Tuesday, June 12, 2007

News and Blogs Together, Tuesday, June 12, 2007

  • CO DA Carol Chambers goes way overboard in bringing a case against a teen she intends to try as an adult. The kid is a real villain, having gone to Asia to build churches in the past, and she’s going to play the hyped-up, ignorant “I do God’s Work” role. Will this case get the attention Genarlow Wilson did if the kid goes to prison? It’s just as idiotic with potentially the same life-ruining implications (and note the double standard applied when something far worse is done by a governor’s son). . . .
  • Doug Berman at Sentencing Law and Policy points to this really great op-ed whapping the idiot Beltway types saying that, because Scooter Libby comes from “good people” and “good people” aren’t in prison, it’s a waste of money to put him behind bars for lying to a fed prosecutor. A great analysis of the reprehensible double standard that we apply between the rich/political/celebrity types and the rest of us who frequently get far more punishment for far less damage to society. Don’t know if I should laugh or cry that the denseheads only start considering the basis of our mass incarceration binge when a Libby or Paris face much less difficult time than the average inmate. (Pam Clifton at Think Outside the Cage also catches the op-ed here.) . . .
  • Psychology and Crime News tips us to the contents of the latest Am Psych Assoc Monitor on Psychology, including relevant articles on the problems with using DNA evidence and on dealing with the seriously troubled use of eyewitness testimony by doing a better job of judicial training. . . .
  • Good take on the defining of “recidivism” and the politics and other considerations that go into that most problematic of terms for us in corr sent. . . .
  • Looks like the VA Tech killings may have convinced some NRA guys that some reasonable legislation might not be the camel’s nose under the tent to all things evil that they usually see. Nice catch yet again by those savvy folks at Prevention Works. . . .
  • CNN has discovered the “cheese” form of heroin prevalent in Dallas now. Notes that authorities are trying to stop it before it spreads too far outside TX, and, by so noting, makes it more noticeable and likely to draw attention. Hmm. (Let's not be crass and tell them how far behind the blogs they are.) . . .
  • Mind Hacks throwing skepticism on brain scan lie detection here and here. . . .
  • While at Mind Hacks, a new technique for interrogators—make the suspect tell their story from back to front instead of the usual way. Harder to keep track of inconsistencies, apparently. Not sure if it would really work on sociopaths, but it might be good to remember next time you have questions for your sweetie. . . .
  • Finally, I’ve pretty much given up on the idea of sports heroes, for pretty obvious reasons, but one guy I still like is Drew Brees. Too small, too hurtable, too everything bad to ever be successful at pro football . . . except he is. And he’s been a good guy, too, doing a lot for the New Orleans area besides leading its premier sports team. Well, here you’ll find out that he’s helping jail inmates in UT. No PR following him, no reason other than to lend a hand with some troubled folks. And he apparently had an impact. Remember that the next time we hear about the next guy who belongs on the other side of the bars but (usually) stays on this side as long as he’s scoring touchdowns, sacks, or interceptions. There are still some sports guys left to admire.

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