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Thứ Hai, 15 tháng 4, 2013

Connecticut lawsuit questions origin of gun buy-back program

By Lisa Barron

(Reuters) - A social entrepreneur is accusing a Connecticut designer who worked with Newark, New Jersey police to melt illegal guns into jewelry of stealing his idea and business model, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court.

Peter Thum, a co-founder of an organization called Fonderie 47, claims he shared his idea with Jessica Mindich of Greenwich, Connecticut and her company, Jewelry for a Cause, who implemented it in Newark without his permission.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Connecticut last week, asks the court to prevent Mindich and her company from advertising themselves as the originators of the concept. It also seeks an undetermined amount of punitive damages.

Mindich told Reuters the lawsuit is without merit.

"Melting down guns and turning them into symbols of hope is something that has been practiced for many years," she said in an email on Monday.

In his lawsuit, Thum said he designed and implemented a program to buy AK-47 assault rifles from governments in Africa, make them into jewelry for sale and use part of the proceeds to fund more weapon buy-back programs.

Thum claims he shared his concept and business structure in detail with Mindich at a conference for social entrepreneurs in December 2011.

He said the conference, whose location was not disclosed in the lawsuit, was covered by written and implied confidentiality provisions.

The online registration portion of the invitation-only conference, called "The Weekend to be Named Later," says: "Poaching ideas isn't cool anywhere, but at the Weekend it's grounds for death by stoning."

In what his lawsuit referred to as the "social purpose business," success is linked to being the first to implement a program designed to solve a social problem, it said.

Mindich told Thum she wanted to do something similar in New Jersey but he said no, said Thum's attorney, Judd Burstein.

Mindich promised in writing to abandon her project but nevertheless used the idea in the gun buy-back program in Newark in January, according to the lawsuit.

The Newark program dubbed "Caliber Collection" featured steel bangles and cuffs made from illegal guns and brass pieces made from casings swept from city crime scenes.

The cuffs and bracelets, available with or without diamonds, ranged in price from $150 for a steel cuff to $375 for a brass bangle with diamonds, Jewelry for a Cause said on its website.

A portion of the proceeds was earmarked to fund gun buy-back amnesty programs in Newark, New Jersey's largest city which is plagued by gun violence.

So far, $60,000 in proceeds have gone back to Newark to fund the purchase of more illegal guns, said Mindich, who said the program grew out of a discussion she had with Newark Mayor Cory Booker in December 2011.

"Fonderie 47 chose not to participate in this effort," she said.

Mindich noted that in the 1980s, San Francisco Mayor Diane Feinstein had her own handgun and others melted down and made into a cross which was presented to Pope John Paul II.

In 2003, guns seized in Orange County, California were melted down into rebar, steel rods used in construction, while Britain's Guns to Goods melts weapons into an array of products and California-based Bullets 4 Peace makes jewelry out of bullet casings, she said.

"All of these approaches have their routes in the ancient biblical reference of turning swords into ploughshares," she said in her email.

Thum's lawsuit said the weapons were re-purposed as "Caliber Collection" jewelry to be promoted at the MTV Movie Awards on television.

"Mindich cynically rode the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy into a nationally publicized and, for her, lucrative partnership with MTV," it said.

"In order to accomplish this task, Mindich has brazenly lied about the source of her business, instead telling the media no less than four different stories about the supposed inspiration for a concept that, in reality, she simply pilfered," it said.

Last December, a gunman shot and killed 26 people at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, spurring demands nationwide for tougher gun control laws.

If he wins the case, Thum will donate all damages awarded, aside from court costs, to charities working to reduce gun violence, his attorney said.

(Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst and Eric Walsh)

View the original article here

Thứ Ba, 2 tháng 4, 2013

Armed teachers? NRA task force suggests voluntary program

A task force on school safety commissioned by the National Rifle Association raised the prospect Tuesday of arming school personnel – including teachers – after they have gone through comprehensive training.

Such a program would be voluntary, but could be crucial to halting an “active shooter” in a school and could save lives, said former Congressman Asa Hutchinson, director of the NRA's National School Shield Task Force.

“The key is reducing that response time,” said Mr. Hutchinson, speaking at a press conference at the National Press Club, where he unveiled a series of recommendations by the task force.

The “model training programs” the report recommends would be available to both “school resource officers” – police officers assigned to a school – and to school personnel, and would entail 40 to 60 hours of training.

The report’s release comes amid fierce debate on Capitol Hill over proposed federal gun legislation almost four months after the Newtown, Conn., elementary school massacre that jump-started national debate on firearms. President Obama heads to Colorado on Wednesday to call attention to new gun control measures enacted by that state, scene of two of the biggest mass shootings in US history.

Next Monday, the president goes to Connecticut for another event focused on guns.

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The prospects for federal legislation remain uncertain, as gun-friendly legislators appear to have beaten back efforts to renew a ban on military-style assault weapons, such as the one used by the Newtown shooter. A proposed ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines is also on the ropes. Now, analysts say, gun control advocates’ best hope may be for expanded background checks for gun buyers. The legislation also includes money devoted to school safety.

Hutchinson largely avoided discussing the federal legislative battle, instead focusing on measures that schools can take now to assess security and make improvements. He also presented a more congenial pro-gun face to the public, compared with NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre’s memorable appearance before reporters soon after Newtown.

Then, Mr. LaPierre struck an aggressive posture toward the media, taking no questions, and offering no hint of compromise on any aspect of gun ownership.

“The only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun,” he said.

Hutchinson, in contrast, was less absolute. On Tuesday, for example, he made clear that the task force was not recommending that all teachers be armed.

“Teachers should teach,” said Hutchinson, former administrator of the US Drug Enforcement Administration. “But if there is [one with] good experience, that has an interest in it and is willing to go through this training of, again, 40 to 60 hours that is totally comprehensive, then that is an appropriate resource that a school should be able to utilize.”

Hutchinson also made clear that while the task force recommends the presence of armed personnel in schools, each school district will decide what it wants to do.

“We want to make sure that our best practices and our resources are available to them, whatever decision that they make,” he said.

The report also recommends that the National School Shield become an umbrella organization on school safety, providing free access to a web-based assessment of a school’s security plan and to a database of best practices. The NRA has budgeted more than $1 million to aid school districts in their efforts to enhance security.

States would need to change laws to allow school personnel to carry firearms while they go through the model training program, he said. The report includes a model state law, and South Dakota recently passed such a law.

In Connecticut, home of the Newtown massacre, state legislation is moving in the opposition direction. On Wednesday, the state’s General Assembly will take up gun-control legislation that would expand the state’s ban on assault weapons, limit ammunition magazines to 10 rounds, and require background checks for all gun purchases, including those at gun shows.

Hutchinson called the Connecticut legislation “totally inadequate” as a measure aimed at enhancing school safety.

“You can address assault weapons and it doesn't stop someone bringing in a .45 caliber firearm into the school,” he said. “It doesn't stop violence in the schools. And so if you're going to protect children, you have to do something about school safety and enhancing our safety measures in school. It can be done, and that's the whole purpose of this task force.”

Hutchinson did not present a total cost figure for the task force’s proposals, noting for example that in one jurisdiction an armed guard might cost $60,000 to $90,000, while in California, the cost tops $100,000. Another member of the task force said that the cost of providing the 40 to 60 hours of firearms training to school resource officers and school personnel would cost between $800 and $1,000.

The task force did not address the specifics of how many armed personnel would be required to secure a school, based on the configuration of a school building or buildings, or the number of students. Doors are also important – how many there are, how they lock. Recess and other times when students might be outside present another vulnerability. On all of the above, each school district would have to make its own determination, Hutchinson said.

“Obviously, an SRO [school resource officer] in every school building is important,” he said. “But right now you have SROs rotating maybe between three campuses. I would judge that insufficient.”

The Democratic chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force took issue with the NRA task force proposal. Rep. Mike Thompson (D) of California, a hunter and gun owner, called school safety efforts important, but added that "arming school personnel and training them for shootouts will only exacerbate problems."

Thứ Năm, 28 tháng 3, 2013

Indiana's expansive school voucher program upheld: A model for others?

The Indiana Supreme Court Tuesday unanimously upheld the state’s expansive school voucher program, which extends to middle-income families the opportunity to send their children to private schools with public assistance.

A coalition of teachers, parents, and union officials had challenged the voucher program as unconstitutional, saying it uses public money to promote religious education.

But Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Brent Dickson wrote that whether or not the program is “wise educational or public policy,” it is constitutional because the state funds "do not directly benefit religious schools but rather directly benefit lower-income families with school children."

The ruling is considered a precedent for other states that say parents should have greater choice in where their children attend school.

“This ruling is a model, or a roadmap, for how to structure a [school voucher law] law that is the most expansive in the nation,” says Terry Spradlin, associate director of education policy at the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy at Indiana University in Bloomington.

The ruling resulted from a 2011 lawsuit that challenged the constitutional merit of redirecting tax dollars from local public school districts to pay partial private school tuition. The Indiana State Teachers Association suggested the program is a backhanded method of funding religious activity, considering that the majority of private schools in Indiana are parochial. It also said it violated the state constitution that ensures uniform public school access.

“There are not many good private school choices outside religiously-affiliated schools in this program. Most parochial schools around the nation are struggling to survive, so parochial school advocates see this [voucher program] as a way to extend their livelihood,” Mr. Spradlin says.

The voucher program was pushed through by former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels as part of an education reform initiative that expanded private school access for lower- and middle-income households. Under the new program, a family of four earning less than $42,000 annually can receive up to 90 percent of the maximum state voucher, while the income cap for receiving 50 percent of that aid is $62,000 annually.

The Indiana program “is a little more expansive than more narrow programs that exist around the nation,” such as those in Wisconsin and Ohio, for example, which are limited to students attending public schools in Milwaukee and Cleveland respectively, says Spradlin.

This is the second school year the program is in operation and the number of voucher recipients has jumped 140 percent, to 9,424 students receiving them for this school year, compared with 3,919 the last. The majority of vouchers used are in Indianapolis, where the number of students in the city’s public school system receiving vouchers increased 96 percent, from 644 in the last school year to 1,262 students today.

Indiana Gov. Mike Pence praised the court decision, releasing a statement Tuesday that said “parents should be able to choose where their children go to school, regardless of their income” and that the state “must continue to find ways to expand educational opportunities for all Indiana families.”

A current bill that passed the state House and is currently up for debate in the Senate would expand the vouchers to kindergarten students. Under current law, students must attend at least two semesters in public schools before becoming eligible for vouchers.

Thứ Ba, 26 tháng 3, 2013

Indiana court upholds broadest school voucher program

By Stephanie Simon

(Reuters) - The Indiana Supreme Court on Tuesday unanimously upheld the nation's broadest school voucher program, which lets poor and middle-class students attend private schools at public expense.

Opponents, including the state teachers union, had sued to block the program on grounds that nearly all the voucher money has been directed to religious schools.

Voucher systems have drawn flak across the United States from critics who say they drain money from public schools and are abused by wealthy families. Supporters say they offer families greater choice on where to educate their children.

In a 5-0 vote, the Indiana justices said that it did not matter that funds had been directed to religious schools, so long as parents - and not the state - decide where to use the tuition vouchers.

"Whether the Indiana program is wise educational or public policy is not a consideration," Chief Justice Brent Dickson wrote. The program is constitutional, he wrote, because the public funds "do not directly benefit religious schools but rather directly benefit lower-income families with school children."

The Supreme Court used similar reasoning in a 2002 ruling upholding a voucher program in Cleveland. Since then, voucher programs have been challenged in state, rather than federal, court. But opponents have found it an uphill climb.

Just last month, a state appeals court in Colorado upheld a voucher program that helped parents in one of the wealthiest counties in the U.S. pay private school tuition. The case is on appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court. Another closely-watched voucher case is pending in the Louisiana Supreme Court; a ruling is expected soon.

The Indiana voucher program is considered among the broadest in the U.S. because it is not limited to low-income students or those attending failing schools -- and because it is available to children statewide. A family of four with a household income of $64,000 a year is eligible for vouchers worth up to $4,500 per child.

This year, more than 9,000 students in Indiana are receiving vouchers; many are using them to pay tuition at parochial schools. Republican Governor Mike Pence has pushed to expand the program by opening eligibility to special-needs students and children in military families if their household income is as high as $85,000 for a family of four.

The Indiana legislature is also considering a bill that would give vouchers to kindergarten students who meet the income guidelines. The program currently requires students to spend a full year in public schools before they are eligible for a voucher.

Nationally, 12 states and Washington, D.C. offer vouchers to some students. An estimated 100,000 students across the country participate.

Teachers have complained that the vouchers divert money from traditional public schools.

"Just because the Indiana Supreme Court said it's OK by our constitution doesn't mean this is a good idea," said Teresa Meredith, vice president of the Indiana State Teachers Association and a plaintiff in the case. "I don't believe it's a wise use of public money. It's still, at the end of the day, funding religious instruction" with tax dollars."

Supporters of the voucher program predicted that the ruling would clear the way for a rapid expansion of vouchers in Indiana and statewide.

"Kids and parents won today," said Robert Enlow, president of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, which supports voucher programs nationally. "Other states should look at this victory and see that the education establishment's ability to obstruct families' freedom to choose is waning."

(Reporting by Stephanie Simon, editing by Scott Malone and Andrew Hay)

View the original article here

Indiana court upholds broadest school voucher program

By Stephanie Simon

(Reuters) - The Indiana Supreme Court on Tuesday unanimously upheld the nation's broadest school voucher program, which lets poor and middle-class students attend private schools at public expense.

Opponents, including the state teachers union, had sued to block the program on grounds that nearly all the voucher money has been directed to religious schools.

In a 5-0 vote, the Indiana justices said that it did not matter that funds had been directed to religious schools, so long as parents - and not the state - decide where to use the tuition vouchers.

Nationally, 12 states and Washington, D.C. offer vouchers to some students. An estimated 100,000 students across the country participate.

Teachers have complained that the vouchers divert money from traditional public schools.

Supporters of the voucher program predicted that the ruling would clear the way for a rapid expansion of vouchers in Indiana and statewide.

(Reporting by Stephanie Simon, editing by Scott Malone and Andrew Hay)

View the original article here

Chủ Nhật, 24 tháng 2, 2013

Gibbs: I was told not to acknowledge existence of drone program

Gibbs (Getty)

Robert Gibbs, President Barack Obama's former press secretary, says that he was once instructed by the White House not to acknowledge the administration's use of drones.

"When I went through the process of becoming press secretary, one of the first things they told me was, you're not even to acknowledge the drone program," Gibbs said on MSNBC's "Up With Chris Hayes" on Sunday. "You're not even to discuss that it exists."

Or, to paraphrase an oft-quoted line from David Fincher's 1999 film "Fight Club": The first rule of the drone program is you do not talk about the drone program.

Gibbs, who was recently hired by MSNBC as a contributor, called the proposition "inherently crazy."

"You're being asked a question based on reporting of a program that exists," Gibbs, who served as White House press secretary from 2009 to 2011, said. "So you're the official government spokesperson acting as if the entire program—pay no attention to the man behind the curtain."

Obama's former spokesman said that while the administration has recently expressed the need to be more transparent about its use of drones, certain aspects of that program are "highly sensitive" and will likely remain secret.

“I have not talked to him about this, so I want to be careful," Gibbs said, "but I think what the president has seen is, our denial of the existence of the program when it’s obviously happening undermines people’s confidence overall in the decisions that their government makes.”

View the original article here