#auditor defense attorney/lawyer

[dankusner]

How San Antonio Police Lost a Bullet Tied to the Shooting Death of a Baby

Eight-month-old Rosalinda Martinez died in April of last year after a July 2023 indictment says she was shot during a fight between her parents over a handgun.

San Antonio police collected evidence from the crime scene.

Police arrested Ruby Mora and Alejandro Martinez, the baby’s parents, for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and reckless bodily injury to their child, according to court records. Mora was arrested on April 18, 2023, and Alejandro was booked a month later on May 7.

Both Mora and Martinez are in jail and awaiting trial in Bexar County Court.

But San Antonio police have lost a crucial piece of evidence: a bullet.

The SAPD disclosed the loss of the bullet in baby Martinez’s case in response to a records request from the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at Arizona State University.

Records show SAPD had assigned a barcode to the bullet, which was booked into evidence as “ONE (1) APPARENT LIVE ‘FC 9MM LUGER’ ROUND.”

Martinez’s defense attorney, James Tocci, declined to comment on whether the missing evidence will impact his case.

Lt. Michelle Ramos, SAPD Deputy Chief of Staff, said via email that the SAPD is “confident that questions to the missing ‘live bullet’ will be answered in court.”

Marcia G. Shein, a veteran criminal defense lawyer based in Georgia, said criminal defendants often benefit when police agencies lose evidence after it is collected.

“Knowing how evidence is collected and if it is done properly and stored properly is key,” said Shein, former president of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, via email.

Shein said improper handling of evidence would not typically lead a defendant to be “completely exonerated.”

But, she said in an email, “It has however been a factor in getting a more favorable plea or outcome.”

She also said defense lawyers regularly file records requests to learn whether police damaged evidence has an impact on trials.

Past audits reveal repeated problems with SAPD evidence-handling

The city of San Antonio conducts an audit of police evidence handling procedures roughly every five to seven years.

In its most recent audit, dated May of 2024, the city confirmed bullets and casings would be stored in the Property Room, but said the audit “specifically excluded activities conducted by the Homicide Unit… and the Firearms/Ballistic Unit.”

Outside of those units, the report said, “evidence preservation controls are adequate and working as intended.”

Three prior city audits of SAPD’s evidence handling procedures, conducted between 2006 and 2019, showed the department had a pattern of allowing too many unauthorized users access to its evidence storage areas.

Each of those three audits found the SAPD needed to tighten security. None of those audits said they excluded the homicide or ballistics units.

In 2006, the city’s audit determined that “an excessive number of users have computer access to property and evidence records,” including 57 employees the city had fired who still had access.

Auditors found more than 500 people with badges that would give them access to evidence who could not be identified as current employees and concluded, “many of these… users had recently accessed the mainframe.”

Auditors noted, “allowing access to sensitive information to those who don’t have a legitimate need increases the risk of data loss, corruption, manipulation, disclosure, and misuse.

In a subsequent audit in 2013, the city determined that “access to the property and evidence warehouse was not being reviewed.”

Auditors provided a list of recommendations, including tighter security policies such as more frequent testing of the evidence warehouse’s security and alarm system and changes to the key access codes to sensitive areas.

In its 2019 audit, the city found that employees from various units could access the confidential evidence stored in the property rooms freely, even if it was not for their unit.

For example, 26 of the 28 staff members who had access to the main facility warehouse were from Arson Investigation, while the remaining two had transferred to different units and no longer required access.

According to the audit, “While no inappropriate access was noted, insufficient access controls increases the likelihood of misappropriation of property.”

What “might” have happened to the missing bullet?

During a phone interview with San Antonio Police Department’s Public Information Officer Nicholas Soliz in March, Soliz didn’t answer when asked what the department knows for certain about the loss of evidence in the Martinez case.

But Soliz provided theories about how the bullet might have disappeared from the evidence room – everything from a suspect tampering with the evidence, to the possibility that it was lost in transit between two property rooms.

In explaining the tampering theory, Soliz noted that responding officers initially went to Northeast Baptist Hospital in San Antonio rather than the apartment where the baby was fatally shot.

Soliz said that one of the suspects, Alejandro Martinez, the baby’s father, left the hospital at the time and was not in police custody.

Soliz suggested Martinez might have been involved in the bullet’s disappearance.

“The suspect left, Alejandro left. Who’s to say, like, in the time that the victims were in the hospital and Alejandro was gone, that that crime scene was, y’know, messed,” Soliz said. “It could’ve been. Officers didn’t respond there until later to secure that crime scene, from what I remember so, there’s a lot of factors that go into things like that.”

Martinez’s lawyer, James V. Tocci, did not respond to requests to comment on Soliz’s statements.

When the Howard Center asked police to explain how a bullet could get a barcode that identified it as SAPD evidence and then later be taken by a murder suspect from the crime scene, Soliz responded in an email that he had only previously shared “hypotheticals” about missing evidence, none of which applied to “any specific case.”

In the same interview in March, Soliz offered another theory for how the bullet linked to the baby’s shooting might have disappeared:

The bullet, Soliz said, may have been lost in the transition between the SAPD’s two property and evidence rooms.

“So there’s an initial property room, like, officers go to an initial property room next to jail, and from there, that property is taken to our actual property room on the other side of town, in San Antonio. So there is a lot of movement.”

In May 2010, the SAPD relocated to a new evidence and property warehouse, paying over $8 million to double its space.

Since then, the old Property and Evidence Room has served as a drop-off facility for officers who can’t take evidence to the new, offsite location on the other side of town during normal work hours.

According to the 2013 audit, city employees transport evidence from the old facility daily by city van.

In the March interview, Soliz said SAPD most likely has “video of that officer logging in that evidence that night and from it getting shipped from the small property room to the large property room.” Soliz said whatever happened with that bullet, it would be on camera.

But after the bullet tied to the baby’s murder left the SAPD’s small property room, Soliz said that he would not know how the bullet would have gone missing.

“Now, after it leaves that initial property room, I really can’t speak to that because that has nothing to do with us – that other property room, that’s run by citizens – civilians,” Soliz said.

SAPD declined a records request asking the department to provide the Howard Center any documents related to the filing and logging of physical evidence in this case, including any video of evidence being logged or filed into either of the property rooms or to provide the names of those involved in the filing and transporting of such evidence.

The SAPD denied the request on the grounds that the information related to a case of alleged or suspected child abuse or neglect.

The SAPD provided no information to support Soliz’s initial statement that suggested Martinez might have tampered with the evidence, nor has it explained the bullet’s disappearance.

Evidence handling problems elsewhere

San Antonio isn’t the only police department struggling with how it handles crime scene evidence.

The Schertz Police Department, in a suburb of San Antonio, revealed in a press release in July 2022 that it had removed or destroyed evidence from its property and evidence room without following proper procedures.

Specifically, the department said 1,376 cases from 2007 to 2018 were impacted, and it had not identified at the time of the press release whether or not these criminal cases were open or pending.

“The goal of the Schertz Police Department is to provide exemplary law enforcement service and unfortunately, in this instance we failed to meet that standard,” Police Chief Jim Lowery said in the press release. “I hope that our residents know we are committed to learning from this situation and will work to ensure something like this never happens again.”

Dallas also had issues with inadequate surveillance of its property storage areas.

A 2021 audit of Dallas’ property and evidence rooms found that neither the Dallas Auto Pound nor the Property and Evidence division was equipped with video surveillance to monitor who had access to the inventory at these locations.

Similarly, the Dallas audit indicated that property and evidence were stored in a decommissioned patrol station, citing space limitations.

But the items were not well protected, the audit found.

In one area of the facility, property and evidence were stored on “wood pallets with muddy surroundings from rainwater that floods the area.”

The audit suggested that “heat, cold, humidity, and rain could damage the items, rendering them unrecognizable or unusable for evidence purposes.”

Dallas PD did not respond to a request for comment.

Another Texas police department had a different challenge.

In a phone interview, Wade Roberts, a lieutenant for Huntsville Police Department, a city north of Houston, told the Howard Center that his office had not lost evidence but had experienced a different kind of problem at an old evidence facility:

Rodents were eating the evidence, especially seized marijuana.

“Ultimately, we just found that our drug evidence was being gnawed on,” Lt. Roberts said. “You could see that the packaging had been eaten through, and mice and rats were getting into that packaging.”

Roberts added that after his agency switched evidence facilities, the rodents have not been an issue.

Missing evidence isn’t just a Texas problem.

The Howard Center reached out to police agencies in other cities of comparable size and found they too had lost track of items that were logged as evidence.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, with a similar number of sworn-in officers as SAPD, revealed in response to a public records request how much evidence was lost from 2020 to 2024.

Records from the LVMPD list 58 entries indicating “missing” items under their possession, including bullets, “possible DNA” samples, drug paraphernalia, license plates, and various articles of clothing.

The LVMPD pointed out that the dozens of lost items were only a very small fraction of the items they keep in their property and evidence rooms.

LVMPD sergeants are responsible for conducting internal audits of their evidence vault every 60 days. These audits are typically unannounced and are ordered by the Sheriff. LVMPD did not respond to additional questions.

[irstaxtroublesblog]

A quick guide to state and local tax law

Mitchell Tax Law provides experienced legal counsel to clients on all matters as a result of federal, state and local tax laws. Our Texas tax attorneys, based in Houston, have years of experience providing state tax audit defense, contesting Texas sales tax audits, and helping with various Texas tax matters. Our Houston tax lawyers provide sales tax help and possess the experience to manage tax auditors as well as the IRS. We are a Houston law firm focusing on helping IRS assuring tax problems. With years of expertise in state and local tax law, we provide legal solutions tailored to you. Our state tax lawyers help businesses create structures to minimize state and local taxes, including income, franchise, sales, property and excise taxes. Contact us today for any consultation. 

[bensecenforcementattorney-blog]

Bradley J. Bondi SEC Washington DC Lawyer

Bradley J. Bondi is actually a nationally identified litigation companion and board advisor in Cahill’s litigation Office along with the Chair of your firm’s White Collar and Governing administration Investigations Follow Team. Securities Docket describes Brad as “the initial alternative among Boards of Directors and Audit Committees of your Fortune five hundred when their firm is faced with SEC or DOJ problems.” Brad has twenty years of practical experience representing and counseling firms, economic establishments, boards of administrators, audit committees, and senior executives in the wide number of investigations and complicated business enterprise SEC Enforcement lawyer litigation, using an emphasis on securities and economical restrictions and corporate governance matters. He Earlier held senior positions in federal government, together with with the Securities and Trade Fee. The Lawful five hundred characterizes Brad as “tenacious, professional and remarkably effective” in addition to with “in-depth expertise in the SEC and how to cope with it.”

Named by Benchmark Litigation as both a National and Local “Litigation Star,” and designated since 2015 by Super Legal professionals as a “Tremendous Lawyer” for securities litigation and white-collar criminal defense, Brad leads the illustration of sizeable lawful matters such as main litigation in trial and appellate courts (securities litigation, derivative litigation, and complex organization litigation), SEC, FINRA and PCAOB enforcement matters, criminal inquiries (like FCPA, DOJ and USAO issues), and a variety of investigations (including unbiased investigations overseen by audit committees and Exclusive committees). Brad has been shown over the Securities Docket “Enforcement forty” given that its inception, a summary of the forty most effective securities enforcement defense legal professionals while in the country. Because 2015 he has become included in the top Lawyers publication for Economical Services Regulation Legislation. Brad along with the Cahill group also surface within the authorised counsel lists for the key insurers for litigation and authorities investigations.

Brad consistently serves being a senior advisor to boards of directors, audit committees, Particular committees, unbiased directors, and senior executives for the duration of corporate crises, considerable transactions, and governance difficulties. He has guided boards and board committees through the most amazing corporate situations, such as independent investigations, protection of by-product lawsuits towards directors and officers, course steps, accounting irregularities and Restatements, auditor disputes, hostile takeover tries and activist shareholders, mergers and acquisitions disputes, cyber intrusions and facts breaches, and investigations of alleged misconduct by executives. For his knowledge counseling boards of directors, Brad was listed in the Countrywide Affiliation of Corporate Administrators’ Directorship a hundred list of "Persons to look at" during the board space.

Brad advises consumers in reference to regulatory enforcement steps, personal lawsuits, governmental and congressional investigations arising from suspected violations of securities laws, accounting irregularities, auditor disputes, inner controls, market manipulation, revenue recognition difficulties, tax-linked matters, insider trading, the International Corrupt Tactics Act (FCPA) and also other commercial bribery legislation compliance, matters involving LIBOR and also other reference premiums, compliance Along with the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank Functions, potential antitrust considerations, and cybersecurity. Brad also oversees complicated civil and felony litigation, for instance securities litigation, corporate Regulate litigation, commercial litigation, contractual disputes, arbitrations, and criminal proceedings. He has litigated major legal disputes in numerous point out and federal courts, which includes serving as counsel of report for effective briefs ahead of the Supreme Courtroom of The usa: for an investment decision financial institution in Credit score Suisse Initially Boston Ltd. v. Billing (interpreting securities rules as implicitly precluding the appliance of antitrust rules within the IPO approach) and for an amicus curiae in Yates v. Usa (construing Sarbanes-Oxley’s felony provision for doc destruction, 18 U.S.C. § 1519). He also served as counsel of file for an amicus curiae transient ahead of the Supreme Court of the United States in Salman v. United states of america (regarding the own reward factor of insider buying and selling legislation) and advised on other cases.

For economical institutions, he often advises banking institutions, broker-dealers, investment advisers, mutual funds, and hedge money and their respective boards on troubles regarding compliance with securities legislation, legal laws, SEC and FINRA procedures, and governance specifications.

Brad defends purchasers in enforcement steps, prosecutions, and investigations initiated by federal and point out organizations and departments, such as the Securities and Exchange Fee (SEC), Division of Justice (DOJ), United States Attorneys and grand juries, Point out Lawyers Typical, Federal Deposit Coverage Fee (FDIC), Office in the Controller from the Forex (OCC), Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Federal Reserve, Office of Foreign Belongings Manage (OFAC), Public Organization Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), Consumer Fiscal Safety Bureau (CFPB), and Federal Trade Fee (FTC). Once in a while, Brad has served as an expert witness concerning challenges concerning securities regulation and insider trading law.

[lucy-268]

Jury Duty

A/N – This was an anonymous request to use #39 of the 50 ways to to I Love You prompt list found here. Prompt was - “I knew you weren’t dead. I refused to believe it- I knew it couldn’t be true”. My masterlist is here.

Disclaimer: Characters belong to PB

Warnings: TW - gunshots and violence

Series/Pairing: Open Heart - Ethan x f!MC (Charley Valentine)

Word count: 2,634

Ethan and Charley broke apart when they felt the force hit the car window. Ethan turned his head to see Bryce standing outside the car with Jackie several feet behind him. The two residents were laughing. Ethan turned back to look at Charley. “Your friends are idiots.”

“Sometimes, yeah.” Charley waved at them through the car window. She pressed another kiss to Ethan’s lips. “Thank you for lending me your car. If I get out early I’ll be back.”

Ethan opened the passenger door. “I have to admit it was nice being driven to work today. Be careful and I’ll see you later.” He stepped out in front of the hospital but didn’t get a chance to close the door before Bryce stuck his head.

Bryce let out a low whistle. “This is nice, Ramsey.” He ran his hand over the seat. “Nappa leather. Bowers & Wilkins audio.” He looked at Charley in the driver's seat. He winked at her, stepped back from the car and grinned at Ethan. “Sexy driver.”

Ethan closed the door. “Stop drooling over my car and especially over my girl.”

Charley watched Ethan walk into the hospital with Jackie and Bryce, while the latter was still trying to get a glimpse of the car as Charley drove away.

Soon Charley pulled into a parking space across the street from the courthouse. She reread the letter. Cell phone stays in the car. She took her driver’s license out of her wallet and slipped it into her pocket to make it easy for her to get to. Room 208. She turned off her phone and dropped it into the console. She closed the door and made sure that it was locked before heading into the courthouse.

Charley walked though the doors and looked for the elevator but was stopped by a security guard. “Can I help you?”

“Yes, where are the elevators? I need to get to the second floor.”

“Why?”

Charley looked up at him. “I need to report for jury duty.”

“Most of juries were canceled for today. Do you have your letter and ID? I’ll be sure your group is still supposed to be here today.”

He took her letter and ID and verified her to a list. “You’re cleared to go upstairs. Check in at room 208 and they’ll direct you from there. Good luck.”

Once upstairs Charley checked in. “You can have a seat in here. We have coffee over against the wall. There are vending machines down the hall to the right. Restroom and water fountains across from them. If you leave this room, be back by 9:00 am. That’s when we move you to the courtroom. Judge wants everyone in their seats by 9:15.”

Charley glanced at the coffee machine. “I work in a hospital. Coffee sucks there, how about here?”

The receptionist grinned. “You’ll feel right at home. There is usually an espresso cart on the main level, but security closed it today.”

“Is there something special going on today? It seems like security is an issue.”

“The receptionist shrugged. “We’re concerned everyday, but they did cancel all the jury selections except one today.”

Charley went down the hall and got a can of soda. She went back and sat down at the end of a row. She pulled out the newest NEJM and opened it. She flipped through to find the article by Dr. James Hendricks, her emergency medicine professor. She was about half way through the article when someone sat down next to her. She glanced up to see the newcomer smiling at her. He held out his hand, “Hi, Eric Wilson, and you are?”

She shook his hand. “Charley Valentine.”

Eric held her hand longer than necessary. She had to give a tug to get him to release her hand. “Is that a miss or a missus?”

Charley smiled, “It’s actually doctor.”

The bailiff came into the room just then. “On your juror ID you have a number from one to ninety-one. I need you to exit this room and walk down the hall to courtroom seven in order. You will be seated in rows in alphabetical order and the judge will question you individually.”

Once all the jurors were in the courtroom, the lawyers and defendant came in and were seated. Everyone rose while the judge came into the court. “I’m Judge Hughes. In a few minutes we’re going to go through the jury pool. I want you to tell me your name and occupation. Before that I want to know if anyone in the jury pool has an association with any of the prosecutors, defense attorneys, or the defendant. Please raise your hand. When you are called on, tell the court your juror number and who you have or had an association with.”

For the next twenty minutes various jurors told about former classmates, neighbors, and church group volunteers. None of the associations were extensive enough to excuse any of the jurors. During the juror roll call the judge would periodically ask a juror a question or two. Finally he got to Charley. “I’m juror number eighty-eight. Charley Valentine and I’m a doctor.”

“Charley?”

“Yes, your honor.”

He looked at her and down to his paperwork. “My paperwork says your name is Charlotte, is that correct?”

“It is, but I go by Charley.”

The judge nodded. “What kind of doctor are you?”

“I’m a medical resident at Edenbrook. I’m on the diagnostics team there.”

“Thank you. Juror number eighty-nine, please.”

“Juror number eighty-nine. Eric Wilson, auditor.”

“An auditor, huh? Can you be more specific.”

“I review financial documents and look for fraud.”

Charley saw the defense lawyer turn around in his chair to look at Eric.

“Thank you. Juror number ninety, please.”

Eric leaned over to Charley, “I just got excused,” he whispered.

Charley whispered back, “How do you know?”

“Defense attorney practically got whiplash when I said I specialize in fraud.”

Once all the juror were questioned, the case was summarized by the clerk. The defendant was being charged with embezzlement. Charley glanced at Eric, who was smirking. The odds that an auditor who specializes in fraud getting seated on an embezzlement trial were slim to none.

The clerk stated that the court would give everyone twenty minutes for a restroom break. “If you want a soda or coffee, remember they cannot be brought back into the court. Only bottled water may be carried in. When you get back from your break, we will put you in the jury box twelve at a time and eliminate jurors from the pool until we have twenty-four, twelve jurors and twelve alternates. When you are called up to the juror box bring everything with you, if you are eliminated from the pool do not leave the courtroom, return to the same seat you are in now. Once we have our twenty-four we will dismiss the rest of you. We will all rise for the judge to leave then we will take our twenty minute bre-”

Three armed men came into the courtroom, one from the judge’s chambers and two through the main doors. One of the men shot the bailiff. Charley jumped up and the gunman swiveled to her. “Sit down!”

“I’m a doctor!”

“I said sit down!”

Eric stood up and pulled her back, and two of the gunmen raised their guns and fired.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Bryce burst into the diagnostics team room. “There was a shooting at a courthouse. Eight people were shot!”

Ethan stood. “Which one?”

Bryce shrugged. “I just heard courthouse.”

June and Baz pulled out their phones and Ethan turned the TV on to get late breaking news. His phone rang, with a number he didn’t recognize. He hand shook as he answered. “Hello?”

“Ethan? It’s Tobias. Charley is here and she’s being taken into surgery now. I know you want her there but we can’t move her now.”

“I’ll… I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Knowing Ethan didn’t have his car, Baz was waiting when Ethan ended the call. “I’m driving.”

*~*~*~*~*~*

Soon Ethan, Baz, and Naveen were waiting near the operating rooms at Mass Kenmore. Aurora came in and sat with them. “Dr. Drummond is great. She’s in great hands.”

Ethan slammed his hand against a vending machine. Naveen went over and put his hand on Ethan’s shoulder.  He talked to him quietly but Baz and Aurora still walked down the hall to give them privacy.

Ethan has tears in his eyes. “I should have gone with her. I should have forbidden her to go.” Even as he said that he knew that legally he couldn’t have done either of those.

As the time progressed Bryce and Harper showed up. After another hour Dr. Drummond came out of the operating room stopping short when he saw Harper. He nodded to her before approaching Ethan. “Dr. Ramsey, can we… go somewhere more private.” He looked at the others around.

“They can all hear. I am listed as her contact person.”

Dr. Drummond considered for a moment before nodding. “The bullet hit her spleen and then her stomach. In fact it hit her spleen twice, which is why it took longer to get the bleeding stopped. We were able to repair the damage. But she has a long road to recovery, and I expect that she will make a full recovery. I also understand that you will probably want her moved to Edenbrook. I won’t sign off on that for at least five days.”

“Can I see her?”

“I’m coming with you.” Harper followed.

Dr. Drummond lead them to the recovery rooms and Ethan was finally able to see her through the window.

“I need to touch her. I need to feel she’s real.”

The nurse checked her monitors and grabbed a bag before stepping out into the hall. She provided an update saying that if all went well they would be moving her to a room in ICU in about twelve hours. The nurse handed the bag with all of Charley’s belongings to Ethan. Harper reached over and grabbed it from his hand. “I’ll take that.” Harper squeezed his arm and left him with Charley.

Ethan returned to the waiting room to find Elijah and Sienna with Aurora, Harper, and Naveen. “Jackie went with Bryce and Baz to see if they could find your car.”

“I don’t give a damn about the car.”

“No, but if it’s left there too long it will get impounded and Charley ill feel guilty because she was the one driving it.” Naveen smiled. “That’s probably the right attitude because earlier today I heard Dr. Lahela saying it would love to take the car out for a spin.”

Tobias came into the waiting room. “You should go home. We’ll call you.”

Ethan looked up at him. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“What would you tell a family member in your position?” Tobias asked.

“Probably to go home. But I’m staying here.” Ethan said.

“I’ll stay with you,” Naveen said.

“You don’t need to,” Ethan replied.

“Do you want me to go feed the kittens?” Sienna asked. “I can also get anything Charley might need?”

“Is Charley’s purse in there?” He indicated the bag.

Aurora nodded her head. “Yes, but Jackie took her keys to get the car. She left everything else.”

Ethan handed Sienna his key ring. “Thank you. Just take care of the cats. I’ll get anything else she needs after she wakes up.”

Everyone else left Ethan and Naveen made themselves as comfortable as possible in the inherently uncomfortable waiting room chairs.

Early the next morning Aurora came in with cups of coffee from the diner down the street. “Dr. Carrick and Dr. Drummond signed the paperwork and they are moving Charley. She’ll be in room 583.” She also gave him back his keys.

“Thank you, Aurora.” He looked at his keys. “Will Sienna need these.”

“No. She kept the house key from Charley’s ring. Bryce has her car key. He’s going to bring your car over here later.”

Ethan and Naveen headed up to the fifth floor while Aurora went to check on her patients.

Tobias said that Charley’s vitals had improved overnight. “She’s still not awake, but that’s because of the drugs. Hopefully they’ll wear off by early afternoon.”

Naveen stayed to get more information about Charley before heading back to Edenbrook.

It was late evening and Charley still hadn’t woken up. Tobias came in to check on her. He was concerned and said he was going to go check with the anesthesiologist. Ethan was sitting where he had been most of the day. His chair pulled up next to the bed, with their fingers laced together. His head was resting on her chest.

He heard a moan and his head snapped up. His eyes searched her face and her eyelids fluttered. She opened her mouth to speak but all that came out was a broken whisper.

Ethan poured her a glass of water and helped her take a sip. She looked at him and grabbed his hand. “What… what happened? Where am I?”

Tobias came back into the room just then. “The patient is awake. How are you, Charley?”

Charley looked between the two of them and feel back onto the pillow.

“What do you remember?”

“The courthouse. And guns. Did I get shot?” She sounded almost offended at the idea.

Tobias was the one who answered. “You did. And you were operated on by one of the best surgeons.”

“Why am I here?”

Ethan answered, “Mass Kenmore is closer to the courthouse. And time was of the essence.”

Tobias smiled. “He wants you moved to Edenbrook as soon as possible. He’s afraid that like a couple of the other residents you might want to transfer here if you spend too much time in a truly great hospital. You’re always welcome to come back here, either to work or when you get tired of him. Call me if you need anything. My cell number is on the back.” He winked at her and handed her his business card before leaving the room.

Ethan stood. “I’ll be right back.” He followed Tobias into the hallway. “Thank you. And you know she’ll never call you.”

Carrick nodded. “I know and you’re welcome.”

Ethan returned to Charley. She was sitting up in bed. She blew her nose and she was crying. He wrapped her in a hug. He kissed her forehead. “What’s wrong?”

“I remember sitting in the courtroom and they shot the bailiff. I wanted to go to him and two of them, they turned to me.” She looked at Ethan like she was trying to etch his face into her memory. “I was so scared I wouldn’t see you again. I thought I was going to die.”

Ethan wiped her tears and pushed her hair back to see her better. “When I heard there had been a shooting and there were some dead,  I knew you weren’t dead. I refused to believe it- I knew it couldn’t be true.” He captured her lips in a kiss. He placed her hand over his heart. “I would have felt it if you were.”

Charley looked at him. “You haven’t gone home.”

He shook his head. “I wasn’t going to leave you. Sienna has gone over to take care of the kittens. I forgot about them. Lahela picked up the car by the courthouse. You have good friends.”

She smiled. “We have good friends.”

He chuckled. “We have good friends.”

“Maybe I’m selfish for asking, but will you stay with me again tonight? I don’t want to be alone yet.”

“I’ll stay as long as you need me.”

“Forever,” she smiled as she leaned back on her pillow, holding his hand against her chest. “Forever works for me.”

My tag list  @oofchoices  @openheart12  @jamespotterthefirst  @ohchoices  @catchinglikekeronsene @aylamreads  @nerdydinosaursweets  @eramsey28  @txemrn  @starrystarrytrouble  @queencarb @thegreentwin  @lion-ess24  @caseyvalentineramsey  @mvalentine

@choicesficwriterscreations

[love-itslawyerzine-posts-blog]

How to Choose the Best Tax Litigation Law Firm in Utah

  After an audit, one of the things you might have to deal with is tax controversies. They are very common when it comes to businesses because most of the time, it is a misunderstanding or lack of enough information that can lead the auditor to find some missing gaps that are not addressed. This might put you in a very bad estate, especially with the IRS and you need to address the issue before it can escalate. The truth is fighting against IRS is not that easy because they have a team of professionals who are more than willing to fight against you in a court of law, and unless you have a great defense, you might not be able to go through. This is why you might want to hire the best law firm for your defense because the help of a tax litigation lawyer can help you to fight your case and win. Therefore, you need to look for the best tax attorney that can provide such services and here are some guidelines to help you choose the best in Utah.

 It is very important to focus a lot on utah law firm that is enough resources to pursue your case. One of the reasons why you might actually be at a disadvantage is because the IRS as enough resources to pursue different cases at different levels at whatever cost. When you are looking for a law firm to handle your tax litigations, you might want a company with enough resources. This will help avoid the stress of having to get money to help them handle different experiences because they have enough and they will not depend on you unless you get the compensation you need for the damaging. Therefore, engage law firms that have enough resources to pursue the case without your financial intervention especially if you don’t have enough to cater to all that experience.

 It is also important to choose a law firm that as a team of lawyers that are very experienced when it comes to handling such business cases that are very detrimental to your business. The experience will determine the level of defense they can give to your case because experience exposes the lawyer to different ideas and laws that can help them to defend you much better. It is also wise of you to consider how convenient it is to work with them because you need a reliable firm that will not be carefree it comes to your case. Read more about lawyers at https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawyer.

[vesselblock65-blog]

Despite outlier status, Pa. lawmakers don’t make public defense a priority

If you hunt hard enough around Harrisburg, it is possible to find lawmakers who are on board with allocating state money for the public defense of the poor.

Possible, but not easy.

One of the most prominent voices on the issue is State Sen. Stewart Greenleaf. The 78-year-old lawmaker, whose Harrisburg tenure dates back nearly four decades, has an issue with Pennsylvania’s system of public defense that is rooted in the U.S. Constitution.

In the Sixth Amendment, there’s a line that says in criminal cases, every person has the right to “the assistance of counsel for his defense.” The courts have said states bear the responsibility to ensure adequate defense for their most vulnerable citizens.

Forty-nine states have taken that to mean they’re obligated to provide at least some funding to defend people who can’t afford an attorney.

Pennsylvania is the one state that has not. It leaves the matter totally up to its counties, and provides no oversight. Unlike every other bordering state, Pennsylvania is the only without a commission on public defense.

And, as far as most state lawmakers are concerned, this is not a pressing issue.

But not to Greenleaf, who argues the state can’t possibly be living up to its constitutional duty.

“There should be a quality defense,” he said. “It shouldn’t be done on the cheap.”

For several sessions in a row now, Greenleaf — a Montgomery County Republican who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee — has been introducing bills that would reform the public defense system and create an infrastructure that could route state money to county offices.

“One of the biggest problems is, they don’t have the money to hire more public defenders,” he said. “So as a result, their caseload is way too high. And they’re excellent lawyers—but you can only handle so many cases.”

Failure to track data

As the only state that doesn’t provide any funding for public defense, Pennsylvania regularly catches flak from groups like the American Civil Liberties Union.

They say the lack of broad oversight makes it difficult to figure out what exactly is happening at each of the state’s 67 public defender offices.

A Keystone Crossroads investigation confirmed that. 

After filing at least 100 records requests over several months and engaging in countless email exchanges and phone conversations with county, D.A. and P.D. staffers, about one third of counties were unable to provide full budget, salary and staffing information for their public defenders’ offices.

In many cases, the counties told Keystone Crossroads they couldn’t provide the information because they had switched financial record-keeping systems, or have a policy of destroying records when permitted by state law.

More striking, however, is the failure of most counties to track caseloads and outcomes comprehensively, if at all.

Getting criminal caseload data from the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts is a relatively straightforward — though costly — proposition. But these numbers represent only criminal cases with adult defendants, or juveniles charged as adults. In all but few counties, these criminal matters make up a mere fraction of a public defender’s workload.  

Appeals, juvenile cases, custody hearings, mental health commitments and parole hearings at state prisons are just a few examples of other cases defenders handle beyond what AOPC data shows.

In theory, data could come from public defenders themselves.

But some say they are so inundated with a mountain of cases that don’t have time to track their work. Asked for details on case numbers in her office, Schuylkill County Chief Public Defender Karen Domalakes said she didn’t know.

“I am looking at scribbled numbers on a piece of paper torn from a legal pad,” Domalakes wrote in an email.

The Berks County Public Defender’s office, on the other hand, tracks statistics and is relatively well-resourced compared to other counties, according to the metrics Keystone Crossroads examined.

“We have 25 attorneys, so we are all in court, including supervisors, and our [caseloads] aren’t excessive,” said Chief Public Defender Glenn Welsh, who’s been in his position for over two decades. “I have gone to the commissioners. I give them statistics; in fact, I give them quarterly statistics. And they have increased our staffing when I’ve asked.”

No one, though, is uniformly tracking any of these disparities. It’s a scattershot system, and even those in better resourced offices can feel overwhelmed.

Nyssa Taylor, a onetime Philadelphia public defender who now works for ACLU, said in the decade she spent representing indigent clients, her job was one of the cushiest — and that’s saying something.

“It was an excellent office, I had excellent bosses,” she recalled. But, “I would still go into court and represent 30 people sometimes in one day.”

Nyssa Taylor, criminal justice policy counsel at the ACLU of Pa. (Photo courtesy of the ACLU)

‘They think they’ve done it’

More than a decade ago, Pennsylvania’s Joint State Government Commission was tasked with studying the commonwealth’s public defense system.

In 2011, it released a scathing report based on 2008 data that found the state’s lack of supervision and training for defenders means some offices are not properly serving their clients. It said relatively low salaries mean defenders turn over quickly, and criticized the state’s lack of oversight.

Greenleaf, one of four senators on the task force, said he was hopeful it would spur change.

But now, seven years and a pile of failed bills later, not so much.

“No,” he said, when asked if he’s seen any meaningful progress. “That’s the answer, no.”

In the meantime, the situation seems to have gotten worse. Using 2008 as a baseline, our investigation found that even as the crime rate and criminal caseloads have gone down slightly, the burden on public defenders statewide has gone up 27 percent. In some counties, caseloads doubled.

For a snapshot of county-by-county data, use this table we compiled of budget, staffing and caseload numbers from 2015.

A primary reason why Greenleaf’s reforms haven’t gone anywhere is leaders in his own party have largely ignored them.

Asked why that is, he’s careful not to ruffle any feathers.

“They think they’ve done it, they’ve solved the problem,” he said. “They’ve gotten the counties to come up with the money, and it’s functioning. But how well is another matter.”

If you ask GOP leaders about funding public defense, that certainly seems to be the case. Individual lawmakers say they don’t know much about the situation because it’s not a priority.

Governor Tom Wolf has the issue on his list of criminal justice reform goals, but hasn’t spent much time on it. And it’s not a key issue for other top Democrats such as Auditor General Eugene DePasquale and Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

Phyllis Subin, executive director of the Pennsylvania Coalition for Justice, has a theory about why there’s been so little movement.

“I think there is a political hesitancy to support anything that might smack of an accusation that you’re soft on crime and supporting criminals,” she said.

Phyllis Subin is executive director at the PA Coalition for Justice. (Lindsay Lazarski/WHYY)

Subin said, in her years lobbying for indigent defense funding in Harrisburg, she’s repeatedly felt herself pitted against prosecutors in the eyes of lawmakers.

And Nyssa Taylor with the ACLU said that’s a tension she’s very familiar with.

“Well it makes their job harder, right?” she said of district attorneys. “To some extent, D.A.s don’t want a good P.D.—because they’re going to start losing.”

She laughed. “I don’t mean to be flip, but things move more seamlessly for them when things are just a plea factory.”

Future for reform?

According to the data, statewide, public defenders and private attorneys struck plea deals with similar frequency: 68 percent and 70 percent of the time, respectively.

However, the situation varies by county.

For instance, in Berks and Schuylkill counties, defenders struck plea deals in 87 percent and 84 percent of cases, respectively. That’s far more than the statewide average.

Part of the explanation could be that both counties have above-average misdemeanor caseloads.

“Public defenders are pushing their resources, their extremely limited resources, towards the higher-risk cases,” says Stephen Hanlon, president of the National Association for Public Defense. “Of course, when you do that, you’re taking resources away from everybody else underneath.”

The Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association doesn’t have any official position on whether public defenders should get money from the state.

But in the past, they’ve testified that if defenders get state funding, they need more too.

They say that D.A. offices have a wider range of responsibilities than P.D.s.  They don’t just prosecute, they coordinate with law enforcement and assist in other related duties.

“It’s a little broader of a charge than the public defender’s office,” said Rich Long, the group’s executive director.

Other states have had better luck overhauling their public defense systems.

Utah used to be just like Pennsylvania, but recently added oversight and some funding.

Just north in New York, a recent lawsuit pushed the state to provide about half of what it takes to fund public defense in the state.

But in Pennsylvania, it’s largely just been Greenleaf.

After serving as a key Republican voice on the issue for years, he’s retiring from public office in January.

He said he’s not sure who, if anyone, will take up the mantle.

“I don’t know the answer to that question,” he said. “I’d hope that there would be other people who will know that this is an important issue…But I can’t answer that. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future.”

The one arena that has seen any progress on reforming Pennsylvania’s public defense system has been county-level lawsuits. And those haven’t made any difference statewide.

— Emily Previti contributed reporting.

Source: https://whyy.org/articles/despite-outlier-status-pa-lawmakers-dont-make-public-defense-a-priority/

[ittrainingcoursesusa]

Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator

The process of detecting hacking assaults and properly collecting evidence in order to report the crime and undertake audits to avoid future attacks is known as computer hacking forensic investigation. In this regard, computer forensics is similar to other types of forensics in that it looks for evidence that is hidden, such as evidence buried deep within computer software and hardware.

Using computer software to analyze and recreate computer files or financial records relevant to an inquiry is a common job responsibility. If you provide services directly related to a criminal case, you will almost certainly be requested to write a report, so keep track of everything you do.

In the end, computer forensics is nothing more than the use of computer investigation and analysis tools to find relevant evidence. CHFI investigators can use a variety of techniques to find data in a computer system, as well as recover deleted, encrypted, or damaged file information, which is known as computer data recovery.

Computer crime is an ever-present scourge that security professionals must deal with on a daily basis. Police, government, and corporate institutions all across the world use computer investigation techniques, and many of them turn to EC-Council for the Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator CHFI Certification Program.

Individuals will be prepared to conduct computer investigations using cutting-edge digital forensics technology employing the tools and techniques described in EC-CHFI Council's curriculum.

Who Can Enroll in this Course: 1. IT manager 

2. Law enforcement officers

3. Defense and military

4. Attorneys, legal consultants, and lawyers

5. Federal/ government agents

6. Police officers

7. Anyone interested in cyber forensics/investigations

8. Information security managers

9. Detectives/ investigators

10. Incident response team members

11. Network defenders

12. System/network engineers

13. Security analyst/ architect/auditors/ consultants

14. Incident response team members

You can contact the pros at CCS Learning Academy if you are looking for the best institute for Computer Hacking Forensic Investigator training online. The best part is that if you purchase a training course from CCS Learning Academy, they will help you locate a project to work on for six months with CCS Global Tech (their parent firm) and you will save up to 50% on your training fees.

[dennlawgroup]

WHAT IS INSURANCE DEFENSE AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

Insurance defense is a type of legal counsel that focuses on insurance-related issues. Insurance attorneys may work for law firms that provide insurance companies or as in-house attorneys for the insurance business.

 Insurance firms and their clients are frequently taken to court in Sudbury and elsewhere over policy or coverage disputes. Such businesses often hire insurance defense lawyers when legal issues emerge for this and other reasons. What exactly does an insurance defense attorney perform, and what should you do if an insurance company employs one?

 An insurance attorney is hired when an insurance company or the insured customer is sued for something in the client's contract. For example, if said client causes an automobile accident that results in the damage or death of another person, the victim or their loved ones may seek compensation in court. If payment is given, the liable party's insurance company usually is responsible for paying it. However, charges of responsibility and any granted sum can be challenged if required.

 Insurance attorneys MA can assist in the defense of all forms of insurance-related lawsuits, as there are many different types of insurance. Some insurance companies force their clients to utilize specific attorneys who have signed a contract with them, while others may allow them to choose their own. The attorney will work relentlessly to represent the company's and its client's best interests in any situation.

 Insurance is an essential aspect of most people's lives, and it can be obtained for almost any reason. Those who buy insurance policies do everything to protect themselves, and insurance firms in Sudbury and elsewhere must follow suit. Insurance attorneys can assist insurance carriers with litigation and other legal difficulties when necessary. Often this is done against the policyholder's best interests.

 Consumers should have serious caution when their insurance company hires an attorney. Generally, the insurance attorney will view everything in the light most favorable to the insurance company. If your insurance company hires an attorney, you should immediately get a free consultation from an experienced insurance attorney.

 IMPORTANT TAKEAWAYS

  Insurance defense is the legal representation     of insurance-related legal disputes.

Attorneys that represent insurers may work for     a law company specializing in insurance law or as in-house auditors for     insurance firms.

Insurers do not accept any claims at face     value; instead, they investigate for a truth that best benefits the     insurance carrier for its claims, necessitating legal personnel's use.

In certain circumstances, insurance firms will     also employ insurance attorneys to defend policyholders against claims.

Because insurance laws are generally governed     by state law, insurers may discover that what is permissible in one state     may not be legal in another.

Policyholders should consult with their     attorney when an insurance company hires an attorney.

 INSURANCE DEFENSE: AN OVERVIEW

 Due to the pervasiveness of insurance, there might be a slew of lawsuits involving multiple levels of policy to sort through. Workers' compensation, vehicles, homes, and healthcare are all examples of insurance plans that can lead to litigation regarding the veracity of claims and policy fulfillment. The insurance sector is very extensively regulated, necessitating legal competence that keeps up with changes and revisions that affect how insurance companies offer and handle policies.

 The sorts of policies it writes, the number of premiums it earns from underwriting activities, and the number of benefits it pays out from claims against its policies determine how lucrative an insurance firm is. Rather than accepting all claims at face value, insurance firms evaluate a truth that best benefits them, necessitating legal professionals' use. 

Insurance companies are in the business of making money and not paying legitimate claims. If there is a situation where an insurance company can avoid paying a claim, then it will exploit the situation. In this situation, you should hire a Law firm I will suggest Denn Law Group is the best law firm in Sudbury. For more details about Denn Law Group, you can google: Sudbury Insurance Attorney MA or call: 978-252-4567.

[jessicalafollette]

Types of Lawyers You Need to Know

When you need the services of a lawyer, you are likely to be confused about what kind of lawyer you want to go for. There are different types of lawyers, which specialize in various legal fields. For example, there are criminal lawyers, probate lawyers, family lawyers, and so on.

If you have questions regarding the various types of lawyers and the kind of legal matters that they help clients solve, this article will highlight the main categories of lawyers. Here is the list of the different types of lawyers:

Family Lawyers

Family Lawyers helps people with all sorts of family-oriented legal needs. These could be adoption concerns, prenuptial agreements, divorce, and so forth. Attorneys can handle issues such as guardianship, child support, spousal support, and so on. The attorneys can also help people decide if a prenuptial agreement is right for them or not.

Criminal Defense Attorneys

Criminal Defense Attorneys specializes in all types of criminal law. They can represent people who have been accused of crimes, including murder, rape, burglary, and so on. In addition, they can also represent those accused of misdemeanors, like speeding or drug possession. The most common type of criminal defense attorney is a public defender. However, some private attorneys perform criminal defense work as well. The latter is referred to as "specialists."

Personal Injury Lawyers

Another major area of expertise is tort law. Personal injury lawyers specialize in representing clients who have been harmed or are suffering from injuries caused by another party. This includes automobile accidents, slips and falls, construction accidents, and medical malpractice.

Most tort lawyers work on a contingency basis, which means that they charge for any work they do on a claim and not for every client they represent. Some tort lawyers also act as special agents for their clients in carrying out their responsibilities. To know more about personal injury lawyers click here.

Civil Lawyers

These lawyers typically represent clients who have been injured due to another party's negligence. Common cases involve personal injury cases, defective products, and commercial lawsuits. Civil litigation can also include probate, landlord-tenant litigation, divorce and other non-criminal cases.

Tax Attorneys

This is another very common specialty. A tax attorney represents someone who has been accused of or charged with a crime, such as tax evasion. They also may specialize in another area, such as criminal law. A tax lawyer is an attorney who practices solely on tax issues. Others who may be referred to as a tax attorney include real estate agents, payroll administrators, IRS auditors, and tax attorneys.

Employment Law Attorney

Many employment law firms are established to offer their clients a range of legal services relating to employment. An employment law attorney will not only advise his/her clients about employment-related issues but also about other employment-related matters such as workers' compensation and discrimination.

Estate Planning Law Attorneys

Estate planning lawyers specialize in planning for or assisting the passing away of a person's assets. They represent the interests of their clients on matters of wills, estates, trusts and gifts. Some estate law attorneys even specialize in helping clients handle their final estates.

These lawyers can also work as personal assistants to attorneys and ensure that all the legal paperwork is completed, including those involving probate. Estate planning lawyers often act as chaplaincy witnesses for those who have died or provide support for those during the last days of their lives.

Government Lawyers

Government lawyers specialize in cases in which the government is involved. This type of lawyer is employed by the United States government or state governments. Examples include a federal government lawyer who represents the federal government.

[irstaxtroublesblog]

A quick guide to IRS audit attorney in Houston

Are you being audited by the IRS? Explore how the tax attorneys at Mitchell Tax Law can help support you throughout the process. Our experienced IRS audit attorney in Houston can stand by your side throughout the audit. Our attorneys handle audits of income tax, sales and use tax, employment tax, and other types of taxes and penalties, and work closely with CPAs on audits and appeals. Our skilled lawyers know how to navigate through the audit process to obtain the best results possible for our clients. We can help you avoid costly mistakes and present all of the defenses available to you. We eliminate your contact with the auditor and guide you safely to the other side. Our experienced tax lawyer can help you navigate the auditing process, protect your financial resources, and give you peace of mind. Our practice focuses on tax issues such as audits, appeals, and tax protests. If you have any concerns about the IRS audit or to learn more about how an IRS tax audit attorney at our firm can assist you. Contact us today!

[blackkudos]

LaDoris Cordell

LaDoris Hazzard Cordell (born November 19, 1949) is a retired judge of the Superior Court of California and former Independent Police Auditor for the city of San Jose, California. She is an advocate for improving transparency into charges of police misconduct. She was assistant dean at the Stanford Law School, where she helped develop a program to increase minority recruitment. Within a year, Stanford Law School went from last to first place in enrollment of African American and Hispanic students, among major law schools.

She was the first female African American judge in Northern California and the first female African American Superior Court judge in Santa Clara County, California.

Education

She received her BA degree from Antioch College in 1971, and JD degree from Stanford Law School in 1974.

Career

In 1975, she was the first person in the Western United States to serve as the Earl Warren Intern at the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund. From 1976 to 1982, she practiced as a private attorney in East Palo Alto, CA, specializing in criminal defense law, personal injury law, family law, and federal civil rights law. From 1978 to 1982, she was assistant dean for Student Affairs at Stanford Law School.

In 1982, California governor Jerry Brown appointed her to be a municipal court judge for the County of Santa Clara, CA. As municipal court judge, she was the first California judge to order breath devices installed into the cars of drivers convicted of driving while under the influence of alcohol, and was presiding judge from 1985 to 1986. In 1988, she was elected to become a superior court judge for the County of Santa Clara, where she served as supervising judge or the probate court from 1994-1995, supervising judge of the family court from 1990-1992, and presiding judge of the superior court appellate department in 1993.

She served as Stanford University's vice provost and special counselor to the president for campus relations from 2001-2009, where she supervised the Office for Campus relations. In a campaign in which she refused monetary contributions, she was elected to the Palo Alto City Council in 2004, where she served until 2008. From 2010 to 2015, she served as Independent Police Auditor for the City of San Jose, CA.

Awards

She has received numerous awards and prizes for social activism and breaking race and gender barriers, including the Rose Bird Memorial Award from the California Women Lawyers and the Rosa Parks Ordinary People Award from the NAACP.

Wikipedia

[curegbm]

The Great 5G Hype

David Rosen, CounterPunch, March 20, 2020

President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson share much in common – a similar appearance, a showman’s presence, conservative (if not racist) beliefs, a nationalist ideology, reputed extramarital affairs and support for Brexit. However, their mutual affection hit the wall in late January over 5G – “Fifth Generation” – broadband technology when the UK decided that it could work with the Chinese tech company, Huawei, as a supplier of 5G equipment as long as its market share did not exceed 35 percent.

The promise of 5G wireless service is significant, increasing connection speeds by tenfold over the current – “4G” – broadband service. Trump tweeted in February 2019, “I want 5G, and even 6G, technology in the United States as soon as possible. It is far more powerful, faster, and smarter than the current standard. American companies must step up their efforts, or get left behind. There is no reason that we should be lagging behind on………”

Trump claims that 5G is important to him and the country. In April 2019, he declared, “The race to 5G is on and we must win” and promised “my administration is freeing up as much wireless spectrum as is needed.” He then went on to claim, “It’s a race our great companies are now involved in.” Trump and others within his administration have warned that Huawei represents a national security threat, potentially enabling China to spy on the communications of American government agencies, businesses and citizens.

In light of the UK’s decision to work with Huawei, Trump was – according to the Financial Times — “apoplectic” and had a heated argument with Johnson, threatening to cut intelligence ties with the UK; Sec. of State Mike Pompeo quickly withdrew the threat.

The British decision raised great confusion within the Trump administration. In a major foreign policy speech on February 6th, Attorney General Bill Barr warned, “China has built up a lead in 5G, capturing 40 percent of the global 5G infrastructure market. For the first time in history, the United States in not leading the next technology era.” He then declared, “Huawei is now the leading supplier on every continent, except North America.  The United States does not have an equipment supplier.” Barr claims that China’s market share is 40 percent and its leading competitors are Nokia (17% share) and Ericsson (14% share). He then made a bold proposal: “Putting our large market and financial muscle behind one or both of these firms would make it a more formidable competitor and eliminate concerns over its staying power.”

Barr’s proposal freaked out the White House. The following day, key administration officials joined in a chorus to assail the proposal. Vice President Mike Pence appeared on CNBC insisting that “the best way forward” on 5G is through private enterprise, not government takeovers. He was quickly followed by Larry Kudlow, Trump’s economic adviser, who insisted that “the U.S. government is not in the business of buying companies, whether they’re domestic or foreign.”

A variety of federal agencies (including the NSA), corporations and politicians have put forward alternative strategies to address the nation’s lagging 5G status. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced legislation establishing a $1 billion fund for “Western-based alternatives to Chinese equipment providers Huawei and ZTE.”

Unfortunately, U.S. problems with regard to the deployment of 5G have far more to do with structural problems with the telecom industry – and the role of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) – then Huawei.

***

The Trump administration — led the by FCC — and the telecom companies are committed to the deployment of what has been labelled 5G. Media ads champion it as the greatest next new thing, an answer to all the nation’s communications problems. And all-too-many popular stories and industry reports fail to consider fundamental problems associated with its deployment – let alone whether it is the right long-term strategy for the nation’s tele-communications.

Unknown to most Americans, the U.S. is a second-tier communications country. A July 2019 report from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) ranked the U.S. 15th of the 34 OECD countries in terms of broadband usage. More revealing, a December 2019 report from Speedtest Global Index found the average speeds for download and upload — for mobile and fixed services — for the top 25 countries were as follows:

+ Mobile – download 32.01 Mbps; upload 12.02 Mbps;

+ Fixed Broadband – download 73.58 Mbps; upload 40.39 Mbps.

The U.S.’s position is pretty bleak per data rate. For mobile, it didn’t make the top 25 countries assessed; for fixed broadband, it ranked 11th at 130.9 Mbps – Singapore ranked first at 200.12 Mbps.

Compounding this picture, Americans pay more for inferior services. A 2019 report in Forbes assessed 6,313 mobile data plans in 230 countries and found that Americans pay the most for a gigabyte of data. Fees ranged from $0.26 in India and $0.27 in Kyrgyzstan to $1.73 in Italian, $2.99 in France, $6.66 in the United Kingdom and $6.96 in Germany. Costs in North America were the highest, averaging $12.02 in Canada and $12.38 in the U.S.

These findings are in line with estimates from New Networks Institute which reports that American subscribers to a basic “Triple Play” or bundled package — i.e., Internet, TV and phone services – pay between $70-$155 a month, not counting add-ons. In Europe, the OCED estimates that (in 2017) the Triple Play – broadband bundle — “basic” service ran $44.77 a month and the “cheapest” was only $15 a month. Thus, U.S. bundle prices ranked the highest – often two to three times higher – than other OCED countries.

Two fundamental challenges face the further deployment of 5G in the States – health concerns related to 5G signals and towers, and FCC telecom industry financing. Together, they raise substantial questions as to the whether the country will ever climb out of its second-tier telecom status.

***

One question that haunts 5G deployment is whether it is safe. Questions as to the health consequences of cellular communications date from 1993 when some early users claimed that cell-phone radiation caused cancer. The cell-phone industry sponsored research that raised serious questions as to the technology’s safety, but the research was fudged so as to protect the industry.

In 2013 the American Academy of Pediatrics requested the FCC to investigate the potential risks of 5G and numerous local and state governments have raised concerns about mobile cell phone use. In December 2019, the FCC reported that it found no health problems related to the rollout of 5G wireless networks. It cited the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) assertions that there was no scientific evidence linking cellphones use to health problems. “No expert health agency expressed concern about the Commission’s RF [radio frequency] exposure limits,” an FCC staff wrote.

In the fall of 2019, Scientific American hosted an informal debate over 5G’s safety. In the first opinion piece, “We Have No Reason to Believe 5G Is Safe,” Joel Moskowitz, PhD, director of UC Berkeley’s Center for Family and Community Health, argued that the FCC’s 1996 report focused on radio frequency radiation (RFR) and the behavioral changes in rats “exposed to microwave radiation and were designed to protect us from “short-term heating risks to RFR exposure.” The author points out since the original FCC study, “the preponderance of peer-reviewed research, more than 500 studies, have found harmful biologic or health effects from exposure to RFR at intensities too low to cause significant heating.”

In a follow-up piece, “Don’t Fall Prey to Scaremongering about 5G,” David Robert Grimes, a cancer researcher and physicist based at Dublin City University, dismissed Moskowitz’s findings. “Many of the studies Moskowitz linked to are of poor quality, and more tellingly, at least one he listed flatly contradict his dire assertions,” he asserts. Going further, he draws from a World Health Organization report that finds “a large number of studies have been performed over the last two decades to assess whether mobile phones pose a potential health risk. To date, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by mobile phone use.”

The academic debate over the health consequences of 5G deployment persists and is moving from scholarly duels to the courtroom. On February 2nd, Children’s Health Defense (CHD), led by Robert Kennedy, Jr., filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit against the FCC for its failure since 1996 to review its health guidelines and “to promulgate scientific, human evidence-based radio frequency emissions (‘RF’) rules that adequately protect public health from wireless technology radiation.”

CHD’s suit is based, in part, on a 2012 report by the General Accountability Office (GAO) that found that the then-existing guidelines may not more recent scientific and medical knowledge and recommended that the FCC formally reassess its guidelines. The FCC’s guidelines address only one aspect of potential harm from electromagnetic radiation — heat. The current guidelines do not address other ways in which exposure to increasing electromagnetic radiation from wireless communications can harm human health as well as the environmental systems upon which all life depends.

In its suit, CHD joined forces with the Irregulators, a group of “senior telecom experts, analysts, forensic auditors, and lawyers …,” including former FCC officials, who are challenging the FCC’s accounting practices. On January 17, 2020, they appeared before the U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, to argue that the FCC has facilitated one of the largest accounting scandals in American history.

On March 13, 2020, the DC Court of Appeals ruled on the case, providing an opportunity for states and cities across the country to bring cases against the nation’s telecommunications utilities. The Court formally dismissed the Irregulators case because “none of them possesses Article III standing.” However, the Court took the group’s concerns seriously and – citing Nat’l Rural Telecom Ass’n v. FCC (1993) — noted:

Rate-of-return carriers also have perverse incentives to shift costs “away from unregulated activities (where consumers would react to higher prices by reducing their purchases) into the regulated ones (where the price increase will cause little or no drop in sales because under regulation the prices are in a range where demand is relatively unresponsive to price changes).”

Most critically, it went further and insisted:

… any injuries the petitioners suffer through the application of outmoded Part 36 [of Code of Federal Regulations] rules to price-cap carriers are traceable not to the Commission’s freeze order but to the states’ voluntary and independent decisions to use the rules of Part 36 for their own purposes.

Thus, the Court fulfilled the Irregulators primary objective and opened the door for states and cities to bring claims against individual telecom companies.

The group accused the FCC of “freezing” its cost-accounting rules 19 years ago, thus allowing the nation’s telecommunications companies – the telecom trust – to engage in a bookkeeping slight-of-hand practices that costs telecom users, states and taxpayers across the country an estimated $50-$60 billion a year. The group estimates that over the last decade this scam has cost users $500 billion or upwards of $1 trillion since 2000.

The FCC divides the communications into two distinct service categories. Title I services consist of enhanced “information services” whereas Title II services designate basic or “common carrier” services. Title I services are subject to fewer regulations, whereas Title II services are subject to more regulation.

The Irregulators argue that the giant telecoms, in collusion with the FCC, are seeking to fully privatize the Internet. Together, they are pushing the adoption of 5G wireless technology as a substitute for fiber-to-the-home. The Irregulators, along with others, see this as but the latest move to not only remove all regulations and allow private companies to take over the state utility wired networks, but provide Americans with a second-rate – as possible harmful – communications infrastructure.

The Irregators’ Bruce Kushnick, head of New Networks, warns: “The 5G frenzy is like any of the previous techno-bait-and-switch schemes — and this one is ironically similar to the super-hyped 1990’s ‘Info-Highway’ when America was supposed to get a fiber optic network that would replace the existing copper wires.” 5G utilizes higher-frequency radio bands but to be deployed, the system requires the installation of greater number of cell transmitters and receivers that are located closer to the ground and to a customer’s home.

At the heart of the Irregulators case is a call for federal and state officials – and ordinary telecom users – to remember that phone services are state regulated public telecommunications utilities. Its suit serves to reveal that since AT&T was formally broken-up into seven Regional Bell Companies in 1984, two things have occurred – (i) the telecom industry re-consolidated and (ii) the FCC became a corporate-industry-captured government agency that stopped working for the public good.

The great telecommunications revolution of the 1990s was based on a notion of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), an infrastructure that guaranteed everyone – whether in a big city or the rural heartland – equal access to the world-wide-web. It was introduced in 1999 and began to take off in 2001 and, by 2007, 10.5 million FTTH connections were reported. In 2008, NASA conceives 5G wireless technology and the telecom industry quickly commercialized it, seeing it as an easier to implement and a cheaper option than FTTH. With the shift from wired to wireless services, the U.S. begins the steady decline as a first-tier telecom nation.

The effort to provide FTTH to all Americans has ended. As the Electronic Frontier Foundation noted: “Wireless carriers are working hard to talk up 5G (Fifth Generation) wireless as the future of broadband. But don’t be fooled—they are only trying to focus our attention on 5G to try to distract us from their willful failure to invest in a proven ultrafast option for many Americans: fiber to the home, or FTTH.”

Sadly, the U.S. is likely to remain a second-tier communications nation for the foreseeable future.

David Rosen is the author of Sex, Sin & Subversion:  The Transformation of 1950s New York’s Forbidden into America’s New Normal (Skyhorse, 2015).  He can be reached at drosennyc@verizon.net; check out www.DavidRosenWrites.com.

https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/03/20/the-great-5g-hype/ 

--

My note:  Scientific American published my piece in response to an earlier piece by Ken Foster. Initially, SciAm told me that they would not publish a rebuttal to Grimes' piece, but after they were attacked for Grimes' inaccuracies by Microwave News and by wireless safety advocates, SciAm invited me to submit a rebuttal. However, after I submitted my response to Grimes, SciAm decided against publishing any further pieces on this topic.  If you are interested in an account of what transpired with SciAm or want to read my rebuttal to Grimes, "5G, Public Health and Uncomfortable Truths, see my post, Scientific American Created Confusion about 5G's Safety: Will They Clear It Up?.

--

Related Posts on EMR Safety

"We Have No Reason to Believe 5G is Safe" (Scientific American)

Scientific American Created Confusion about 5G's Safety: Will They Clear It Up?

                (includes "5G, Public Health and Uncomfortable Truths")

5G Wireless Technology: Is 5G Harmful to Our Health?

5G Wireless Technology: Millimeter Wave Health Effects

Scientists and Doctors Demand Moratorium on 5G

5G Wireless Technology: Cutting Through the Hype

5G Global Protest

5G Day of Action

5G Wireless Technology: Major newspaper editorials oppose "small cell" antenna bills

FCC Open Letter Calls for Moratorium on New Applications of Radiofrequency Radiation

--

Joel M. Moskowitz, Ph.D., Director

Center for Family and Community Health

School of Public Health

University of California, Berkeley

Electromagnetic Radiation Safety

Website:          https://www.saferemr.com

Facebook:        https://www.facebook.com/SaferEMR

Twitter:            @berkeleyprc

[attorneyzone-blog]

Picking The Appropriate Law Company For Your Needs

Are you currently up against acute legalities or lawsuit difficulties? It is important to look for lawyers with extensive expertise in litigation and appellate procedures. Go over the law firms within your area. Establish the standards for choosing attorneys within your area.

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Private Meeting

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Request a formal estimate with accompanying companies. This can enable one to see the breakdown of all the charges. Check always the attorney's desktop . Lawyers do not have any unwanted records or lapses in moral training. You are able to constantly verify that thing together with directories of agencies for regulation practitioners. Evaluation references attentively especially when legal counsel wasn't recommended by peers or relatives. The pub association is a resource for lawyers that are accomplished.

[businessprofile123]

Best San Antonio Criminal Lawyer

In the event that you are at present overseeing criminal indictments, or if a buddy or relative has been beginning late got, scolded, or accused for an awful conduct, this kind of occasion can be one of life's usually startling and overpowering encounters. Despite what your case incorporates, all things considered, the San Antonio criminal hindrance lawyers at the Law Office of Guillermo Lara Jr. are given to helping you or your revered one keep up a crucial decent ways from the unforgiving hand of the criminal worth structure.

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Game-plan and Experience is the Key

There must be in any event one impediment for each criminal allegation. Your lawyer's essential obligation is to see any guardians you may have, and from that point advocate for you and persuade the judge, jury or auditor that those assurances are genuine. At last, information on the law, experience, veritable and caution are basic.

San Antonio Criminal Attorney readies each criminal case, paying little regard to how real the charges are, with the purpose of winning a quittance or expulsion before preliminary if conceivable, yet at starter if essential.

[melissawalker01]

What Is A Tax Audit?

One day, you get a letter in the mail from the IRS, hoping to discover a tax refund in the envelope. You carefully read the letter stating that your tax return has been selected for examination. In other words, your tax return is being audited. You’re thinking the nightmare of filing taxes hasn’t ended. However, tax audits come in different types and forms. Read on to learn about IRS tax audits and discover how to handle them.

Tax Audit: The Basics

A tax audit is a formal examination conducted by the IRS to verify information or uncover fraud and inaccurate tax returns. The IRS selects tax returns to examine both randomly and intentionally. If the audit is selected randomly, the IRS will simply take a closer look to make sure all information are accurate. The IRS will intentionally audit certain tax returns if there are issues, errors, or possible frauds in reporting the tax return.

The IRS sends out audit notification letters by mail for the following several reasons: (1) you have a balance due, (2) you are due a larger or smaller refund, (3) the IRS has questions about your tax return, (4) the IRS needs to verify your identity, (5) the IRS needs additional information, (6) the IRS changed your tax return, or (7) the IRS needs to notify you of delays in processing your return.

Tax audits can be broken down into four different types:

Correspondence Audit: This is the least serious type of tax audit. A correspondence audit refers to the IRS request of additional information to verify the accuracy or details of your tax return.

Office Audit: An office audit refers to the in-person interview with an IRS manager to process your audit. To avoid making statements that can be used against you, it’s highly advisable to consult with an attorney or a tax professional before you attend the interview.

Field Audit: This is the most serious type of audit because the IRS agents will visit you at home or business. They may ask to see things that are related to the tax you’ve reported.

Random Audit: As mentioned above, tax returns can be randomly selected for an audit. A random audit is made without any particular reason. The IRS auditor will review the entire tax return to make sure the information was entered correctly.

How To Handle Your Tax Audit

For all types of audits, the IRS begins the audit process by sending a notification letter to the taxpayer. If you’ve received a notification letter, you should first read the letter carefully. The letter should contain important information, such as the reason why your tax return is being examined, specific steps to follow, and a deadline to reply.

Then, prepare yourself to resolve the issue by researching the law and gathering information. Don’t feel rushed to contact the IRS to respond to the letter. Any information you give to the IRS may be used against you. If you need more time to gather information or prepare yourself to respond, you can submit a written request to the IRS by fax or mail to get a one-time 30-day extension. However, if you’ve received a “Notice of Deficiency” in the mail, the IRS won’t grant you an extension.

There are three possible ways of concluding an audit. First, an audit can conclude without making any changes. In this case, the IRS accepts the documents or information you’ve submitted, which results in no change to your tax return. Second, the IRS can propose a change to your tax return, and you may agree to those changes. Third, you may disagree with the proposed change made by the IRS and request a conference with an IRS manager to challenge its assessment.

Taxpayer Rights

Taxpayers have the right to know what steps to take to comply with the tax laws. The Taxpayer Bill of Rights requires the IRS to provide taxpayers with clear explanations of the laws. There are several rights, which apply to tax audits as well. The IRS informs its employees and the taxpayers that the taxpayers have the following basic rights:

A right to professional and courteous treatment by IRS employees

A right to privacy and confidentiality about tax matters

A right to know why the IRS is asking for information, how the IRS will use it, and what will happen if the requested information is not provided

A right to representation, by oneself or an authorized representative

Tax Audit Lawyer Free Consultation

When you need legal help with a tax audit in Utah, please call Ascent Law for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.

Ascent Law LLC 8833 S. Redwood Road, Suite C West Jordan, Utah 84088 United States Telephone: (801) 676-5506

Ascent Law LLC

4.9 stars – based on 67 reviews

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from Michael Anderson https://www.ascentlawfirm.com/what-is-a-tax-audit/ from Divorce Lawyer Nelson Farms Utah https://divorcelawyernelsonfarmsutah.tumblr.com/post/188290847270

[mayarosa47]

What Is A Tax Audit?

One day, you get a letter in the mail from the IRS, hoping to discover a tax refund in the envelope. You carefully read the letter stating that your tax return has been selected for examination. In other words, your tax return is being audited. You’re thinking the nightmare of filing taxes hasn’t ended. However, tax audits come in different types and forms. Read on to learn about IRS tax audits and discover how to handle them.

Tax Audit: The Basics

A tax audit is a formal examination conducted by the IRS to verify information or uncover fraud and inaccurate tax returns. The IRS selects tax returns to examine both randomly and intentionally. If the audit is selected randomly, the IRS will simply take a closer look to make sure all information are accurate. The IRS will intentionally audit certain tax returns if there are issues, errors, or possible frauds in reporting the tax return.

The IRS sends out audit notification letters by mail for the following several reasons: (1) you have a balance due, (2) you are due a larger or smaller refund, (3) the IRS has questions about your tax return, (4) the IRS needs to verify your identity, (5) the IRS needs additional information, (6) the IRS changed your tax return, or (7) the IRS needs to notify you of delays in processing your return.

Tax audits can be broken down into four different types:

Correspondence Audit: This is the least serious type of tax audit. A correspondence audit refers to the IRS request of additional information to verify the accuracy or details of your tax return.

Office Audit: An office audit refers to the in-person interview with an IRS manager to process your audit. To avoid making statements that can be used against you, it’s highly advisable to consult with an attorney or a tax professional before you attend the interview.

Field Audit: This is the most serious type of audit because the IRS agents will visit you at home or business. They may ask to see things that are related to the tax you’ve reported.

Random Audit: As mentioned above, tax returns can be randomly selected for an audit. A random audit is made without any particular reason. The IRS auditor will review the entire tax return to make sure the information was entered correctly.

How To Handle Your Tax Audit

For all types of audits, the IRS begins the audit process by sending a notification letter to the taxpayer. If you’ve received a notification letter, you should first read the letter carefully. The letter should contain important information, such as the reason why your tax return is being examined, specific steps to follow, and a deadline to reply.

Then, prepare yourself to resolve the issue by researching the law and gathering information. Don’t feel rushed to contact the IRS to respond to the letter. Any information you give to the IRS may be used against you. If you need more time to gather information or prepare yourself to respond, you can submit a written request to the IRS by fax or mail to get a one-time 30-day extension. However, if you’ve received a “Notice of Deficiency” in the mail, the IRS won’t grant you an extension.

There are three possible ways of concluding an audit. First, an audit can conclude without making any changes. In this case, the IRS accepts the documents or information you’ve submitted, which results in no change to your tax return. Second, the IRS can propose a change to your tax return, and you may agree to those changes. Third, you may disagree with the proposed change made by the IRS and request a conference with an IRS manager to challenge its assessment.

Taxpayer Rights

Taxpayers have the right to know what steps to take to comply with the tax laws. The Taxpayer Bill of Rights requires the IRS to provide taxpayers with clear explanations of the laws. There are several rights, which apply to tax audits as well. The IRS informs its employees and the taxpayers that the taxpayers have the following basic rights:

A right to professional and courteous treatment by IRS employees

A right to privacy and confidentiality about tax matters

A right to know why the IRS is asking for information, how the IRS will use it, and what will happen if the requested information is not provided

A right to representation, by oneself or an authorized representative

Tax Audit Lawyer Free Consultation

When you need legal help with a tax audit in Utah, please call Ascent Law for your free consultation (801) 676-5506. We want to help you.

Ascent Law LLC 8833 S. Redwood Road, Suite C West Jordan, Utah 84088 United States Telephone: (801) 676-5506

Ascent Law LLC

4.9 stars – based on 67 reviews

Recent Posts

Real Estate Lawyer Bluffdale Utah

Does It Matter Who Files First For Divorce?

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from https://www.ascentlawfirm.com/what-is-a-tax-audit/

from Criminal Defense Lawyer West Jordan Utah - Blog http://criminaldefenselawyerwestjordanutah.weebly.com/blog/what-is-a-tax-audit