Make My Case Count! Jessica Gonzales v. USA – IACHR Final Report

International Commission Finds United States Denied Justice to Domestic Violence Survivor

Jessica Gonzales v. USA – IACHR Final Report http://www.aclu.org/womens-rights/jessica-gonzales-v-usa-iachr-final-report



International Commission Finds United States Denied Justice to Domestic Violence Survivor http://www.aclu.org/womens-rights/international-commission-finds-united-states-denied-justice-domestic-violence-survivor

Amplify’d from www.aclu.org

My name is Jessica Lenahan and I am a survivor of domestic violence and an advocate for battered women and children. Six years ago, I turned to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), an international tribunal responsible for promoting and protecting human rights throughout the Americas, because the justice system in the United States had abandoned me. Today, IACHR issued a landmark decision in my case that found that the United States violated my human rights and those of my three children, Rebecca, Katheryn, and Leslie.

In 1999, my estranged husband, Simon Gonzales, kidnapped Rebecca, Katheryn, and Leslie in violation of a domestic violence restraining order I had obtained against him. I repeatedly contacted and pled with the Castle Rock Police in Colorado for assistance, but they refused to act. Instead, over a 10-hour period, the police responded to a fire-lane violation, looked for a lost dog and took a two-hour dinner break. Late that night, Simon arrived at the police station and opened fire. He was killed and the bodies of my three girls were found in the back of his truck. No investigation ever took place to determine the cause, time and place of my children's death.

I sued the town of Castle Rock for failing to enforce the restraining order I held against my husband. My case went all the way to the Supreme Court, but they ruled that the enforcement of a restraining order wasn't mandatory under Colorado law.

I felt utterly abandoned, but I wasn't done fighting. Instead I turned to IACHR.

In a decision released today, the commission found that the U.S. is failing in its legal obligation to protect women and children from domestic violence, and makes clear that the U.S. government has a duty to protect domestic violence victims by taking steps to ensure their safety, including the enforcement of restraining orders. It also requires that the U.S. examine how it fails domestic violence victims and ensure that victims of domestic violence receive adequate protection from their abusers.

But this decision isn't just about me.

In the United States, an estimated 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by an intimate partner each year, and every day more than three women are killed by their intimate partners. These statistics reveal that domestic violence amounts to nothing less than an epidemic and the failure of police to enforce the law directly contributes to this epidemic. A 911 call to the police must mean something and the police can't ignore multiple emergency calls throughout the course of the night as they did in my case.

I did everything I was supposed to do on that fateful night to protect and save my daughters. I even would have tried to rescue them myself had I known the police would do nothing to find them or to enforce my restraining order. We respect our laws because we believe they embody our government's commitment to protecting our lives and the lives of our children. Unfortunately, I had to lose everything to realize that we are often not guaranteed basic protections from our government unless we demand them.

The IACHR decision can stimulate necessary changes in U.S. law and policy, if the U.S. government takes IACHR's assessment of law enforcement's failings seriously and implements its recommendations.

I hope my case will serve as an important precedent that other women can rely on when they find themselves in a similar situation where the police refuse to enforce a restraining order. I urge you to rely on it to speak out on the issue of domestic violence and to make sure that our government hears you.

You can learn more about the IACHR report, as well as my case and the process that led to my petition to the IACHR, here, here and here. Read more at www.aclu.org

 

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Mecklenburg judge faces hearing for misconduct

check out this video on another Mecklenburg judge http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gZ-1nLFdzE&playnext=1&list=PL9589C66FB7A5C3C1

Amplify’d from www.charlotteobserver.com

Mecklenburg District Judge John Totten, accused of misconduct while presiding over a drunken driving case, must appear at a disciplinary hearing in November before the N.C. Judicial Standards Commission.

The judge is accused of willful misconduct and violating the Code of Judicial Conduct by throwing out a drunken-driving defendant's alcohol-test results in September 2010 so the defendant wouldn't be punished as harshly as state law requires.

Totten has denied intentionally violating the judicial rules or engaging in misconduct. His disciplinary hearing is set for Nov. 10.

The commission must decide whether to recommend to the N.C. Supreme Court that Totten be censured, suspended or removed from the bench. It could also dismiss the charges.

Totten is accused by the Judicial Standards Commission of signing an order he knew or should have known was "false and misleading." The order throwing out the alcohol test results allowed the DWI defendant to avoid having an interlock device installed on his car.

The device prevents convicted drunken drivers from starting their cars if they've been drinking. It is required for drivers whose alcohol level registered at .15 percent or more.

Why Totten threw out the key DWI evidence remains a mystery. The Judicial Standards Commission charges don't say what might have motivated Totten or whether the judge knew the defendant. And in Totten's formal response to the misconduct charges, the judge did not say why he did it.

It's the second time Totten has been in trouble since his election to the bench in 2008. The 53-year-old judge, who is paid $109,372 a year, was suspended by Supreme Court Chief Justice Sarah Parker in March 2010 following complaints that he had made inappropriate remarks to court personnel.

In some of those remarks, sources have told the Observer, Totten recounted experiences at a bar and restaurant and described women's bodies and how scantily they were dressed.

Totten was allowed to return to the bench in July 2010. He said in a statement that he regretted making "offensive" comments to his associates and that "my future conduct will be above reproach."

Totten is the second Mecklenburg judge ordered to appear before the Judicial Standards Commission in two years.

In 2009, the commission recommended that District Judge Bill Belk be removed from the bench for misconduct.

Belk was accused of continuing to serve on the board of Sonic Automotive, one of the nation's largest auto retailers, after his election to the bench in 2008.

The Code of Judicial Conduct prohibits judges from serving on boards of directors of businesses, to avoid conflicts of interest.

Belk resigned his judgeship a week before the commission recommended that he be removed from the bench. The Supreme Court in April 2010 banned Belk from ever returning to the bench, ruling that he had "demonstrated willful misconduct in office."

Totten's latest troubles stem from a DWI case he presided over on Sept. 24.

Glenmore Hopkins had pleaded guilty to DWI in Totten's courtroom. The prosecutor then presented evidence supporting the charge, including that Hopkins had an alcohol level of .17 percent - more than twice the legal limit of .08. Totten sentenced Hopkins to 12 months of probation and ordered him to pay a $250 fine and perform 48 hours of community service. But after the sentencing, Totten took steps to minimize the punishment Hopkins would face, the Judicial Standards Commission alleges. The judge asked Hopkins' attorney, David Lange, to approach the bench, according to the charges, and told Lange of his intent to set aside the state's requirement for an interlock device on Hopkins' vehicle. Totten told Lange to prepare an order suppressing the alcohol-test results, the commission alleges. When Lange returned to the courtroom about an hour later with the order, the judge signed it. In his formal response to the charges, Totten acknowledged that he told Lange he would sign an order to suppress Hopkins' alcohol-test results. The judge also admitted that the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Steven Hardgrave, had not been asked to participate in the conversation at the bench and wasn't aware of what the judge and defense attorney were talking about. But Totten says both the defense lawyer and prosecutor were present at the bench when he signed the order. The judge said the prosecutor objected to the order. Totten's order claimed that a motion to suppress the alcohol test level had been made in court and that the prosecutor and defense attorney had argued their positions before he decided to throw out the test results, according to the Judicial Standards Commission. But no such motion was made and no hearing was held, the commission alleges. The judge also has admitted that he did not know when he signed the order, but should have known, that it contained several inaccurate statements concerning the existence of a motion to suppress, a review of the evidence and arguments made by the defense attorney and prosecutor. Read more at www.charlotteobserver.com

 

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CSU Prof. Jailed 4 Days In Custody Battle Ex-Husband Accuses Catherine Keske Of Blocking Communication With Son

Insane that moms are being jailed for this bullshit

Amplify’d from www.thedenverchannel.com

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. -- A Colorado State University assistant agriculture professor was recently jailed on a contempt of court charge in a child-custody dispute. On Aug. 11, Jefferson County District Court Magistrate Chris Voisinet ordered Catherine Keske, 40, to serve 90 days in jail after her ex-husband, Jeffrey Handley, complained that Keske interfered with his ability to communicate with one of the couple's sons by failing to provide the boy with his own cellphone and an unmonitored email account,Westword reported Monday. However, Keske only spent four days in jail, the newspaper reported. She said she was released after paying $1,700 that the court ruled she owed to Handley.

Catherine Keske, a CSU agriculture professor, was jailed for contempt of court in a child-custody dispute.

The arrest highlights the contentious divorce and custody battle between the parents, each of whom had custody of one of the sons, Westword reported. Keske, who specializes in environmental management issues, said she was confused by her arrest, the newspaper reported. The mother contends she has tried to encourage communication between Handley and the son in her custody and has records showing that the boy called his father once a week. "I was taken out of the courtroom in handcuffs, for reasons that aren't clear to me," she told Westword. But Handley's attorney, Mechelle Faulk, said Keske is "the aggressor" -- not the victim -- in the long-running custody battle, according to Westword. Read more at www.thedenverchannel.com

 

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Alarming number of kids killed in domestic violence incidents in New York State in 2010

Mothers are not allowed to leave with their children.

Amplify’d from www.nydailynews.com

Domestic violence murders jumped 10% in New York last year.

ALBANY - Domestic violence murders jumped 10% in New York last year - and it's kids who are increasingly getting caught in the cross hairs. A new report by the state Criminal Justice Services division determined 37 minors were killed in domestic violence incidents in the Empire State last year, up from 17 in 2009. And the jump appears to be largely city-centric, with 25 kids killed last year, compared with seven in 2009. "All of those trends are alarming," said Michele McKeon, chief executive officer of the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence. The surge in children's deaths drove the overall number of domestic violence deaths in the state to 144, including 77 that took place in the five boroughs, the report found. In 2009, domestic violence resulted in 131 deaths, down from 147 in 2008. The Daily News reported earlier this month that the total reported domestic violence cases in the city rose more than 12% last year. Attacks on women by "intimate partners" went up even more - 17.3%. Advocates blamed a combination of factors for the increases but pointed to a tough economy and funding cutbacks for prevention and awareness programs as key reasons. "The sense is that there are more and more requests for service, and certainly less services are available," McKeon said. McKeon said state funding for domestic violence programs has dropped from just over $3 million three years ago to $510,000 now. "Unless we are talking about prevention, we are just putting Band-Aids on bullet holes," McKeon said. Officials told reporters yesterday that the state is undertaking a number of steps to stem domestic violence, including new training programs for police officers. NYPD chief spokesman Paul Browne argued that last year's figures were an anomaly, noting that so far this year homicides for children ages 9 through 17 are down 27% and that slayings of kids even younger are down 45%. One bright spot in the state report was a 19% drop last year in homicides committed by the victim's "intimate partner" - 73, down from 90. The report also showed that 44% of adult female homicide victims in the state were killed by their husband, boyfriend or girlfriend. "That means the least safe place for a woman in New York State is her own home and that the person that's most likely to kill that woman is a loved one," said acting Criminal Justice Services Commissioner Sean Byrne Read more at www.nydailynews.com

 

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Protection order had been issued in murder-suicide case

Amplify’d from www.theindependent.com

The woman who was killed by her estranged husband on Monday had requested a protection order against him last week because he had threatened to take her life. Margarita Rodriguez, 43, of 212 N. Grace Ave. filed the request in Hall County District Court on Aug. 11. The protection order against Antonio G. Rodriguez, 33, of 4954 W. Highway 30 No. 1 was granted, and a hearing was set for 4 p.m. this Thursday. "Antonio came to the house where I am staying, and I am afraid for my life because in many occasions he has said he's gonna kill me," she wrote. "He has nothing to lose. He's ill and receiving dialysis. He has hit me and there has been police reports, but the threats of killing has been done a lot."

According to her description of his visit to the home, it occurred around midnight on Aug. 11. She also wrote that he told her she owed her life to him because, "thanks to him, I am legal in this country." She wrote that her estranged husband, who was born in California, abused drugs and insulted and threatened her whenever he got drugs. She wrote that he used "dirty vocabulary and degrading words" to threaten her because she didn't want to go back to him. Hall County sheriff's Capt. Gregg Ahlers said the protection order was served on Antonio Rodriguez at 4:50 p.m. Aug. 11 at the trailer house where he was living. According to the protection order, he also frequented a mechanic shop at 420 St. Paul Suite 1. Margarita Rodriguez wrote that her estranged husband was 6 feet 6 inches tall and weighed 170 pounds. He was known to carry a rifle and use marijuana. The couple had two sons together, ages 8 and 9, according to the protection order. Marleny Hernandez, a friend of Margarita Rodriguez, told The Independent that the couple, whom she referred to as Margarita and Antony, were married in 2002, but their union soon became troubled. She said Margarita Rodriguez, who also had three children living in Mexico, had filed for divorce. She also said the Rodriguezes' children were at home and asleep at the time of the shooting. No divorce proceedings involving the Rodriguezes had been filed in Hall County.

According to a press release from the Grand Island Police Department, officers were sent to 212 N. Grace on a report of a domestic disturbance at 4:57 a.m. Monday. Officers found Margarita Rodriguez in the entryway of 211 N. Grace with a gunshot wound to the head and left leg. She was transported to St. Francis Medical Center and was pronounced dead at 7:18 a.m. Monday. The investigation has revealed that shots were fired at 212 N. Grace and 211 N. Grace, according to the press release. At approximately 7:42 a.m. Monday, police began a pursuit of the suspect, Antonio Rodriguez. The pursuit began at Old Potash Highway and Diers Avenue and ended on Highway 281 between Highway 30 and Old Highway 30, according to the press release. Antonio Rodriguez died of a single self-inflicted gunshot wound. No other shots were fired, according to the release. Officer Butch Hurst said Rodriguez was driving a red Chevrolet pickup. He stopped "on his own" without the use of stop sticks by police, Hurst said. Highway 281 from Highway 30 to Old Potash Highway was blocked off from approximately 7:42 a.m. to 2:53 p.m. Monday, he said. The Police Department continued on Tuesday to investigate the death of Margarita Rodriguez. The death of Antonio Rodriguez was being investigated by agencies of the South Central Area Law Enforcement Services in preparation for a future grand jury, according to the Police Department's press release. Nebraska law requires a grand jury to be called whenever someone dies in police custody or while being taken into custody. Although rather rare, a grand jury was convened within the last month in Hall County to hear the matter of an inmate death. In late July, a grand jury determined the death of Tomas Gonzalez, 23, at the Hall County Jail was an accident. According to court documents filed in district court on July 29, the grand jury found "there was no criminal conduct on the part of any individual that cause or contributed to" his death. Gonzalez died on June 9 after being transported to St. Francis Medical Center from the jail. He had been arrested on June 7 and charged with possession of methamphetamine. Michael Polk, an Omaha attorney representing Gonzalez's family, said Gonzalez ingested meth when he was arrested. Read more at www.theindependent.com

 

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Phoenix police: 8-year-old witnesses mother's death

Amplify’d from www.azcentral.com

An 8-year-old boy was most likely a witness to a murder-suicide Sunday night that took the life of his mother, according to Phoenix Police Department. When police responded to a call that came in Sunday night, officers found a woman who was apparently shot by her boyfriend. The man in his 20s then turned the gun on himself. The shooting occurred at an apartment home near 61st Avenue and Thomas Road. It appears that the couple was arguing before the incident, but investigators don't know the reason. The boy, who was not physically injured, was being cared for by the Fire Department's Crisis Response Team. Read more at www.azcentral.com

 

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Murdered Woman's Husband Introduced Her To His Mistress

Amplify’d from gothamist.com

he story of the Pakistani woman allegedly killed by her husband and his mistress gets more depressing with news that the victim's family and her husband's family are fighting over custody of their young children. Nazish Noorani's grieving sister, Lubna Choudhry, told reporters, "I should raise them because of [their] father killing my sister." But murder suspect Kashif Parvaiz's sister said of Noorani's family, "They are all taking welfare. How will they take care of these kids? My father owns buildings and has income, and we will take care of them." Noorani was fatally gunned down last Tuesday in Boonton, NJ while she, Parvaiz and their three-year-old son Shayaan were walking from her sister's home to her parents' home. Parvaiz was hit multiple times, while Shayaan was unharmed (though reportedly "splattered in blood"); five-year-old Riyaan was at Noorani's parents' home. Prosecutors say that Parvaiz had initially told police a group of men called them "terrorists" and used racial epithets but eventually admitted he plotted to kill his wife with another woman. Parvaiz was allegedly upset at Noorani for speaking negatively about his family. Parvaiz's family has been watching the two boys. His mother took issue with Choudhry starting a website to raise money for the children, "She set up the Web site to support her own children," and sister Zarren Hassan said to the Daily News, "We're taking care of them because we love them. They've always been attached to my mother." And Riyaan said, "I want to stay here." In news related to her sister's death and the apparent murder plot hatched by Parvaiz and mistress Antoinette Stephen, Choudry says that Parvaiz had been introducing Stephen as his "fiancee." When Noorani confronted him, the Star-Ledger reports, "Kashif Parvaiz had a ready excuse, the [Noorani's] said: He told his wife he was just pretending Stephen was his fiancée to get a family discount at Best Buy, where the 26-year-old woman worked." Parvaiz claimed to have attended NYU, and Noorani's family shared the photograph the ID he showed them (it was fake). Parvaiz also said he went to Columbia for graduate school and was attending another graduate program at Harvard. Neither school has records of him, but Parvaiz's sister said they are sure he was at Harvard. Read more at gothamist.com

 

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FATHER accused of drowning his two children on the first day of school is in police custody

The bodies of boys, ages 3 and 5, were found in Naim Rasool Muhammad's car at East Ledbetter and Singing Hills Drive.

Amplify’d from www.msnbc.msn.com

At 12:40 p.m., a 911 caller said her son had drowned her grandchildren. The caller told the fire department she had the children with her and was waiting for paramedics, according to officials.

Paramedics arrived and transported the children to Children's Medical Center in Dallas, where they were pronounced dead.

Deputy Chief Craig Miller said Monday afternoon that investigators believe the children, 3-year-old Elijah Mohammed, and 5-year-old Naim Mohammed, were drowned. The children were found in the back of a silver station wagon.

Investigators are trying to determine where the children were killed.

"We [were] hoping for them to start school today and be with the rest of the kids and enjoy life, but someone ended their life shortly," said Gabrielle Armstead, the children's aunt.

Naim Muhammad, 32, was detained in the 6500 block of Lazy River Drive a few blocks from Singing Hills and Ledbetter after a foot pursuit and struggle with police. He was arrested in a creek bed near his home.

Muhammad has been charged with two counts of capital murder.

Police identified the children as Elijah and Naim Mohammed, but the father's name is listed as Muhammad in court and jail records.

He was booked into Dallas County Jail at 6:51 p.m. Miller said Muhammad is cooperating with the investigation.

Police said Monday afternoon that Muhammad abducted the children and their mother while she was walking them to school at about 7:15 a.m. The mother was able to escape, police said.

The mother told police he had made threats against her and their children. She and Muhammad have three children, police said.

"I knew he was troubled, but I didn't expect him to hurt his own kids," Armstead said.

The children's mother and Muhammad had recently separated. The mother and the children were living with her parents in Southeast Dallas.

Witnesses said Muhammad tried to break into their home later in the morning. A shattered window could be seen at the house.

The couple's 1-year-old son was not home at the time.

The child is in the care of Child Protective Services. Relatives said the children's mother feels as if she has lost all of her children.

Police said they are working with Child Protective Services to determine if there was any history of abuse.

"He did yell a lot and use the kids as a target, so he took the thing that was closest to her, and that was her boys," Armstead said.

Relatives said the family got together on Saturday for a cookout to celebrate the children going to school. Muhammad and the children's mother got into an argument, and he was asked to leave, the family said.

On Monday morning, Muhammad was wanted by police on suspicion of abducting two children while walking from their home on Terrell Street in South Dallas to Frazier Elementary School a few blocks away. The Dallas Independent School District confirms the children were enrolled, but said they never made it to class Monday.

On Monday morning, Muhammad was wanted by police on suspicion of abducting two children while walking from their home on Terrell Street in South Dallas to Frazier Elementary School a few blocks away. The Dallas Independent School District confirms the children were enrolled, but said they never made it to class Monday.

Police said the woman and her children were not at a school when they were taken.

The mother jumped out of the car in the 100 block of Camp Wisdom Road an d flagged down a Dallas County constable, who called Dallas police.

The constable did not chase Muhammad. She only served court papers, did not have red lights or a siren and is trained not to chase anyone.

Muhammad's photo, right, was taken in February of this year. He has prior convictions for possession of marijuana, burglary of a vehicle, theft by check and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Muhammad is being held in the Dallas County Jail on $2 million bail.

Investigators said there was no legal reason the father could not have his children and were working to confirm that he made threats to the mother and the children before the children's bodies were found.

Miller said Monday afternoon that officers knew they were looking for the children's father. Officers were following every lead and did not have enough information to justify an Amber Alert, police said.

Dallas police said the children's bodies were found before they could issue the Amber Alert they were planning on announcing at 1 p.m.

He was arrested in February on suspicion of punching the children's mother. According to the police report, Muhammad grabbed their then 4-year-old son and left with him. Read more at www.msnbc.msn.com

 

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Lethal anger at home on rise

State report notes a 10 percent hike in slayings by family members

Amplify’d from www.timesunion.com

On Friday, with their young children at his parents' house, the 51-year-old Saratoga County man strangled his wife, also 51, and then killed himself with a shotgun, according to police. His father discovered the bodies in the couple's home on Military Road when he stopped by to pick up clothes for the Monacchios' daughter, 11, and son, 15, Cynthia's sister said.

"It's the epitome of the word 'tragedy,'" Patricia Voshell of Millington, Md., said Monday in a phone interview. "Their marriage was over. It was done, and my sister was ready to move on."

Voshell spoke on the same day the state Division of Criminal Justice Services released a report showing that the number of household homicides committed by family members in New York rose 10 percent to 144 in 2010. They were among 862 homicides in the state, up from 782 in 2009, according to the report.

Police on Monday blamed "marital problems" for the horrific violence. An autopsy concluded that her husband choked his wife before shooting himself.

The Monacchios were married 15 years, and moved to Saratoga County several years ago, Voshnell said. Cynthia Monacchio grew up in Millington, Md., and attended college in Delaware. She worked as a bookkeeper for a recycling company, and her husband worked at a Target store, Voshnell said.

Voshnell suspects an argument may have sparked a moment of lethal anger. Robert Monacchio Jr. was not known as a violent person, she said, adding that they both loved their children but that their relationship was beyond repair.

"I'm angry at him for taking my sister from me, but I can't say that I hate him," Voshnell said. "They went at each other. It's never black-and-white."

"One or the other probably should have moved out, but they didn't want to disrupt the kids," Voshnell said. "Now, they are really disrupted."

Friday's murder-suicide marks at least the fourth incidence in five months of domestic violence fatalities. Last month, Douglas Cunningham, 52, shot his ex-wife, Kathleen Brados, 47, and then took his own life in their Lake George home. Also in July, Matthew Slocum, 23, fatally shot his mother, Lisa Coon Harrington, 44, stepfather Dan Harrington, 41, and stepbrother, Joshua O'Brien, 24, before setting their Washington County home ablaze, police said.

Last year in New York, homicides committed by intimate partners living together totaled 73, down 19 percent from the previous two years, according to the state's 2010 Domestic Homicide Report. Women were at the greatest risk for violence at the hands of someone they knew: 62 of 141 -- 44 percent -- of the adult female homicide victims in the state in 2010 were killed by a partner, according to the report.

"Domestic violence is a serial crime," said Sean Byrne, acting commissioner of the state Division of Criminal Justice Services. "We know who the offender is, who the victim is and where the crime is likely to occur, but we don't know when."

In March, James A. Barnes, 41, murdered his wife, Tonya E. Barnes, 40, at their home in Milton after a family dispute, police said. He then hanged himself.

DAY -- Cynthia Monacchio no longer loved her husband, but stayed with him to help raise their children, her sister said. She also said Robert Monacchio Jr. didn't want his wife to leave him and sought counseling to try to save the marriage.

Joint funeral services for the couple are tentatively scheduled to be conducted in Day at the end of the week. Read more at www.timesunion.com

 

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Las Vegas Foster Child Focus of International Custody Battle

Police in Nevada say an international custody battle has stalled over a 3-year-old girl who disappeared from a North Las Vegas foster home and ended up in Mexico.

Amplify’d from www.foxnews.com

North Las Vegas police Sgt. Tim Bedwell tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper that Carla Espinosa-Alvarez is a U.S. citizen and legal ward of Clark County.

He says the investigation stalled because detectives can't talk with her mother.

The foster mother told police that a masked couple abducted the child at gunpoint May 8.

Police say the child's biological mother told Mexican authorities she paid the foster mother to bring the girl across the border.

Officials say the girl was put in foster care last year after the mother went to Mexico but was denied entry back into the U.S. Read more at www.foxnews.com

 

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Bodies Of Gunman, Mother-In-Law Believed To Be In Burned Home

Police found the body of an infant girl believed to be 14-month-old Rhilee Collier in a truck belonging to her father, Kevin Collier. Collier's wife recently filed for divorce.

Man Suspected Of Shooting Officer Jared Slocum Also Killed Baby, Mother-In-Law

Amplify’d from www.10news.com

Two bodies were found Monday inside a burned San Diego County home, and investigators believe the deceased are a woman and her son-in-law, who is accused of shooting and critically wounding an El Cajon police officer and killing his own daughter.

Police found the body of an infant girl believed to be 14-month-old Rhilee Collier in a truck belonging to her father, Kevin Collier. Kevin Collier is accused of torching an El Cajon-area home after, relatives assert, he killed his daughter and his mother-in-law, Beverli Rakov. Collier was identified by police as the man who shot El Cajon Police Officer Jared Slocum, a four-year veteran of the force.

According to El Cajon police, investigators found a body in the front portion of the fire-damaged house in the 1000 block of Prince Street. A second body was discovered in the rear of the home, and investigators said the bodies are believed to be Collier and Rakov. The Medical Examiner's Office has not officially confirmed the identities of the bodies found in the home. Investigators learned Collier sent text messages to family members saying that he killed his mother-in-law and his daughter and then started the fire at the home. A family friend said Collier's wife, who is safe, recently filed for divorce. According to divorce paperwork obtained by 10News that was filed August 17, Alyssa Collier cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for asking for a divorce from Kevin Collier. She was asking for sole custody of their daughter. The couple married in January 2010 and filed for legal separation in July. In the documents, Alyssa Collier stated she was the primary caregiver and stayed at home, while Kevin Collier worked long hours. According to the court documents, Alyssa said Kevin "is a good dad, but spends very little time with Rhilee." She also wrote they have a "nice standard of living" and asked for spousal support. In the divorce documents, Collier's wife asked for $2,000 a month in child support, writing: "I need help transitioning to a more stable life style." 10News learned Collier and his wife also ran a dog breeding business. The Big Dogs website is filled with pictures of the couple with their Mastiffs. There were no allegations of abuse and the exact reason for their failed marriage is unclear. 10News found what appears to be the Facebook page of Alyssa Collier. While a family friend told 10News Alyssa Collier used to work at Cheetah's strip club in San Diego, her latest job listing on Facebook is "full-time wife and mom." Her job description says "I plan to sit on my butt and take all my ex's money." Friends told 10News that Kevin Collier may have manipulated the Facebook page. On Monday, a spokesman for Cheetah’s told 10News Alyssa Rakov (Collier) hasn’t worked for the nightclub for more than a year and a half. The club declined to comment on Sunday's incident. 10News learned both Collier's brother and father filed restraining orders against him in 2003. Collier's brother filed first and wrote: Kevin "slapped me as hard as he could." Two days later, Collier's father followed, filing because Kevin started harassing him. His father wrote: Kevin "called on my cell phone and was very angry and used a lot of profanity … Kevin came to my house and I had to call the sheriff's to escort him off the property." "He seemed cool at first, the first time," said a Collier acquaintance, who did not want to be identified. "The second time, he wasn't so cool." According to Collier's bankruptcy record, he earned more than $40,000 a month at a Miramar strip mall where he met the acquaintance. The source described Collier as a hot-headed man who warned people to keep him away from alcohol. It isn't clear what Collier did at the mall, but his former office is now a strip club. The acquaintance said Collier was only in the mall for three months and told 10News he saw Collier angry once. "He just freaked out, like a super hot head," he said. "He just instantly exploded." On Sunday, the violence erupted after two El Cajon police officers responded shortly after 5 p.m. to a caller who said he saw a man with a gun who had started a fire, El Cajon police Lt. Mark Coit said. Slocum, one of the responding officers, was hit by gunfire that came from the house, he said. The other officer, identified as Officer Tim McFarland, pulled Slocum to safety, Coit said. Slocum, a 28-year-old married father of two young children, was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital, where he underwent surgery and was listed in critical but stable condition. After the shooting, the fire surged out of control and firefighters with police protection and aid from a water-dropping helicopter put it out at about 7 p.m., Heartland Fire spokesman Sonny Saghera said. Several homes in the area were evacuated and eastbound Interstate 8 was shut down while the fire burned. The freeway was reopened after about 90 minutes. A SWAT team surrounded the house for much of Sunday night, but turned the scene over to detectives when they determined it was safe, Coit said. After the burning house was doused by firefighters on the ground and in the air, a police SWAT team entered and found a body near the front door. Witness Dave Lembcke said he saw everything from the moment Kevin Collier pulled up to the home in a truck. "He pulled out a gun and he didn't run across the street but he walked real fast," he said. Moments later, Lembcke said he saw Collier return to the truck. "He went back to his truck," Lembcke said. "He got something else and it didn't look like a gun but it was something kind of shaped like one and went back in." Officers from San Diego, National City and Chula Vista, and deputies from the San Diego County Sheriff's Department were also at the scene to assist. Neighbor Pam Gatar who lives about a block from the scene said she was outside when she heard officers exchange fire with the suspect. "We were walking towards the corner, and we start hearing gunshots, and we don't understand why," Gatar said. "There had to have been at least 15, 20 shots fired. Then we saw the police." Richard Ogunsalu, who lives in the same complex as Gatar, was in the shower when he heard sirens and ran outside to see police everywhere and the house burning. "I saw about 30 police cars, it was like martial law in the streets, man," Ogunsalu said. "There was black roaring smoke in the sky, it was crazy, it just kept coming up. It was like a movie man, it was surreal." Ogunsalu said he saw a pedestrian praying over the downed officer. "There's some good people out here," he said. 10News learned someone posted a Craigslist ad on Friday for an "Everything must go" yard sale at the same home on Prince Street. The ad read: "Everything you need for your kitchen and more. Name your own price. I just want the stuff gone." 10News confirmed with one neighbor that there have been yard sales at the home over the last couple of weekends, including one on Saturday. It's unclear who posted the ad or whether it has anything to do with Sunday's incident. One family friend told 10News he is in shock over what has happened. "We've known them longer than we've known anybody," said friend Jarrad McCarthy. "A few days ago, I guess they were having problems." McCarthy said the family was afraid something like this would happen. "[They've] been worried about this for some time," he said. "They've been expressing concerns to a lot of people for a while and nothing happened."

El Cajon Police Officer Shot Video: Police Look For Man Suspected Of Shooting Officer, 2 Others Video: Neighbors, Friends React To Shooting In El Cajon Video: Records Reveal Collier Divorce Details, Restraining Orders Video: Photographer Who Captured Shootout Video Talks To 10News Video: Bodies Of Gunman, Mother-In-Law Believed To Be In Home Story: Police Search For Man Suspected Of Shooting Officer, 2 Others Images: El Cajon Police Search For Man Who Shot Officer Read more at www.10news.com

 

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San Mateo doctor accused of molestation might receive deal

Of Course Its socially acceptable to rape little girls. Only a lead injection is the cure for these freeks!

Amplify’d from www.sfexaminer.com

The long-running case of a prominent San Mateo child psychiatrist accused of molesting young patients could be resolved in court today, prosecutors said. William Ayres, 79, was once president of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. But in 2007, the doctor was charged with nine counts of performing lewd acts on seven boys during counseling sessions that took place between 1991 and 1996.

Ayres to be sent to mental hospital.

For the latest on this story, go here.

latest on this story, go here.

Accused San Mateo child psychiatrist William Ayres is charged with nine counts of performing lewd acts on boys during counseling. (Examiner file photo)

Prosecutors believe he also molested more than 30 other victims on dates that are beyond the statute of limitations. The case has lumbered in the courts for four years with no clear sign of resolution. As the time passed, the aging Ayres’ mental health has allegedly declined, sparking the probability that he is no longer competent to participate in his own defense, according to attorneys. Ayres’ criminal trial in 2009 ended in a hung jury, with the majority of jurors in favor of conviction. At the time, prosecutor Melissa McKowan said she was “disappointed” at the result and felt “terrible for the victims.” She hoped to retry the case. But McKowan’s bid for a retrial was delayed after Ayres’ attorney said his client showed signs of dementia. That led to a trial to determine whether Ayres is mentally fit to stand trial, which, again, ended in mistrial. Jurors deadlocked 8-4, with the majority saying he was incompetent. Still, prosecutors argued that memory loss did not necessarily mean he couldn’t participate in his own defense. They said he could testify at his own speed and keep a personal record in order to remind himself of what occurred during trial proceedings.

A retrial of Ayres’ competency case is set to begin today. However, it appears that even prosecutors are considering resolving the case rather than going back to court. District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told The San Francisco Examiner that prosecutors and defense attorney Jonathan McDougall were discussing the possibility of resolving the legal proceedings. He declined to reveal any details about the talks. “We’re ready to proceed to trial on [today] if need be,” Wagstaffe said. The trial focused largely on physical exams Ayres conducted on his patients. Alleged victims younger than 14 testified the doctor groped them. Ayres admitted to performing physical exams in which the boys were naked from the waist down, but testified that nothing inappropriate happened. Read more at www.sfexaminer.com

 

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To Prevent Violence, Insist Men Stop the Abuse

To Prevent Violence, Insist Men Stop the Abuse

By Rob Okun

WeNews commentator

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

A recent editorial about a domestic violence murder case in Massachusetts placed the onus on stopping this violence on women. Rob Okun says the responsibility lies with men too, and that it's time for men to speak up.

(WOMENSENEWS)--In the drive to end violence against women, even well-meaning allies can take a wrong turn.

Such was the case with a recent editorial in a small city newspaper in the progressive city of Northampton, Mass., two towns over from where I live. The community has a long history of working to prevent domestic violence, including longstanding collaborations among a variety of stakeholders, such as battered women's shelters and the police, the district attorney's office and, at 22 years, one of the oldest batterer intervention programs in the country.

"Seeking safety for women" was the headline of the Aug. 1 editorial published in response to the life sentence domestic violence murderer David W. Vincent III received. The brutal 2009 beating Vincent inflicted on his girlfriend Rebecca Moulton in Pittsfield, Mass.--plus not calling for medical assistance for the nearly eight hours following his assault--undoubtedly left many hearts aching and minds enraged. Unequivocally, the responsibility for what happened rests with Vincent.

"When their partners turn violent," the editorial reminded readers "women are at tremendous risk." Fair enough.

But what missed the mark, by a wide margin, was the editorial's final sentence, which placed an onus on women that rightly belongs with men. "Unless we all help women understand the danger they face from violent partners and insist they seek safety, these tragedies will continue unchecked," the editorial concluded.

Burdening the Woman

Huh? It makes little sense to place the burden of preventing violence on the woman. Why "insist" she seek safety instead of emphatically and unambiguously demanding violent men stop abusing?

Becky Moulton, a "funny, creative, smart and sweet" woman, as the editorial described her, is more than a symbol of the domestic violence epidemic that continues to plague society. Her senseless murder presents us with an opportunity to commit (or recommit) ourselves to preventing such acts. That opportunity will be compromised, though, if nonviolent men are not part of the effort.

It's time to shift the paradigm from women seeking shelter from men's violence to insisting angry men stop abusing their partners. And, we need that shift everywhere--our educational system, media, sports culture, government, the courts, faith communities--so we can collectively lay to rest a damaging, outmoded view of men and masculinity.

That shift also means teaching boys and girls (and men and women) to look at relationships through the lens of equality. The old-school belief of men dominating women, which sanctions misogynistic music videos, produces television shows that objectify women and denigrate fathers and fails to confront privileged men (most often, white) flouting their entitlement, all must be loudly and relentlessly challenged.

| More

Begin With Education

We've come a long way from the days of police turning a blind eye to family violence perpetrated behind closed doors. But we have to do more than just arrest and jail perpetrators, or order them into batterer intervention programs. We have to begin educating elementary school boys and girls about respect in relationships before their ideas about gender solidify.

Imagine clergy, policymakers, coaches, parents and teachers articulating a vision of a better world, a healed society and a cooperative community. And imagine that the final sentence of a newspaper's domestic violence editorial read: "Unless we educate boys and men about healthy relationships--including teaching nonviolent, conscious communication--some men will continue to believe dominating and abusing women is acceptable behavior and domestic violence tragedies will continue unchecked."

Women have a right to expect that they no longer have to work to prevent domestic violence alone. Since the majority of men are not violent, it is time for them to speak out about the abuse a minority of men perpetrate.

Doing so is one way to honor the memory of Rebecca Moulton and offer a small measure of consolation to her family. To repair a culture of violence, where domestic abuse murders too often still occur, can we do anything less?

Would you like to Comment but not sure how? Visit our help page at http://www.womensenews.org/help-making-comments-womens-enews-stories.

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http://www.womensenews.org/story/domestic-violence/110822/prevent-violence-insist-men-stop-the-abuse

Rob Okun is editor of Voice Male magazine, a psychotherapist and an equal rights justice of the peace in Amherst, Mass. He can be reached at rob@voicemalemagazine.org.

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Source URL (retrieved on 2011-08-23 06:40): http://www.womensenews.org/story/domestic-violence/110822/prevent-violence-insist-men-stop-the-abuse

Fallston Child Psychologist Guilty of Sexually Abusing Girls

We MUST get Rid of these 'witch-DoKtoRs' Psychiatry is a fraud and a set up for crimes against others.

Amplify’d from belair.patch.com

David Wayne Schrumpf, a Whiteford resident, pleaded guilty Monday in Harford County District Court.

A Fallston child psychologist pleaded guilty Monday to three charges related to sexually abusing three girls he had treated, according to a release from the Harford County State’s Attorney’s office.

David Wayne Schrumpf, 55, of the 4400 block of Prospect Road in Whiteford, is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 31 for one count of child sex abuse and two counts of second-degree assault of girls ages 7, 9 and 10.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Schrumpf must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, voluntarily surrender his psychology license and agree not to seek a license as a child psychologist in a jurisdiction in which he lives. He will undergo sex offender treatment and is prohibited from contacting anyone younger than 18.

The state is seeking a six-year jail sentence, according to the release.

The case was investigated by the Harford County Child Advocacy Center, with assistance from the Harford County Department of Social Services, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office and Maryland State Police.

See more at belair.patch.com

 

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