Immigrants In The South

CNN has done a piece on the treatment of Latino immigrants in the South.

Low-income Latinos in the South have been routinely cheated out of wages, denied basic health protections and are victims of racial profiling, according to a report released by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

“This report documents the human toll of failed policies that relegate millions of people to an underground economy, where they are beyond the protection of the law,” said Mary Bauer, author of the report. “Workplace abuses and racial profiling are rampant in the South.”

The report details stories of a Tennessee woman who says she was jailed for asking for her pay after working at a cheese factory, a bean-picker in Alabama who says his life savings were taken by police at a traffic stop and a rapist in Georgia who was not arrested because the suspect’s victim was an undocumented immigrant.

Forty-one percent of the people surveyed said they had experienced theft of their wages by employers. Forty-seven percent said they know someone who was treated unfairly by police. Seventy-seven percent of women surveyed said they have been sexually harassed by bosses, many saying that bosses used their immigration status as leverage.

Well the South has seldom been a friend to workers, even legal ones so this story should be no surprise to anyone.  Even the elected governments of ALL the people, have been unfriendly to workers.

State “Biggies” Under The Gun On Donations

Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood accepted $75,000 in 2007 from a Texas attorney poised to earn a paycheck if the state is successful in its case against drug companies, according to a review of campaign finance records. Republican Gov. Haley Barbour took nearly the same amount in 2006 and 2007 from Hurricane Katrina contractors that have repeatedly won work from agencies he oversees.

Both insist that political considerations don’t factor into the selection process. And the contributions are perfectly legal in Mississippi, where there are reporting laws but few limits on donations.

Ethics watchdogs say the state needs tougher laws to prevent the appearances of conflict. But political analysts blame a privately funded campaign finance system that has become much more expensive.

Perfectly legal in Mississippi?  Well, yes that is true and it is the big lobbyist like Barbour that makes sure that such underhanded tactics stay legal.

Mississippians get the best politician that corporate money can buy!

Is Justice Served?

Recently I was in a Harrison county courtroom killing time and a case caught my attention, it seems that a local guy had embezzled money from a company he worked for and was being sentenced to 10 years at an adult detention center until he repaid the money.

The reason I became interested in this was that he was sent to a center in Hinds County, he was made to give up a good job making excellent money and was taken away from his family of a wife and a small child.  Now I would understand it if this guy had committed a crime that was a bit more heinous than embezzling or if he had made an attempt to flee, but as it was he had been nothing but cooperative with the police and the courts.  It is a real shame that this man did not have an attorney that gave a crap.  Justice in this case was NOT served.  Yes, this man deserved punishment and deserved the probation, the fine, the restitution, but his child did not.

He was sent to the center and given a job making half of what he was making on the Coast; half his pay went to restitution and the other half went to the center.  Where was the support for the family that the courts have forced into poverty?  He could have kept the job on the Coast and paid half his salary to the courts and still been able to help support his family.  Where in the lame ass code of 1972 does it give these judges the right to force families into debt and homelessness?  Once again profit is more important than justice.

GSFP has done some research and the center in question is a run for profit institution even to the point that “inmates” are not allow cookies from home, they must buy their sweets from the vending machines.  Do the courts get any money for “referring” inmates to these institutions?  Maybe someone should follow the money.  Which will be difficult because Mississippi tries to make it as hard as possible to use public records.  Coincidence?

WE also found a guy that was in the adult detention facility in Jackson county working at the Chevron Refinery making $24.00 an hour, but was ordered moved to the Jackson facility and to a job making about $8.00 an hour.  I ask where the logic is there?  Once I heard this, I started smelling the rotting fish.  Someone is making out like a bandit in this and once again I ask….just where is justice being served?

There is NO doubt that a crime was commited and punishment is due, but this man was no flight risk, cooperated fully with the law and courts, and was a first offense; no where was this a case of justice being served but rather paying off political favors, if not then it sure smells like it.  This is a pathetic use of the justice system to ensure the profit of a private institution.  This is a miscarriage of justice plain and simple.

Wrongfully Convicted

Recently several people have been released from Mississippi prisons because DNA has proven them innocent of the crimnes they were convicted of in the past.  And the state actually set about to rectify any damage that this wrongful conviction had caused.

Senate Bill 3024,

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR CLAIMS FOR WRONGFUL CONVICTION AND IMPRISONMENT; TO EXPRESS LEGISLATIVE INTENT; TO REQUIRE CLAIMANTS TO PRESENT STATEMENT OF CLAIM FOR COMPENSATION; TO ENACT STANDARDS; TO PROVIDE FOR PRESENTATION OF CLAIMS; TO ENACT STANDARDS FOR JUDGMENT AND AWARD; TO ENACT A STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS; TO PROVIDE FOR EXTENSION THEREOF; TO PROVIDE FOR THE RIGHT OF APPEAL FROM AN ADVERSE DECISION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

People who have been proven to be wrongfully convicted will be eligible for $50,000 per year spent in jail, or up to $500,000 total.

Finally, a bit of justice for people who have been railroaded in the state….and there are many who may be able to take advantage of this new law.

Yet More Teacher/Student Sex Charges

Seems to be becoming an epidemic in South Mississippi.

In the Long Beach case, police say 40-year-old Louie Joseph Garcia III is accused of molesting three girls he knew from having been an assistant coach of a soccer team.

The unlawful touching incidents are alleged to have occurred in Garcia’s home on Latil Street. Assistant Police Chief Don Bass said Garcia had helped coach a girls’ under-12 team in the 2006 soccer season and allegedly touched three of them unlawfully in separate visits to his home in September 2007.

Bass said Garcia had helped coach a team of the South Mississippi Soccer Club.

The charges have nothing to do with the Long Beach Recreation League, which drew criticism in recent months after a volunteer youth coach made headlines in a string of arrests on child molesting charges.

Investigators claim two of the alleged incidents with Garcia occurred during a sleepover at his home. The other allegedly happened during a child’s visit to his home.

At the time, the alleged victims were ages 9 to 13, Bass said.

But wait there is more.

The arrest of Katryna Martin was her second on sex-crime complaints since Feb. 13. After that arrest, she was terminated from her position as an eighth-grade science teacher at North Gulfport.

Martin also was a basketball coach at the campus for seventh- and eighth-grade students.

Gulfport police say the rape charge accuses her of having sexual intercourse with a boy who was 15 when the alleged act occurred at her home in July 2008. Martin lives on Autumn Chase in Gulfport.

Her other charges are molestation and sexual battery. Court papers show those alleged incidents involve a 14-year-old girl who was one of Martin’s students.

Police say Martin was tutoring the girl in her home on Feb. 7.

Court papers accuse her of committing the acts while in a position of trust or authority.

Family Of Slain Player Speaks Out

As reported in the Sun-Herald:

The family of George County High School football star Billey Joe Johnson Jr. say they are conducting their own investigation into the 17-year-old’s Dec. 8 shooting death after a traffic stop.

Annette Johnson said she would not accept the results of a grand jury report, which said that Johnson likely died of an accidental shooting.

The family said they plan to go to the state capital next week to see if anything could be done there to ensure that Johnson’s death was thoroughly investigated.

In addition, they plan to seek help from the governor, and if that doesn’t result in any assistance, they plan to take their case to Washington, D.C.

George County sheriff’s Deputy Joe Sullivan pulled Johnson over the morning of his death. The deputy said he was standing at his patrol car when he suddenly heard breaking glass and a gunshot and saw Johnson on the ground with his shotgun on top of him.

George County Sheriff Garry Welford initially said that it appeared Johnson died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, something Johnson’s family disputed. At the time of his death, Johnson was looking forward to collegiate football at Auburn University. He got a scholarship from Auburn and other universities, but told his mother he planned to play college football at Auburn for a year or so before trying to get into professional football.

Johnson’s mother said she will not rest until the truth about her son’s death is known. She believes someone other than her son is responsible for his death.

Harrison County Does It Again!

There have been some major drug and prostitution busts in South MS lately…..just recently Gulfport arrested some hookers ages 36-54….that should clean up the streets.

Now Harrison County has join into the fray of cleaning up the streets of elderly drug pushers.

A Long Beach woman has been accused of distributing marijuana and of having methadone without a prescription, authorities said.

Deputies assigned to the narcotics unit of the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department arrested Linda Joyce Malley Bourgeois at her Long Beach home. Sheriff Melvin Brisolara said his agency had “received numerous tips and complaints about illegal drug activity at the residence.”

Bourgeois, 56, lives on Tucker Road.

Officers searched her home Tuesday and allegedly found about 10 ounces of marijuana and numerous methadone pills hidden in her residence, Brisolara said.

Methadone is the generic name for a type of drugs prescribed for pain management and to help recovering drug addicts deal with withdrawals.

Narcotics officers said they also found scales hidden on Bourgeois’ property. Officers said they believe the scales were used to weigh marijuana.

Bourgeois is charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of methadone.

Please sleep well tonite knowing that the streets will be safe from geriatric drug dealers and hookers.

The Rest Of The Sex Story

A recently fired teacher is accused of having sexual intercourse with a 17-year-old female student at the teacher’s Ocean Springs home in November, said Jackson County Sheriff Mike Byrd.

Deputies arrested Steven Seth Tadlock, 25, on Friday, charging him with sexual battery. Tadlock had been terminated a week earlier from his teaching position in Bay St. Louis.

Tadlock is the second Coast teacher within a week to be charged with a sex crime alleged to involve a student.

Byrd said Tadlock allegedly had sex with a student at the latter’s residence in Highland Park, a mobile home complex on Gibson Road.

Byrd said he expected Tadlock to remain in custody without bond over the weekend pending an initial court appearance. Later Friday, he learned Tadlock was released from jail after Jackson County Judge Larry T. Wilson set bond at $10,000.

Bay-Waveland Schools Superintendent Kim Stasny this week released a written statement saying Tadlock was terminated Feb. 13 “for violation of school policies.”

School board Attorney Ronnie Artigues confirmed a similar complaint against Tadlock and a different student had been investigated the previous school year but he said the allegations were unfounded.

Bay St. Louis police announced Thursday they had concluded an investigation of Tadlock’s alleged inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old girl and found no evidence of a criminal act in their jurisdiction.

Byrd said he could neither confirm nor deny the girl in the Jackson County case is the same student referred to in the recent investigation by Bay St. Louis police.

Byrd said the charge meets the criteria for sexual battery.

“Rape isn’t what’s alleged,” Byrd said.

The legal age for consent to sex in Mississippi is 16. However, state law makes it illegal for a person in a position of trust or authority to engage in sexual penetration with a child under the age of 18.

Teacher/Student Sex Scandal–The UpDate

North Gulfport 7th and 8th Grade teacher Catryna L. Martin has been arrested on charges accusing her of sex crimes against a former student she’d apparently been tutoring at her home.  Martin is accused of having a sexual relationship with the girl while she was at her teacher’s home for tutoring. Harrison County Justice Court Judge set Martin’s bond at $1 million.

There seems to be an epidemic of such situations in the US lately…these teachers, people in positions of trust, are violating much more than a simple case of trust…they are sexual predators.  What can the state do to try and curb such behavior from our educators?

The state has a bill, HB 1196, which would strengthen the case against such violations.

HB 1196 states:

AN ACT TO REQUIRE SUPERINTENDENTS OF ANY PUBLIC OR PRIVATE SCHOOL DISTRICT OR THEIR DESIGNEE TO REPORT ALL INSTANCES OF EDUCATOR MISCONDUCT AND UNLAWFUL ACTIVITY TO THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; TO PROVIDE THE GROUNDS REQUIRED FOR REPORTING THE MISCONDUCT; TO IMPOSE THE TIME REQUIRED FOR SUBMITTING THOSE REPORTS TO THE DEPARTMENT; TO PROVIDE IMMUNITY FROM CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY TO SUPERINTENDENTS OR THEIR DESIGNEE FILING A REPORT WITH THE DEPARTMENT; TO AMEND SECTION 97-5-24, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE PRINCIPAL AND SUPERINTENDENT TO REPORT EMPLOYEES HAVING A POSITION OF AUTHORITY OR SPECIAL TRUST ACCUSED OF HAVING SEXUAL INVOLVEMENT WITH A MINOR CHILD ENROLLED IN THE DISTRICT TO THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY WITH JURISDICTION AND TO THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION; TO AMEND SECTION 97-29-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF TEACHERS AND STUDENTS ENGAGING IN SEXUAL INTERCOURSE ONE WITH THE OTHER; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

This would help the state track any and all violations from ANY teacher that had committed any such offense.  It would have kept the entire state and its different school systems safer from sexual predators.

But if you have noticed….I have been using the past ense…and I would bet you like to knoe why…..that one is really simple…..HB 1196 died in committee on 12 Feb 09 and Martin was arrested a day or so later.  Will there be a motion to reconsider?

This is where there is a break down in the legislative system…they have plenty of time patting people on the back and naming bridges and highways…but real import issues somehow just cannot make it through the system.

Think about their track records, not their bill introductions, but rather what did they actually accomplish; when they ask for your vote the next election…….personally I would vote for my dog before any of the ones that hold office at this time…at least she could do no worse than them.

Teacher/Student Sex Hits In South MS

North Gulfport 7th and 8th Grade teacher Catryna L. Martin has been arrested on charges accusing her of sex crimes against a former student she’d apparently been tutoring at her home, Gulfport Police Chief Alan Weatherford said.

Martin, 28, was arrested Friday and charged with one count each of molestation and sexual battery, both while in a position of trust.

Martin is accused of having a sexual relationship with the girl while she was at her teacher’s home for tutoring. Harrison County Justice Court Judge set Martin’s bond at $1 million.

As more details are released this story will develope further……This seems to be a rising problem in the US—-teacher having sex with their students…….the legislature has bills that it is considering on this very subject….but will it help the passage of new laws or not?