Ronald D. Wagner II is at best a moron and at worst nuts. But neither is a crime. When one undertakes to drive a car, one similarly accepts certain rules that go along with it, one of which is that you must produce license and registration, sometimes an insurance card according to applicable laws, upon demand of a police officer.

You disagree with the law? That’s fine. I disagree with laws all the time, and regularly argue against them. But as long as they remain the law, you have to comply with them. Your disagreement, for reasons sound or utterly idiotic, has no bearing on whether you get a pass. And that goes for Wagner.

But, and this is a huge “but,” Wagner’s being obstinate in his refusal to comply, whether he’s polite about it or not, doesn’t answer the question of what the police are entitled to do about it. Continue reading →

No one has been convicted of anything yet, but the sentence of the mob has been swift and brutal. An onlooker might wonder why the same folks who cry sad tears for convicted prisoners who have paid their debt to society, say Matthew Charles, are so mindlessly harsh to the unconvicted prisoners of their hatred, but the answer is plain: the concern isn’t with burdens of proof or evidence, process or proportionality. They are every bit as harsh as the other tribe, but just focus their hatred on a different group.

“Right now, we shouldn’t concern ourselves with these men’s future careers at all. If there’s a time for that, it hasn’t come yet. We should be worried first about the careers of the women they harassed.” https://t.co/uKTkEw30Un #MeToo #TimesUp

— NARAL (@NARAL) May 31, 2018

Should Louis CK be given another chance? What about Charlie Rose, or Matt Lauer? Or should they be doomed to spend the rest of their lives as sexual pariahs? Continue reading →

It was the GDPR that did it.  All manner of updates to programs and updates that keep blogs alive caused significant changes in the code behind the curtain at SJ, which caused a particular plugin to implode, wreaking havoc here, preventing me from accessing the dashboard and making my morning really lousy.

Thankfully (and I mean this in every sense of the word), @ConnerLeo came to my rescue, spending a few hours cleaning up the mess, where my host couldn’t manage to get around to it. We’re back, thanks to Leo. Regular posting will resume tomorrow.

Justice of the Peace Caudia Brown had a message to send. At least she says so.

Now it may be that Willis, charged with murder, wasn’t going to get affordable bail no matter what, but he doesn’t seem to be the right defendant to pick to make much of a point about there being “many sitting in jail and they can’t afford to get out.” Murder is still a pretty serious crime, even in Texas. Continue reading →

The story would sound absurd, and, indeed, does, if you read it without understanding how and why it happens. But if you understood the problem, it’s not nearly as crazy as it seems. Queens City Councilman Rory Lancman plans to introduce a bill to require a notification system when a person is held on $1 bail.

City Councilman Rory Lancman, who heads the Committee on the Justice System, plans to introduce a bill Wednesday to amend the city administrative code to require a notification system. “I don’t believe someone should be held on $500 bail, let alone $1,” he said.

A perfectly normal, if uninformed, reaction is, “that’s crazy; why would any judge set $1 bail?” The answer is pretty simple, really. It’s for the benefit of the defendant who has more than one charge. When bail is set for a more serious charge, but the defendant also has separate charges, by setting $1 bail, he gets jail time credit for the time he spends in custody for each case. If not, the defendant is technically viewed as “free” on one case while in custody on another, and gets no credit for the case on which no bail is set. Hence, $1, just so the jail time inures to his benefit. Continue reading →

With great power comes great responsibility. Was it irresponsible of Elon Musk to challenge the media? No. It was far worse.

Female journalists who cover Elon Musk have the same personal rule: Mention his name on Twitter at your peril.

That’s because there is an army—mostly young, mostly white, almost entirely men—that marches behind him. These MuskBros, as we call them, make it their mission to descend on women who criticize Musk, and tear them to pieces. I know, because it has happened to me. More than once.

Erin Biba is a victim of these MuskBros, Not because they are fans of Musk, but because she’s female. Continue reading →

In April, London’s mayor had enough. Something had to be done.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced a crackdown on knives Sunday in response to the rising levels of violence in London, which recently surpassed New York City’s homicide rate for the first time.

“No excuses: there is never a reason to carry a knife,” Khan tweeted. “Anyone who does will be caught, and they will feel the full force of the law.”

The idea of London’s murder rate exceeding New York’s seems rather shocking, though it may have more to do with New York’s declining rate than London’s increasing rate. Regardless, Mayor Khan’s “no excuses” struck a nerve. There are a great many very good, and very normal, reasons to carry a knife. His point was that these good reasons were no longer good enough, given the need to end the violence of murder by knife. Continue reading →

In contrast to those who call themselves “survivors” for having endured the trauma of sad feelings, Memorial Day honors those who did not survive. They couldn’t be fixed by Play-Doh or a comfort gerbil. They gave their lives. it’s been my tradition to offer a Memorial Day post over the years, and there’s no reason to break the tradition today.

In a town known as Oyster Bay, Long Island, they hold a parade on Memorial Day. It’s old school, marching bands and little league teams. And a few old cars with vets and prom queens waving at the crowd while the local men’s club hands out little American flags and lollipops to the kids. It’s quite charming if there’s still room in your dark heart for American tradition. Continue reading →

This is a guest post by Joe Otte, a public defender — until June 8th when his resignation is official — in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, who fought for his clients and colleagues. Not only against the prosecution, but against his Chief Public Defender.

The Allegheny County Office of the Public Defender has a history of gross underfunding, lawsuits, and broken promises.  There has been incremental progress, but many problems persist.  The problems are made worse by the fact that Chief Public Defender Elliot Howsie is shirking his duty to his clients in the pursuit of a judicial appointment.

Mr. Howsie’s decision to place his political ambitions over the best interests of the office, and by extension, his clients, is no secret.  Saying this and proving it, however, are two different things.  Thankfully, Mr. Howsie is making it easier to prove.  In an effort to quell discontent among his attorneys and staff, he has repeatedly claimed that his hands are tied by the county government because “there is no room in the budget.” Continue reading →

It seems beyond absurd in retrospect that Matthew Charles has to return to prison. His story is the rare one where reason and emotion align.

Since his release in 2016, Charles has held a steady job. He volunteers every Saturday, has reconnected with his family, and started a serious relationship. But really, his rehabilitation started years prior.

In prison, he took college classes and correspondence courses, he taught a GED program and became a law clerk. With his training, he helped other incarcerated men understand the judicial system long after their public defenders moved on to the next case.

Charles kept the secrets of those who were illiterate so they wouldn’t face ridicule or harassment — he read them letters from the court and drafted filings for them in the library. He organized bible studies and counseled newcomers. Two decades in federal insitututions — from maximum to low security — without a single disciplinary infraction.

Continue reading →