As Mary Prewitt, the state director of the Humane Society of the United States, argued in a commentary on the Opinion pages last week, it’s a problem that cockfighting is a misdemeanor in Kansas and a felony in neighboring states. As evidence that Kansas is now the “jurisdiction of choice” for cockfighters, Prewitt cited the recent cockfighting bust in northeast Sedgwick County, which led to 12 arrests. The current ban was viewed as the best the Legislature could get in 2002, when one lawmaker referred to cockfight ringleaders as “some misguided guys who want to kill a chicken on Sunday afternoon”; lawmakers need to take another look at the law. Sedgwick County Commissioner Kelly Parks also was right to urge residents to report such activity: “If you see a pickup full of roosters going kind of slow down your township road, they’re not going to Colonel Sanders.”
If you lost your job at a Target store, reportedly because you wrote on a wall, it doesn’t logically follow that you would drive 30 miles to the state’s Democratic Party headquarters and fatally shoot its chairman. Or, for that matter, that you would then go threaten someone at the state Baptist convention office. Indeed, maybe there are no conclusions to be drawn from Wednesday’s fatal shooting in Little Rock, other than that a disturbed gunman killed somebody and then was himself killed. Still, in this time of bitter politics, you have to wonder: Was the murder of Arkansas Democratic Party chairman Bill Gwatney by Timothy Dale Johnson some kind of partisan hate crime?
One good thing happened this week: The Fred Phelps clan ended up not protesting at the funeral of a Canadian man who was beheaded on a Greyhound bus. One Phelps group was barred at the border from entering Canada, but another, covert group supposedly entered Canada and had its hate signs mailed into the country. But none of the protesters showed up at the funeral this week, perhaps because they risked arrest under Canada’s hate-speech law. Just in case, uniformed Winnipeg police officers were posted at the doors and roof of the church. Phelps protesters also didn’t show up at the opening of a new theater production in Toronto titled “The Pastor Phelps Project” and subtitled “a fundamentalist cabaret.”
In the wake of several recent bar-related shootings, it’s good to hear that the Wichita Police Department is getting tough on problem bars.
The Eagle editorial board and neighborhood groups called for a crackdown in the wake of a July 27 shooting death at Big Chub’s at 31st Street South and Seneca, the scene of numerous late-night problems such as parking lot brawls and shootings.
Over the weekend, police shot and seriously wounded a man in the parking lot of Max’s Club on South Rock Road. Wichita Deputy Police Chief Tom Stolz told The Eagle that both Chub’s and Max’s are among half a dozen clubs that are “on our radar” because of frequent violence and problems at closing time.
Stolz said the police would look at an ordinance change to tighten licensing requirements and provide an “accountability mechanism” for bars.
About time. Residents shouldn’t have to put up with these bad neighbors. And as Stolz pointed out, “to send, consistently, 10 and 15 officers to shut down a nightclub is not a wise use of resources and not a good way to spend tax dollars.”
Four decades ago, Manson cult member Susan Atkins helped murder actress Sharon Tate and eight others in one of most infamous crimes in U.S. history.
This week the California parole board unanimously denied a request that Atkins, who is dying of brain cancer, be granted compassionate release so that she can spend her final days surrounded by family at home.
Should the board have shown compassion to Atkins? I don’t think so. She certainly didn’t show compassion to Tate, who begged for her life and that of her unborn baby before Atkins viciously stabbed her to death and wrote the words “Pig” on a door with Tate’s blood.
It was years before Atkins expressed remorse for the nightmarish killings. And the family of Tate and other victims remain adamantly opposed to Atkins’ release.
In some circumstances, it might be appropriate for the state to show compassion to a prisoner at the end of life. It depends on the case. On some level, perhaps Atkins deserves a sense of Christian forgiveness and release. But I think a sense of justice calls for her to die in prison for her horrendous crimes.
What do you think, bloggers?
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 today that it is unconstitutional to sentence someone to death for raping a child if the victim was not killed. The majority said that imposing the death penalty violates the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment, because the death penalty is disproportional punishment for the crime, as heinous as child rape is. The majority also cited “the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society,†which drives constitutional originalists nuts. In 2002, the court blocked the execution of mentally retarded defendants, and in 2005 it banned the execution of people for crimes they committed before they were 18.
It’s a relief that the Kansas Supreme Court saw fit Friday to uphold the conviction of Gavin Scott in the 1996 murders of Doug and Beth Brittain of rural Goddard, even as it overturned his death sentence. That spares the victims’ family, as well as taxpayers, of having to go through another trial. But with the third man convicted under Kansas’ 1994 death penalty now awaiting resentencing before completion of his case, something that could take several years, Kansans are left to wonder about the point of having a death penalty so complicated, costly to prosecute and prone to technical errors.
Wichita’s BTK investigation was featured in a Washington Post article this week about catching criminals by analyzing the DNA of family members — without their permission. Wichita police were able to link Dennis Rader to the BTK crimes in part through his daughter’s DNA, which it obtained from her medical records through a court order. States want to expand this approach by doing DNA searches of criminal databases. If there is a near match with someone who is already in prison, that means a family member of that person may have committed the crime. Privacy advocates are concerned, the Post reported, that such searches turn family members into genetic informants without their knowledge or consent, and could subject thousands of innocent people who happen to be related to someone in a criminal database to “lifelong genetic surveillance.†Also, because minorities are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system, minorities would face greater scrutiny.
Good news for those eager to see Kansas finally put its 1994 death penalty law to work: The U.S. Supreme Court, on a 7-2 vote, has upheld Kentucky’s lethal injection method. Opponents had argued that the three-drug protocol could cause an inmate terrible pain if its anesthetic failed. But Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that they did not show “the risk of pain from maladministration of a concededly humane lethal injection protocol, and the failure to adopt untried and untested alternatives, constitute cruel and unusual punishment.†Kansas, where lethal injection also is the method of execution, was among the states that filed a friend of the court brief supporting Kentucky. But even though its method of execution has the green light, Kansas should still reconsider whether capital punishment is the best public policy, given its high cost, unequal application and possibility of mistakes.
Gangs and drugs so terrorize some parts of Wichita that many people will shrug off the article in Tuesday’s Eagle about the apparent local use of the USA Patriot Act — which is supposed to target terrorism — to do a secret search of the house of a man accused of being a cocaine supplier to the Crips gang, a search that happened 90 days before the man was notified of it. To obtain the search warrant, authorities said the secret search would protect evidence and prevent suspects from fleeing or intimidating witnesses. The courts will sort out whether the evidence was legally obtained in this case. But such use of the Patriot Act certainly raises questions, including about whether it reflects Congress’ intent in passing the law post-Sept. 11. In a 2005 Eagle commentary, U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren assured the public that the Patriot Act “has been used to disrupt terrorist cells and espionage, as well as assist in solving horrific domestic crimes.†Does this alleged criminal activity count?
And we thought Paul Morrison’s downfall was spectacular.
New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer held a press conference Monday to address reports that he was involved in a high-priced prostitution ring. He apologized to his family and the public.
“I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself,†he said. “I must now dedicate some time to regain the trust of my family.â€
Better block out some time for that. This sounds like a career-ender for Spitzer, especially given his past high-profile crusades as attorney general against public corruption and scandal, including a 2004 case against, um, a prostitution ring.
What makes otherwise smart politicians think they can get away with these shenanigans?
Police chiefs and prosecutors from three northeast Kansas counties got together in Topeka last week to promote early childhood education. “If you care about crime prevention, if you care about saving money and ultimately lives, then you must care about high-quality early education programs,†said Lenexa Police Chief Ellen Hanson at the event sponsored by Fight Crime: Invest in Kids. The crimefighters cited studies favoring greater investment in high-quality early childhood education, asserting that every $1 spent on such programs for at-risk kids saves $16 later on law enforcement, corrections and the like. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius included $30 million more on early childhood programs for at-risk kids in her budget proposal, a tough sell in the current economic climate. Meanwhile, Americans for Prosperity-Kansas proposed as part of its “model†state budget that lawmakers eliminate prekindergarten spending, because “a parent is a child’s most important educator†— which sounds good but ignores the many Kansas parents who are not.
State lawmakers must back up their 2005 commitment to track and fight racial profiling by law enforcement by clarifying what counts as racial profiling. The bill proposed by state Sen. Donald Betts, D-Wichita, may go too far in calling it racial profiling whenever an officer uses race, ethnicity or gender as “a factor†in investigation, traffic stops and questioning. But the current language, that it be “the sole factor†in such situations, clearly does not go far enough, discounting many of the instances in which Wichitans and others believe they’ve been profiled. If Kansas’ law against such racial profiling means anything, it must be backed up with meaningful data collection and analysis.
For the first time, 1 of every 100 Americans is behind bars, reports the New York Times. Our prison population is the largest in the world — 1.6 million — with China second at 1.5 million. The prison costs are “blowing a hole in state budgets,†according to a report by the Pew Center on States.
America’s lock ’em up fervor in the past two decades has had an undeniable impact in reducing crime rates, but the report says too many nonviolent offenders are going to prison.
Kansas was one of 12 states that showed a decline in prison population in 2007.
Steve Kazmierczak, who killed five at Northern Illinois University last week before killing himself, reportedly spent more than a year in a mental health facility for psychological problems during and after high school. He might also have been discharged from the military for psychological reasons. But he was able to buy several guns in the months prior to the shootings.
Are gun laws still too lax in identifying people with a history of mental illness?
In the wake of the Virginia Tech killings, Congress passed a law tightening mental health screening for guns. But the law only targets people who have been legally committed to a mental institution or program.
A new Illinois gun law that takes effect this summer will require medical personnel to report patients who exhibit “suicidal, threatening or assaultive behavior.â€
Some kind of higher standard seems reasonable. Everyone has an interest in keeping guns out of the hands of the mentally ill.
Wichita must not be apathetic about its crime surge in 2007, especially the 65 percent increase in homicides. The city also saw more rapes, robberies and burglaries last year. Wichita Police Chief Norman Williams was right to address the statistics directly this week, a day after Mayor Carl Brewer promised a crackdown on gang violence. Williams suggested adding a downtown patrol bureau, as more businesses attract more people to the core.
But City Hall should not be alone in feeling the heat. Such alarming crime statistics also are a call to the community’s businesses, neighborhood associations, churches and individuals to seek solutions that will improve public safety and peace of mind.
Texas accounted for 62 percent of all executions in America this year — up from its typical average of about 37 percent. The reason for the increase isn’t that Texas is doing more executions. Rather, it’s that the rest of the country is doing fewer. As a result, of the nation’s 42 executions in the past year, 26 were in Texas. The remaining 16 were spread across nine other states, none of which executed more than three people, the New York Times reported.
The Texas judicial system apparently does not share in the rest of the country’s growing concern about the biased and possibly incorrect application of the death penalty. On the contrary, what separates Texas from other states is its aggressiveness in carrying out executions once a death sentence is imposed.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
New Jersey hasn’t executed anyone since 1963, though it reinstated the death penalty in 1982. That put it in a similar situation as Kansas, which has yet to use the death penalty it reinstated in 1994. Will Kansas join New Jersey in abolishing its unused death penalty? New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine signed the bill this week replacing it with a sentence of life without possibility of parole, saying, “There is little collective will or appetite for our community to enforce this law and therefore the law has little deterrence value - that is if you ever accepted that there was deterrent value.â€
Each passing year makes the ineffective deterrence argument, along with the one about cost and fairness, ring truer in Kansas, especially with executions largely on hold nationally until the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether lethal injection constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Listen to our annual satirical Christmas carols. The topics spoofed this year include the casino, Wild West World, Brownback’s presidential run and the Wichita Wingnuts. Enjoy.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Some think Sunday’s church shooting in Colorado is a prime example of why gun liberties are important.
At Colorado Springs’ New Life Church, volunteer security guard Jeanne Assam (in photo) is said to have saved "untold" lives when she shot gunman Matthew Murray. Carrying almost 1,000 rounds of ammunition, Murray had the potential to cause widespread death, but killed just two before he was taken down by Assam.
Assam, a former police officer, was permitted to carry a gun, while security guards at Westroads Mall in Omaha, where eight people were killed, were not.
Posted by Kristin Mehler
In February 2003, American defense contractors Keith Stansell, Thomas Howes, and Marc Gonsalves were shot down over Colombia while conducting a counternarcotics mission. After 4½ years and promises that the United States would “never give up†until they were home, the three were believed to be dead –until video footage of them was recently released.
The footage, which also shows French-Colombian citizen Ingrid Betancourt, has stirred outrage and sympathy in France, with French officials leaning on the Colombian government for her safe release.
Their efforts for a woman who wasn’t even born in their country are contrasted with the current lack of outrage from the United States, which has three citizens still in captivity after almost five years.
Posted by Kristin Mehler
The U.S. Supreme Court decided 7-2 Monday that judges may use discretion for sentences related to crack cocaine, which further addresses the injustice of disparate sentencing guidelines for crack and powder cocaine. Dissenting Justice Samuel Alito said that because of this and another Tuesday decision, “Sentencing disparities will gradually increase.†But if it ever made sense for Congress to consider possessing crack — a drug of the poor — 100 times worse than possessing the same amount of powder cocaine, it no longer does.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
Setting aside serious concerns about the misapplication of the death penalty, a number of recent studies have concluded that executions save lives — though these conclusions are being hotly debated. The New York Times reports that the “studies, performed by economists in the past decade, compare the number of executions in different jurisdictions with homicide rates over time — while trying to eliminate the effects of crime rates, conviction rates and other factors — and say that murder rates tend to fall as executions rise.†The studies estimate that executing one inmate can prevent three to 18 murders.
But critics contend the studies’ methodology is flawed and that there aren’t enough executions and other data to create a correlation with crime trends. They contend that crime could also decrease if we took the amount of money spent on capital cases and executions and put it into crime prevention.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Hundreds of innocent people may be in prison based on faulty forensic evidence, yet the FBI never alerted those prisoners, their attorneys or the courts about the error, a joint investigation by the Washington Post and “60 Minutes†reported. For about 40 years, the FBI believed that the lead in bullets had unique chemical signatures, and that it was possible to match that lead to a single box of bullets. But that isn’t true. In fact, it’s statistically possible that lead from a bullet can have tens of millions of matches. After the FBI learned about this mistake a few years ago, it sent out a form letter saying that it was stopping the test, but it didn’t admit that the evidence from the lab was wrong, and it didn’t advise the Justice Department to review cases in which this evidence was instrumental in a conviction.
Because of the media investigation, the FBI is finally launching a review of these cases and plans to notify prosecutors of the faulty analysis. The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Innocence Network also are creating a task force to review these cases.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
Good for officials for acting promptly to fortify fencing and reassign staff in response to the recent prison break at the El Dorado Correctional Facility. The decisions to add $200,000 worth of razor wire and better supervise an outdoor exercise yard should offer neighbors and other Kansans some peace of mind after the daring escape, which apparently was aided by a former prison officer. It’s also reassuring that the escape will be further reviewed by the Kansas Department of Corrections. Kansans need to trust that high-security inmates are in fact secured at the facility.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
