The US Food and Drug Administration has finally lifted its ban on gay men donating blood—but a lot of gay men will still be unable to donate. Under the new rules, men can only be cleared to give blood if it’s been a year or more since the last time they had sex with another man.
WESTERNPORT, Md. (AP) — An Allegany County grand jury has indicted a married couple and their two adult daughters on charges of embezzling more than $57,000 from a western Maryland rescue squad.
The sheriff’s office issued a statement Tuesday announcing theft scheme charges against Lonzy Clark Jr., his wife Rhonda and their daughters Crystal Clark and April Woolard, all of Westernport.
Josh Burkett of the Tri-Towns Ambulance and Rescue Squad tells the Cumberland Times-News that all four defendants were long-time members of the organization. He says they resigned when the investigation began and have since been dismissed.
Lonzy Clark’s attorney Stephen Tully says his client denies any liability and criminal activity. The other defendants have no defense attorneys listed in online court records, and either declined to comment or have no home telephone listing.
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While you’ve heard of HIPAA if you’ve visited a doctor or filled a prescription in the last 20 years, you probably aren’t as familiar with the federal Office of Civil Rights, which is in charge of actually enforcing HIPAA and handing out punishments to health care providers that violate it.
Yet an analysis by investigative reporting nonprofit ProPublica shows that many of the same providers violate the law and their patients’ or customers’ over and over, and aren’t punished for it. In the last four years, the top violator was part of the federal government: there were 220 complaints filed against the Veterans Administration, including one where a VA employee posted a veteran’s medical information on Facebook and chatted about it with her friends.
Taking the silver and bronze medals, though, were pharmacy chains CVS Health and Walgreens, followed by mega-health organization Kaiser Permanente and Walmart. If the violations for Walgreens and Rite Aid were combined, they would have taken the top spot from the VA.
One patient in California didn’t discover a breach until, three months after giving birth, she thawed out her placenta and noticed that it had a different mother’s name on it. Hospital staff hadn’t checked the name on the container against her bracelet, resulting in a HIPAA complaint.
An Office for Civil Rights official explained to ProPublica that their priority has been dealing with large breaches, where 500 or more people were affected. Small but repeated breaches are investigated but not necessarily punished.
Few Consequences For Health Privacy Law’s Repeat Offenders [ProPublica/NPR]
If your favorite face wash includes tiny microbeads, you better savor it. After playing catch-up with several states, the U.S. has finally passed a measure that would keep the microscopic plastic spheres from going down the drain and possibly into the stomachs of our seafood.
President Barack Obama yesterday signed into law the Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015 [PDF], which would phase out the use of microbeads in consumer products over the next several years, MLive reports.
The Act, which passed the U.S. House unanimously in early December signaling widespread support for the ban, prohibits the “manufacture and introduction into interstate commerce of rinse-off cosmetics containing intentionally-added plastic microbeads.”
Under the bill, a ban on manufacturing products with the beads, the first step, would begin on July 1, 2017, followed by product-specific manufacturing and sales bans in 2018 and 2019.
The bill’s definition of a microbead — “any solid plastic particle” less than five millimeters in size intended for use as an exfoliant — also closes a potential loophole that environmental groups feared could keep the small spheres in use: simply using a different kind of plastic.
“As someone who grew up on Lake Michigan and represents a large chunk of Michigan coastline, I understand firsthand how important it is to maintain the beauty and integrity of our Great Lakes,” Illinois Representative Fred Upton, who co-sponsored the bill, said in a statement in early December.
The small bits of plastic, often found in face washes, soaps and toothpaste, have become a hot topic for lawmakers and environmentalists in recent years, with many states taking action to end the use of microbeads.
A report issued by the New York Environmental Protection Bureau last year outlined just how unsafe the small plastic pieces can be.
According to the report, after microbeads are washed from our bathrooms, they easily travel through wastewater treatment plants and enter our waterways. The tiny beads then act as sponges for toxic chemical pollutants and become an attractive snack for marine wildlife. And because we humans often like to eat seafood, that means there’s a pretty good chance the spheres could end up in your stomach.
Despite the findings, legislation to phase out the use of microbeads state-wide has passed the New York Assembly twice in the last two years, but has stalled in the Senate both times.
Last year, Illinois became the first state to pass an ordinance that would gradually fade out the use of microbeads beginning in 2017 and ending in 2019.
The state bill even had the cooperation of product manufacturers. An official with the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois said at the time that the quick deal resulted from unique circumstances, and the availability of substitute ingredients, such as oatmeal and sea salt.
Earlier this year, the state of California voted to phase out the use of microscopic exfoliating beads in personal care products sold in the state.
Michigan also considered a ban on the use of the beads this year. MLive reports that legislators debated the bill, but failed to reach a consensus.
The issue hasn’t just been on the minds of activists, either. Several major manufacturers, such as Proctor & Gamble, and Unilever, have pledged to phase out use of plastic microbeads.
In February 2014, L’Oréal said it would begin phasing out the materials this year in their Biotherm products and continue with Body Shop products in 2015. All of the company’s products are expected to be microbead-free by 2017.
Colgate-Palmolive has already discontinued using microbeads in all its products, telling Consumerist in a statement in October: “Some groups have raised concerns regarding the potential contribution of microbeads to pollution of the world’s oceans. Recognizing that consumers have questions, as of year-end 2014 we are no longer using this ingredient.”
Obama signs ban on microbead pollution [MLive]
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge in San Diego has dismissed a class-action lawsuit brought by SeaWorld patrons who claimed they were deceived about how the marine park treats orcas and wanted refunds.
The federal judge last week said that the plaintiffs didn’t have standing to bring the lawsuit on behalf of patrons of SeaWorld parks in San Antonio, San Diego and Orlando. The plaintiffs claimed that hundreds of thousands of patrons wouldn’t have purchased tickets to SeaWorld parks if they knew how orcas were treated, and they were entitled to refunds.
The judge said the plaintiffs never showed that they had viewed any deceptive statements by SeaWorld before buying tickets and that they also lacked specificity in their claims that SeaWorld made misrepresentations.
“Here, there is no chance of the plaintiffs being misled by SeaWorld’s alleged false statements and omissions concerned the treatment of whales at SeaWorld parks as the (complaint) does not allege that plaintiffs ever believed or relied on any statements by SeaWorld concerning the whales, and it is clear that the plaintiffs do not intend to visit the SeaWorld parks again,” U.S. District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo said in her order.
Paul Rothstein, a Gainesville, Florida attorney representing some of the plaintiffs, was unavailable to immediately comment on Monday. Steve Berman, an attorney in Seattle who represented another group of plaintiffs, also was unavailable.
SeaWorld has been in the crosshairs of animal rights activists, and experienced a drop in revenue, since the 2013 release of the documentary “Blackfish.” The movie chronicled the case of Tilikum, a killer whale that caused the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010.
In a statement, SeaWorld officials said the lawsuit was part of a series of efforts by activists to phase out zoos and aquariums.
“SeaWorld welcomes this significant decision, which threw out all of the plaintiffs’ claims, and which could signal the ultimate end of this litigation,” the statement said.
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FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A teen fugitive who’s known for using an “affluenza” defense and his mother attempted to disguise themselves and disappear among the American tourists thronging a Mexican resort city for the holidays, but are now in custody and will be returned to the U.S. after a cellphone used to order pizza gave away their location, authorities said Tuesday.
Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said 18-year-old Ethan Couch — who was on juvenile probation after killing four people in a drunken driving wreck — and his mother had prepared to be gone a while, even dyeing Couch’s blond hair black, before being detained Monday in the Pacific Coast city of Puerto Vallarta.
“They had planned to disappear. They even had something that was almost akin to a going-away party before leaving town,” Anderson said. He would not give details about the event, including how many people attended.
During the sentencing phase of Couch’s trial, a defense expert argued that his wealthy parents coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility — a condition the expert termed “affluenza.” The condition is not recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association, and its invocation drew ridicule.
Couch disappeared as authorities investigated whether he had violated the terms of his probation.
Anderson said Couch and his mother, Tonya Couch, apparently crossed the border in her pickup and drove to Puerto Vallarta. It was not clear whether they had any accomplices.
No immediate charges were planned for others who may have known about or assisted with the flight plan, Anderson said. He said authorities have no evidence that Ethan Couch’s father, who owns a sheet metal factory in North Texas, was involved.
Jalisco state prosecutor Eduardo Almaguer Ramirez said U.S. authorities knew the mother and son were in Puerto Vallarta because of a phone call to Domino’s Pizza.
A U.S. Marshals Service agent tipped authorities in Mexico to the location of the phone on Monday, according to a police report issued by the Jalisco state prosecutors’ office. The phone had been used to order pizza for a room at a condominium complex in the beach resort city.
When agents went to the condo, the Couches had already moved on, but a tourism operator pointed agents to the mother and son’s new home at an apartment in Puerto Vallarta’s old town. Agents set up a surveillance operation in the area and found the Couches that night.
The police report says they claimed to be carrying no identification and gave inconsistent stories about their names. They were taken into custody and handed over to Immigration officials.
Anderson noted that Ethan Couch’s hair was “markedly different.” A photo distributed by the Jalisco state prosecutors’ office shows him in detention with his blond hair dyed black and his normally blondish beard now brown.
The sheriff has said he believes the two fled in late November after a video surfaced that appears to show Couch at a party where people were drinking. If found to be drinking, Couch’s probation could be revoked and he could face up to four months in jail. Once returned to Texas, Couch will be held in a Tarrant County facility until a probation violation hearing next month.
Anderson said an arrest warrant was being issued for Tonya Couch on charges of hindering an apprehension, a third-degree felony that carries a sentence of two to 10 years in prison. Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson said she plans to ask a judge to transfer Ethan Couch’s case to adult court.
Couch would then face up to 120 days in an adult jail, followed by 10 years’ probation. If he violates probation, he could face up to 10 years in prison per death, Wilson said.
If the judge declines to transfer Couch to adult court, Wilson will ask that his probation be revoked, in which case he could be held in a juvenile facility until his sentence expires when he turns 19 next April.
Couch’s attorneys, Scott Brown and Reagan Wynn, said they won’t comment until they speak with him, which likely won’t happen before Couch reaches the U.S.
Ricardo Ariel Vera, the representative of Mexico’s immigration institute in Jalisco state, said the mother and son were being held at immigration offices in Guadalajara and would be returned to the United States aboard a commercial flight to Houston.
“They are going to be sent back to their country, given that they were in Mexico improperly,” Ariel Vera said. “They would have had to enter, for example, as tourists, but they entered without registering.”
He initially said that would happen Tuesday; however, another immigration official who is not allowed to be quoted by name told The Associated Press that there were no seats available on commercial flights and the return would be Wednesday.
Couch was driving drunk and speeding on a road south of Fort Worth in June 2013 when he crashed into a disabled SUV off to the side, killing four people and injuring several others, including passengers in his pickup truck.
He pleaded guilty to four counts of intoxication manslaughter and two counts of intoxication assault causing serious bodily injury. A judge sentenced him in juvenile court to 10 years’ probation and a stint in a rehabilitation center.
Authorities had begun searching for Couch and his mother after he missed a mandatory appointment with his probation officer on Dec. 10.
___
This story has been corrected with the proper spelling of Couch’s last name.
___
Rivera reported from Guadalajara. Associated Press reporters E. Eduardo Castillo, Peter Orsi and Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.
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ERIE, Pa. (AP) — Police say a Pennsylvania man tried to steal a puppy from a home he had burglarized hours earlier on Christmas Eve, taking presents meant for children.
The Erie Times-News (http://bit.ly/1MESmzu ) reports 21-year-old Austin Thompson is accused of stealing televisions, a video system and Christmas presents meant for Sara Sauers’ children at about 4 a.m. Christmas Eve.
Police say they caught Thompson when he returned about two hours later to take her puppy. They say he fled when officers responded to the second call.
Police were able to recover some of the stolen items. Sauers says police returned her television on Christmas Day and even hooked up her cable.
Online court records don’t list an attorney for Thompson, who remained in jail Tuesday.
___
Information from: Erie Times-News, http://www.goerie.com
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CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago officer who shot black teen 16 times in 2014 pleads not guilty to murder charges.
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FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — The latest in the case of a Texas teenager serving probation for killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck after invoking an “affluenza” defense (all times local):
6:15 p.m.
Authorities in Mexico say a phone call to Domino’s Pizza helped them find a teen fugitive who’s known for using an “affluenza” defense.
Ethan Couch, now 18, was placed on probation in Texas after a deadly drunken driving wreck. He fled the U.S. with his mother as authorities began investigating whether he violated terms of his sentence.
According to a police report issued by the Jalisco state prosecutors’ office, the Couches used one of their phones to order pizza for a room at a condominium in the beach resort city of Puerto Vallarta. A U.S. Marshals Service agent tipped authorities in Mexico about the location of the phone on Monday.
Couch and his mother weren’t at the condo, but agents learned of their new location. Agents spotted them that night.
___
3:30 p.m.
Jalisco state prosecutor Eduardo Almaguer Ramirez says U.S. authorities had asked Mexican police to help capture Ethan Couch and his mother, Tonya Couch.
Mexican detectives started looking for them starting Dec. 24, before finally catching up with them at about 6 p.m. on Monday. The pair did not resist arrest.
Couch, now 18, was placed on probation after a deadly drunken driving wreck but fled the country as authorities began investigating whether he violated terms of his sentence. He was known for using an “affluenza” defense.
Almaguer Ramirez told a news conference in Guadalajara, the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, that U.S. authorities knew the mother and son were in nearby Puerto Vallarta on the Pacific Coast.
The two are being held in Guadalajara before being returned to the United States.
Couch and his mother stayed first at a resort known as Los Tules, near the beach. Prosecutors say a woman who worked there helped authorities capture them.
___
2 p.m.
A Mexican immigration official says a Texas woman and her son, a teen known for invoking an “affluenza” defense after a deadly drunken driving wreck, will be returning to the United States on Wednesday.
The official, who is not authorized to be quoted by name, told Associated Press reporter E. Eduardo Castillo that there are no seats available on commercial flights to allow a Tuesday return.
The official said Ethan Couch and his mother, Tonya Couch, will stay at immigration facilities in Jalisco’s state capital, Guadalajara, where they will be given food and rooms with beds.
Couch, now 18, was placed on probation after the wreck but fled the country as authorities began investigating whether he violated terms of his sentence.
___
11 a.m.
A Texas sheriff says that a woman and her son drove a pickup truck to Mexico as they fled his probation for killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck. He was known for invoking an “affluenza” defense.
Eighteen-year-old Ethan Couch and his mother, Tonya Couch, were located and detained Monday in the Pacific Coast resort city of Puerto Vallarta. Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said Tuesday that the pair had planned to disappear and had something like a going-away party before they left town.
A prosecutor says that during a hearing next month they plan to ask a judge to transfer Ethan Couch’s case to adult court.
___
10:45 a.m.
A Mexican official says a Texas teenager on probation for killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck and invoking an “affluenza” defense who was found in Mexico along with his mother will be returned to the United States on Tuesday.
Ricardo Ariel Vera, the representative of Mexico’s immigration institute in the western state of Jalisco, said the mother and son were being held at immigration offices in the state capital, Guadalajara, and would be returned to the United States aboard a commercial flight to Houston sometime Tuesday.
During the sentencing phase of Couch’s trial, a defense expert argued that Couch’s wealthy parents coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility — a condition the expert termed “affluenza.” The condition is not recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association.
___
10 a.m.
A Texas sheriff says an arrest warrant will be issued for mother of a teenager found in Mexico after fleeing probation after killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck and invoking an “affluenza” defense.
Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson said Tuesday at a news conference that the warrant would be issued for Tonya Couch on charges of hindering an apprehension.
Mexico’s Jalisco state prosecutors’ office said 18-year-old Ethan Couch and his mother were located and detained Monday evening in the Pacific Coast resort city of Puerto Vallarta.
Anderson said it appears the two planned their disappearance and even held something of a going-away party.
Anderson said the U.S. Marshals Service was working to get the two returned to the United States.
(This item has been corrected to reflect the proper spelling of the mother’s last name)
___
2 a.m.
Authorities say a Texas teenager serving probation for killing four people in a drunken-driving wreck after invoking an “affluenza” defense is in custody in Mexico, weeks after he and his mother disappeared.
Mexico’s Jalisco state prosecutors’ office said 18-year-old Ethan Couch and his mother, Tonya Couch, were located and detained Monday evening in the Pacific Coast resort city of Puerto Vallarta.
After their detention, they were handed over to Mexican immigration authorities for deportation, the office said.
During the sentencing phase of Couch’s trial, a defense expert argued that Couch’s wealthy parents coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility — a condition the expert termed “affluenza.”
The condition is not recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association, and its invocation drew widespread ridicule.
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WASHINGTON — Motorists on the Capital Beltway were startled this weekend, when a pack of up to 100 dirt bike and ATV riders briefly stopped traffic, harassed drivers and performed stunts.
Police couldn’t catch any of the bikers, but they are looking at video of the incident.
“It was really frightening,” said a motorist, who asked not to be named and who was caught in the disruption. “People were sitting in their cars terrorized.”
Traffic cameras caught the bikers weaving in and out of traffic on Sunday, antagonizing drivers and riding in the opposite direction. Plumes of bluish-gray smoke could be seen rising from the pavement as bikers burned tire rubber.
Others popped wheelies, lifting the front wheel of their bikes to ride on the back wheel only.
Video of the incident has also been posted on YouTube.
The disruptions occurred on the Inner Loop in Prince George’s County, I-295 and U.S. 50.
Police say it is not uncommon for packs of dirt bike and ATV riders to conduct such rides when the weather is warm. Packs were also spotted Sunday night in Arlington County and on North Capitol Street in the District, where dirt bikes and ATVs are illegal.
Maryland State Police dispatched troopers from the Forestville and College Parks barracks to the Beltway, but say the bikers had dispersed by the time troopers arrived.
“I absolutely expected to see all manner of police coming out from the woodwork,” said the unnamed motorist. “There are citizens sitting on the Beltway trying to go about about their business being terrorized by a group of thugs.”
Maryland State Police are examining video taken by motorists in a bid to acquire license tag numbers and identify some of the bikers.
Police concede it’s hard to catch them.
“They’re quicker, they’re faster, they turn faster. The faster we go, the faster they go,” said Elena Russo, a spokeswoman for the Maryland State Police.
Because of the bikers abilities to elude police and the safety risks of high speed chases, some police are hesitant to pursue dirt bikers. D.C. Police have a no chase policy.
Apparel available on the Internet associated with the organization BikeLife includes sweatshirts and T-shirts with the slogan “No Chase.”
There’s evidence that the traffic-snarling, lawless rides are well-organized.
Sunday afternoon’s disruption was preceded by an Internet posting advertising “Last 2015 Sunday Funday.” Bikers were invited to gather at a site in Upper Marlboro, Maryland for the Sunday ride.
“It was bizarre and horrible,” the motorist said. “It adds to the unsettledness and fear of our times, it seems like nobody is in charge anymore.”
Watch video of the incident below.
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WASHINGTON — You might look at an old Christmas tree at the curbside and think “recycling.” The folks at Maryland State Parks’ Scales and Tails programs look at that same tree and think “furniture.”
Ranger Sarah Milbourne, with the Department of Natural Resources, explains that recycled Christmas trees are used inside the aviaries at six state parks where the raptors in the Scales and Tails program are kept. Milbourne says the trees provide cover and enrichment for animals that came into the program because they were wounded, and can’t be returned to the wild.
Milbourne says the trees give the birds “greenery, protection, and a sense of the wild.”
Milbourne says the trees will be welcomed by the many raptors in the parks: two bald eagles; kestrels; and barred and barn owls. She says the tiny screech owls — they weigh less than 200 grams (about the same as a cup of sugar) — are especially fond of nestling into the trees.
She says if you want to take part in donating your tree, just make sure that all the decorations — including the tinsel — have been removed.
The closest park for many in the area may be Cunningham Falls, in Frederick County.
The Department of Natural Resources has information about recycling Christmas trees with the Maryland Park Service.
Browse through the gallery above to see images of raptors at Maryland State Parks included in the Scales and Tails program.
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By Palmer Gibbs
“The following information is provided by Graphiq and Center for Responsive Politics.”
The media and pundits like to take politicians to task for living a cushy lifestyle that’s worlds apart from the everyday experiences of average Americans. But a handful of members of Congress share one key characteristic with many of their constituents: dwindling bank accounts.
Using data from the Center for Responsive Politics, InsideGov looked at the financials of the 535 members of Congress and found the poorest members. The Center for Responsive Politics collects information from personal financial disclosure documents, providing insight into the wealthiest and poorest politicians on Capitol Hill.
More: The Richest Members of Congress
When politicians report their personal finances, they do so in ranges rather than exact numbers. Personal wealth, or lack thereof, is estimated based on the average of the highest and lowest values. We count down the 25 poorest members of Congress, moving from least to most poor. Does your representative make the list?
Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee. His average net worth is $8,000.
Rep. Donna F. Edwards, D-Md., has served in the House since 2008 and is running for Senate in 2016. Her average net worth is $4,004.
Rep. Corrine Brown has served Florida in the House of Representative since 1993. The Democrat’s average net worth is $3,501.
Democratic Rep. Norma J. Torres worked her way through local and state politics in California before getting elected to the U.S. House in 2014. Her average net worth is $1,001.
Rep. Andre Carson, a Democrat out of central Indiana, has served in the House since 2008. His average net worth is -$15,498, marking the first member of Congress on this list whose net worth is in the negative column.
After stints in the state House and Senate in Georgia, Rep. Barry Loudermilk was elected to the U.S. House in 2014. The Republican promptly joined the Freedom Caucus, the conservative group that played a key role in the resignation of former House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. Loudermilk’s average net worth is -$18,498.
A Louisiana native, Republican Rep. Steve Scalise came to Capitol Hill in 2008, taking over former Rep. Bobby Jindal’s seat when the latter was elected governor of the state. Scalise’s average net worth is -$20,999.
After 15 years in the state House and Senate, Florida voters sent Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart to Capitol Hill in 2003. His average net worth is -$24,500.
Democratic Rep. Brendan F. Boyle, first elected in 2014, represents Pennsylvania’s 13th District, which includes part of Philadelphia. His average net worth is -$24,997.
Rep. Kyrsten Sinema served in Arizona state politics from 2005 to 2012. The Democrat was elected to the U.S. House in 2012. Her average net worth is -$32,500.
After stints on reality TV shows “The Real World: Boston” and “Road Rules: All Stars,” Rep. Sean P. Duffy tried his hand at another rough-and-tumble sport: politics. The Republican from Wisconsin was first elected in the GOP midterm sweep of 2010. His average net worth is -$34,499.
Rep. Steve Israel has represented New York in the U.S. House since his 2000 election. The Democrat’s average net worth is -$42,500.
Sen. Martin Heinrich has the distinction of being the only senator on this list of the 25 poorest members of Congress. The New Mexico Democrat has an average net worth of -$43,494.
Democratic Rep. John Conyers Jr., first elected to represent Michigan in 1964, is the longest-serving member of Congress. His average net worth is -$45,000.
Pennsylvania voters elected Rep. Ryan A. Costello in 2014 after he served almost four years on the Chester County Board of Commissioners. The Republican’s average net worth is -$47,994.
Rep. Eric Swalwell has represented California’s 15th District since 2013. His average net worth is -$58,999.
A Southern Baptist minister by trade, Rep. Mark Walker was elected to the U.S. House in 2014. The North Carolina Republican has an average net worth of -$58,999.
After 10 years in the state legislature, Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro was elected to the U.S. House in 2012. The Democrat’s average net worth is -$61,500.
A Texas native, Republican Rep. Louie Gohmert was first elected to represent the Lone Star State in 2004. His average net worth is -$107,501.
After four years in the Idaho state House, voters promoted Rep. Raul R. Labrador to the U.S. House in the 2010 election. The Republican’s average net worth is -$216,498.
In 2010, Rep. Renee L. Ellmers was elected by a thin margin to the U.S. House. The Republican from North Carolina has an average net worth of -$246,498.
Democratic Rep. Ruben Hinojosa was first elected in 1996 to represent Texas’ 15th District. He currently serves on the Committee on Financial Services and the Committee on Education and the Workforce. Hinojosa’s average net worth is -$2,110,437.
After logging eight years as the mayor of Kansas City, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver was elected to the U.S. House in 2004. The Missouri Republican has an average net worth of -$2,248,995.
A Florida native, Democratic Rep. Alcee L. Hastings has represented the Sunshine State in the U.S. House since his 1992 election. His average net worth is -$4,732,002.
Before he went to Capitol Hill, Hastings served as a U.S. district judge in Florida. He was impeached in 1988 for bribery; his seven-figure debt reportedly is a result of the legal fees surrounding his protracted trial.
A native of California’s Central Valley, Republican Rep. David G. Valadao was first elected to the U.S. House in 2012. Valadao continues to hold debt related to his family’s dairy farm, which his father started in 1973.
Valadao’s average net worth is -$25,167,003. He is consistently ranked among the poorest members of Congress.
Research More About Your Member of Congress
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WASHINGTON — A post-Christmas decision about when to take the tree down was easier than usual for a home in Northwest that became infested with bugs from a live, cut tree.
“I am known to be very afraid of spiders, so it was quite a day for me,” says a D.C. woman who prefers to be known as “Kim.”
The bugs turned out to be aphids, which are harmless but look similar to ticks and spiders.
After spending a few days away for the holiday, Kim says she returned home to discover the creatures were in her living room, bathroom and bedroom, and had left dark egg sacs all along the way. She tracked the bugs back to the Christmas tree.
“I pulled the tree out of the house and when I dropped the tree to the ground hundreds of [aphids] went running across the concrete — it was terrifying,” she said.
Kim says the Whole Foods Market on P Street Northwest, where she bought the tree, has been very accommodating. Workers retrieved the tree from Kim’s Logan Circle home for recycling, gave her a refund and offered to help pay for the exterminator.
“They were great in that they told me to come in with my receipts and to talk with them about covering some of the exterminator expenses.”
Kim says she may need monthly exterminator visits, which could last seven months and cost up to $1,000, to eradicate the infestation.
“Our customers should know our policy is 100 percent satisfaction,” Whole Foods spokeswoman Kristi Gross says in an email to WTOP. “The bugs are Cinara Aphids which commonly colonize on fir trees as they feed on the sap. They are harmless to people and pets but are very annoying.”
The Penn State Department of Entomology also believes people shouldn’t be overly concerned about pests brought into the home on Christmas trees.
“Every Christmas tree can harbor insects, mites, or spiders. Some of these may remain on the tree into winter and could become active after being exposed to the warm temperatures inside the home. Although many will stay on the tree, a few may be attracted to sources of light, including windows. But, because they are associated with field-grown conifers, none of these accidental introductions are a threat to your home, its contents, or occupants,” the University’s website says.
“While trees are treated naturally in the field, it doesn’t always take care of them 100 percent,” Gross said.
Those less-than-sure odds are unfortunate, especially considering that the charm of a live Christmas tree is now lost on Kim.
“It’s my first real Christmas tree, so it was quite a disappointment,” she says. “I think I will have a fake one going forward.”
WTOP’s Michelle Basch contributed to this report.
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While gift card exchange sites can be a problematic dumping ground for fraudulently obtained merchandise return cards, they can also be a place to get respectable small discounts, and to sell your unwanted gift cards at a small loss. How small that loss is depends on which card you want to get rid of.
There are lots of companies that are happy to take your gift card off your hands: even CoinStar has gift card kiosks, and Target joined the party only last month.
Consumer Reports tested four sites: Giftcards.com, Cardpool.com, Giftcardrescue.com, and Monstergiftcard.com.
The most important thing that they learned is that checking multiple sites can pay off: for a hypothetical $100 gift card, offers varied between sites by as much as $34.50. If you’re going to resell a card, make it one for Walmart: all four card exchange sites that Consumer Reports checked paid at least $80 for a card from there.
The more specialized a retailer, the less its card was worth, all the way down to Bass Pro Shops, which has relatively few stores and specialized merchandise. The four exchanges offered only $50 to $74 for a card from there.
How to Exchange Gift Cards and Get the Most Cash [Consumer Reports]
Ten years ago, Congress passed the REAL ID Act, which set minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and photo IDs. While the rules haven’t exactly been enforced to the “T” by the Dept. of Homeland Security, that’s poised to change, leaving millions of people in nine states in need of a second form of ID to pass through airport security.
The New York Times reports that while several of these states have been granted extensions, effectively delaying any application of requirements for a period of time, those deadlines are fast approaching, and the government apparently isn’t keen on providing new extensions.
That’s likely to be an issue for at least nine states, Ars Technica reports.
The requirements under the Act have been hotly debated in many states, with some claiming the law violates consumers’ privacy, even passing laws barring motor vehicle departments from complying with the law.
Under the standards, licenses are required to be equipped with “machine readable” technology, like a chip or a magnetic strip, to store residents’ personal information, the Times reports.
The information will eventually be shared through a system administered by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, allowing states to access information from other states.
While the federal government can’t force states to adopt identification standards, it can force their hands in other ways, mainly determining that current IDs aren’t sufficient enough to pass through airport security.
If state IDs fail to comply with REAL ID standards, federal agencies can’t accept them as standalone proof of identification. The final phase of the DHS plan is access to commercial aircraft, and according to the agency’s own timeline, full enforcement is due to begin “No sooner than 2016.”
While reports in September put the number of non-compliant states at four, a new report from the AP found that DHS had warned officials in at least nine states that requests for additional extensions would be denied.
Extensions set to expire on January 10, 2016 belong to Alaska, California, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, South Carolina, and Washington, as well as Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The Associated Press reports that while it’s possible last-minute extensions could be granted, officials in Missouri, Illinois, New Mexico, and Washington were already notified that additional time would be denied.
Minnesota and American Samoa were not given extensions this year, meaning residents of those areas might be the first affected if the Transportation Security Administration applies the REAL ID Act starting in 2016.
Several other states — including New Hampshire and Louisiana — have been granted extensions through mid-2016.
Additionally, New York offers enhanced IDs that are REAL ID compliant, which allowed it to receive an extension until October 2016.
The NYT reports that officials with DHS is working on a timeline for enforcement of the rule at airports. The schedule is expected to be released before the year’s end, but that’s just days away.
DHS said that any announcement would come with a notice of 120 days before starting to enforce the law at airports.
T.S.A. Moves Closer to Rejecting Some State Driver’s Licenses for Travel [The New York Times]
TSA may soon stop accepting drivers’ licenses from nine states [Ars Technica]
Missouri drivers licenses will no longer be acceptable to enter federal facilities [The Associated Press]
Even as the holidays wind down, so-called “hoverboards” continue to be a hot ticket at retailers and shopping malls around the country. One such busy mall happened to be in Texas where a self-balancing scooter caught fire, marking it just one of dozens of fires reported to federal safety officials in recent months.
KHOU reports [warning: link has video that autoplays] that smoke filled part of the Deerbrook Mall on Monday after a hoverboard caught fire at the kiosk selling the devices.
Local police say that staff at the mall used a fire extinguisher to put out the small blaze before firefighters arrived.
The mall was evacuated briefly, but no injuries were reported.
“This afternoon there was an incident with a hoverboard that resulted in a small fire,” mall officials said in a statement. “As a precaution, Humble (Fire Department) was called in. The fire was quickly extinguished. The mall is open for business.”
Unlike other hoverboard explosions that occurred while the device was plugged in to charge, KHOU reports that the scooter at Deerbrook Mall was still sitting in the box.
“It just sounded like a small explosion sounded like a bomb honestly,” a woman shopping with a friend at the mall said.
“It was nerve-wracking, I mean the emergency broadcast went off,” another shopper said. “You could see people who were in the opposite end who were running out, but they obviously thought it was something so serious they were holding their children.”
The incident in Texas is just the latest in a string of issues for the popular self-balancing scooters.
On Monday, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced it had received at least 22 reports of fires in 17 states, as well as 70 ER-treated injuries.
#hoverboards: 22 reports of fires in at least 17 states (report to us at https://t.co/qFWdMF6Xk0). 70 ER-treated injuries & counting #GearUp
— U.S. CPSC (@USCPSC) December 28, 2015
The agency expects to receive more reports via safer products.gov in coming days and weeks.
CPSC chairman Elliot Kaye issued a statement on hoverboards shortly before the holidays, saying that investigators with the agency were working “non-stop” to find the root cause for the fire hazards linked to the devices. So far, they believe lithium batteries could be the source of issues.
“The challenge is to move quickly but also thoroughly and carefully to find out why certain hoverboards caught fire,” Kaye said in a statement. “Every consumer who is riding a hoverboard, who purchased one to give as a gift during the holidays, or who is thinking about buying one deserves to know if there is a safety defect.”
Safety concerns related to the gadgets began popping up last month when a Louisiana family says the not-actually-a-hoverboard caused a fire that burned down their home. A similar incident was reported in New Jersey on Monday.
Shortly after that episode, retailers, including Amazon and Target, began pulling the self-balancing scooters until manufacturers could provide proof of safety standard requirements.
Hoverboard fire leads to evacuation at Deerbrook Mall [KHOU]
When cooking a meal on the stove, there’s always the possibility that a little bit of grease or oil will splatter on you. Something you probably aren’t prepared for, though, is the chance that a piece of the pan will shoot off, burning your arm, face, or other body part.
But that’s exactly what can happen with about 121,000 pans from the Martha Stewart Collection cookware set now being recalled by Macy’s, the Consumer Product Safety Commission reports.
According to the CPSC recall notice, the eight-inch and 10-inch stainless steel frying pans, which come standard in the Martha Stewart Collection 10-piece Stainless Steel Cookware Set, include metal discs that can pop off and hit the cook.
The pans contain two rivets that attach the frying pan to the handle. The rivets are covered by stainless steel discs. It’s these discs that have been found to pose an injury hazard.
Macy’s says it is aware of seven reports of the discs popping off, resulting in three minor injuries, including burns, bruises, and welts.
The CPSC recommends owners of the cookware set, which was sold from January 2011 to September 2015 for about $170, immediately stop using the eight- and 10-inch pans.
Other items included in the set – 1-quart covered saucepan, 2-quart covered sauce pan, 3-quart covered saucepan and 6-quart covered stockpot – are not affected by the recall.
Consumers who purchased the cookware sets from Macy’s or macys.com should return the frying pans to Macy’s or macys.com for a store credit for the full value of the two frying pans. Consumers who purchased the cookware sets from a Military Exchange should return the frying pans to the Military Exchange for a full refund.
The recalled pans can be identified by the following date codes:
A New York judge dismissed the charge against a woman who was able to prove that her body is its own little brewery, using excess intestinal yeast to turn her food into alcohol, reported The Buffalo News recently. That process can cause breathalyzer readouts that would normally mean someone is dangerously intoxicated.
The woman was arrested last year after a 9-1-1 call that reported her weaving while driving. She reportedly was found driving on a flat tire with “glassy-bloodshot eyes and slurred speech.” Though she said she’d had three drinks, a breathalyzer registered her blood alcohol content at .33%
“Her tire was flat, and she felt she was close enough to home that she could drive the rest of the way,” the woman’s attorney told The News. “She can register a blood alcohol content that would have you or I falling down drunk, but she can function.”
She spent $7,000 working with a specialist to show how her body can make it seem like she’s the legal definition of drunk, without her guzzling even a drop herself.
“I would say it is not safe to drive a car if you are in an auto brewery syndrome flare,” a doctor and auto-brewery syndrome expert who monitored and tested the woman, told the News. “But it’s a brand new disease and we’re still trying to understand it.”
The doctor said he thinks between 50 and 100 people have been diagnosed with the disorder, though probably 95% of them have no idea. He advised the woman to change her eating habits, as flare-ups of ABS can be triggered in part by diets high in carbohydrates.
Woman’s body acts as ‘brewery,’ so judge dismisses DWI [The Buffalo News]
Cats and dogs don’t usually know what things make them sick, so their curious nature occasionally gets the best of them. To keep your pets safe, avoid having any of these common plants around your home.
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The company responsible for a decade-old oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico will hold a public meeting next month to disclose details of its efforts to stop chronic slicks from forming off Louisiana’s coast.
The Jan. 20 forum in Baton Rouge was a requirement of Taylor Energy Co.’s court settlement in September with environmental groups, which accused the company of withholding information about the leak and its efforts to end it.
In 2004, waves whipped up by Hurricane Ivan triggered an underwater mudslide that toppled a Taylor Energy-owned platform and buried a cluster of its oil wells under mounds of sediment. Oil is still leaking at the site more than 11 years later, with slicks often stretching for miles.
Federal regulators estimate the leak could last a century or more if left unchecked.
An Associated Press investigation in April revealed evidence that the leak is worse than the company, or government, have publicly reported during their secretive response. Presented with AP’s findings, the Coast Guard provided a new leak estimate that is about 20 times greater than one touted by the company in a court filing earlier this year.
Environmental groups led by the New York-based Waterkeeper Alliance sued Taylor Energy in 2012, accusing the company of withholding information from the public about the leak’s extent and potential impact on the Gulf’s ecosystem.
In May, a federal magistrate rejected the company’s bid to preserve the confidentiality of numerous emails and reports about its work. But those documents haven’t been made public yet.
The September settlement that resolved the Waterkeeper Alliance’s federal lawsuit called for the company to donate $300,000 to a Louisiana marine research consortium and pay an additional $100,000 to fund an environmental research project.
Taylor Energy recently posted an agenda for next month’s daylong meeting on Louisiana State University’s campus. On a website, the company also posted documents summarizing the presentations planned for the forum.
Taylor Energy President William Pecue, the company’s sole remaining full-time employee, is scheduled to make most of the presentations at the meeting. A few experts and industry consultants hired by the company also are expected to present their findings.
Marylee Orr, executive director of the Louisiana Environmental Action Network, said she hopes the meeting “will finally begin to bring transparency to an event that has been kept out of the public knowledge for more than a decade.”
“It is important that regulators, the public and even those within the industry have a complete knowledge of the risks of offshore drilling in order to avoid similar problems in the future,” said Orr, whose group was a plaintiff in the Waterkeeper Alliance’s suit.
Patrick Taylor, the company’s founder, died in 2004. Taylor Energy sold all its offshore leases and oil and gas interests in 2008. What’s left of the company only exists to continue working on the leak.
The company deposited more than $666 million in a trust to pay for its leak response work. As of May 2014, nearly $433 million remained in the trust.
Taylor Energy lobbied to recover at least a portion of the remaining money, but federal authorities rebuffed the company’s settlement overtures earlier this year and ordered it to perform more work at the site.
Using satellite images and Coast Guard pollution reports, West Virginia-based watchdog group SkyTruth has estimated that between 300,000 and 1.4 million gallons of oil have spilled from the site since 2004.
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Information about the Jan. 20 forum: https://mc20response.com/
The post Company to hold meeting on decade-old oil leak in Gulf appeared first on WTOP.
A large group of ATV and dirt bike riders rode through parts of D.C. and Arlington Sunday night.
PoPville posted a video of the riders in the District’s NoMa neighborhood around 5 p.m. yesterday. It’s illegal to ride ATVs and dirt bikes on public streets in D.C. Adding to the lawlessness, the riders travel in large groups, producing a deafening roar of engines, and sometimes intentionally run red lights and block traffic.
In the PoPville comments, readers said they saw similar groups of riders crossing the Key Bridge and riding past Pentagon Row, in Pentagon City, last night.
An ARLnow reader said he saw 5-10 ATV and motorcycle riders in the area of Key Blvd and N. Nash Street, near the Rosslyn Gold’s Gym.
“Most of them appeared to be ATVs; several were driving without any lights,” said David Mitchell. “I observed them driving in circles in the streets, in and out of nearby apartment parking lots, and on and off the sidewalks.”
“At one point, the motorcyclists moved in and out of cars driving south on N. Nash and interfered with traffic to the point that motorists had to stop and wait for their departure,” Mitchell continued. “Frankly, it felt like a scene from the ‘The Wild One’ with Marlon Brando. I called 911 to report this activity and was told they had already received multiple calls and that officers had been dispatched. The motorcyclist left the area not too long after I made my call to 911.”
“It it did not feel good to know that these motorcyclists might be allowed to escape unpunished,” Mitchell said.
Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck confirmed that the department received reports of ATVs and dirt bikes in the Rosslyn and Key Bridge areas last night. No traffic stops or arrests were made by Arlington officers.
In addition, ACPD received a report of a dirt bike rider who skidded into a light pole and utility box on the 2100 block of Washington Blvd, near Route 50. A Fort Myer firefighter who witnesses the crash told police that an ATV rider picked up the injured dirt bike rider and together they fled the scene.
The investigation into the crash is ongoing, Sternbeck said.
Screen shot via PoPville
The post Dirt Bike and ATV Riders Rumble Through Arlington Sunday Night appeared first on WTOP.
Politico |
'How do you buy $7 billion of stuff you don't need?' Politico Fifty-four years ago, the brand-new Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara thought he could bring Pentagon spending on everyday items under control by applying efficiencies he had used to help turn around the Ford Motor Company. Instead, he created a ... |
With the bulk of the holiday celebrations having come and gone, you might be sitting around the dried-out Christmas tree counting up all those random gift cards you received. While you appreciate the generosity of your friends and family, you just don’t have any desire to make a purchase with said cards. To that end, a number of retailers are willing to offer you a trade; joining the ranks of Walmart, GameStop, and Coinstar this year is Target.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Target will offer a year-round gift card trade-in program in about 1,500 stores.
The program, which started last month, is similar to Walmart’s past initiative in that the company doesn’t offer to pay a customer the full value of the traded card.
Instead, once the card is brought to the mobile phone counter in the electronics department, an employee of Market Source — wearing a black shirt instead of the traditional Target red — will give customers an offer for a lesser amount based on the resale value of the card.
For example, the company says, a $100 Walmart gift card can be exchanged for an $85 Target gift card.
“We know guests sometimes have unwanted or unused gift cards and [we] want to give them a convenient option to put those unused dollars toward shopping at Target,” Kristy Welker, a Target spokeswoman, tells the Star Tribune.
The retailer declined to provide information on how much it makes through the exchange program, which is slated to run year round.
Target’s program is a partnership between the retailer, card exchange site Cardpool.com, and other vendors.
Don’t like the gift card you got for Christmas? Target, other retailers will offer you a trade [Minneapolis Star Tribune]
An executive at the logistics company Genco told the Wall Street Journal that this industry is called “re-commerce,” which doesn’t make us cringe as much as industry terms like that normally do. Often, items that you send back to a retailer go straight to a logistics warehouse, which in turn sells it to a liquidator. The retailer gets back maybe 10-20% of the value of these items, which end up in closeout stores, dollar stores, or with flea market vendors or in pawn shops.
As more of our shopping shifts online, where return rates are higher, how can retailers get more back from these returns? The current system pretty much means accepting a small amount of money in exchange for someone taking the items away. Most big e-commerce outfits don’t handle their own returned merchandise, but selling their unwanted returns in smaller batches helps: instead of selling by the truckload, they perhaps sell only by the pallet.
One company, Shorewood Liquidators, sells on its own auction site as well as on eBay, with final prices usually ending up at maybe half of the original retail price.
Where Your Unwanted Christmas Gifts Get a Second Life [Wall Street Journal]
DOS PALOS, Calif. (AP) — A canal that delivers vital water supplies from Northern California to Southern California is sinking in places. So are stretches of a riverbed undergoing historic restoration. On farms, well casings pop up like mushrooms as the ground around them drops.
Four years of drought and heavy reliance on pumping of groundwater have made the land sink faster than ever up and down the Central Valley, requiring repairs to infrastructure that experts say are costing billions of dollars.
This slow-motion land subsidence — more than one foot a year in some places — is not expected to stop anytime soon, experts say, nor will the expensive repairs.
“It’s shocking how a huge area is affected, but how little you can tell with your eye,” said James Borchers, a hydro-geologist, who studies subsidence and says careful monitoring is necessary to detect and address sinking before it can do major damage to costly infrastructure such as bridges and pipelines.
Land subsidence is largely the result of pumping water from the ground. As aquifers are depleted, the ground sags.
The most severe examples today are in San Joaquin Valley, where the U.S. Geological Survey in 1975 said half of the land is prone to sinking. USGS researchers later called it one of the “single largest alterations of the land surface attributed to humankind.”
A sparse mountain snowpack in California’s driest four-year span on record has forced farmers in the Central Valley, the nation’s most productive agricultural region, to rely on groundwater to irrigate their crops.
Drought has spawned a well-drilling boom with some tapping ancient aquifers 3,000 feet down.
In wet years, groundwater provides about 40 percent of water used in California, but in times of drought, groundwater can amount to 65 percent of the state’s water supply.
Decades of over-pumping have destroyed thousands of well casings and buckled canal linings. To keep water flowing through low spots, irrigation districts raise the sides of sagging canals so they can increase the water level and maintain a gravitational flow.
As a result, at least one bridge now sits below the waterline. Chris White, general manager of the Central California Irrigation District in Los Banos, said replacing it is expected to cost $2.5 million. Rebuilding another canal recently cost $4.5 million.
Putting a grand total on damage from subsidence in California is tricky because irrigation districts don’t often single out repairs required by subsidence from general upkeep, said Borchers, who estimates long-term costs as being “probably in the billions.”
Subsidence has been a problem for decades, and it’s accelerating. Last year near Corcoran, the land sank 13 inches in eight months, researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory found by comparing images collected over time from satellites and airplanes.
Parts of the California Aqueduct, a massive canal that delivers water 400 miles to Southern California, also sank by nearly 13 inches, the NASA research shows.
This has cost the state of California “tens of millions of dollars” in repairs to the aqueduct in the last 40 years, and officials expect to spend that much in the future, said Ted Thomas, a spokesman for the state’s Department of Water Resources.
California became the last state in the West to regulate groundwater when Gov. Jerry Brown last year signed legislation ending a Gold Rush-era policy that generally let property owners take as much as they wanted. But local agencies have until 2040 to put groundwater management plans into effect.
Farmers and irrigation districts are not the only ones taking note of sinking land. Spokesman Greg Snapper said Pacific Gas & Electric Co. has not sustained any broken natural gas pipelines from sinking land in the Central Valley, but it monitors the lines and this year started using NASA’s satellite research as part of that effort.
A 60-mile stretch of California’s High Speed Rail track, designed to whisk passengers through the Central Valley in excess of 200 mph, will be built on a bed of rocks. This design is more forgiving and easier to maintain and repair if the land sinks than other stretches built on highway-like slabs, said Frank Vacca, the rail authority’s chief program manager.
Sinking land has stopped work on part of a historic project to return water flows to an irrigation-depleted section of the San Joaquin River. Before construction of a passageway for fish can begin, officials need to assess how fast the land will sink in the future, said Alicia Forsythe of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
With a wet El Nino winter forecast, geologists also worry that subsidence in a flood control channel elsewhere on the river may cause water to pool, prompting flooding rather than flow toward the sea.
“We haven’t had to use it for a while,” said Michelle Sneed, a USGS subsidence researcher. “We’ll see how that’s going to perform this year, if it’s called upon.”
The post Damage from sinking land costing California billions appeared first on WTOP.
COLLINSVILLE, Ill. (AP) — With fewer than 4,000 approved patients, the nascent medical marijuana business in Illinois is off to a slow start. Yet it hasn’t kept away a cadre of cannabis entrepreneurs who once relied on guns, badges, tough drug laws and lengthy prison sentences to fight the drug.
While neither state regulators nor the medical marijuana industry track the number of employees who were former law enforcement officials, The Associated Press has identified no fewer than 17 in Illinois, many of whom have outsized influence — from a trustee of the state’s chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police to one-time undercover narcotics officers.
“Who better would you want to oversee your compliance than a cop?” said Scott Abbott, a retired Illinois State Police colonel paid to help a company adhere to the state’s strict laws and regulations at two dispensaries.
The pull of such post-police jobs extends well beyond Illinois, such as Washington state and Colorado, where marijuana is legal for everyone over 21. But industry members in Illinois and beyond say the state is unusual in the degree to which former law enforcement officers are not just working security but taking hands-on roles with patients and leading businesses— even with the uncertain future of a four-year pilot program that expires in 2017 and has received lukewarm support from first-term Gov. Bruce Rauner.
Many have had a late-stage transformation, coming to see the drug less as a societal harm and more as good public policy — and good business. There’s likely no better example than Terrance Gainer, a former Chicago homicide detective, Illinois State Police director, assistant police chief in Washington, D.C., U.S. Capitol police chief and U.S. Senate sergeant-at-arms.
After some initial reluctance, the 68-year-old said he was swayed in part by “the sea change in society and our attitudes” toward the drug and the possibility of big business. He advises Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries on its security needs, has worked with prospective marijuana-business owners in Florida and New York and testified in support of the industry before Maryland lawmakers.
“The business people involved in this are very serious about their investments,” he said.
Other players in Illinois include retired Will County Circuit Judge Robert Livas, co-founder of a company licensed to open two Chicago-area dispensaries who was once named judge of the year by the Illinois State Crime Commission. Another is a former Chicago-area assistant state’s attorney who handled gang crimes and now is vice president of a company that owns a dispensary. There’s also an ex-Cook County prosecutor-turned- general counsel of PharmaCannis, the state’s single largest pot provider with four dispensaries and two indoor growing operations.
There’s also Arnette Heintze, a former U.S. Secret Service senior executive who helped protect two presidents. Terry Hillard, Heintze’s partner at the Chicago consulting firm that advises medical marijuana growers and retailers on security, spent five years as Chicago’s top cop.
Retired U.S. Marshal’s inspector Jim Smith said his private security company is “trying to corner the market” in medical marijuana protection and armored transportation.
The law enforcement ties run especially deep in Collinsville, where Abbott is joined by a dispensary manager who also spent more than two decades with the highway patrol. Their commute is familiar — the soon-to-open HCI Alternatives dispensary is located next to the state police regional headquarters.
Former law enforcement officers proliferate in the states that pioneered the medical marijuana and legal marijuana businesses.
Denver Relief Consulting, which handles everything from business plan development to legislative advocacy, counts a retired Los Angeles County sergeant and Israeli National Security adviser among its top executives.
A Seattle-based medical marijuana investment firm lured Pat Moen, a 10-year Drug Enforcement Administration official, to join it in 2013.
“It’s been incredibly rewarding,” he said, estimating he’s spoken with more than 100 current or former law enforcement officers about making a similar career transition. “This is a mainstream product sought my mainstream consumers.”
Ben Percy, general manager of Trinity Compassionate Care Center in Peoria, switched careers after a 27-year stint with the Illinois State Police that included an assignment on a drug interdiction team that patrolled Interstate 55, which connects the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes.
“We took quite a bit of money, drugs and criminals off the road,” he said.
Percy and others draw a sharp distinction between medical marijuana and recreational use but also describe dramatic conversions borne from seeing the benefits of marijuana for the sickest of patients, including children with epilepsy or cancer-stricken relatives.
“I’ve done a total about-face on my views,” he said.
Abbott and others noted that they’re still involved in the business they were before — law enforcement.
“I never got to pick and choose which laws I enforced …This is the same thing,” Abbott added. “It’s legal right now. As long as they follow the law, I’ve got no problem with it.”
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Follow Alan Scher Zagier on Twitter at http://twitter.com/azagier
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CINCINNATI (AP) — A firefighter battling a house fire died after falling through a floor into the basement soon after entering the southwest Ohio home early Monday, authorities said.
Hamilton officials said firefighter Patrick Wolterman’s death was the department’s first in the line of duty since 1971. Fire department officials say he was hired in April after several years of experience with other local departments and was recently married.
“Our city is in mourning with the loss of one of our heroes,” said J. Scott Scrimizzi, director of public safety for the city of more than 60,000 people about 30 miles north of Cincinnati. He urged people to keep Wolterman’s family and the fire department in their prayers.
Fire officials said crews responding to a fire call found heavy smoke coming from three sides of the house. Fire Chief Steve Dawson said firefighters including Wolterman moved into the house.
“Shortly after the initial attack, there was a catastrophic event,” Dawson told reporters. He said Wolterman fell through the floor into the basement.
Fellow firefighters rescued Wolterman, 28, from the basement and performed CPR, but he died at Fort Hamilton Hospital, officials said.
Other units extinguished the fire, Dawson said.
There were initial reports that people were inside the home when the fire broke out, but relatives said the couple who had lived in the home for decades was away on vacation.
“I’m thankful that my parents were not home, but I feel badly for the family of the firefighter that was killed,” Melissa Lainhart told the Hamilton-Middletown Journal-News. She said her parents were in Las Vegas celebrating their wedding anniversary.
No other injuries were reported. Investigation into the fire’s cause was continuing.
Funeral services will be Thursday. The Hamilton firefighters union said they will begin with a public memorial service in the morning, followed by a procession to Spring Grove Cemetery and a private graveside service for family and firefighters only.
The Cincinnati firefighters union posted a message of support on its Facebook page.
“The men and women of Local 48 send our deepest sympathies and condolences to family, friends and fellow firefighters,” stated the message.
Cincinnati firefighter Daryl Gordon, 54, a three-decade veteran, died after he plunged headfirst into an elevator shaft while searching for people to rescue in an early morning March 26 apartment building fire.
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Follow the reporter at http://www.twitter.com/dansewell
For some of his other recent stories: http://bigstory.ap.org/content/dan-sewell
The post Ohio firefighter dies after fall through floor during blaze appeared first on WTOP.
PRINCE GEORGE, Va. (AP) — A Prince George County police officer shot and killed a dog that authorities say attacked multiple people and a small dog.
Lt. John Leach tells the Richmond Times-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1kmNbxN ) police received a call Sunday of a woman being chased by a pit bull as she was walking her dog in Prince George.
Leach says a neighbor helped the woman and dog escape by hitting it with a rock. He says the neighbor was bit on the hands and arms. Another neighbor then stabbed the dog with an unknown object.
When police arrived, Leach says the dog attacked an officer, who shot and killed it.
Animal control officers charged the owner with “dog running at large.”
The victims were treated for minor injuries. The dog that was attacked was taken to a veterinary clinic.
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Information from: Richmond Times-Dispatch, http://www.timesdispatch.com
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When you make your own detergents and other cleaning solutions, you not only get to control the ingredients you’re using, you could also save a pretty penny. Often the ingredients are lying around your home already anyway. Here are 10 cleaning products and tools you could totally make yourself.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Crystal Patterson didn’t have the cash or assets to post $150,000 bail and get out of jail after her arrest for assault in October.
So Patterson, 39, promised to pay a bail bonds company $15,000 plus interest to put up the $150,000 bail for her, allowing to go home and care for her invalid grandmother.
The day after her release, the district attorney decided not to pursue charges. But Patterson still owes the bail bonds company. Criminal justice reformers and lawyers at a nonprofit Washington, D.C., legal clinic say that is unconstitutionally unfair.
The lawyers have filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of Patterson, Rianna Buffin and other jail inmates who argue that San Francisco and California’s bail system unconstitutionally treats poor and wealthy suspects differently.
Wealthy suspects can put up their houses or other valuable assets — or simply write a check — to post bail and stay out of jail until their cases are resolved. Poorer suspects aren’t so lucky. Many remain behind bars or pay nonrefundable fees to bail bonds companies.
San Francisco public defender Chesa Boudin says some of his clients who can’t afford to post bail plead guilty to minor charges for crimes they didn’t commit so they can leave jail.
Boudin represented Buffin, 19, after her arrest for grand theft in October. Buffin couldn’t afford to post the $30,000 bail or pay a bond company a $3,000 fee and so contemplated pleading guilty in exchange for a quick release from jail even though she says her only crime was being with the “wrong people at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Fortunately, the district attorney declined to charge Buffin and she was released after being held for three days.
“My family was worried,” said Ruffin, who lost her $10.50 an hour baggage handler job at the Oakland International Airport after her arrest.
The lawsuit filed by the Equal Justice Under Law in San Francisco federal court in October seeks to abolish the cash bail system in the city, state — and the country. It’s the ninth lawsuit the center has filed in seven states.
“The bail system in most states is a two-tiered system,” said center founder Phil Telfeyan. “One for the wealthy and one for everyone else.”
The center has settled four lawsuits, convincing smaller jails in states in the South to do away with cash bail requirements for most charges.
Telfeyan said a win in California could add momentum to the center’s goal to rid the country of the cash bail system, which the lawyers say is used by most county jails in all 50 states. The federal system usually allows non-violent suspects free without bail pending trial and denies bail to serious and violent suspects.
“The country watches what happens in California,” said Telfeyan, a former Department of Justice attorney who founded the Washington organization in 2013 with a partner and the first-ever grant from the Harvard Law School Public Service Venture Fund in 2013.
Telfeyan said it’s not his goal to put out of business the classic neon-advertising bail bonding industry, but conceded the business model would become obsolete if he convinces courts that the cash bail system is unconstitutional.
The industry didn’t acknowledge Telfeyan’s first lawsuits filed earlier this year.
But on Monday, lawyers for the California Bail Agents Association filed court papers seeking to formally oppose the San Francisco lawsuit. The association argues that government lawyers for San Francisco and the state are offering only “tepid” opposition to the California lawsuit.
San Francisco Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi argues that most jail inmates are awaiting resolution of minor, non-violent crimes and that letting them free while awaiting court hearings will save the city millions of dollars. Mirkarimi said non-violent suspects can be monitored electronically and with frequent visits from law enforcement officials to ensure they don’t flee the area and attend all their court hearings.
In January, Telfeyan and his colleagues from Equal Justice Under Law will ask a judge to temporarily suspend San Francisco’s cash bail system until the lawsuit is resolved. Telfeyan said a victory in San Francisco and the elimination of cash bail in the city will most likely lead to the abolition of cash bail in all of the state’s 58 counties.
Maggie Kreins, who is president of bail agents group, the says the longtime system of putting up money or an insurance-backed bail bond is better at getting people to show up in court and it saves the public costs of monitoring defendants or hunting down bail jumpers.
Kreins said that California’s “bail schedule” could be reformed to lower bail amounts for minor crimes, but that scrapping the system completely would be a mistake.
“What is the incentive to go to court if you don’t lose anything for failing to appear?” Kreins said.
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