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STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. (AP) — An Atlanta-area teacher has been arrested after a parent complained he allowed middle school students to have sex in a storage unit in his classroom.

Multiple news outlets report 25-year-old Quentin Wright, a math teacher at The Champion School in Stone Mountain, was taken into custody Tuesday. He has been charged with four misdemeanor counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

An arrest warrant says Wright arranged times with students when the classroom would be empty and gave them condoms.

The investigation began after a mother said she found text messages between Wright and her son.

A DeKalb County Schools spokesman says they are cooperating with the District Attorney’s Office and Wright has been removed from the classroom.

It is unclear if he has a lawyer.

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RICHMOND, Texas (AP) — Four-year-old William Cole saw his father’s face and reached out to touch it during a jail visit. But he could only feel a video screen.

The facility in Fort Bend County, southwest of Houston, is among a growing number of jails and prison systems across the U.S. in which video visitation has replaced the more familiar in-person visits, where people are in the same room but separated by thick glass.

William’s mother found it jarring to have to communicate with her husband through pixels rather than face to face. In video visitation, inmates and their visitors are not in the same room but see each other on computer or television screens.

“This was a very big shock for me,” said Edna Cole, 24, as her son talked with his dad from one of 34 screens in the jail’s visitation area. “I’m used to actually being able to see them in person, and here I can’t do that.”

Officials who run the facilities say video visits have improved security and increased visitation hours. However, prisoners’ rights advocates worry the trend is to eliminate free in-person visits for a system they say is full of technical glitches and could eventually require families to pay a fee.

Because of the backlash, the Texas House recently approved a bill guaranteeing a minimum of two in-person visits per week at county jails, but it’s unclear if the measure will pass the Senate.

According to the Prison Policy Initiative, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit group, about 545 correctional facilities (mostly county jails) in 43 states and the District of Columbia use video visitation. While video visitation was first used in the 1990s, much of its growth has taken place the last two to three years.

A report in January by the nonprofit found that 74 percent of county jails banned in-person visits when they started using video visitation. In Texas, of the 23 counties using video visitation, 13 have eliminated in-person visits.

The group also found that at least one of the major companies in video visitation, Dallas-based Securus Technologies, has included language in its contracts requiring the elimination of in-person visits.

Bernadette Rabuy, with Prison Policy Initiative, said video visitation can be beneficial as it allows inmates in facilities far from loved ones to have contact. While it is currently not a big money maker for companies, Rabuy is concerned video visitation will become a large revenue source as people are pushed to use it from home. While video visitation is usually free at a jail, fees to use it from home can be up to $1.50 per minute.

In Fort Bend County, video visitation — in use since 2009— improved efficiency and security as inmates no longer had to be moved to visiting areas and it ended the passing of contraband between visitors and inmates, said Sheriff’s Office Lt. Daniel Quam. The change also freed up personnel and extended visitation hours, he said.

Quam said his agency has focused on providing the best service possible, including building a room for use by families and offering 30 minute visits when state law only requires 20 minutes.

The Arkansas Department of Correction, which in April approved a video visitation contract, will not eliminate in-person visits, said spokeswoman Cathy Frye. In the U.S., nearly 30 state prison systems use video visitation.

A December report by the National Institute of Corrections recommended using both in-person and video visitation.

Sue Gregory, 50, who used video visitation last year when her husband was held at a detention center in Camp Verde, Arizona, said video visits eliminate human interaction that’s beneficial for inmates.

“If the only way you have to visit is through a TV monitor, that is not a real visit,” she said.

Travis County, which includes the state capital of Austin, eliminated in-person visits in 2013 but is discussing whether to bring them back. Two lawsuits were filed this year in Denton County, Texas, after in-person visits were eliminated.

Sheriff Dan Staton considered ending in-person visits in the Oregon county that includes Portland after signing a contract with Securus Technologies that called for doing so. But after listening to community feedback, Staton decided to have both video visitation and in-person visits in Multnomah County.

In Arkansas, Securus didn’t push for the elimination of in-person visits in its contract with the state but offered a higher commission from revenue if the state urged inmates to use the service, Frye said

Josh Gravens, with Texas CURE (Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants), a prisoners’ rights group, said a large group mobilized last year in Dallas County after officials considered approving a video visitation contract with Securus that would have eliminated in-person visits. That contract was rejected, and another that included both forms of visitation was later approved.

Earlier this month, Securus announced it would no longer include in its contracts restrictions related to in-person visits. A spokesman for Securus did not respond to numerous phone calls and emails seeking comment.

Philip Hilder, a Houston criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor, said while the Supreme Court has found that jail and prison visits can be restricted, the rise of video visitation could mean it’s time to revisit the issue.

“There is room for technology to play a role here,” Hilder said. “But to say that technology should supplant personal visitation would be a grave error. I think it would create a lot more problems because people will feel much more disconnected by not having that human element.”

___

Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter at www.twitter.com/juanlozano70

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DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Egg prices have surged higher as the death of millions of hens from bird flu is beginning to tighten supplies.

The Midwest price of a dozen large eggs rose to $1.88. That’s 58 percent higher than they were a month ago when the bird flu first hit Iowa chicken farms.

Prices have been climbing at a rate of about 5 percent a day for the past week as supplies become tighter.

Rick Brown, an egg industry analyst with commodity market firm Urner Barry, says it’s because 10 percent of chickens that lay eggs for food are dead or dying from bird flu.

Eggs used principally as an ingredient in ice cream, mayonnaise and other products are up even more, about 162 percent to $1.65 a dozen since April 22.

The post Egg prices jump as impact of bird flu begins pinching supply appeared first on WTOP.

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah mother says the high school that angered her by leaving special education students out of its yearbook has decided to print special inserts with their photos.

Leslee Bailey says the principal of Blue Peak High School in Tooele, Utah, called her to apologize Tuesday.

Bailey has said her daughter, Amber Bailey, had been upset by the omission, but the principal told her he never meant to for that to happen.

“It’s too late, but they’re trying really hard to fix it,” Leslee Bailey said. “They’re owning up to the mistake.”

Students will be able to pick up the insert page, featuring pictures of 21-year-old Amber Bailey and her 16 classmates, next week.

The students attend a special job skills program that shares the building with the high school.

Leslee Bailey said the yearbooks from Blue Peaks High School typically include pictures of the training program students, and her daughter realized she wasn’t in this year’s edition only after going through it several times.

“She was disappointed,” Leslee Bailey said. “She was waiting to see herself and her friends.”

Tooele County School District Superintendent Scott Rogers wasn’t available late Tuesday to discuss the insert.

He said earlier that the decision to leave the special education students out of the yearbook wasn’t motivated by malice or bad intentions. Rogers said it was intended to reflect the separation of the training program and high school.

He said workforce transition program participants and Blue Peak alternative high school students rarely interact, adding that the 18- to 22-year-old special education learners received a commemorative video instead of a yearbook.

“I don’t think anyone at Blue Peak felt like they were doing anything exclusionary,” Rogers said. “We don’t exclude special education students.”

Leslee Bailey, however, said the students interact regularly in the lunchroom, hallways and on the bus.

She said parents and students should have been advised of the change.

“The yearbook is not for the administration,” Leslee Bailey said. “It’s for the students. Nobody asked the students what they wanted.”

The post School makes yearbook insert for special education students appeared first on WTOP.

(SANTA CRUZ, Calif.) — Poonam Sandhu says she has been living in an absolute nightmare for more than a month.

On April 1, the Santa Cruz, California, homeowner started renting out her back master bedroom to a couple on Airbnb, the rent-a-room service.

Sandhu, 33, said the couple paid for two weeks. But when the third week arrived, she said, the couple told her they were waiting for a paycheck and asked to pay her with cash day to day. Sandhu said that because things had been going well, she agreed.

“I trusted in humanity,” Sandhu told ABC News on Saturday. “I had no reason not to trust them.”

She said the couple fought with each other behind their bedroom door and used her possessions. By the end of April, Sandhu said the couple was paying off and on. By May, they’d stopped paying anything.

After police had to come and break up yet another fight, Sandhu said she’d had enough and told the couple to leave. Sandhu, who was no longer under Airbnb insurance protections, said the couple refused.

“They started to sprawl themselves all over the place,” said Sandhu, who added eight surveillance cameras in her home as well as automated locks to alert her to the couple’s comings and goings.

She said her home had been without water for three to four days because the pipes were clogged. “This is my home,” she said. “It’s bad.”

A California lawyer said tenants were given great protections under state law.

“Once someone’s been inside your house for more than 30 days, they’re considered a tenant,” lawyer Leo B. Siegel said. “They’re entitled to 30 days’ notice before you can even file the lawsuit.”

Airbnb said in a statement to ABC News: “We strongly encourage hosts to only book through Airbnb,” which Sandhu did for the first two weeks.

The company also said that it was working on changes to its policies to financially penalize anyone who overstays an Airbnb reservation. Experts also suggested that hosts do background checks on potential guests.

For Sandhu, her home became a maximum-security prison. She said she offered to get the couple a hotel but they turned her down.

Finally, she offered to pay them more than $1,000 to leave. They accepted her offer.

“It’s scary,” she said. “All these things I’m learning the hard way. … I know a lot better now.”

 

 

Follow @ABCNewsRadio
Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.

The post When Airbnb Deal Goes Sour appeared first on WTOP.

PotomacLocal.com

They've been buying and riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles in Manassas for ... PotomacLocal.com Mayor Harry J. Parrish II congratulated Whitt's Harley-Davidson this week on their 30th Anniversary. Whitt's is the oldest dealership in Northern Virginia and will be celebrating their anniversary with year long activities. This includes taking part in ... and more »

The Maryland Geocaching Society will host the premiere geocaching event of the year May 22-25 at the Washington County Agriculture Education Center in Boonsboro. Approximately 5,000 geocache enthusiasts are expected to attend.

GeoWoodstock provides a meet and greet opportunity for “cachers” who come from around the world. There will be a appearances by legends of the geocaching community and it is the single largest assembly of geocaching vendors. Each year, GeoWoodstock is held in a new geographic region and is hosted by the local clubs, giving geocachers the chance to explore and make new friends. There will be activities, seminars and learning sessions, and visitors can visit with exhibitors/vendors, tour the area, and much more.

The Washington County GeoTrail was developed and launched in 2013 by local members of the Maryland Geocaching Society, in anticipation of this event. Cachers can explore attractions and towns, and the new City Park Geo Trail will be launched.

More details and a complete schedule of events can be found at http://www.geowoodstock.com/gws13/index.html.

The post GeoWoodstock XIII appeared first on WTOP.

This week’s Reston Pet of the Week is Clifford, a Great Pyrenees-Old English Sheepdog mix who needs a home that can accommodate a big guy. If you are interested in adopting him, please check out his Petfinder page. If you give him a new home, let us know, and you will get some treats and prizes from our sponsor, Becky’s Pet Care.

Here is what the folks at Blue Ridge Great Pyrenees Rescue and Education have to say about him:

Clifford is a 4-5 year old Great Pyrenees/Old English Sheepdog mix. He is so popular he has his own Facebook page.

He was roaming a neighborhood for a long time when a wonderful woman finally just went and picked him up. He had a harness embedded into his coat. The before and after pictures are amazing.

The guardian that took him in had to completely clip him so that he could move. It has taken six months to get him healthy enough to be placed. Clifford is extremely sweet and social. He is doing well with other dogs and people despite his condition when he was rescued.

If you would like to adopt Clifford, please complete an application for adoption at www.brgpre.org.

Want your pet to be considered for the Reston Pet of the Week?

Email news@Restonnow.com with a 2-3 paragraph bio and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos of your pet.

Each week’s winner receives a sample of dog or cat treats from our sponsor, Becky’s Pet Care, along with $100 in Becky’s Bucks.

Becky’s Pet Care, the winner of three Angie’s List Super Service Awards and the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters’ 2013 Business of the Year, provides professional dog walking and pet sitting services in Reston and Northern Virginia.

The post Reston Pet of the Week: Clifford appeared first on WTOP.

Prince William County community calendar, Mary 21-27, 2015 Washington Post Manassas farmers market Thursday 7:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Loy E. Harris Pavilion, 9201 Center St., and Saturday 7:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Parking Lot B, West Street (next to the train station visitors center), Manassas. 703-361-6599. www.visitmanassas.org. Civil War ... and more »

The first step in living a fiscally responsible life is to understand what financial products are available and how they fit into your goals. Or at least that’s the idea behind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s recently launched Financial Coaching Initiative that aims to assist certain groups of consumers become financially independent and knowledgeable.

The new program, which targets recently transitioned veterans and economically vulnerable consumers, will place 60 certified financial coaches at Dept. of Labor American Job Centers around the country to provide individualized financial education services.

The initiative was created to provide the millions of economically vulnerable consumers and transitioning servicemembers the needed resources to reach their financial goals.

More than 100 million consumers are considered underserved financially or living below the poverty line, according to the CFPB.  By making coaching services readily available, the Bureau believes these consumers may be able to more easily obtain traditional services they currently lack, such as affordable and appropriate financial products.

As for the nearly 250,000 servicemembers who leave active duty each year, the Bureau hopes to make the often challenging transition easier.

While the Department of Defense offers a Transition Assistance Program (TAP) for military personnel leaving active duty, the CFPB says many of those servicemembers still lack experience in money management and find they may need help revising plans made while in TAP.

“At this point a trusted source of financial information and advice could make the difference in a successful transition to a financially stable post-military life,” the Bureau says.

And that’s exactly what the Financial Coaching Initiative has set out to do.

Coaches for the program, which will be located at an array of nonprofit organizations and Department of Labor American Job Centers around the U.S., are trained in financial coaching techniques, and will be accredited by the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education.

“Having a trusted, well-informed financial coach can increase your odds of financial success,” Richard Cordray, director of the CFPB says in a statement. “Our project aims to provide financial coaching services at critical points in consumers’ lives, especially as they transition from military service or from being unemployed.”

CFPB Launches Financial Coaching Initiative [Consumer Financial Protection Bureau]

A woman in Cape Cod thought she was just talking to an IRS representative over the phone, but what she — and apparently the agent — didn’t realize was that their call, including her personal info, was being broadcast to listeners of Howard Stern’s radio show.

The woman tells WBZ-TV that she simply called the IRS to discuss a personal tax issue. Meanwhile, the IRS rep she was speaking to was on hold while trying to call into Stern’s program. At some point, Stern took the IRS rep’s call off hold, but the man didn’t realize that he was now on the air and he continued to discuss matters with the taxpayer.

In the WBZ footage above, you can hear Stern trying to get the man’s attention by shouting his name, while co-host Robin Quivers tells Howard, “If he’s working we can’t interrupt him.”

“I said, ‘Are you talking to Howard Stern?'” recalls the woman. “And he says something to the effect of ‘I was’ or ‘I was on hold’ or something like that.”

Enough of the woman’s info, including her personal phone number, got out during the call that she says she’s been the subject of prank calls and that she’s now considering her legal options.

“My phone number is out there,” she explains, “my personal conversation and I just feel terribly violated and I feel like I’m in jeopardy that my credit information might be out there and I’m just totally devastated.”

The IRS tells WBZ that it knows about the incident, presumably because they were all listening to the show when it happened, and that it’s looking into the situation.

“The IRS takes the confidentiality of taxpayer information very seriously, and we have high standards that we expect and require employees to follow,” reads the statement.

The woman says she was told that the agent on the inadvertently broadcast call “was sent home on administrative leave and that the case was under investigation.”

With more fuel-efficient vehicles and hybrid cars hitting the roads every day and requiring less gas, some states are looking into how they can still collect enough money from drivers to keep maintain their roads and bridges. Oregon is one such state, with a new test program that allows volunteers to pay the state not for the amount of fuel they buy at the pump with a gas tax, but for how many miles they drive.

Greater fuel efficiency in cars means less revenue is generated for the state, prompting Oregon to seek alternatives to make up for that loss of cash from gas taxes. Starting July 1, up to 5,000 volunteers will be allowed to sign up to drive with devices that collect information about how much they’ve driven and where, reports KGW.com.

Those drivers will agree to pay $0.015 per mile traveled on public roads — with private property and out-of state miles not included — instead of the current tax they pay for gas. Fueling up will still mean paying that tax at the time, but drivers in the program will then either get a credit or a bill to pay the difference at the end of the month.

Though critics of the OreGo program, including electric and hybrid car owners who say such a tax would be unfair and perhaps deter others from purchasing green vehicles, state officials think it’s only fair for owners of such vehicles to chip in for maintaining roads like everyone else.

“We know in the future, our ability to pay for maintenance and repair… will be severely impacted if we continue to rely on the gas tax,” said Shelley Snow with the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Amid privacy concerns over the digital devices that track miles, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon said the state built protections into the program, such as drivers being able to opt out of the program and install an odometer device that doesn’t use GPS tracking.

If your device does use GPS, the state and private vendors that supply the devices will destroy records of location and daily metered use after 30 days. Law enforcement won’t be able to access that information either, unless a judge gives approval.

After the test program, it’ll be up to the state legislature to decide whether to adopt a mandatory road usage charge.

So far Oregon is the only state to try this kind of program, though California created a committee last year to research alternatives to the gas tax and possibly develop a pilot program and Washington state also set money aside for something similar. A bill in Indiana is currently in the works that would direct the state to look at alternatives and come up with a test project along those lines as well.

Oregon to test pay-per-mile idea as replacement for gas tax [KGW.com]

Congratulations! You just bought a new Chevy, GMC, or Cadillac. You really like driving it. And it’s purchased, not leased, and all paid off with no liens, so it’s all yours… isn’t it? Well, no, actually: according to GM, it’s still theirs. You just have a license to use it.

At least, that’s what an attorney for GM said at a hearing this week, Autoblog reports. Specifically, attorney Harry Lightsey said, “It is [GM’s] position the software in the vehicle is licensed by the owner of the vehicle.”

GM’s claim is all about copyright and software code, and it’s the same claim John Deere is making about their tractors. The TL;DR version of the argument goes something like this:

• Cars work because software tells all the parts how to operate
• The software that tells all the parts to operate is customized code
• That code is subject to copyright
• GM owns the copyright on that code and that software
• A modern car cannot run without that software; it is integral to all systems
• Therefore, the purchase or use of that car is a licensing agreement
• And since it is subject to a licensing agreement, GM is the owner and can allow/disallow certain uses or access.

The U.S. Copyright Office is currently holding a series of hearings on whether or not anyone other than the manufacturer of a car has a right to tinker with that car’s copyrighted software. And with the way modern design goes, that basically means with the car, at all.

Folks who like to tinker with their cars, as well as independent (non-dealer) mechanics say they need the copyright exemption in order to be allowed to continue repairing their own cars, or keeping their businesses open. Manufacturers, like GM, say that it’s a safety issue: if people who aren’t authorized mess with any one piece of software, they could make the entire ecosystem of connected code unsafe.

An attorney from the Electrnnic Frontier Foundation also testified at the hearing, telling the Copyright OFfice that restricting access to onboard computers in vehicles drives up costs, hurts competition, and stifles innovation. It also prevents third party researchers from conducting independent safety and security research without becoming lawbreakers.

The first of the two sessions of hearings started yesterday in Los Angeles. The other will take place next week, in Washington, DC. The Copyright Office is expected to issue a ruling in July determining just what you can and can’t do with the things you thought you bought.

General Motors says it owns your car’s software [AutoBlog]

One of the joys of street food is that it’s usually cheap, compared to what you’d get in a sit down restaurant or even a fast food joint. But New York City officials say a rumble broke out near Ground Zero recently when a food vendor was accused of charging tourists $30 for a hot dog, while sticking to the $3 price for locals.

NBC New York (warning: link has video that autoplays) says fights have been breaking out at one particular food stand near the World Trade Center site, with customers accusing the vendor of overcharging not only for hot dogs but for soda, water and pretzels.

The news station says multiple people have reported ripoffs, some saying he’d tried to charge $20 to $30 for a hot dog, or say, $15 for a pretzel and a water. The channel’s cameras captured the vendor apparently trying to charge a local $15 for a hot dog and a pretzel.

“I said, ‘What are you, a crook?'” the customer later told NBC 4 New York. “I’m not a tourist, so I know the price in New York.”

A representative from the Alliance for Downtown New York said she heard about fights breaking out last week over the sky-high prices, saying “it gives New York a bad name.”

“To rip-off somebody, to charge them $35 for a hot dog and a pretzel, that leaves a terrible impression,” she said.

The head of security for the Alliance added that there have been five times in the last week that they’ve “observed altercations on the street over the prices being charged for hot dogs, pretzels, water, soda.”

The issue is exacerbated by the fact that the vendor’s prices aren’t posted, as required by the city’s Department of Consumer Affairs. The department says it’s investigating the vendor’s practices now, encourages those who feel they’ve been charged more than the posted price, or who find a stand that doesn’t have prices listed at all, to file a complaint at nyc.gov/consumers or to call 311.

In general, if a street cart is selling $30 hot dogs, you can always walk a few feet or a few blocks and find more street meat at a much better price.

Fights Break Out Over $30 Hot Dog Price at Stand Near Ground Zero: Officials [NBC New York]

We live in a world where consumers not only expect instant gratification from the online products and services they pay for, but also instant justice when they believe they’ve been wronged. That’s why a growing number of websites now take a “shoot first, ask questions later” approach to complaints — removing content, and locking down accounts before they investigate. While many sites try to balance this preemptive practice by allowing affected users to appeal, that can’t be said about one prominent site that connects users with professional caregivers.

Becoming a new parent is hard enough, but trying to figure out what you’re going to do about care for your child when you have to go back to work is another problem entirely. That’s why some moms and dads turn to services like Care.com that are set up to help connect parents in their search for caretakers (as well as petsitters, housekeepers, and other “care” services), with those seeking employment.

So when Consumerist reader “Theresa” found herself suddenly locked out of her Care.com account in the midst of her search for a nanny, she was confused.

Theresa, who was looking for help with taking care of her newborn in advance of her return to work, tells us that she recently went to login to Care.com only to find she could not access the site.

When she called customer service to report that her password no longer worked, she received an e-mail informing her that a refund had been processed for the three-month premium membership she’d paid for.

Wait, what? She hadn’t asked about a refund, she wanted to get back into her account.

She replied saying as much, mentioning that she had interviews set up that day and as such, really needed access to her account.

A customer service rep replied, and said that after researching her issue, she’d found that her account had been closed by Care.com.

“Unfortunately we are unable to accept your membership,” the e-mail explained. “This decision is final and irreversible. No exceptions will be made to these terms.”

So no explanation, no warning, and no way to appeal?

In an effort to figure out why Theresa might have been given the boot from the site, we looked at Care.com’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, which state that it’s not required to release the specific details about why an account has been closed.

The site does, however, provide a list of common reasons why an account might be terminated. The customer service rep wouldn’t disclose that information when Theresa asked, though going through the list item by item, Theresa discounted all of the reasons… except for possibly two.

• “The individual does not meet membership criteria (e.g., is underage)”: Not the issue, Theresa is over 18.

• “Care.com does not offer its services where the member is located”: The company does offer its services in the area Theresa lives in Florida, so this wasn’t it either.

• “The member is not active in the service”: Not applicable here, Theresa had been on the site for a few weeks setting up interviews.

• “Care.com determines that the services offered by the member are not being sufficiently utilized”: Theresa hadn’t hired a nanny yet, so she couldn’t be under-utilizing any other member’s services.

• “The member has misrepresented himself or herself and/or has provided false information to Care.com”: Not the case, as Theresa had submitted all required information truthfully, she says.

• “We were unable to verify the information the member provided when he/she registered”: Again, Theresa hadn’t provided any unverifiable information.

• “The member has posted or searched for inappropriate words/phrases and/or content on Care.com”: Nope. Theresa is a new mom trying to find a nanny, and wasn’t using the site for any nefarious reasons.

• “The member has been accused of, arrested for, or convicted of a crime”: Theresa doesn’t have a criminal past either, so this wasn’t it.

By process of elimination, there were only two items on the Care.com that Theresa says don’t apply to her, but couldn’t be eliminated outright — only because they involve other people making allegations against the banned user:

• “Allegations of theft, abuse, or neglect have been brought against the member” and “The member has been alleged to have harassed other member(s) of Care.com.”

Could it be possible that someone had made this sort of complaint about Theresa?

Theresa says that she had only positive encounters with candidates she’d set up interviews with or corresponded with — and had even had her mother present for some of those meetings who could vouch for her — so she didn’t think she’d done anything that an interviewee could take umbrage with: no abuse, or harassment, and she certainly hadn’t stolen anything from interviewees. Neglect could only take place if she’d already hired someone, which she hadn’t.

She wondered, however, if someone was perhaps upset at not getting the job and had decided to retaliate by complaining to Care.com. But if that were the case, could an unfounded complaint from a disgruntled candidate be enough to get her axed from the site, without any chance to resolve or investigate the situation?

While Care.com would not discuss the specifics of Theresa’s case with Consumerist, when we asked in general if it investigates complaints on the possibility that an angry or vengeful member might lie in retaliation for not getting a job, a rep for the company said that with 14 million members, “it’s not practical to investigate every complaint.”

Once your account has been terminated, there’s no recourse to plead your case, Care.com confirmed to Consumerist, saying, “We do not have an appeals process for members whose accounts have been terminated.”

This is pretty surprising, considering much larger sites like YouTube and Twitter have appeals processes for suspended users.

What also upset Theresa about the Care.com ban was the fact that while the site wouldn’t tell her why she’d been banned, it could alert others to the fact that she’d been kicked off the site.

The Care.com e-mail about her account termination noted that the site may “remove a member for any reason or no reason,” and any decision to do so “does not constitute and should not be interpreted or used as information bearing on the member’s character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living.”

Then she received an e-mail after her termination that said Care.com reserves the right to alert other members of her termination. Her concern is that such an alert might tacitly suggest to others that she’d done something wrong, despite Care.com’s disclaimer.

Though it might seem unnecessary to share the news of a member’s termination, if using a service is the primary means of communication you have with someone else you’re either trying to hire or be hired by, it would be useful to know if that person was no longer using the site, for whatever reason. Someone seeking work who ended up finding a job, for example, would likely not want to keep receiving communication from employers, so letting them know the account is no longer active would be helpful in that scenario.

Though Theresa was unable to get her Care.com account restored, there’s still a happy ending to her ordeal: She ended up hiring one of the candidates she had interviewed before her account was terminated.

But while Theresa says she thinks Care.com is “important and necessary for working parents,” she adds that “no new mother should be treated the way I was.”

“It is shocking that a company that prides itself on being an advocate for working families wouldn’t do any due diligence before summarily canceling the account of a new mom desperate to find good care for her baby before going back to work,” Theresa tells Consumerist. “I understand it’s hard to vet millions of members, but transparency is the minimum responsibility good faith requires.”

Weight Watchers-branded meals and snacks are supposed to make it easier to follow the Weight Watchers points system and, well, lose weight. Reader M is a fan of their packaged ice cream bars, and was disappointed when she noticed that they’re a little bit smaller than they used to be after a recent package redesign. Yes, it was the Grocery Shrink Ray.

Granted, they aren’t a lot smaller. Each bar has lost 2 grams, which is about the same weight as a U.S. dime. Yet the fluid ounces remains the same, which means they may have switched to a slightly less dense formula for the frozen dairy dessert.

Here’s the original packaging:

Here’s the nutritional information that went along with it:

Here’s the redesigned package. Nothing different here, other than the addition of “No artificial sweeteners” to the front of the package.

Ah, but the bar has lost two grams when you look at the nutrition information. “It really made me mad cause all the manufacturers are doing the same dirty tricks,” M writes. Then at some point in the future they’ll probably advertise ‘new larger size!!!'” Or advertise a “jumbo” fudge bar that weighs 80 grams and costs more than these bars.

While we’ve heard of people doing things they shouldn’t be doing while they’re driving — like playing the guitar and taking selfies, not to mention texting — it’s still shocking to look at the numbers tied to distracted driving. A new survey says the trendy thing to do behind the wheel now is using social media like Twitter, with plenty of people admitting they do it “all the time.”

AT&T released a survey it commissioned today that says drivers are increasingly using Facebook, Snapchat and Twitter, while also taking selfies and shooting videos. The company has discouraged drivers from taking their eyes off the road, and teamed with Braun Research to poll people who own a smartphone and drive at least once a day.

Of those drivers, 27% ages 16 to 65 reported using Facebook behind the wheel, with 14% admitting to using Twitter. But of those, 30% said they were posting while driving “all the time.” Sigh.

That’s not all — chatting on video is also popular for drivers.

“One in 10 say they do video chat while driving. I don’t even have words for that,” Lori Lee, AT&T’s senior executive vice president for global marketing told the New York Times’ Bits Blog.

Texting is still the most popular activity for distracted drivers, with 61% of people reporting they do that on the road, followed by 33% who email and 28 percent who browse the Internet.

Distracted driving is a real and growing problem, safety advocates say: The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found in its 2014 survey about driver behavior that 36.% of drivers read a text or other message, and 27.1% had typed one. That’s in comparison to the 2012 survey, which found that 34.7% percent read a communication and 26.2% typed one.

CHINCOTEAGUE, Va. (AP) — With his long, blond mane, bronze-colored body and sweet disposition, Surfer Dude was perhaps the most popular pony of his day. The stallion, who sired dozens of ponies like those celebrated in the childhood classic “Misty of Chincoteague,” has died.

The remains of the 23-year-old pony were found last week on the southern end of Assateague Island, the wind-swept barrier island off the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland. He likely died of natural causes, Denise Bowden, a member of the Chincoteague firefighters known as saltwater cowboys, said Tuesday.

“He’s like the Misty of our generation,” said Bowden, a native islander and member of the department. “He was such a gentle soul. He sired so many beautiful foals through the years for us. He was always leading the pack.”

“I think age just got to him,” Bowden said. “We had a pretty rough winter.”

The last Wednesday of July every year, the ponies make their annual swim across the channel from Assateague Island to Chincoteague as tens of thousands of tourists look on.

Each year the wild ponies are auctioned to raise money for the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company, which cares for the Virginia herd.

Ponies that are not sold and those that are donated back to the fire department will roam free for another year on the national wildlife refuge on Assateague.

Asked how many of the 130 or so ponies were sired by Surfer Dude, Bowden said, “Dozens. I mean dozens. He was the man.”

While Surfer Dude will be missing from this year’s swim, one of his offspring seems to be ready to fill the void.

Riptide, a 6-year-old stallion, has a half dozen or more mares in his harem.

“It’s almost like he passed the torch to him,” Bowden said.

The post Chincoteague stud Surfer Dude found dead: ‘He was the man’ appeared first on WTOP.

No one likes unwanted houseguests squatting in their home, even if said residents are busy making something tasty. So when officials in New York City found a hive of roughly 40,000 bees living under the floorboards of a Queen apartment, experts felt it was best to evict.

The owner of the home called in a retired New York Police Department detective whose known for his skill with bees to diagnose the source of a loud, buzzing noise coming from somewhere inside the house, reports the New York Daily News.

His investigation using an infrared camera on a pole led to the discovery of the rogue swarm that had moved in under a bedroom in the house, at a spot where that room overhangs a backyard deck. It took more than two hours to remove the bees, with honey dripping off a massive honeycomb as it was carefully pulled out from under layers of siding and plywood.

Luckily enough for the hive, the queen was found, so the colony will be moved to a new home upstate by another beekeeper.

Buzz off! Massive hive of 40,000 bees found under bedroom floor of Queens home [New York Daily News]

Federal regulators, state officials and prosecutors and law enforcement officers from all 50 states and the District of Columbia partnered today to charge four cancer charities and their operators for running a scheme that swindle consumers out of $187 million in charitable donations. Two of the charities have agreed to settle the charges and dissolve their businesses, while two other plan to fight the charges in court.

According to federal complaint [PDF], Cancer Fund of America, Inc. (CFA), Cancer Support Services Inc. (CSS), Children’s Cancer Fund of America Inc. (CCFOA) and The Breast Cancer Society Inc. (BCS), along with their operators, used telemarketing calls, websites, direct mail and materials distributed by the Combined Federal Campaign – which raises money from federal employees for non-profit organizations – to solicit donations from consumer in all 50 states and the District of Colombia.
The complaint purport that the deceptive scheme was set in motion by James Reynolds Sr. in 1987 and since then has regularly duped consumers into believing they supported a genuine charity.

From 2008 to 2012, the organizations deceptively raised $187 million in donations by portraying themselves as legitimate charities and told prospective donors that funds would be used for help cancer patients by providing direct support and needed medical assistance.

“These were lies,” the complaint states. “Not one of the Defendants has operated a program that provides cancer patients with pain medication to alleviate their suffering, transports cancer patients to chemotherapy appointments, or pays for hospice care. Moreover, the vast majority of donors’ contributions have not directly assisted cancer patients in the United States or otherwise benefitted any charitable purpose.”

In reality, the FTC and state officials, claim the charities spent just 3% of the donations on actual cancer patients.

The rest of the money was spent on inflated salaries, cars, trips, luxury cruises, college tuition, gym memberships, jet ski outings, sporting event and concert tickets, and dating site memberships for the company operators, their family members and friends.

According to the complaint, the charities “operated as personal fiefdoms characterized by rampant nepotism, flagrant conflicts of interest, and excessive insider compensation, with none of the financial and governance controls that any bona fide charity would have adopted.”

The organizations were more generous with friends’ and family members’ salaries than providing assistance to cancer patients.

Jessica Rich, director of consumer protection for the FTC, said during an announcement for the action that many of the organizations paid salaries nearly five times what actually provided in aid to patients.

In once case, the Children’s Cancer Fund of America executive director received a salary of $231,672 in 2012, while the charity only provided $45,026 in financial assistance to 723 recipients.

In addition to lining their own pockets, the charity operators allegedly padded the wallets of professional fundraiser who were hired and often received 85% or more of every donation.

To hide the high administrative and fundraising costs from donors and regulators, the complaint alleges the organizations falsely inflated their revenues by reporting in publicly filed financial documents more than $223 million donated “gifts in kind” distributed to international recipients.

Of the four charities targeted in the federal complaint, Children’s Cancer Fund of America and the Breast Cancer Society, along with several operators, have agreed to settle charges and the organizations will be dissolved.

The other two organization and their operators – including Reynolds – will face further litigation.

Rich said during a news conference that the action, which was officially filed on Monday, is the first taken by the FTC and all state attorneys general as one group.

Following the complaint announcement, the FTC provided consumers with a guide to view before giving to charity.

FTC, All 50 States and D.C. Charge Four Cancer Charities With Bilking Over $187 Million from Consumers [FTC]

In yet another example of how badly brands want to cater to — and get the business of — younger consumers, Tic Tac is introducing its first major product innovation in seven years: Flavors that change as they dissolve in your mouth, because millennials just cannot stand being bored, nope, not for one second.

Tic Tac Mixers were designed for young consumers who hate being bored, Todd Midura, marketing director for Tic Tac in the U.S. told Bloomberg, and will come in either cherry cola or peach lemonade.

“It was really born from looking at consumer needs and trying to make sure we’re appealing to those younger consumers,” Midura said. “It’s all about people wanting the product to entertain them. Younger people are really looking for a product to do that.”

The company says there are three reasons why someone might want a Tic Tac — to freshen breath, have a “sweet, fruity” moment or “emotional rescue.” Okay, then.

Since Tic Tacs first came on the scene in 1969, the product has remained pretty much the same, besides a tweak to packaging in 2010 to allow the clear containers to hold more mints than before. That’s because people haven’t wanted a change, Midura says.

“There’s an element of nostalgia,” he said. “People love being able to see what’s inside.”

Unless you’re bored and you can’t find entertainment anywhere else than a flavor-changing candy.

Tic Tac Adds New Flavor-Changing Varieties to Draw Millennials [Bloomberg]

Newsweek

How the White House plans to help the humble bee maintain its buzz Washington Post The humble bee — nuisance, threat, and linchpin of the American food supply — has won over the leader of the free world. And now President Obama is intervening on the bee's behalf as its habitat dwindles. On Tuesday, the Obama administration will ... White House Offers Plan To Save BeesCBS Local White House lays out ambitious plan to save beesEnvironment & Energy Publishing Plan Bee: White House Unveils Strategy To Protect PollinatorsWYPR CNN -National Journal all 227 news articles »

CHESTERFIELD, Va. (AP) — A Chesterfield County judge has upheld the seizure of a man’s pet camel by police.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1EZsjR5 ) reports that Chesterfield General District Court Judge James O’Connell issued his ruling on Monday after hearing testimony from the camel’s owner, Stanley R. Holmes Jr., a veterinarian and neighbors and friends of Holmes.

Veterinarian Kelly Gottschalk testified that the camel, named Jacob, was emaciated and infected with parasites.

Holmes testified that Jacob loses weight every spring when he goes into a rut period. Holmes says the weight loss is due to stress.

Holmes has been charged with obstruction of justice and misdemeanor animal cruelty charges. He’s due to return to court in June.

___

Information from: Richmond Times-Dispatch, http://www.timesdispatch.com

The post Chesterfield County judge upholds seizure of man’s pet camel appeared first on WTOP.

Though sometimes you just can’t wait to rip the tags off that new shirt and wear it out for the world to see, you also may’ve had that moment of, “I should probably wash this before I wear it… oh well.” So how important is it to to give your new duds a dunk in the washing machine before it comes in contact with your skin?

The short answer: Pretty important if you don’t like itchy, scaly, red rashes. Due to varying laws from country to country on the allowable levels of chemicals in fabric, your clothing could be hopping around the globe carrying various substances that might irritate your skin, reports the Wall Street Journal.

According to Donald Belsito, a professor of dermatology at Columbia University Medical Center in New York with a specialty in contact dermatitis, sometimes you might even want to wash new clothing more than once before wearing it.

Many synthetic textiles get their hues from azo-aniline dyes, which can cause a severe skin reaction if you’re allergic to it and a less intense, yet still irritating reaction of itchy, dry patches of skin where it touches your skin.

It might take more than one washing to rinse out the dye, so you could get itchy red spots “especially near the areas where there is friction or sweating, like the waist, neck and thighs and around the armpits,” Dr. Belsito told the WSJ.

If you’re actually allergic to those dyes, he says you might need to avoid them altogether as it could be stubborn about leaving even after multiple washings.

Another irritant could be formaldehyde resins used to keep blends from wrinkling and cut down on mildew. These resins can cause two forms of eczema — allergic contact dermatitis and irritant contact dermatitis — both which have symptoms like flaky skin and rashes.

You also don’t know who’s been touching your clothing or trying it on in the store before it comes home with you, making it possible that germs and other critters could be hiding out in the fabric.

“I have seen cases of lice that were possibly transmitted from trying on in the store, and there are certain infectious diseases that can be passed on through clothing,” Dr. Belsito says, nothing that scabies can also infest clothing.

Dr. Belsito’s advice is to wash all new clothing at least once with a double rinse before wearing, no matter what the fabric.

“In terms of hygiene, it’s a very good thing to do,” he says. “Being a dermatologist, I’ve seen examples of some strange stuff, so I don’t take any chances.”

Do You Need to Wash New Clothes Before Wearing Them? [Wall Street Journal]

FAIRFAX, Va. — Six drivers saw their unpaid-toll cases dismissed in Fairfax County General District Court on Monday, while the final ruling on another landmark case has been delayed due to a last-minute motion.

Circuit Court Judge Dennis J. Smith ruled in April that Express Lanes operator Transurban must sue drivers for unpaid tolls within a year. Toni Cooley, Jim Diller and Stuart Holmes all won their cases with the decision, and the fallout has been felt ever since — six cases were dismissed on Monday because Transurban waited too long to sue, and more will likely be dismissed in the coming weeks.

But Lisa Marie Comras’ case is not one of them yet. District Court Judge Richard Gardiner recently vacated an $11,000 judgment for Transurban against Comras, ruling that Transurban did not use its proper corporate name when it sued her. The judgment last summer consisted mainly of administrative fees and civil penalties; Comras’ license and registration was suspended when she couldn’t pay the fines.

Gardiner was supposed to formally dismiss the case against Comras on Monday, but it was delayed after Transurban filed a motion to reconsider the decision on Friday.

Transurban fixed the corporate-name problem March 3 and says it can cure old cases on an as-needed basis. But lawyer David Bernhard argues that any case before that date must be voided.  He argues that cure, or legal fix, cannot apply to any cases before March 3, such as Comras’.

“If Judge Gardiner continues this line of legal decision making, then all judgements to March 3, 2015, can be voided, vacated and dismissed.  Most of the judgments rendered by the court before March 3, 2015 are barred by statute of limitations anyways.  So even if the judge were to reopen the cases, as opposed to dismissing them, they would have to be dismissed on the statute of limitations based on the Cooley ruling,” says Bernhard. He hopes the ruling will help countless others between 2013 and 2015 to reopen and get their old judgments reversed.

So if you are one of those impacted, what should you do?

“Go to the counter at the Fairfax County General District Court and file a motion to vacate their prior judgment and dismiss it on the grounds that there was no jurisdiction prior to March 3, 2015,” says Bernhard.

Gardiner told both sides he would review the Transurban motion to reconsider, then rule on it and the entire case in the coming weeks.

“While we await the decision, our focus continues to be on educating customers about the proper use of E-ZPass on the Express Lanes to avoid unpaid tolls altogether.  It’s easy to avoid unpaid tolls by traveling with an E-ZPass that is properly mounted, ensuring there are funds in the E-ZPass account and linking the vehicle’s license plate to the E-ZPass account,” writes Transurban spokesman Mike McGurk.

“For those who make a mistake, every traveler has an opportunity to pay a missed toll online with a $1.50 fee per unpaid trip within the first five days of travel.  As part of our First-Time Forgiveness program, we will waive invoice fees if the traveler contacts us. We remind any driver who receives an invoice to contact us as soon possible,” he adds.

Transurban has already said it plans to appeal any final ruling to the Circuit Court.

The post Drivers winning in court against Express Lanes operator appeared first on WTOP.

Fairfax County Police said a more than 30 animals were recovered from a Reston home on Sunday.

Animal Control officers were called to the 2200 block of Southgate Square on Sunday when a neighbor called about a strong odor.

Police said an investigation discovered more than 30 cats and two dogs were in the at the townhouse.

The investigation is continuing. The animals were taken to Pender Veterinary Centre for evaluation, police spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell said.

“One of the cats, ‘Mr. Toes,” scratched an employee while being captured,” she said. “No other injures reported.”

The post Hoarded Animals Rescued From Southgate Square Home appeared first on WTOP.

WASHINGTON — It’s Kitten Season and the Washington Animal Rescue League is teeming with cats and kittens.

This time of year, the kitten population explodes and most area animal shelters are busting at the seams with newborns and young kittens.  As with any young pet, kittens require care early on, but they soon become just as independent as grown cats, making them terrific pets for humans with unpredictable schedules and busy lifestyles.

Of course they always need interaction and general care: They must be fed and the litter box must be changed consistently, but overall, cats and kittens are much easier to care for than dogs.  And there is nothing cuter than kittens.

The Washington Animal Rescue League strives to make spay and neuter easily accessible and affordable to help address the increase in cat population in the spring.

Thanks to a generous donor, WARL is currently offering free spaying for female cats to income-qualified cat guardians (those making $55,000 or less).  In addition, WARL offers spay and neuter for all cat owners at very reasonable prices.  Contact the Washington Animal Rescue League Medical Center at 202-726-2273 to make an appointment.

Come on out to meet some kittens (and cats)  that need new homes!

—

About WARL: Founded in 1914, the Washington Animal Rescue League is the oldest animal shelter in Washington D.C. Its mission includes rescuing, rehabilitating and finding homes for animals who have no where else to go. The League also supports animals through affordable veterinary care, community outreach and education. Learn more about the Washington Animal Rescue League at www.warl.org.

If you are thinking of adding a furry friend to your family, check out these other great shelters in the area:

Maryland

Humane Society of Charles County
(301) 645-8181
71 Industrial Park Dr. PO Box 1015 Waldorf, Md. 20604

Humane Society of Charles County offers a low cost spay/neuter program to the public. Please call or visit our website for more information. The shelter is also looking for more foster parents to help its animals.

Prince George’s County Humane Society
(301) 262-5625
P.O. Box 925 Bowie, Md. 20718
Prince George’s County Humane Society is also looking for foster parents. For more information, contact the organization.

PAW – Partnership for Animal Welfare
(301) 572-4729
P.O. Box 1074 Greenbelt, Md. 20768

Paws Animal Kingdom
(301) 920-2318
P.O. Box 11531 Takoma Park, Md. 20912

Montgomery County Humane Society
(240) 773-5960
14645 Rothgeb Dr. Rockville, Md. 20850

The Animal Welfare League of Montgomery County
(301) 740-2511
12 Park Ave. Gaithersburg, Md. 20877

D.C.

Washington Humane Society
(202) 576-6664
1201 New York Ave. NE 20002

ASAP – Alliance for Stray Animals and People
(202) 331-1330
P.O. Box 65438 Washington, D.C. 20035-5438

Metropolitan Guinea Pig Rescue
(202) 575-2210
Approved applicants may attend monthly adoption meets that are usually held at the house of a volunteer in either Northern Virginia or Southern Maryland.

Lucky Dog Animal Rescue
(202) 741-5428
Lucky Dog is a foster home organization and does not run a dedicated housing facility.

Northern Virginia

A Forever Home
(703) 961-8690
A Forever-Home is a non-profit dog rescue group that operates in the Northern Virginia/Washington Metropolitan area.

Lab Rescue of L.R.C.P.
(301) 299-6756
Lab Rescue of the LRCP is a volunteer driven, non-profit organization that rescues, fosters and places homeless, abused, and/or abandoned Labrador Retrievers.

FOHA – Friends of Homeless Animals
(703) 385-0224
All visitors must speak to a Friends representative prior to receiving directions to their shelter location.

SPCA of Northern Virginia
P.O. Box 100220 Arlington, Va. 22210-3220
Animal Welfare League of Alexandria
(703) 746-4774
4101 Eisenhower Ave. Alexandria, Va. 22304

Animal Welfare League of Arlington
(703) 931-9241
2650 S. Arlington Mill Dr. Arlington, Va.

Lost Dog and Cat Rescue Foundation
(703) 295-3647
P.O. Box 223953 Chantilly, Va. 20153

HART – Homeless Animal Rescue Team
(703) 691-HART
P.O. Box 7261 Fairfax Station, Va. 22039-7261

King Street Cats Rescue and Adoption
(703) 231-7199
25 Dove St. Alexandria, Va. 22314

The post Pet of the Week: It’s kitten season! appeared first on WTOP.

Frederick Police arrested a Frederick man Sunday morning who they say assaulted a woman and killed three bunnies during an argument.

Police arrested Charles Brandon Vaughn, 31, and charged him with one count of second degree assault, one count of false imprisonment and three counts of aggravated animal cruelty, according to a Frederick Police news release.

Police responded to a residence on Heather Lane at about 8:15 a.m. Sunday for the report of a domestic assault, the release stated.

When they arrived, the female victim said she and Vaughn were arguing and Vaughn kept her against her will in a bedroom. She told police that he took her cellphone and physically assaulted her when she attempted to leave the room. She had non-life threatening injuries to her arms and face, the release stated.

The police learned that Vaughn “grabbed three live baby bunnies that were sitting on a desk in the residence, put them into a bag, and threw them against a wall,” the release stated.

The bunnies died from the throw, the release stated.

The post Police arrest man they say assaulted woman, killed bunnies appeared first on WTOP.

WASHINGTON — Traffic was completely stopped on the Capital Beltway (I-495) Sunday morning in Virginia due to a utility pole fire, according to officials who spoke with WTOP.

The fire, just off the Van Dorn exit in Alexandria, also caused power outages for more than 2,000 customers in the area, according to Virginia Dominion Power’s website. Officials there confirmed the pole fire with WTOP.

Traffic was halted on all lanes, both directions, of  I-495, beginning at 7:15 a.m.

The post Fire causes power outages, major Beltway back-up, in Va. Sunday appeared first on WTOP.