This may not make the news, at least for a while, but yesterday a 14-year-old girl was raped on the Lake Wobegon Trail. She made identification of her assailant easier, by giving him a bloody nose.
Subsequent to the assault, she flagged down a local priest, who had a cell phone. Her cell phone was inoperable. The local priest called law enforcement, and police apprehended the alleged assailant (I trust that's cautious enough for American usage).
My wife called a family conference a few minutes ago, updated all of us on the events, and outlined changes in routines and procedures which are now necessary. We live within a block of the Lake Wobegon Trail.
Good news: The alleged assailant was apprehended, and may be discouraged from committing assaults in the future. And, the 14-year-old girl was able to get assistance in a timely fashion.
Bad news: This is 'small town America,' but we've got the same issues that the rest of America faces. Being on the Interstate and having a bike trail connection to larger population centers probably doesn't help.
I'm not one bit happy about this situation. I could maunder on about 'loss of innocence' and 'the good old days' - but the first is beyond recall, and I've got too good a memory to fall for the idea that 'Things Were Better When I Was Young.' They were different: but I'm not at all convinced that, for example, sniffing paint was better than burning out on meth.
Finally, I've redacted some details.
Showing posts with label law. Show all posts
Showing posts with label law. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Ambulance Chasers?
We got a rather impressive envelope Friday. It was from a law firm somewhere in Minnesota, with one of those folders inside to hold a sheaf of papers - one of them had photos of the distinguished attorneys. And, a cover letter that said they'd be happy to sue somebody for us.
Actually, what it was more like "make sure ... that our clients receive fair compensation for all their losses."
When I was growing up, an "ambulance chaser" was a lawyer or detective who, seeing an ambulance go by with the siren on, would chase it and try to get at whoever had been hurt. At that time, "ambulance chasers" didn't enjoy a very high status.
Judging from the quality of the mailing, this outfit must be making a pretty good profit: it takes money to assemble and send a package like that: Back when I was involved in direct mail advertising ("junk mail," if it isn't done right), I think it'd take a few dollars just for the package: plus the $2.02 for postage. . From a technical point of view, the whole thing was quite well done.
But, I know that sometimes a business, individual, or institution has to be encouraged to follow the rules. That's where lawyers and the court system come in. So, I've decided to see that law firm's promptly mailing that offer as a sort of public service.
Which we won't, I think, need. Or want.
Actually, what it was more like "make sure ... that our clients receive fair compensation for all their losses."
When I was growing up, an "ambulance chaser" was a lawyer or detective who, seeing an ambulance go by with the siren on, would chase it and try to get at whoever had been hurt. At that time, "ambulance chasers" didn't enjoy a very high status.
Judging from the quality of the mailing, this outfit must be making a pretty good profit: it takes money to assemble and send a package like that: Back when I was involved in direct mail advertising ("junk mail," if it isn't done right), I think it'd take a few dollars just for the package: plus the $2.02 for postage. . From a technical point of view, the whole thing was quite well done.
"Ambulance Chaser?" Maybe Not
I don't expect any trouble as we deal with the insurance companies, towing services, hospital, and law enforcement. The paperwork is going to be a little complicated - I looked up township names for the Osakis area while writing this post - but we'll get it done, and we've had a pretty good track record with this general sort of thing.But, I know that sometimes a business, individual, or institution has to be encouraged to follow the rules. That's where lawyers and the court system come in. So, I've decided to see that law firm's promptly mailing that offer as a sort of public service.
Which we won't, I think, need. Or want.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Wednesday:
Level 3 Sex Offender Down the Road?
I'll be back with another post, later in the day. Meanwhile, there's something in the news.
According to the Beacon, "Douglas James Felix, 36, is scheduled to be released from the Department of Corrections on March 5, and has listed Rose Park in Melrose as his intended destination upon release."
The Melrose Beacon discusses a fact sheet about Mr. Felix. Besides pointing out that Mr. Felix isn't wanted by the police and was legally released, it says that "Abuse of this information to threaten, harass or intimidate a registered offender is unacceptable and such acts could be charged as a crime." The Beacon also says the fact sheet "noted that such abuse of the information could result in the end of the notification laws."
I sincerely hope that nobody is impolite to Mr. Felix. It's nice that Minnesota lets Minnesotans know when sex offenders are going to be released, and where they say they're going to live. The state even provides "Offender Information" pages online. That link is to Mr. Felix's.
Mr. Felix's offense is described as "CSC 1-NO FRC-OTH FAM-13-15-F" - happily, the MN-DOC provides a translation: "Criminal Sexual Conduct ... No Force ... [against] Other Family" - the victim was a teenage girl, between 13 and 15. (The Sauk Centre Herald fleshed that out: "According to police reports, Felix has a history of sexual contact with juvenile females ages 11 to 15.")
A state of Minnesota publication says: "Compared to other offenders, sex offenders are less likely to recidivate in general, but are still more likely to reoffend with a sex crime."1 I also sincerely hope that Mr. Felix has reconsidered his priorities, is among the 96%-plus of sex offenders who don't reoffend1 - and that the experts are right.
We've heard about laws that states and communities pass, saying that sex offenders can't live within a certain distance of schools or parks: 500 feet, 2500 feet, whatever. Working with a law like that would be quite a trick in a place like Melrose. The whole town is about a mile (5280 feet) across.
Melrose, Minnesota:
View Larger Map
I doubt that Melrose has any laws or ordinances like that. The Beacon article said that only a few Level One Sex Offenders live there town at this point.
Anyway, 'distance' laws are based on assumptions that may not be true. A State of Minnesota publication2 says that assaults are likely to happen more than a mile, and less than 20 miles, from the caught-and-released offender's home.
That would make Melrose relatively safe, but puts my town near the middle of the potential target zone. I can't say that I'm happy about that.
There's not much for people to do in whatever area Mr. Felix decides to live, other than find out what he looks like and see to it that he isn't tempted by being left alone with teenage girls. (There's a rather unflattering couple of photos on the MN-DOC information page)
That, and behave ourselves, so that the state keeps giving us a heads-up when sex offenders are released.
1 "Sex Offender Recidivism in Minnesota April 2007" Minnesota Department of corrections
2 "Residential Proximity & Sex Offense Recidivism in Minnesota April 2007" Minnesota Department of corrections
Local News and the Released Sex Offender
Some of the Melrose Beacon's headlines this week:- "Fire departments called to straw bale fire"
- " 'For the Love of Kids!'" about a Fishing Derby
- "Meeting will inform city of sex offender's arrival"
According to the Beacon, "Douglas James Felix, 36, is scheduled to be released from the Department of Corrections on March 5, and has listed Rose Park in Melrose as his intended destination upon release."
The Melrose Beacon discusses a fact sheet about Mr. Felix. Besides pointing out that Mr. Felix isn't wanted by the police and was legally released, it says that "Abuse of this information to threaten, harass or intimidate a registered offender is unacceptable and such acts could be charged as a crime." The Beacon also says the fact sheet "noted that such abuse of the information could result in the end of the notification laws."
Official Views of Sex Offenders
As a Level Three Sex Offender, Mr. Felix has been identified as belonging to the most-likely-to-reoffend club.I sincerely hope that nobody is impolite to Mr. Felix. It's nice that Minnesota lets Minnesotans know when sex offenders are going to be released, and where they say they're going to live. The state even provides "Offender Information" pages online. That link is to Mr. Felix's.
Mr. Felix's offense is described as "CSC 1-NO FRC-OTH FAM-13-15-F" - happily, the MN-DOC provides a translation: "Criminal Sexual Conduct ... No Force ... [against] Other Family" - the victim was a teenage girl, between 13 and 15. (The Sauk Centre Herald fleshed that out: "According to police reports, Felix has a history of sexual contact with juvenile females ages 11 to 15.")
A state of Minnesota publication says: "Compared to other offenders, sex offenders are less likely to recidivate in general, but are still more likely to reoffend with a sex crime."1 I also sincerely hope that Mr. Felix has reconsidered his priorities, is among the 96%-plus of sex offenders who don't reoffend1 - and that the experts are right.
Small Town America and the Released Sex Offender
Melrose is only ten miles down the road from Sauk Centre, where I live. Aside from neighborly concern, I've got a family here. That makes me very aware of what's going on.We've heard about laws that states and communities pass, saying that sex offenders can't live within a certain distance of schools or parks: 500 feet, 2500 feet, whatever. Working with a law like that would be quite a trick in a place like Melrose. The whole town is about a mile (5280 feet) across.
Melrose, Minnesota:
View Larger Map
I doubt that Melrose has any laws or ordinances like that. The Beacon article said that only a few Level One Sex Offenders live there town at this point.
Anyway, 'distance' laws are based on assumptions that may not be true. A State of Minnesota publication2 says that assaults are likely to happen more than a mile, and less than 20 miles, from the caught-and-released offender's home.
That would make Melrose relatively safe, but puts my town near the middle of the potential target zone. I can't say that I'm happy about that.
There's not much for people to do in whatever area Mr. Felix decides to live, other than find out what he looks like and see to it that he isn't tempted by being left alone with teenage girls. (There's a rather unflattering couple of photos on the MN-DOC information page)
That, and behave ourselves, so that the state keeps giving us a heads-up when sex offenders are released.
-- -- -- -- --
1 "Sex Offender Recidivism in Minnesota April 2007" Minnesota Department of corrections
2 "Residential Proximity & Sex Offense Recidivism in Minnesota April 2007" Minnesota Department of corrections
Sunday, August 19, 2007
End-of-the-Weekend Report
Today was quite a bit like yesterday, plus going to church.
The rain has continued, and is welcome. I know: this is 'just talking about the weather,' but during a drought, rain is more important than usual.
The lawn of someone I talked with last week was so dry, the weeds were withering. Here in town, our weeds had been doing okay, but now the grass is starting to get green, too. Which means that it'll soon need mowing.
I've been told there was some excitement near our home recently. Someone I knew was arrested for stealing from the Alexandria Wal-Mart. And apparently he'd been living in a house near ours. It was a rental place, and the last two sets of tenants had lifestyles that encouraged the police to visit at intervals.
I'm not making excuses: if he's guilty, he must deal with the consequences. Still, it's a sad day for the guy and his family. I also hope that the stolen property was recovered.
Small town America is a wonderful place to live, but it's not paradise. Still, I'd rather live here.
The rain has continued, and is welcome. I know: this is 'just talking about the weather,' but during a drought, rain is more important than usual.
The lawn of someone I talked with last week was so dry, the weeds were withering. Here in town, our weeds had been doing okay, but now the grass is starting to get green, too. Which means that it'll soon need mowing.
I've been told there was some excitement near our home recently. Someone I knew was arrested for stealing from the Alexandria Wal-Mart. And apparently he'd been living in a house near ours. It was a rental place, and the last two sets of tenants had lifestyles that encouraged the police to visit at intervals.
I'm not making excuses: if he's guilty, he must deal with the consequences. Still, it's a sad day for the guy and his family. I also hope that the stolen property was recovered.
Small town America is a wonderful place to live, but it's not paradise. Still, I'd rather live here.
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Paris Hilton, Victim of Society
Paris Hilton, after serving five (official) days in jail, seems to have tired of playing prisoner there and is now confined to her humble home in West Hollywood.
She condescended to grace the LA County jail system with her presence after attending the MTV music awards last Sunday.
Arrangements with the county legal system had originally been for the hotel heiress to raise the tone of the LA jails for 45 days. This was later reduced to 23 days. Hilton's reason for refusing to prolong her personal appearance in Los Angeles' jails has not been officially proclaimed. Rumors of staph infections or overcrowding have been denied.
Ms. Hilton's visitation at the jail was the result of a conviction for "reckless driving stemming from a Sept. 7 arrest in Hollywood. Police said she appeared intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test. She had a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent, the level at which an adult driver is in violation of the law." (from the AP, May 04, 2007)
The hotel heiress subsequently violated terms of her probation, apparently as a result of following legal advice given by her publicist.
It's hard to take any of this fiasco seriously. I suspect that a commoner who had endangered others while driving in a state of marination would have had a more inconvenient encounter with law enforcement and the judicial system.
Ms. Hilton was released because of an unspecified "medical condition." Why the LA jails' medical services couldn't handle the heiress' complaint wasn't disclosed.
Despite appearances, our betters are almost indistinguishable from the rabble in terms of physiology, and may be evaluated and treated with the same medical procedures.
To be serious, this is disgusting. Whatever the facts, the appearance of this practical joke of a legal procedure is that those with wealth and position are held to a different, and much lower, standard of behavior than the rest of us.
Such preferential treatment is understandable, since we can neither reward nor punish those we deal with as effectively as those with wealth and position. That does not make it right.
In my opinion, separate rules for the wealthy and the riffraff encourages commoners and our betters to hold the law in contempt. That does not tend to encourage socially acceptable behavior.
In the long run, the big loser in this affair is Paris Hilton. Eventually, the shock of being confined to her multi-million-dollar abode, unable to attend award ceremonies and night spots as is her wont, will wear off. When that happens, I'm afraid that the lesson she learns from this will be that she, with the help of her family and vassals, may do as she pleases.
To someone with my beliefs, that state of mind is very bad for a person's interior welfare.
She condescended to grace the LA County jail system with her presence after attending the MTV music awards last Sunday.
Arrangements with the county legal system had originally been for the hotel heiress to raise the tone of the LA jails for 45 days. This was later reduced to 23 days. Hilton's reason for refusing to prolong her personal appearance in Los Angeles' jails has not been officially proclaimed. Rumors of staph infections or overcrowding have been denied.
Ms. Hilton's visitation at the jail was the result of a conviction for "reckless driving stemming from a Sept. 7 arrest in Hollywood. Police said she appeared intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test. She had a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent, the level at which an adult driver is in violation of the law." (from the AP, May 04, 2007)
The hotel heiress subsequently violated terms of her probation, apparently as a result of following legal advice given by her publicist.
It's hard to take any of this fiasco seriously. I suspect that a commoner who had endangered others while driving in a state of marination would have had a more inconvenient encounter with law enforcement and the judicial system.
Ms. Hilton was released because of an unspecified "medical condition." Why the LA jails' medical services couldn't handle the heiress' complaint wasn't disclosed.
Despite appearances, our betters are almost indistinguishable from the rabble in terms of physiology, and may be evaluated and treated with the same medical procedures.
To be serious, this is disgusting. Whatever the facts, the appearance of this practical joke of a legal procedure is that those with wealth and position are held to a different, and much lower, standard of behavior than the rest of us.
Such preferential treatment is understandable, since we can neither reward nor punish those we deal with as effectively as those with wealth and position. That does not make it right.
In my opinion, separate rules for the wealthy and the riffraff encourages commoners and our betters to hold the law in contempt. That does not tend to encourage socially acceptable behavior.
In the long run, the big loser in this affair is Paris Hilton. Eventually, the shock of being confined to her multi-million-dollar abode, unable to attend award ceremonies and night spots as is her wont, will wear off. When that happens, I'm afraid that the lesson she learns from this will be that she, with the help of her family and vassals, may do as she pleases.
To someone with my beliefs, that state of mind is very bad for a person's interior welfare.
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