By David Schwartz
PHOENIX, Dec 4 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge moved a step closer to pursuing possible contempt charges against Arizona lawman Joe Arpaio on Thursday, accusing the Maricopa County sheriff of failing to follow court mandates in a 2007 racial-profiling case.
Last year, U.S. District Court Judge Murray Snow ruled that deputies working for Arpaio, an 82-year-old who bills himself as “America’s Toughest Sheriff,” racially profiled Latino drivers and held them for too long during traffic stops.
Snow ordered that they stop, and he also appointed a court monitor to oversee the operations of the sheriff’s office.
On Thursday, the judge ordered that attorneys for Arpaio, Maricopa County, and the plaintiffs file court papers by Jan. 8 on the issue of civil and criminal charges that could be leveled against the sheriff.
“I have some deep concerns,” Snow told a hearing in federal court in downtown Phoenix, citing instances where deputies were not told of the court’s order, and where material was not turned over to Latino drivers’ lawyers.
“I believe there have been some serious violations. … There are a lot of matters that are of concern,” Snow said.
In May 2013 the judge issued his ruling in response to a class-action lawsuit filed by Latino plaintiffs who argued their constitutional rights had been violated because deputies singled them out for traffic stops based on their race.
Arpaio, who attended Thursday’s hearing with a criminal defense attorney, has denied any racial profiling and has appealed Snow’s ruling from last year.
The sheriff declined to comment following the session. (Reporting by David Schwartz; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Eric Walsh)
What to Do About the Minimum Wage
Posted in: Today's ChiliRaising the minimum wage is often framed as a classic business-versus-workers issue. But even strictly from the workers’ point of view, there is a delicate balance to be maintained. Raising the minimum wage can make it easier for workers to make ends meet, but raising it too much can cost them their jobs.
So, the question isn’t just whether the minimum wage should be raised. Perhaps the more important question is if so, by how much?
MoneyRates.com has conducted a study of minimum wage levels and changes over the past 50 years, with a focus on the effect of inflation and the effect of raising the minimum wage on employment. The result suggests where the correct balance might be — the right level for the minimum wage.
Arguments for and against raising the minimum wage
The argument for raising the minimum wage starts with fairness. People working full-time deserve a little more than just living paycheck to paycheck. There is also an economic argument to be made, as that extra money put into the hands of the relatively poor is more likely to get spent, so an increase in the minimum wage would help inject more money back into the economy.
On the other hand, some feel that in a free market, wages should be set naturally without government interference. From a less ideological standpoint, economists would point out that raising the cost of labor is likely to decrease the number of jobs. Indeed, minimum wage increases over the past 50 years have been followed by an average rise in unemployment of 0.8 percent over the next 12 months.
President Obama has proposed raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. At 39 percent, this would represent the steepest single increase in the past 50 years. On the other hand, with Republicans winning control of the Senate, opposition to raising the minimum wage at all will gain strength.
Is there a sensible middle ground between these two extremes? History suggests that there is.
Choosing a new minimum wage
During the past 50 years, there have been 16 increases in the federal minimum wage. Adjusted for inflation, these increases have raised the minimum wage to an average value in today’s dollars of about $8.82 cents. So, at $7.25, the current minimum wage has clearly fallen a little behind. This historical precedent supports the argument for raising the minimum wage.
Why not do a little better for workers than just matching that average? Here’s where the balance gets delicate.
When minimum wage increases have pushed the wage above that inflation-adjusted $8.82 average, the unemployment rate over the next 12 months has risen by an average of 1.1 percent. When minimum wage increases have kept the wage below the inflation-adjusted level of $8.82, the rise in unemployment has been by a milder 0.4 percent. The right balance seems to lie in raising the minimum wage to a level that approaches — but does not exceed — that historical average, perhaps to $8.80.
In short, an $8.80 minimum wage seems to be both in tune with historical norms and an appropriate middle ground between outright opposition to raising the minimum wage and the president’s proposal to raise it to $10.10 cents. However, arriving at this middle ground will require something that has been in desperately short supply in government lately: compromise.
Also by Richard Barrington:
Three white Columbia, Missouri, police officers yelled “Don’t move!“, “Hands up!” and “It’s not worth it!“, interrupting the music on a sunny October day as Josh Williams and Phillip Porter were sitting in a city park, preparing to lawfully have a beer. Phillip noticed that the police guns were pointed at their heads just before the police commands were made to these two black men sitting in a car and listening to music, and he slowly raised his hands in surrender. The shouting initially caused Josh to reach for the radio to turn the volume down, but he realized that his imminent execution was possible. The police then forcibly removed the pair, searched and handcuffed them, and after Josh admitted he lawfully had a gun in the glove compartment, he was also told he was “under arrest.” The vehicle was completely searched and their beer destroyed. After an hour Josh’s gun was returned, and they were released.
I filed a lawsuit on behalf of Josh and Phillip, claiming they were unlawfully arrested and their rights violated. Eighth Circuit federal courts characterized the initial seizure by the officers as a consensual encounter and then found that, at most, it was a reasonable detention, also known as a “Terry stop,” a brief stop and frisk, and that no violation of their rights had occurred.
The on-point precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court and nine of the 11 regional circuit courts of appeal would have found that Josh and Phillip had been arrested without probable cause of crime and their rights violated. Unfortunately, as a citizen of Missouri, I live under the rule of the Eighth Circuit and am thereby a lesser American. The federally protected rights enjoyed in most of the United States are diminished within the seven states of the Eighth Circuit.
Almost 30 years ago, Congress granted the U.S. Supreme Court nearly absolute discretion in the cases it had to hear, causing a devolution of the once-unified federal judiciary to one where the regional circuits are permitted to chart legal courses independent of precedent. The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently refused to protect its on-point precedents and only hears cases it finds interesting.
Judge Richard Posner of the Seventh Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals told The Daily Beast that the Supreme Court is not a real court but a quasi-political body:
It’s very political. And they decide which cases to hear, which doesn’t strike me as something judges should do. You should take what comes. When you decide which case to hear it means you’ve decided the cases ahead of time.
As a fan of Game of Thrones, I find that the intrigue of the Iron Throne ruling over the Seven Kingdoms is analogous to our present American legal system. Each of the 11 regional federal circuits (kingdoms) has been permitted to determine whether it will follow the on-point precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court, and nine of them are faithful to American legal principals (i.e., the King’s Law), while two have gone rogue (in rebellion) and simply ignore those principles, knowing that the 60 or so cases heard by the high court each year will not impact their governance of the states under their control.
As a lesser American living under the Eighth Circuit, I was not surprised when our federal court found that Henry Davis’ rights had not been violated. This middle-aged black construction worker was stopped in Ferguson, Missouri, and mistakenly arrested on a warrant for a man with a different middle name and different Social Security number. It was discovered by the Ferguson Police during booking that they were booking the wrong Henry Davis, but he was booked anyway. As the second man being placed in a one-man holding cell, Davis requested a nearby mat to sit on, a request that offended the officer. Four officers later returned, then handcuffed and beat Davis to the point that he had to be hospitalized. Davis was then charged with damaging government property by bleeding on police uniforms. When Davis was released, he filed a civil-rights suit against the Ferguson Police. The in-station video recording was sped up to 32 times normal speed and was unviewable. The St. Louis County Prosecutor then filed “assault on a law-enforcement officer” charges against Davis, in apparent retaliation for his lawsuit, but the charges were dismissed. A federal court found that Davis’ concussion from the beating was not a serious-enough injury to be a violation of his rights, and his case was dismissed.
Recently, a pregnant, white healthcare worker raped by law enforcement while in custody of Ferguson police filed a federal lawsuit. Even though she is a lesser American living within the Eighth Circuit, I hope her federally protected rights will be upheld by our federal courts with the focus of public attention now on Ferguson.
“[A] riot is the language of the unheard,” said Martin Luther King Jr. Law is created to establish rights and obligations and to protect basic human dignity. Race complicates those considerations in our country. I’ve found that the contextual analysis for considering the Eighth Circuit’s holding in Josh and Phillip’s case was aided by University of California, Berkeley Law Professor Ian F. Haney-López’s academic writings “Institutional Racism: Judicial Conduct and a New Theory of Racial Discrimination” (1999) and “Intentional Blindness” (2012).
“No justice, no peace!” is a familiar refrain of civil-rights protestors. “Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are,” it’s been said. The U.S. Supreme Court will have an opportunity to hear Josh and Phillip’s case, but if past is prologue, it will deny that requirement of justice. Congress must act to require our high court to resolve conflicts between the federal circuits and when its on-point precedents are denied by a lower federal court of appeals, to protect the rule of law and dignity of every American before the law.
<i>Wicked</i> the Musical Hits the Detroit Opera House for an End-of-the-Year National Tour Run
Posted in: Today's Chili
If you’ve been alive and not living under a rock sometime over the past century, you probably know something or another about The Wizard of Oz. First a novel by Lyman Frank Baum originally titled The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900, and then later a film adaption The Wizard of Oz in 1939, in which most of us are more familiar with, the whole inner world of Oz would eventually get a revisionist view in 1995 with Gregory Maguire’s Wicked novel. The story of Wicked follows two girls and their unlikely camaraderie in the land of Oz: Elphaba, the misconstrued green-skinned girl who eventually becomes the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, and Glinda, the pretty, ambitious, popular girl who would become the Good Witch of the North.
The popular novel would eventually spawn Wicked the musical and enjoy monstrous success on Broadway and then as productions and tours across the globe. Currently, with two North American touring companies along with the Broadway production, Wicked is wrapping up another successful year and will be returning to Detroit for an end of the year run at the Detroit Opera House starting Dec. 10 going through until Jan. 4.
Recently, I chatted with Wicked cast member Lauren Haughton, who’s an understudy for the Nessarose role and also a swing, about the inspiring aspects of the show, the challenges of touring, and the magic of music. Haughton, who has been with the Wicked tour for four years now, was born in Detroit at Henry Ford Hospital and lived in Royal Oak and Traverse City for many years before relocating to Atlanta as a teenager. She still has family in Michigan, so this Detroit run is a bit of a homecoming.
What’s your experience been like touring with Wicked?
I am a swing and an understudy so my particular experience with the show is ever-changing and constantly different, new, and challenging because, as a swing, I cover a lot of the ladies in the ensemble, so there’s lots of different characters that requires lots of different things. Some dance a little more, some sing a little, some are more character-driven. I understudy Nessarose, so that’s always fun to go on for that.
What is it about Wicked that sets it apart from the others?
I always say that I feel really honored to be a part of a show where I can invite anyone to come. My young niece came when she was 6 and she enjoyed the show just as much as my grandmother who came when she was 85. It’s kind of magical in that way that it doesn’t target just one age group or one audience. There’s something for everyone in the story. There is a character that every type of person is going to identify with or their journey or their struggle. It just seems to be enjoyed by men, women, and children of all ages. That’s really magical. I’ve never really been a part of anything like that that really touches a lot of different people.
Being a part of a musical can be challenging. How do you stay healthy while doing all these shows?
The No. 1 trick to tour is getting enough sleep. Sleep is very, very important. Sometimes you just have to honor and listen to your body. I still do sometimes get up early. Everyone’s getting sickness in the cast and we are living so close. We are like a family. We are staying in the same hotels and at the same theaters, so it’s the easiest way to kind of stay healthy is sleep.
What’s the return to Detroit signify to you personally?
It’s not just about Detroit. I was born there and I have visited there over the years, but it’s the state of Michigan because my grandparents were from Flushing and I have an aunt and uncle from Flint, and I’ve spend so many summers going up north. I love the winter. I love the snow. You can always guarantee that there’s going to be snow. I love the state of Michigan in general and I’m excited to see my dad’s side of the family. They are all there. That will be a very nice homecoming. I don’t get to see them a lot.
When’s the last time you’ve seen any of your family?
The last time I saw my dad was about a year ago on New Year’s. He drove to Cleveland to see me in a show so he’s really good. Whenever we’re in the Midwest, he’ll try to drive out and see me. But maybe a couple times a year. That’s the hardest part of tour. The hardest drawback is getting time off and seeing your family. I have family all over the United States.
Does being a part of a show like Wicked spark any outside creativity of your own that you can either bring to the show or something else?
Kids especially get really excited about Wicked and I have the opportunity to teach a lot of master classes. I am very creatively stimulated and passionate about teaching so Wicked has helped me to reach kids and help them learn about the process of being in a musical. I’m so thankful that I’m a part of such an amazing show. That definitely fulfills me in a very different way than performing.
What’s your favorite moment of the show?
Halfway through Act One, there’s a number called “One Short Day” when the girls Glinda and Elphaba arrive in the Emerald City. To me, it’s the number for the ensemble. We’re all wearing these crazy green costumes that are very elaborate. It’s just a really fun number dancing and singing. It’s just one of those classic musical theatre moments in song.
What do you think the message is of Wicked?
It’s just to not to judge anyone by their exterior, that giving each and every person a chance and opportunity to show who they truly are.
What has been your most inspiring experience during your time with Wicked?
I can’t nail down one experience. The moments when little kids come up at the stage door or in talk backs. When little kids come up and how inspired they are and how touched they are. I think why a lot of us do what we do because we were those little kids a long time ago.
Musicals are great because people belt out songs to express themselves. Why is music so effective when trying to convey a message or feeling?
My teachers always told me, “When you can no longer talk, you sing, and you can no longer sing, you dance to express yourself.” So I feel like that’s true. You can look at a lot of American musicals and it’s kind of what happens. You’re in a scene, you’re talking, and you’re trying to get what you want. That’s no longer working, so all of sudden music comes in and you are trying even harder to get what you want and just express yourself. And that’s not working anymore so you have to break into dance. Your whole body takes over. That’s what I’ve always been told and that’s always what I keep in the back of my mind. They’re all connected. As an actor, anytime you are singing, dancing, or acting in a musical it should all be for a similar purpose and similar motivation. It should never feel like it comes out of nowhere.
Wicked the Musical comes to Detroit on Dec. 10 for a run through Jan. 4 at the Detroit Opera House. For show times and to purchase tickets, visit wickedthemusical.com.
(Photo Credit: Joan Marcus)
Chokehold Cop Is 'Eagle Scout' Blameless In Eric Garner's Death, NYPD Union President Says
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe president of the NYPD’s largest police union said Thursday that the officer who put Eric Garner into a fatal chokehold is an Eagle Scout who shouldn’t be blamed for the death.
Pat Lynch, president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, did fault one person for the death: Eric Garner.
“We believe Mr. Garner made a choice that day to resist arrest,” Lynch told reporters during a press conference Thursday, according to NBC New York.
“You cannot resist arrest,” Lynch said, adding that doing so often leads to dangerous confrontations.
Lynch commended the Staten Island grand jury for voting Wednesday not to indict NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo in Garner’s death. He thanked the panel members for “not looking at just one snippet of a video that doesn’t tell the whole story, but listening to every bit of evidence.”
Garner died on July 17 after Pantaleo put him into a chokehold during an arrest for allegedly selling untaxed cigarettes. Chokeholds are prohibited by NYPD guidelines.
Lynch argued Thursday that Pantaleo did not actually use a chokehold on Garner, DNAinfo reported, but rather used “textbook training” to subdue the 43-year-old father of six.
The video shows Pantaleo with his arm around Garner’s neck as a prostrate Garner screams “I can’t breathe!” 11 times.
“If you can speak, you can breathe,” Lynch said Thursday, according to DNAinfo, practically parroting a comment made by Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) Wednesday night. Like King, Lynch said Garner’s poor health partly contributed to his death.
Lynch emphasized that Garner’s death was a tragedy for Garner’s family, and added, “It’s also a tragedy for a police officer who has to live with that death.”
Pantaleo, Lynch said, “is literally, literally an Eagle Scout, and I think that story isn’t being told. That a New York City police officer went out and did a difficult job, a job where there’s no script, and sometimes with that, a tragedy comes.”
Lynch added that Mayor Bill de Blasio hadn’t shown enough support for the NYPD after the grand jury decision. “What police officers felt last night after that press conference is that they were thrown under the bus,” he said.
Lynch said he welcomed the federal probe into Garner’s death announced by U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
Pantaleo has made only one public statement since the grand jury decision Wednesday.
“I became a police officer to help people and to protect those who can’t protect themselves,” the officer said in a statement Wednesday. “It is never my intention to harm anyone and I feel very bad about the death of Mr. Garner. My family and I include him and his family in our prayers and I hope that they will accept my personal condolences for their loss.”
(Garner’s widow did not accept the condolences.)
Meanwhile the Rev. Al Sharpton and a group of civil rights leaders Thursday announced that they are organizing a massive march on Washington. The march, Sharpton said, will take place on Saturday, Dec. 13, and Eric Garner’s family, as well as the family of Michael Brown, will be in attendance.
Sharpton is calling for the federal government to press charges against Pantaleo and Darren Wilson, the officer who fatally shot Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.
Environmental Groups File Motion to Intervene in Defense of Denton Fracking Ban
Posted in: Today's ChiliCross-Posted from DeSmogBlog
Just days after attorneys representing Denton, Texas submitted their initial responses to two legal complaints filed against Denton — the first Texas city ever to ban hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) — environmental groups have filed an intervention petition. That is, a formal request to enter the two lawsuits filed against the city after its citizens voted to ban fracking on election day.
Denton Drilling Awareness Group and Earthworks are leading the intervention charge, represented by attorneys from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and Earthjustice. The drilling awareness group runs the Frack Free Denton campaign.
Those groups have joined up with attorneys representing Denton to fight lawsuits filed against the city by both the Texas Oil and Gas Association and the Texas General Land Commission.
Image Credit: Earthworks
Texas Oil and Gas Association is represented by Baker Botts, a firm with close ties to the Bush family. And the Land Commission will soon be headed by George P. Bush, the son of potential 2016 Republican Party presidential candidate Jeb Bush and nephew of George W. Bush.
Earthjustice attorney Deborah Goldberg, lawyer for Dryden, New York — the first town in that state to ban fracking, which set a precedent allowing municipalities in the state to ban oil and gas development — filed as one of the requested intervenors.
“The State of Texas has granted municipalities the right to oversee oil and gas operations. The people of Denton have exercised that right, and we intend to help preserve it,” said Goldberg in a press release. “When state and federal officials won’t stand up for the public, citizens must have the right to use local democracy to protect themselves.”
Though Denton has set aside a $4 million fund to slug out the litigation, the outside legal help and financial aid from environmental groups will strengthen the public interest defense against the industry lawsuits.
Social media is experiencing a metamorphosis of sorts. There’s a new trend being led by a number of
new social networks that have shifted the paradigm of organic
(non-paid) user-generated content to a paid monetization model. To
address this new sphere of influence, it’s my prediction that jobs will
be created by companies and brands that want to benefit from these new
networks, as they did previously with sites like Twitter and Facebook
It’s finally official, officially – Benedict Cumberbatch will play Marvel Comics’ Doctor Strange. This magical mystic, a commander of all things strange, will be played by an actor “capable of great depth and sincerity.” So says Producer Kevin Feige, who continued, “in 2016, Benedict will show audiences what makes Doctor Strange such a unique and compelling character. Cumberbatch is best … Continue reading
The Google Play Store app is set to see an upgrade soon, and it’s going to be a good one. This time around, Android users will see a whole lot if Material Design. From shadows to animation, the experience is about to get a lot bolder and brighter across the board. There will also be a portal to manage your … Continue reading
Remember Slingshot, Facebook’s answer to — well, nothing and everything, really. The messaging platform tried hard to provide a secure environment, but the “send-to-receive” thing fell flat. To see a message, you had to send one, and it was just clumsy and strange. In version 2.0, which Facebook announced today, they’ve stripped that functionality away, instead opting for a more … Continue reading
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