Change Of Policy On Commenting.
I appreciate the comments people make on this blog. The above mentioned comment is the first I have had to delete. Hopefully, it will be the last.
I appreciate the comments people make on this blog. The above mentioned comment is the first I have had to delete. Hopefully, it will be the last.
Are attorneys now using the Tortorici case to not argue for competency hearings?
No. They're using the Tortorici case to argue that even though the guy is sick and may say a lot of crazy things; if he knows the date and he knows what a judge does and a jury does, you could find him fit [to stand trial]. ...
Those types of arguments are being made, I think in part based on this decision.
Why is that so dangerous?
Again, it's because the legal system requires a person to be competent so they can properly defend themselves. ... I was taught that that's how the system works. This is not an inquisitory system, where we're trying to figure it out. It's an adversary system, and the prosecution is going to use everything to their advantage. ... The defendant has to have that degree of minimal skills and minimal abilities to be able to assist in his defense in a reasonable and rational manner.
And Tortorici is being used to say, "Well, he doesn't have to have everything. If he knows what's going on, that may be enough." ... I don't know that that's what the court meant to say, but I think that's the way it may be used.
Since taking office in 1998, D.A. Murphy has strengthened criminal prosecutions, expanded the role of the D.A.'s Office in the community, and promoted crime victims' rights. Specifically, he has:
Increased the Office's felony conviction rate to 98.7%: the fourth highest conviction rate among the 62 counties in New York State.
A half-hour away, in Cobleskill, Jim and Roberta Brooks operate Catnap Books. Roberta agreed that more bookshops would be beneficial to everyone. "Unlike most types of businesses," she said, "used book sellers don't see each other as competition. The more bookshops in an area, the more reason for people to make a day browsing."
At Catnap, paperbacks are an especially good deal. "We offer a paperback exchange," Roberta said. "We sell them for a dollar and the customer can bring them back, in good condition, of course, and receive a fifty-cent credit. We also sell books that are a lot more expensive. And we sell prints, posters, ephemera—anything related to books. And my brother-in-law's maple syrup."
Catnap also is filled with a wide range of books, but does help to fill a specialty niche. "We carry some new books," Roberta explained, "especially books of local history—Catskill Region, Adirondacks, Mohawk Valley. There is a big interest around here in local history, particularly the Revolutionary War period. The Old Stone Fort in Schoharie carries certain books of local history, but the Fort is only open part of the year and we stock those books so that they are available year-round."
Although there isn't much space in Catnap to host readings," Roberta said, "we do occasionally have a book-signing for a local author." And Roberta finds that the public views book dealers as knowledgeable about activities in the larger community—and she thinks they're probably right. "People stop all the time to ask about B&B's, museums, antique shops and restaurants. Andy Rooney stopped one time, looking for a good place to have dinner."
Catnap is at 45 Main Street, Cobleskill. Their phone number is 518-254-0336. Open daily, 10-5, (in summer, often until 6) Thursdays, 10-8. You can email them at catnapbk@telenet.net.
Movie Title: Bowling For Columbia High (Not Yet Released).
Tagline: Our children are the future of America, unless they just happen to be nuts.
Plot Outline: Filmmaker Michael Moore explores the roots of America's predilection for locking the mentally ill in prison rather than giving them the psychiatric treatment they need. Focuses on poorly treated and untreated mental illness, not guns, as one source of school shootings.
Credited Cast:
Ralph Tortorici as himself. Tortorici, a severely mentally ill young man, held a class hostage with a gun at The University at Albany. Eventually, he was subdued, tried and sentenced to prison where he committed suicide.
John Romano as himself. 16 year old mentally ill boy who fired a gun filled with birdshot at Columbia High in Rensselaer County, New York. One person was injured by a ricochet. Romano received twenty years in prison, more time than many people have gotten for greater offenses. Appears to have been sentenced not for what he did, but for what he could have done if he hadn’t been tackled by some teachers. Made plea bargain while in mentally ill condition. Film speculates about Romano’s future. How will prison change him? Will he too commit suicide there?
Patricia DeAngelis ( a.k.a. Barb Wire ) as herself. District Attorney for Rensselaer County, New York. Offered mentally ill Romano a plea deal of twenty years. Told him he would get fifty years if he didn’t accept it. He took it. DeAngelis says her job is to protect the children of Rensselaer County. This film asks the question, “Is not Jon Romano one of those children, and is not prison a dangerous place?”
Cheryl Coleman as herself. Coleman was the prosecutor who successfully prosecuted Tortorici even after she didn’t think she had a case to prosecute. Was rewarded with a judgeship for her prosecutorial ability. She did not last long as a judge and would have had to step down if she had not resigned first. Her tenure as judge may explain why the voters of Rensselaer County did not want Patricia DeAngelis as judge during last year’s election. After she lost a child of her own and after Tortorici committed suicide, she felt responsible for his death and believed he should never have been tried. She finally found her niche as a defense attorney in Albany, NY and appears to be a good one. Sometimes she appears in the courtroom opposite DeAngelis. In a recent case DeAngelis withheld a critical piece of evidence that could have set Coleman’s client free. Coleman speculates in the film about the future of DeAngelis. What will DeAngelis have to experience to learn what Coleman did?
Length of Film: Varies depending on the version. Averages 10-20 years. Sometimes 25 to life. Film made in real time.
Music by P.O.D. The Youth Of The Nation.
Last day of the rest of my life I wish I would've known
Cause I didn't kiss my mama goodbye
I didn't tell her that I loved her and how much I care
Or thank my pops for all the talks
And all the wisdom he shared
Unaware, I just did what I always do
Everyday, the same routine
Before I skate off to school
But who knew that this day wasn't like the rest
Instead of taking a test I took two to the chest
Call me blind, but I didn't see it coming
Everybody was running
But I couldn't hear nothing
Except gun blasts, it happened so fast
I don't really know this kid
Even though I sit by him in class
Maybe this kid was reaching out for love
Or maybe for a moment He forgot who he was
Or maybe this kid just wanted to be hugged
Whatever it was I know it's because
[chorus:]We are, We are, the youth of the nation
The celebrity virus has infected many people who are supposed to be more neutral. This is the age of the prosecutor, not the defense attorney. Thirty years ago, Perry Mason served as counsel for the defense in the American imagination. Now TV shows glorify the cops and the prosecutors. And real-life prosecutors, like real-life cops, watch these shows. They also look at television news. They read the newspapers. They see what editors believe is important. If a legal process can be transformed into a drama with a basic conflict, white hats up against black hats, they will make it into the newspapers. If they can assemble enough facts, no matter how circumstantial or spurious, to indict a big name, they will be famous. There will be a chance of cashing in the greatest of all American lotto tickets, the book deal...Beyond that, they can run for higher office: In the world of celebrity, anything is possible.
... It wasn't too long before I left the DA's office. It was in the summer of [1999]. It was just before lunchtime, and I was with some friends, some of the other DAs in the hallway. I think we were leaving the courtroom. Two newspeople from the various newspapers that are always in the courthouse told us they had just gotten on the wire that Ralph had killed himself.
I pretty much went into shock. A lot of stuff had happened to me in the interim. ... I had lost a child in between when Ralph's verdict happened and when Ralph had killed himself. ... Once you lose a child, it's such a huge and life-defining event that it gives you everything in common with somebody who's experienced the same thing, even though you'd have nothing in common with them otherwise. It gives you nothing in common with even the people who you had everything in common with before.
When it happened, I felt responsible for his death. I thought of his parents and I thought of his family, and I thought how he didn't have to die. I remember rounding [up] my best friend, who became my law partner. ... [We] just went and drank soda for about three hours someplace. ...
I remember thinking that ... there was something wrong with what we did. ... I felt really ashamed.
I felt really responsible, and I felt like that we had to really seriously take a look at what we did. It had a huge effect on me.
Your comment about editors being lazy is off the mark. At the very least, it shows you're uninformed. Do you know what the staffing is now, compared to Tony Benjamin's tenure? If not, then you're not qualified to make comments like that.
Nevertheless, this is not a good moment for the bustling, energetic Wild West of the new Internet media. Remember when a former CBS executive described bloggers as guys in pajamas writing in their living rooms? Well, it seems that many have only one exercise routine: jumping to conclusions.
None of these bloggers need necessarily know anything. That goes without saying. They don’t need any qualifications. They don’t even need to identify themselves. They can be anybody. They can say anything. The point is, they reinforce what people want to believe.
I hear from people all the time who sneer at The New York Times and The Associated Press but swear by some anonymous blogger who reinforces their preconceptions.
And the bloggers don’t just rant. They give facts, or alleged facts.