Perhaps the CRISIS that Bore Fruit in Chris Dorner was Predicted Two Years-Ago

My thoughts and prayers go out to all area Police Offocers and Sheriff Deputies, especially the loved ones of the victims'  of Dormer's Rampage.  However, the Piece Below, written Almost Two years-ago, begs the question:  Did LAPD Have Every Reason to See This Coming? May 9, 2011 -  by Stephen A. Jamieson Regarding a LA Times article about the multiplicity of lawsuits involving the LAPD. "Interesting that the essence of the article is that the City botched the defense of the case(s), and not that the City is perhaps terrible at making sure the employees/cops are treated appropriately and according to legal standards during their employment so as to avoid so many lawsuits from being filed in the first  place." "At least 17 officers have won million-dollar-plus jury verdicts or settlements from the city in the last decade in lawsuits involving accusations of sexual harassment, racial discrimination, retaliation and other workplace injustices" Below is the article from the LA Times $1-million-plus LAPD payouts LAPD clear backlog of untested DNA evidence By Joel Rubin Los Angeles Times May 8, 2011   Robert Hill did not join the Los Angeles Police Department to become a millionaire. And yet, that's what happened in September when city officials cut the veteran cop and his lawyer a check for nearly $4 million. The money was compensation for the snide comments and other abuse Hill suffered at the hands of other LAPD officers after he reported that a supervisor used racial slurs and embezzled department funds. In the last decade, at least 16 other officers have won million-dollar-plus jury verdicts or settlements from the city in lawsuits in which they leveled accusations of sexual harassment, racial discrimination, retaliation and other workplace injustices. Dozens more officers have won five- or six-figure paydays. "These cases irk the heck out of me," said City Councilman Greig Smith, who has been a critic of the city's job-protection rules that, he said, make it too difficult to fire officers who cause workplace problems. "Somebody running a private company would never let this … stand. Why do we let it happen here? And we see the same things happening over and over again." City records show that from 2005 to 2010, officers have sued the department over workplace issues more than 250 times. The city has paid settlements or verdicts totaling more than $18 million in about 45 of those cases and has lost several other verdicts worth several million dollars more in cases it is appealing, a review of the records shows. The city has prevailed in about 50 cases. The rest, representing tens of millions of dollars in potential liability, remain open. Litigious officers have bedeviled Los Angeles police chiefs and city lawyers for decades, and a survey of large police departments across the country indicates that LAPD officers file suit more than others. Los Angeles police, for example, brought an average of about three times more lawsuits a year per officer than officers in Chicago and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. And there were about a third fewer lawsuits among Boston police. Officer-driven lawsuits have come under greater scrutiny in recent years as Los Angeles' financial problems have gotten worse. Elected officials and the LAPD's independent watchdog believe the department should be doing more to deter workplace conflict and avoid the expensive litigation. Beyond the financial toll, the cases often amount to embarrassing, public airings of the department's dirty laundry — nasty fights that expose crude behavior by officers and a retaliatory mindset of supervisors that undermine efforts by senior officials to present the LAPD as a smoothly run operation. The case of Patricia Fuller, who at the time was the only woman serving as a dog handler in the LAPD's canine unit, underscores how contentious and costly workplace incidents can become for the city. Fuller had accused men in the unit of making vulgar sexual advances and comments, while also excluding her from training exercises, court records show. In 2009, city officials paid Fuller $2.25 million to settle her claims. Then another canine officer, Donald Bender, filed a lawsuit alleging that he had been stripped of a rank and kicked out of the unit as retaliation for coming to Fuller's defense. He was followed by Blaine Blackstone, a sergeant who supervised Fuller. Blackstone said he had been the target of retaliation by superiors after he refused their demands that he placate Fuller by changing her performance evaluation. The city refused to settle with Bender and Blackstone, and both officers won their cases. Bender received $2.5 million and Blackstone was awarded nearly $750,000 in damages, court records show. For Hill, who said the retaliation against him included being followed by other officers, falsely accused of misconduct and removed from a coveted assignment, knowing the large verdict he won came from taxpayers left him with mixed feelings. "Here I was a public servant suing the city, basically suing the taxpayers who I was committed to protecting," Hill said. "What I really wanted was for the names of the people who had harmed me to be on that lawsuit. I wanted the money to come out of their pockets. I felt bad that the wrong people were paying, but it was the only recourse I had as an officer." Large verdicts can be a financial boon for rank-and-file police officers who earn $45,000 to about $85,000, depending on the number of years they have served. Some, like Hill, choose to remain on the job, while others leave. Beyond the money, some who have been fired have successfully sued to get their jobs back. The question of whether to settle a case or take the officer to court can be a dicey one for city and police officials. Settle too easily, the thinking goes, and the department will be seen by officers and attorneys as an easy target. Taking too hard a stand, however, carries risks as well. Employment cases are difficult to defend against, lawyers say, since they often turn on emotional issues and differing perceptions of what occurred. "If you settle, all you're doing is encouraging other officers to file more lawsuits," said LAPD Cmdr. Stuart Maislin, who for several years ran the department's Risk Management Division. "It sends the message that the city is just giving away money — that an officer just has to make a claim and they'll walk away with some money in their pocket. The only way to stop that is to take them to court and fight them." "When we lose," Maislin added, "we lose big." In general, City Atty. Carman Trutanich and Gerald Chaleff, a senior advisor to LAPD Chief Charlie Beck who oversees employee lawsuits, have pursued a hard-line approach with officers in recent years, refusing to settle except in those cases where it is clear the city is likely to lose in court. That tough stance has led to mixed results. The city has lost a handful of jury verdicts that could have been avoided if it had been willing to settle. Attorney Matthew McNicholas, for example, represented Richard Romney, an officer who was fired after he testified about the department's overtime policy in a labor dispute; Melissa Borck, who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit; and Bender, the canine officer. McNicholas offered to settle the three cases for a total of $2 million, but police officials and city lawyers were adamant about taking all three to court and ended up losing verdicts totaling about $9.5 million. Understaffing and a lack of lawyers with experience in workplace issues in the city attorney's office has hampered the city's ability to defend itself against such lawsuits in court, officials said. Bill Carter, Trutanich's chief deputy, said overworked attorneys have missed court-filing deadlines, failed to take important depositions and made other blunders on employment cases. "We're creating a recipe for disaster," Carter said. The recent high-dollar verdicts and settlements suggest that the department needs to do more to mediate workplace conflicts, said Nicole Bershon, inspector general for the Los Angeles Police Commission. That should include bringing in impartial employment experts to help resolve conflicts before they reach a courtroom, she said. The department also has come under fire for failing to thoroughly investigate complaints of workplace problems. In a 2010 audit of LAPD investigations into employee allegations of retaliation, Bershon's office found that investigators routinely neglected to interview people accused of misconduct, or even name them in the investigations. The way the department handles officer lawsuits has become a source of increasingly hostile fodder for the Police Protective League, the union that represents rank-and-file officers and sometimes assists officers in bringing their suits. Emboldened by recent high-profile verdicts for officers, union officials have grown vocal at what they see as the unwillingness or inability of senior LAPD officials to deal with problems in the workplace — a charge department leaders deny. "I've got a news flash for … the 'leaders' who are tasked with ensuring the Department treats its people fairly. Look in the mirror to find out where the problems are," Sgt. John Mumma, the union's secretary, wrote in a recent open letter published in the union's magazine. "How many more officers are going to become millionaires over the botched handling of their cases?"

National School Counseling Week

(HALF-HEARTEDLY) Recognizing National School Counseling Week Feb. 4-8, 2013

February 8, 2013

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne  Duncan (Smells like Bullshit to me) issued the following statement today, recognizing National School Counseling Week, Feb. 4-8, 2013.

Every day, caring and dedicated professionals across this country engage in the often (ALWAYS) unrecognized work of school counseling. This week in particular, I want to recognize these trained educators (in those states that require training), who help millions of young people sidestep the roadblocks of life and circumstance to become successful students and, ultimately, reach their full potential. 

The role of school counselors is growing increasingly demanding and it continues to change. Not only are counselors charged with finding innovative and effective ways to provide students with academic and career guidance, counselors also are called upon to help support students’ social and emotional well being, which is essential for them to thrive. Particularly in light of recent traumatic events in schools, including the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, this role is more important than ever to create and maintain a healthy school climate and ensure that students feel safe and supported as they learn and grow. 

Increasingly, counselors are working in new ("same as "innovative," already said that) ways – embracing the importance of data on graduation rates (the only measure of a child's needs that seems to matter under his reign,) FAFSA completion, and college enrollment rates to better prepare students to access and persist in higher education. It is this type of work ("type of work," WTF) that will help our nation to reach the President’s goal of leading the world in college graduates by 2020.

Last week, I met with counselors who have been honored as finalists in the School Counselor of the Year Award program (one giant 'you stroke mine and I'll stroke yours' - circle jerk of narcissistic ....) These finalists remind us of the extraordinary work that is being led by counselors across the country to address the needs of the whole child.  By collaborating with students, staff, parents and the community, counselors are finding better ways to support children and help their families to access vital academic, mental health and social services. For these efforts, we salute them. In affect using his middle finger.

Limp d... bureaucrat! He isn't even sure what a counselor does. Duncun couldn't be bothered to go to a real school with real counselors working with real life issues: pregnancy, gang warfare, fights, foster care, abuse, homelessness, etc. May be he just didn't have time to hunt down the rare district that hasn't fired them all in the latest round of budget cutbacks.

MVUSD BOARD TRUSTEE IS CONVICTED

Origianlly Published in the Riverside Press Enterprise
Written by Lora Hines

Moreno Valley school board member Mike Rios was convicted Friday, Feb. 8, of pimping, pandering and insurance fraud. Jurors found Rios, 42, not guilty on one rape charge. They hung on a second rape charge and one pandering charge. During the trial, Rios cried and engaged in sharp exchanges with the prosecutor. Jurors got the case Thursday.

State law says Rios’ school board seat will not become vacant until his sentencing on March 8.

John Hall, spokesman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office, said it was unclear whether Rios would be retried on the two charges on which the jury hung.

Rios was taken into custody following his conviction. His bail was revoked. He faces up to 33 years in prison during sentencing

Deputy Riverside County Public Defender Michael Micallef couldn’t be reached for comment Friday following Rios’ conviction

Moreno Valley Unified School District board president Cleveland Johnson said he’s hopeful Rios’ conviction will allow the school district to move forward and focus on the work of its students and teachers. 

“There are a lot of good things going on in Moreno Valley,” said Johnson, who cited recent state Golden Bell awards for Hidden Springs Elementary and Valley View High schools. “We want to get this behind us.”

Johnson said the board has had to operate under the premise that Rios was innocent. However, he said he became concerned after it was disclosed in court that Rios said he ran a private dancing/stripping business. Johnson said he began thinking about what the board could do if Rios was acquitted.“There’s nothing we could have done prior to today,” Johnson said. “This put a whole new light on everything.” 

Rios had been free and continued to attend school board meetings. Elected in 2010, Rios remains a member of the school board, which could not oust him. He refused to resign.Superintendent Judy White said the board at its Tuesday, Feb. 12, meeting will discuss its next steps regarding Rios’ seat. In a written statement, she said the district remains focused on “providing the best education possible for all of our students.” 

Within 60 days of a vacancy, the board must make a provisional appointment or order an election, she said. “We ask for patience as the board, the district and the community work through this long and difficult process together,” White said. 

Rios, who faced multiple charges of pimping and pandering, plus two counts of rape and six counts of insurance fraud, denied he was a pimp, procurer and rapist. He insisted on the witness stand that he did nothing illegal. Rios called “ridiculous” the charges that he ran a prostitution ring out of his home, worked to get more women to join the operation, raped two of the prostitutes involved in it and committed insurance fraud by allegedly making false claims stemming from a December 2011 vehicle accident.

His arrest last April in the pimping case resulted from the investigation into a separate attempted murder case in which Rios is accused of shooting at two men who followed him to his house after they got into an argument at a Moreno Valley bar in February 2012. Those charges still are pending. He has also pleaded not guilty in that case, and has steadfastly insisted that all of the charges were fabricated to kill his political career. 

City political activists, residents and school employees fell short of collecting enough (10,000) signatures to place a vote calling for Rios’ recall on the Nov. 6, 2012, ballot.

After Rios’ arrests, the school board censured him, meaning it issued a severe statement of disapproval. It also changed its bylaws, limiting access to schools and school activities for board members who are charged with crimes, including those that involve children.

Moreno Valley School Board Trustee Mike Rios, to Take the Stand?

by mvgordie

The decision for Mr. Rios to take the stand in his defense Wednesday in his Pimping, Pandering, Rape and Insurance Fraud case is either a sign of desperation on the part of the defense, or the inability of the Public Defender to control the ego and narcissistic behavior and desires of his client.

For Mr. Rios to testify in his own defense is a dangerous move on their part as it would open Mike Rios up to cross examination and challenges of his credibility as a witness.

Rios who is well known for his blatant outright lies to the public could have those prior statements used against him by the Deputy District Attorney to show that Mr. Rios is someone who’s statements and overall credibility have proven to show him as a habitual liar, and as such his testimony in the trail should be question by the jury.

In cross examination of Rios, the prosecutor would be free to bring in prior unrelated statements (not related to this case) made by Rios as a showing of his lack of truthfulness, this is allowed as a challenge to the witness’s credibility.

As is well known Mr. Rios has in the past claimed to have been an elected member of the Moreno Valley City Council, this was done for him to gain news coverage for himself in is then upcoming bid for a seat upon the MVUSD Board. This claim was also used to gain entry and trust of the family of the late Norma Lopez, who as soon as they found out he was not who he had claimed to asked him to leave their, a request he refused and had to be subsequently removed by member of the Moreno Valley Police department.

Mr. Rios also used the same claim of being a City Council member with a local business owner, who later boasted on Facebook about how he and “Councilman Rios,” were to be having a news conference regarding the Norma Lopez disappearance.

There is also the claims he made during his 2008, and 2010 campaigns, and several times during the years in between of his owning his own investigation company which involved the investigations into fraud and embezzlement, and how as such he put “white collar criminals in jail,” however this was untrue, as Mr. Rios held no such license as an investigator (a requirement under California law) nor was he in the employee of any firm or business which was licensed as an investigation company, of which he could operate under their license.

Mr. Rios has also stated his daughter from his first marriage was accepted to Harvard University, prior to her graduation from high school, however this too was a mere fabrication on Rios’ part, his daughter did however go on to go to college, but in Long Beach, CA…

We also have the shooting event for which he is to stand trial for starting February 8^th, in which his first account to the police (by way of 911 as well as to the responding officers) he was the one who was shot at. His first account was that he was rushed at his front door of his home, where one of the two individuals (who later became the true victims) pulled out a firearm and opened fire on him.

This same statement of the was used by Mr. Rios that same morning in early February of 2012, at the Moreno Valley Unified School District offices, where Mr. Rios went to seek protection at the expense of the taxpayer, a request which was denied.

Mr. Rios even alleged that Gordon Tucker, also known as mvgordie, was somehow involved in the shooting attack on him in front of his home. However as it was later discovered through the investigation, and later admittance, of Mike Rios, there was no such attack on him, and that he himself used a firearm to shoot at the two individuals who were sitting in a car on the street near his home.

There are many other others issues surround Mr. Rios and his inability to tell the truth, that if the prosecutor’s office were to wish to use them, they could, and Mr., Rios’ desire to show his conman skills from the witness stand gives them that open opportunity.

One more issues is Mr. Rios’ narcissistic personality disorder, coupled with his off the wall beliefs in self-ordained God like powers, could cause Rios to go off on the stand in some form of temper tantrum, anyone in the public that has watched School Board meetings, past Moreno Valley City Council meetings or have seen his personal web blog, would know full well, Mr. Rios doesn’t deal from a full deck.

I will refer readers to MVGordie's blog on the MORENO VALLEY USD BOARD TRUSTEE MIKE RIOS DEBACLE. Gordie's coverage is the best to be had on this subject, Press Enterprise included.

Almost a Quarter of Californians Now Live in Poverty - California Now hasHhighest Poverty Rate in the U.S., According to the Latest Census Report.

California has highest poverty rate in the U.S., new Census Bureau report reveals

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

 The U.S. poverty rate is higher than previously thought.

The US Census Bureau is testing a new way to measure poverty – and the new measurement indicates that California has the highest poverty rate in the nation.

Almost a quarter of Californians now live in poverty, according to the new Supplemental Poverty Measure, released Wednesday. Under the new measure, California's poverty rate increases from 16.3 percent to 23.5 percent of the population. Not only is that the highest in the nation, but it represents the largest jump from the official rate. The increase is driven in part by California's high cost of living.

The numbers released by the Census Bureau are part of the newly developed measure, which was devised a year ago. It provides a fuller picture of poverty that the government believes can be used to assess safety-net programs by factoring in living expenses and taxpayer-provided benefits that the official formula leaves out. It looks at broader data, including housing costs, child care and medical expenses. It also adjusts for income earned from federal assistance, such as school lunch subsidies and the earned income tax credit.

The Census Bureau is testing the supplemental measure as a replacement for the current system, which hasn't changed since the early 1960s.

Nationally the rate increased from 15 percent to 15.8 percent under the new measure. Overall, the ranks of America's poor edged up last year to a high of 49.7 million, the Associated Press reported.

Based on the revised formula, the number of poor people exceeded the 49 million who were living below the poverty line in 2010.
That came as more people in the slowly improving economy picked up low-wage jobs last year but still struggled to pay living expenses. The revised poverty rate of 16.1 percent also is higher than the record 46.2 million, or 15 percent, that the government's official estimate reported in September.
You can view the full report below.
U.S. Census Bureau Supplemental Poverty Measure

Cut welfare if students get bad grades?

Cut welfare if students get bad grades? I disagree.

Originally Posted by skrashen at 11:37 AM 

Schools Matter 

"State Sen. in Tennessee proposes cutting welfare payments to families with students with bad report card. We respond. "

Campfield proposal would hurt youths
Published in Knoxville News Sentinel, Knoxville, TN, Feb 3,2013.
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2013/feb/03/letters-feb-3-2013/
State Sen. Stacey Campfield's proposal to cut welfare payments for students with bad report cards is backwards. Poverty is the major cause of poor school performance. Poverty means inadequate diet, poor health care and lack of access to books at home, school and in the community: All of these are associated with low school achievement. The best teaching in the world will not help if children are hungry, ill and have little or nothing to read. Campfield's bill will make things worse, not better. Benefits to families whose children have low school achievement should be increased, not decreased, in order to protect these children from the effects of poverty, and we should take some of the money we are so eager to spend on "tough" standards and tests and invest in food programs, health care and libraries.

Michelle Shory, Knoxville, Clara Lee Brown, Knoxville, and Stephen Krashen, Los Angeles, Calif.

Day One Of Oral Testemony In Moreno Valley School Board Official Mike Rios’ Pimping, Pandering, Rape and Insurance Fraud Case

(I will refer readers to MVGordie's blog on the Moreno Valley USD BOARD TRUSTEE MIKE RIOS DEBACLE. Gordie's coverage is the best to be had on this subject, Press Enterprise included.)

Obey or Quit-The Bullying Mentality In Education

Obey or Quit-The Bullying In Education originally written and published by dianerav http://dianeravitch.net/2013/01/12/obey-or-quit/ A teacher sent me this post, which has generated lots of discussion on Facebook. She said that the discussion on this blog shows a widespread bullying of teachers by administrators, who are in turn being bullied to produce "results." Everyone is under pressure to meet demands created by politicians, economists, and statisticians who never spent a day in a school classroom after their high school graduation. Here goes: "Paul's Story" Yesterday I received an emergency phone call from an experienced teacher in a Bronx school who received his first ever "U" on an observation report. Emotionally overwrought with fear and anger, it took all I could do to calm him down and get him to figure out how he could resolve this issue and continue to teach and at the same time maintain his principles while having to deal with his principal. She, as authoritarian personality as they come, simply follows NYC DOE/Teachers College orders in FORCING her underlings to follow the lockstep TC workshop model lesson plan. Because he veered and used different materials and interacted differently with his kids than the plan permits he was given a "U". It was quite evident after seeing her 20-page write-up that there was something more here. Her discussions of the 2 pre-observation were filled with evidence of her obviously one-track mind.  Do it this way. I will not accept any of your alternatives. Her most consistent and often repeated criticism is that he did not use everything the Model presenter from TC demonstrated in the 3 short demonstrations he attended. It's as if everything that came before NYCDOE/TC's workshop version of teaching was anathema in this new pious world of top down education. By the way...it is a terrible way to teach if used as the one and only lesson plan every single day.  But that is probably why he received this "U" in the first place. You see, he is not passive. He is not one to just follow orders. He speaks up and out. He argues. He was being punished for that more than his not following the lesson plan. He expressed to me that he was ready to give up, to get out, to simply go to the rubber room, or be made into an ATR (absent teacher reserve). That is the new leadership's plan. Veterans: If you don't follow the rules you have two choices. Retire or be exiled. This way "The Big Talking Heads" of education can take in their fresh young faces and train them to be, as my friend said, Star Wars "Clones" obeying the orders of the dark side.