Feds Plan to Cut Border Monitoring: U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to reduce aerial surveillance on the Texas-Mexico border by roughly 50% compared to recent years. Julian Aguilar of the Texas Tribune reports that the request comes as Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports new surges of illegal immigrants crossing the border: between October and December 2015 in the Rio Grande Valley, 10,560 unaccompanied minors from Central America illegally crossed the border, a 115 percent increase from the year prior. Central American family units entering Texas increased by 170 percent to 14,336. In the El Paso sector, 1,030 unaccompanied minors surged at the border, an increase of nearly 300 percent. On top of the flow of more migrants from Central America, 28,400 Cubans recently entered Texas through CBP's Laredo office, fleeing Cuba to the U.S. after the Obama administration announced plans in 2014 to re-establish ties with the country. Gov. Greg Abbott says that given the recent flow of migrants along the southern border, more, not less, surveillance and security resources are needed.
Facebook Bans Sale of Guns: Following Friday's announcement that Facebook will ban users from facilitating the sale of guns, parts and ammunition on the popular social media website, the White House is not saying whether the decision stemmed from pressure from the Obama administration. Nicole Duran of the Washington Examiner reports that the administration admitted to meeting with Facebook to address the loophole but refused to comment on whether this action came from any specific request. Licensed dealers have been granted an exception to post and present their inventory online but are now required to have the transaction occur elsewhere, not on the website.
Lifelong Sex Offender GPS Monitoring Upheld: The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 3-0 decision, ruled Friday that requiring a convicted sex offender to be fitted with a GPS anklet for life does not violate the constitutional ban on retroactive punishment, despite the law being passed after a the offender's conviction. Andrew Blake of the Washington Times reports that the decision overturned a federal judge's ruling that it was unconstitutional to make 72-year-old Wisconsin child sex offender Michael Belleau, who was civilly committed to a secure treatment center in 2004, wear an electronic monitoring bracelet when he was released from civil commitment in 2010, two years after the requirement was put on the books. Belleau's 2012 lawsuit argued that the requirement was unconstitutional since it retroactively punished him for conduct made criminal "after the fact" and amounted to unreasonable search and seizure. However, the appellate panel said last week that the requirement "is not punishment; it is prevention," noting that the objective is to protect children rather than punish sex offenders.
L.A. County Accidentally Freed Murder Suspect: A paperwork error has resulted in the erroneous release of a murder suspect from the Los Angeles County jail over the weekend. Joseph Serna of the LA Times reports that 37-year-old Steve Lawrence Wright, accused of a 2011 gang-related murder, was sentenced last week to five days in jail for a contempt of court conviction he received while awaiting trial, for which he had to attend court. When transferred back to the Inmate Reception Center from court, the docket number for his contempt of court case was accidentally put in the box where his murder case should have gone, making it appear that he was due for release on Saturday instead of being held without bond pending trial. His Saturday afternoon release went unnoticed until 9:30 p.m. that evening. In 2013, 24 inmates were mistakenly released early after being processed by the Inmate Reception Center, dropping to 21 in 2014 and six last year.
Facebook Bans Sale of Guns: Following Friday's announcement that Facebook will ban users from facilitating the sale of guns, parts and ammunition on the popular social media website, the White House is not saying whether the decision stemmed from pressure from the Obama administration. Nicole Duran of the Washington Examiner reports that the administration admitted to meeting with Facebook to address the loophole but refused to comment on whether this action came from any specific request. Licensed dealers have been granted an exception to post and present their inventory online but are now required to have the transaction occur elsewhere, not on the website.
Lifelong Sex Offender GPS Monitoring Upheld: The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 3-0 decision, ruled Friday that requiring a convicted sex offender to be fitted with a GPS anklet for life does not violate the constitutional ban on retroactive punishment, despite the law being passed after a the offender's conviction. Andrew Blake of the Washington Times reports that the decision overturned a federal judge's ruling that it was unconstitutional to make 72-year-old Wisconsin child sex offender Michael Belleau, who was civilly committed to a secure treatment center in 2004, wear an electronic monitoring bracelet when he was released from civil commitment in 2010, two years after the requirement was put on the books. Belleau's 2012 lawsuit argued that the requirement was unconstitutional since it retroactively punished him for conduct made criminal "after the fact" and amounted to unreasonable search and seizure. However, the appellate panel said last week that the requirement "is not punishment; it is prevention," noting that the objective is to protect children rather than punish sex offenders.
L.A. County Accidentally Freed Murder Suspect: A paperwork error has resulted in the erroneous release of a murder suspect from the Los Angeles County jail over the weekend. Joseph Serna of the LA Times reports that 37-year-old Steve Lawrence Wright, accused of a 2011 gang-related murder, was sentenced last week to five days in jail for a contempt of court conviction he received while awaiting trial, for which he had to attend court. When transferred back to the Inmate Reception Center from court, the docket number for his contempt of court case was accidentally put in the box where his murder case should have gone, making it appear that he was due for release on Saturday instead of being held without bond pending trial. His Saturday afternoon release went unnoticed until 9:30 p.m. that evening. In 2013, 24 inmates were mistakenly released early after being processed by the Inmate Reception Center, dropping to 21 in 2014 and six last year.
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