Dec. 12, 2013
Counsel of Canadians
Opposition growing against indefinite immigration detention in Canada
Some fifty civil, labour and professional groups under the Council of Canadians banner are calling for an end to indefinite detention and the use of maximum security institutions for immigrant detainees in Lindsey, ON, where migrants are on strike in protest of their circumstance. http://canadians.org/media/opposition-growing-against-indefinite-immigration-detention-canada Related article: Huffington Post – Saki Knafo More Protesters Arrested As Obama’s Deportation Record Nears 2 Million http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/10/obama-deportation-arrests_n_4420605.html Related article: Latino Daily News Another Migrant Detention Center Infiltrated by Immigration Activists http://www.hispanicallyspeakingnews.com/latino-daily-news/details/another-migrant-detention-center-infiltrated-by-immigration-activists/28349
Cape Breton Post
Manitoba judge says Ottawa’s law on sentencing credits against Charter
Judge Mary Kate Harvie is part of the reason why the federal government legal fees are ballooning out of sight. A key feature of the tough-on-crime revisions are in her opinion offensive to fundamental justice. Her ruling suggests that persons on remand can spend more time in jail than others. “Section 719 (3.1) of the Criminal Code creates “gross disproportionality” between individual offenders at sentencing because those who are denied bail can wind up spending “significantly” more time in jail than others, and that’s not justice, Harvie stated in her 24-page decision.” http://www.capebretonpost.com/News/Local/2013-12-12/article-3540297/Manitoba-judge-says-Ottawas-law-on-sentencing-credits-against-Charter/1
Vancouver Sun – Kim Bolan
B.C. police warn gangsters, launch poster campaign
The Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit has been calling on known gang members and advising them they will be targeted until they leave gangs or leave BC. A poster and publicity effort warning youth about the dangers of dying young (the average gang member dies at age 30) through gang participation is also part of the effort. http://www.vancouversun.com/news/police+warn+gangsters+launch+poster+campaign/9274971/story.html
Rabble.ca – Jim Stanford
Why the wealthy are not like us: Capital gains, wealth and income distribution
The top 1 per cent’s share of total income in Canada remained steady in 2011 in Canada, at 10.6 percent — but still significantly higher than in the 1980s, says economist Jim Stanford. But what is missing from the Stats Canada report is the impact of capital gains. http://rabble.ca/columnists/2013/12/why-wealthy-are-not-us-capital-gains-wealth-and-income-distribution Related article: Global Research (US) Skewed: Income Inequality in America (A graphic depiction of income inequality in the US) http://www.globalresearch.ca/skewed-income-inequality-in-america/5361223
California Healthline
Judge Orders Improved Mental Health for Death Row Inmates
Continuing the barrage of federal supervision of California’s overcrowded and health services deprived jails, Federal Judge Lawrence Karlton has ordered supervision and review of services by the state’s Department of Hospitals which provides mental health services in prisons. http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2013/12/11/judge-orders-improved-mental-health-for-death-row-inmates?view=print
Legal Examiner (US) – Kathleen Wood
Do Insurance Carriers Pay out for Cyberbullying Suits?
If someone slips and falls, or if your dog bites a visitor, your homeowner’s liability will generally respond and pay legal defence costs and damages to the coverage limit. What about if your child is engaged in cyberbullying? Will your policy pay? Watch out for exclusions in the policy! http://www.legalexaminer.com/property-owners-liability-slip-fall/do-insurance-carriers-pay-out-for-cyberbullying-suits
Vera Institute of Justice (US)
Vera Report Examines Research Finding that Neither Schools nor Young People Have Benefited from Zero Tolerance Policies
If you were still wondering about zero tolerance as a disciplinary tool for schools, this latest Vera report should put an end to any equivocation around the issue. Entitled A Generation Later: What We Have Learned about Zero Tolerance in Schools ( a 10 page pdf), the report is unambiguous in its conclusions: “What’s clear, based on the evidence: a generation after the rise of these policies and practices, neither schools nor young people have benefited.” http://www.vera.org/sites/default/files/resources/downloads/zero-tolerance-in-schools-policy-brief.pdf