Tag Archives: Law

Self-executing mode —John Fretti

Someone posting as Mayor John Fretti of Valdosta responded in a comment to Leigh Touchton. Mayor Fretti, please point us to where on the web is the video you mention. -jsq
Update 12:13 AM 23 April 2011: Mayor Fretti confirms (through three different channels) that this post was by him:
THat was my post. an attempt to reach out and help explain a few things. the video, as was al evidence in the case was exchanged durig the discovery part of the motion. the video should be with that.
I have asked him whether an open records request would produce the video. Back to the original post. -jsq
With all due respect to Leigh’s version of the arrest – and it is all on video, it happened in the end by way of self – executing mode. After repeated requests for the group to relinquish the podium and rose stating each time that they will not and we “must do what we have to do”. the Mayor asked if there was any objection from Council or city manager or attorney if WE allow Chief Frank Simons to approach the crowd and do what he sees necessary to allow the meeting to continue efficiently and effectively. There was some discussion and then John Fason (Cmdr.) asked if anyone wants to go to jail – to follow him. and they all did – no cuffs, no restraints. Peacefully. That’s it. and all on video for all to see. With respect to the charges filed, they were old STATE charges and were ruled out as overbroad and (something else). That was fine. There was an appeal by the solicitor General and again the old STATE laws were ruled overbroad and (something else). as they should have been. We have our own local laws and ordinances now that have been tested strong in court.

and now here it the Paul Harvey moment…

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Jeanie P. Boland resigns as executive director of Brantley County Development Authority

Chris Buchanan wrote in Enterprise online on 4 March 2011, Boland resigns from DA executive director’s post:
Boland had also been working to gain more information on the possible expansion of the Humpty Dumpty Hotel owned by Foodonics, however, she came under fire for holding private meetings with the company without the knowledge of the rest of the authority which has caused some in the community to cry foul.

But after the allegations arose, Boland maintained that the meetings were for gathering information only and that she was merely waiting to get all the facts before presenting them to the board.

Their board is considering passing an open records policy to match the Georgia state law, but doesn’t like it much:
“They can ask you until you’re blue in the face and they don’t have to explain what they’re going to do with them,” he said. “But I know there’s nothing you can do about it.”
They also want to change their financial audit cycle from annually to every three years.

-jsq

Jails Reap Millions Off U.S. Illegal Alien Crackdown

Betty Liu reports for Bloomberg that Jails Reap Millions Off U.S. Illegal Alien Crackdown:
The big winner in the crackdown on the illegal immiggration has been the private prison industry. As Bloomberg Business Week reports in its latest issue, companies such as Corrections Corporation of America are making millions. In fact, CCA makes more money from detaining immigrants than it does from any single U.S. state.
She goes on to mention CCA’s stock price has gone up by a factor of ten since 9/11.


Bloomberg’s Betty Liu reports, 18 March 2011. (Source: Bloomberg)

The source of the money CCA and its investors and executives are making? Our tax dollars!

With all the additional jail time, misdemeanors, and felonies in new state laws such as Arizona’s, states could catch up with the feds in paying CCA through the nose!

-jsq

“consider ending drug prohibition” “stop the hypocrisy.” –Frank Serpico

One of our readers doesn’t believe Frank Serpico is for legalization of drugs, despite what filmmaker Connie Littlefield and LEAP say. Fair enough: that’s circumstantial evidence. Let’s see what Serpico himself says.

Frank Serpico in his blog, 27 March 2007:

DAMAGE DONE
THE DRUG WAR ODYSSEY
THE FILM
THE COPS
THE FILM MAKERS

After 30 years of drug war, illegal narcotics are decreasing in price, increasing in purity and demand continues to surge. The heroes of this film are veterans of the drug war and they urge us to consider ending drug prohibition. They have had a complete revolution in their thinking. Now they are working to end the War on Drugs. Find out what happened to change their minds.

http://www.drugwarodyssey.com/

Serpico quoted in the website for the film he recommends:

“I think Prohibition is causing the public to lose their respect because they’re enforcing laws that basically aren’t hurting anybody. I think we have to stop the hypocrisy.”
That website’s summary of the film: Continue reading →

How do anti-amnesty directives equate to available prison labor for private prisons?

Somebody recently asked:
I have seen no verification that the private prisons intend to make money from inmate labor & the recent article claiming prison labor would displace more citizen jobs if illegals were jailed as a positive for amnesty was ridiculous. All anti-amnesty directives I have seen call for the illegals being deported back to their country of origin ASAP. How does this equate to available prison labor for private prisons?
OK, let’s go look at the anti-immigrant law passed by Arizona. It’s littered with “federal custody” and “imprisoned not more than thirty days” and “imprisoned not more than six months” and “A person who is sentenced pursuant to this section is not eligible for suspension or commutation of sentence or release on any basis until the sentence imposed is served.” and “class 1 misdemeanor” and “class 3 felony” and “class 4 felony” and “twenty days in jail” and “thirty days in jail”.

Arizona Revised Statutes Section 11-1051

D. Notwithstanding any other law, a law enforcement agency may securely transport an alien who the agency has received verification is unlawfully present in the united states and who is in the agency’s custody to a federal facility in this state or to any other point of transfer into federal custody that is outside the jurisdiction of the law enforcement agency. a law enforcement agency shall obtain judicial authorization before securely transporting an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States to a point of transfer that is outside of this state.

13-1509. Trespassing by illegal aliens; assessment; exception; classification Continue reading →

Condos and Agricultural Zoning: latest redraft of ULDC update

Jason Davenport, County Planner, has produced another redraft of the proposed changes to the Lowndes County, Georgia Unified Land Devleopment Code (ULDC). Here is his cover letter and here is the PDF of the proposed changes. Here’s the first table again:

During yesterday’s 3PM work session, Commissioner Lee asked the County Planner Continue reading →

ULDC Update Redraft for Monday’s Planning Commission

The Technical Review Committee (TRC) has reviewed the ULDC update and has produced a final draft for the Planning Commission, which meets Monday 25 October 2010 at 5:30 PM, still at the old county commission chambers at 325 W. Savannah Avenue.

More here about condominiums.

-jsq

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What is a Condominium?

Regarding condominiums and zoning in the Lowndes County ULDC, Georgia condominium law basically says that zoning can’t deny condos if some other form of ownership is permitted. If there’s a five acre minimum, only one condo unit could fit in that five acres, but with community membership with the other condos on the associated property.. For example, on an 18 acre piece of property, the maximum number of units would be 3 or 4.

Of course, a condominium doesn’t have to be a dwelling unit. As Gary Stock points out The key feature is joint ownership:

“A condominium is not a building. It is a form of ownership.”
it could be a horse farm, a hunting camp, a fishing club, or other. There usually needs to be a general common area, then some limited common areas with building envelopes for condo unit owners to use to build buildings (or maybe buildings are already there). The catch is that because a condominium is all one piece of property jointly owned, drawing limited common areas and building envelopes doesn’t require zoning approval.

Appended is one of the more relevant sections of the Georgia code.

-jsq

§ 44-3-114. Effect of article upon land use, zoning, building, and subdivision laws; effect of Code Section 44-3-92; applicability of land use and zoning ordinances or laws to expandable condominium
Continue reading →

Results of lack of education

Juarez, Mexico, is farther down the road of emphasizing law and order over education and jobs, as Melissa del Bosque reports in the Texas Observer abo ut Mexico’s Lost Generations:
When Juarez’s (soon to be outgoing) Mayor Jose Reyes-Ferriz visited Austin last April something he said stuck with me.

He told the audience that a failure to invest in schools and other public infrastructure had led to the lawlessness in his city. Instead of schools and daycare centers, city leadership only invested in maquila parks and roads. Children were left on the streets to fend for themselves as their parents worked in the maquila factories for meager wages.

Mexican president Calderon, previously consumed by the drug war, finally noticed and did something:
“More than 5,000 residents have received job-training grants or temporary work sprucing up parks and sidewalks and planting trees. Officials added thousands of families to a government insurance program and handed out 6,000 scholarships in a city where few students were receiving such help.”

“It’s not enough to analyze it only in terms of public safety. You have serious gaps in the social and economic [areas] that have to be closed,” said Antonio Vivanco, a Calderon advisor overseeing the development effort.

Todos somos Juarez (We Are All Juarez).

-jsq