The name says it all according to Kevin Johnson in this story in USA Today. The Caston Brothers aka “James Gang” from Lake Providence, LA had their lives planned for them at birth. Their father named all three sons, Jesse, Frank and Sonny after the outlaw James Gang. Jesse James Caston who was on the FBI’s Most Wanted in 2000 believes neither he nor his brothers ever had chance. All three brothers are serving life sentences in a Louisiana State Prison. According to Johnson, social scientists and law enforcement believe many people are becoming criminals because of family members and this is seen as a persistent problem.

Rape in the U.S. Military is becoming an unpunished crime, claims Lucinda Marshall of the Feminist Peace Network in this L.A. Times blowback piece. She is reacting to Anne K. Ream’s recent Op-Ed, noted in Monday’s News Scan, regarding whether a man convicted of rape as a civilian still deserved a traditional military burial. Ream pointed out that allowing a traditional burial sends a message to victims: sexual violence does not measure up to prior military service. Marshall notes that charges were dropped against an Army Reserve Sergeant in Lebanon, Pennsylvania after fellow soldiers refused to cooperate with the police. His lawyer said all charges should have been dropped anyway, “After all, he did serve his country”.

Lawyer Receives a Slap on the Wrist for aiding in Terrorism:
Larry Neumeister has this AP story on the sentencing appeal in the case of civil rights attorney Lynne Stewart. She was "convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, two counts of making false statements, providing and concealing material support to terrorist activity in 2005." She was sentenced to only two years and four months in prison for her role in helping her client, blind sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, communicate with fellow terrorists from behind bars. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Barkow asked the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday to re-sentence the civil rights attorney on the grounds that the trial judge was excessively lenient on her punishment by not adding a terrorism enhancement to her conviction. The Appeals Court has to consider if the judge failed in sentencing Ms. Stewart correctly.

New York’s bill will regulate sex offenders’ use on the Internet: A bill written by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office was announced Tuesday by Cuomo and the leaders of both houses, according to this AP story. "State corrections law already requires offenders to provide Internet screen names, but the new legislation would clarify and expand the information they must supply and permit sharing it with social networking sites and other online services. That would allow the sites to screen or remove offenders from their sites and notify authorities about any illegal behavior." If passed, proponents say, the law will help sites to protect children and teens better from Internet predators by screening, removing, and notifying authorities about any illegal behavior from sex offenders on online sites. New York is getting harder on sex offenders' use of the Internet.