another killing by someone described as most unlikely to commit a crime.

William Lash, Bush's former Assistant Director of Commerce,

after arguing violently with his wife Thursday night, shot and killed his 12-year-old son inside their McLean home, then turned a shotgun on himself and committed suicide, Fairfax County police said.

....Friends and neighbors described Lash as devoted to his only child, William H. Lash IV, who was autistic

by Last Night in Little Rock

In a story posted on Sports Illustrated's website (SI.com) this evening, San Francisco Giants "slugger" Barry Bonds will be indicted next week for perjury and tax evasion charges. But no steroids charges. See Indictment on deck? Lawyer: Bonds may face tax evasion, perjury charges. The grand jury's eighteen month term ends next week, so there is reason to believe it is coming then.

Barry Bonds' legal team is preparing for the San Francisco slugger to be indicted as soon as next week and has begun plotting his defense.

Attorney Laura Enos told The Associated Press on Friday that Bonds, second on the career home run list, could be charged with tax evasion and perjury.

Enos, Bonds' personal attorney, also said the lawyers believe the grand jury investigating the star player will expire next Thursday.

"We are very prepared," Enos said. "We have excellent tax records and we are very comfortable that he has not shortchanged the government at all."

by Last Night in Little Rock

A police sergeant in Bloomington, Illinois, home of Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan Universities, was charged today with four rapes dating back to 2002, according to a story via AP on CNN.com. Sgt. Jeff Pelo, a 17 year police veteran, was also charged with stalking on Wednesday "a woman who found him lurking outside her home."

Two of the rape victims identified Pelo from a photo lineup, and police found a mask, pry bar and other items in his home that appeared to have been used in at least one of the assaults, Assistant State's Attorney Mark Messman said.

Prosecutors have said the attacker was armed with a knife in one case and a gun in another.

Steve Skelton, Pelo's attorney, called Friday that the identifications were suspect.

No word about any possible DNA links to the accused, but bail was set at $2M.

Via Stand Down:

Tonight on PBS is a special, Do No Harm.

A new controversy about the death penalty focuses not on the convicts, but on doctors and nurses who help end their lives. NOW asks the question: Should medical professionals play a part in state executions?

You can watch a live stream of the show after it airs if you are not by a tv.

CBS reports that residents of Haifa in Israel have been ordered into bomb shelters due to bombings:

Residents of Haifa, Israel's third largest city and a major port, were ordered into bomb shelters as evening fell Friday, following rocket attacks throughout the day, even though Haifa is some 18 miles south of the border with Lebanon.

Residents were shocked when the first attacks hit Haifa Thursday: No guerrilla rocket had ever reached that far into Israel.

Iran weighs in:

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned Israel against extending its assault into Syria and said the Jewish state couldn't harm Iran, which also backs Hezbollah.

Israel today bombed and demolished the residence of Hezbollah chief Sheik Hassan Nasrallah. Here is the Sheik's response:

by TChris

Inmates are frequently forced to make collect calls if they want to talk to family members. Shockingly, jail and prison authorities are happy to sign contracts that permit telephone carriers to charge outrageous tolls for those calls, on the condition that the jail or prison gets a kickback from the overcharging. Burdening the ability of inmates to stay in touch with their families so that the government can turn a profit is ultimately counterproductive because it inhibits rehabilitation, as TalkLeft noted in this story about a lawsuit that tried to end the practice in New York.

The lawsuit, filed by the Center for Constitutional Rights, was dismissed, and that dismissal was affirmed on appeal. There's still reason to hope for a just outcome, however, as the New York Court of Appeals has agreed to hear the case.

by TChris

The Maricopa County Sheriff's aggressive approach to the arrest of undocumented aliens resulted in a protest in downtown Phoenix this morning. About 300 people attended the rally.

"This is an injustice. We're not criminals, so we're here to show them that we have courage and that we're worthy of respect," Nadia Meza, 30, of Phoenix, a member of the group Immigrants Without Border that organized the rally.

by TChris

While many Americans deny that race discrimination continues to be one of society's leading problems, only 33 Representatives in the House were willing to pretend that the Voting Rights Act is an anachronism. The other 390 voting Representatives approved the Act's reauthorization yesterday. Rep. John Lewis spoke to the depressing reality that racism is not dead:

"Yes, we've made some progress; we have come a distance," he added. "The sad truth is, discrimination still exists. That's why we still need the Voting Rights Act, and we must not go back to the dark past."

Fortunately, the Act came up for renewal in an election year.