Angry IIEC calls off Kamukunji poll

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Stephen Mudiari | Nation
IIEC chairman Isaack Hassan (right) with Joseph Masindet, the Kamukunji by-election returning officer, during the press conference at the Commission’s offices in Nairobi on May 21, 2011. Mr Hassan said that court ruling of May 20, 2011 stopping the by-election had set a bad precedent for the country.

In Summary

• IIEC says the controversial High Court ruling halting by-election amounts to usurping its powers and vows to challenge it at the Appeal Court
  

The electoral commission on Saturday accused the High Court of usurping its powers as wide condemnation greeted the Friday injunction stopping the Kamukunji parliamentary by-election.
The Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) on Saturday held a daylong meeting with their lawyers and the candidates in the Kamkunji by-election after which the chairman Issack Hassan announced the postponement of the exercise until a later date.
The postponement means that the process will start all over again. Campaigns have also been stopped forthwith but will be re-opened through a gazette notice once the court settles the matter.
The Commission has also appointed lawyer Pheroze Nowrojee to lodge an appeal at the Court of Appeal on Monday. The appeal, Mr Hassan said, would seek to overturn the injunction.
On Friday High Court judge Daniel Musinga temporarily halted the by-election scheduled for tomorrow until a petition filed by an aggrieved aspirant is heard and determined.
The applicant, Paul Waweru Mwangi of the National Vision Party challenged the legality of nominations conducted by the Interim Independent Electoral Commission and the returning officer Joseph Masindet on April 27 and 28.
Mr Mwangi complained that his nomination papers were rejected by the returning officer.
In his ruling Justice Musinga said the IIEC violated the aspirant’s constitutional right to be a candidate in the by-election.
“If the court, having found that the nomination exercise was seriously flawed, fails to grant an order of injunction to restrain the respondents from holding the by-election, it will be frustrating all the gains that have so far been made in our electoral process,” said the judge.
But Mr Hassan said none, including the constitutional court, can override the electoral body’s duty to solve disputes at the nomination level.
Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Mutula Kilonzo also criticised the High Court ruling stopping the by-election which he described as ‘ridiculous’.
Mr Kilonzo said the ruling was uncalled for and the timing suspect.
“I don’t want to join political parties who have expressed displeasure with the ruling but as a justice minister I feel the ruling coming at the eleventh hour was a setback for democracy,” the minister told journalists in Machakos on Saturday.
Mr Kilonzo said such a ruling should have been made at the onset of the political campaigns.
He said an electoral process cannot be challenged before the ballot and said the law allows individuals dissatisfied with the outcome of an election to petition.
“That is exactly what the ODM candidate did; he felt his rights to a fair election were deprived and chose to challenge the results after the polls and not before,” said Mr Kilonzo.
The minister said he will read the ruling on Monday before issuing an official statement.
And in Nairobi, the IIEC chairman left nothing to the imagination concerning his feelings over the Court ruling.
“IIEC received the orders stopping the Kamukunji by-election on Friday with shock,” said Mr Hassan. “The ruling sets a very bad precedent in this country. It is the first time that a court of law is stopping an election.”
Three commissioners – Simiyu Wasike, Davis Chirchir and Douglas Mwashigadi – and the chief electoral officer James Oswago accompanied the chairman.

Angry IIEC calls off Kamukunji poll

HomeNewsPolitics

Politics

Share
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Stephen Mudiari | Nation
IIEC chairman Isaack Hassan (right) with Joseph Masindet, the Kamukunji by-election returning officer, during the press conference at the Commission’s offices in Nairobi on May 21, 2011. Mr Hassan said that court ruling of May 20, 2011 stopping the by-election had set a bad precedent for the country.

In Summary

• IIEC says the controversial High Court ruling halting by-election amounts to usurping its powers and vows to challenge it at the Appeal Court
  

The electoral commission on Saturday accused the High Court of usurping its powers as wide condemnation greeted the Friday injunction stopping the Kamukunji parliamentary by-election.
The Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) on Saturday held a daylong meeting with their lawyers and the candidates in the Kamkunji by-election after which the chairman Issack Hassan announced the postponement of the exercise until a later date.
The postponement means that the process will start all over again. Campaigns have also been stopped forthwith but will be re-opened through a gazette notice once the court settles the matter.
The Commission has also appointed lawyer Pheroze Nowrojee to lodge an appeal at the Court of Appeal on Monday. The appeal, Mr Hassan said, would seek to overturn the injunction.
On Friday High Court judge Daniel Musinga temporarily halted the by-election scheduled for tomorrow until a petition filed by an aggrieved aspirant is heard and determined.
The applicant, Paul Waweru Mwangi of the National Vision Party challenged the legality of nominations conducted by the Interim Independent Electoral Commission and the returning officer Joseph Masindet on April 27 and 28.
Mr Mwangi complained that his nomination papers were rejected by the returning officer.
In his ruling Justice Musinga said the IIEC violated the aspirant’s constitutional right to be a candidate in the by-election.
“If the court, having found that the nomination exercise was seriously flawed, fails to grant an order of injunction to restrain the respondents from holding the by-election, it will be frustrating all the gains that have so far been made in our electoral process,” said the judge.
But Mr Hassan said none, including the constitutional court, can override the electoral body’s duty to solve disputes at the nomination level.
Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Mutula Kilonzo also criticised the High Court ruling stopping the by-election which he described as ‘ridiculous’.
Mr Kilonzo said the ruling was uncalled for and the timing suspect.
“I don’t want to join political parties who have expressed displeasure with the ruling but as a justice minister I feel the ruling coming at the eleventh hour was a setback for democracy,” the minister told journalists in Machakos on Saturday.
Mr Kilonzo said such a ruling should have been made at the onset of the political campaigns.
He said an electoral process cannot be challenged before the ballot and said the law allows individuals dissatisfied with the outcome of an election to petition.
“That is exactly what the ODM candidate did; he felt his rights to a fair election were deprived and chose to challenge the results after the polls and not before,” said Mr Kilonzo.
The minister said he will read the ruling on Monday before issuing an official statement.
And in Nairobi, the IIEC chairman left nothing to the imagination concerning his feelings over the Court ruling.
“IIEC received the orders stopping the Kamukunji by-election on Friday with shock,” said Mr Hassan. “The ruling sets a very bad precedent in this country. It is the first time that a court of law is stopping an election.”
Three commissioners – Simiyu Wasike, Davis Chirchir and Douglas Mwashigadi – and the chief electoral officer James Oswago accompanied the chairman.

2G scam: Delhi HC order on bail for five accused on Monday

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court will on Monday will give its verdict on the bail plea filed by Unitech MD Sanjay Chandra, DB group promoter Vinod Goenka and three senior Reliance ADAG executives who are now in judicial custody for their alleged role in the in the 2G scam.
DMK’s Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi, who was sent to judicial custody on Friday, may file her bail plea in the high court on Monday.
Justice Ajit Bharihoke of the HC is scheduled to decide if the five accused, including Reliance ADAG senior executives Gautam Doshi, Hari Nair and Surendra Pipara, should continue to stay in Tihar jail. All of them were arrested on April 20, after the CBI special judge hearing the 2G scam case, OP Saini, refused to grant them bail.
The bail applications of many other accused, including those of former telecom secretary Siddartha Behura and Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Balwa, his brother Asif Balwa and DB group executive Rajeev Agarwal, are presently at various stages of hearing before the 2G trial court. Former telecom minister A Raja is yet to seek bail, but is expected to do so next week.
In the wake of her bail plea being dismissed on Friday by the trial court, Kanimozhi and co-accused Sharad Kumar, MD of Kalaignar TV, would be looking forward to Justice Bharihoke’s order since it would set a precedent for others. Sources said the two could also file their bail pleas before the HC on the same day.
The HC had recently reserved its verdict on the pleas of the five accused after hearing several eminent lawyers bat for the business bigwigs and CBI’s counter-arguments for nearly two weeks.
While the defence lawyers said their clients were not arrested by the CBI during its investigations and thus deserved bail, Supreme Court-appointed special prosecutor for 2G scam, U U Lalit, argued that the corporate entities and individuals were direct beneficiaries of the spectrum deal. He said they were also involved in a conspiracy along with former telecom minister A Raja to obtain benefits from the grant of spectrum licences. Lalit claimed that Raja had advanced the cut-off date for submitting applications for spectrum allocation, and also altered the licensing policy to favour Swan Telecom and Unitech Ltd.
Lalit also pointed out that some firms were floated to transfer the money that changed hands following grant of spectrum licences to the beneficiary telecom firms. The prosecutor said since the CBI had already filed its second chargesheet, the accused corporate honchos should not be given bail at this juncture.

2G scam: Delhi HC order on bail for five accused on Monday

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court will on Monday will give its verdict on the bail plea filed by Unitech MD Sanjay Chandra, DB group promoter Vinod Goenka and three senior Reliance ADAG executives who are now in judicial custody for their alleged role in the in the 2G scam.
DMK’s Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi, who was sent to judicial custody on Friday, may file her bail plea in the high court on Monday.
Justice Ajit Bharihoke of the HC is scheduled to decide if the five accused, including Reliance ADAG senior executives Gautam Doshi, Hari Nair and Surendra Pipara, should continue to stay in Tihar jail. All of them were arrested on April 20, after the CBI special judge hearing the 2G scam case, OP Saini, refused to grant them bail.
The bail applications of many other accused, including those of former telecom secretary Siddartha Behura and Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Balwa, his brother Asif Balwa and DB group executive Rajeev Agarwal, are presently at various stages of hearing before the 2G trial court. Former telecom minister A Raja is yet to seek bail, but is expected to do so next week.
In the wake of her bail plea being dismissed on Friday by the trial court, Kanimozhi and co-accused Sharad Kumar, MD of Kalaignar TV, would be looking forward to Justice Bharihoke’s order since it would set a precedent for others. Sources said the two could also file their bail pleas before the HC on the same day.
The HC had recently reserved its verdict on the pleas of the five accused after hearing several eminent lawyers bat for the business bigwigs and CBI’s counter-arguments for nearly two weeks.
While the defence lawyers said their clients were not arrested by the CBI during its investigations and thus deserved bail, Supreme Court-appointed special prosecutor for 2G scam, U U Lalit, argued that the corporate entities and individuals were direct beneficiaries of the spectrum deal. He said they were also involved in a conspiracy along with former telecom minister A Raja to obtain benefits from the grant of spectrum licences. Lalit claimed that Raja had advanced the cut-off date for submitting applications for spectrum allocation, and also altered the licensing policy to favour Swan Telecom and Unitech Ltd.
Lalit also pointed out that some firms were floated to transfer the money that changed hands following grant of spectrum licences to the beneficiary telecom firms. The prosecutor said since the CBI had already filed its second chargesheet, the accused corporate honchos should not be given bail at this juncture.

Santa Clara University law school marks centennial with graduation ceremony

Click photo to enlarge

Santa Clara University’s School of Law sent 300 of its students into the world Saturday armed with new law degrees, encouraging them to become “the conscience of Silicon Valley” and the country.

“Be the conscience that our society needs,” said the Rev. Michael Engh, president of the university, who addressed the graduates beneath a sunny California sky in the school’s Mission Garden.
The Jesuit university’s law school, which prides itself on its social justice and non-profit law focus as well as a more recent specialty in high tech, is celebrating its centennial year.
The Class of 2011 joins more than 11,000 other graduates who have received degrees from the school since its founding in 1911, noted Dean Donald J. Polden. The student’s graduation gowns came with a special tassel to mark the anniversary, he said.
Next stop: the bar exam. And after that, a profession that as the commencement speaker, retired State Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, observed, has vast potential for doing good and helping society’s weak and vulnerable.
“You will be truly amazed at the impact you will be able to have with it,” he said of the student’s new degrees. “Your law degree will, I assure you, give you the power to insure access to justice for all,” he said.
“Don’t think for single moment that because you are one person, that you can’t make a difference. You are one lawyer.”
The school estimates that 58 percent of its graduates
still live in the greater Bay Area. Many of them have gone on to prominence in public service or private practice.
Google’s chief legal officer is an alumnus of the law school. Others hold key legal jobs at Charles Schwab, Safeway, Rambus, Oracle and eBay, and up north, Microsoft.
Other alumni are in top-tier positions in intellectual property practice in the valley.
A third of Santa Clara County’s superior court judges are alumni, and about 220 graduates are judges throughout the country and elsewhere, according to the university.
Still others have risen to prominence on the national stage, including U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, who was at the commencement; and Leon Panetta, the former congressman, White House chief of staff, CIA director and now Defense Secretary-designate.
With these examples to focus their ambitions, a few graduates talked about their plans:

Brittney Salvatore, 27, Napa. After taking the bar exam in July, she plans to spend four months in China and India “and a few other places,” laying the groundwork for a non-profit. Her idea is to help large organizations such as universities connect their research to places that can use it best. “A lot of great ideas don’t get implemented,” she said, because they are simply tried in the wrong place. She did her undergraduate work at Santa Clara. “The Jesuit mentality really infiltrated,” she said, “asking us to think outside the box.”

Carlos Rosario, 28, Santa Clara. President of the student bar association, Rosario has lined up a job with a boutique San Jose intellectual property firm. “I always wanted to work around here, and I figured tech was the best way to go,” he said. A Bellarmine alumnus with computer engineering degrees from the University of Southern California and UCLA , Rosario left a six-figure aerospace job in Southern California to study law. Political aspirations: “Maybe one day in the future.”

Jennifer McAllister, 43, San Jose. After 20 years in cosmetics, publishing and culinary work, the Chatham University graduate decided to return to school for a law degree. “I didn’t want to sell cosmetic packaging all my life,” she said; and after she served on a grand jury for a month, she was hooked. “The work that the district attorneys did was very interesting,” she recalls. “I saw that they had to think for a living.” She says her “dream job” would be working in transgender law, “but I’m pretty much prepared to take any work that comes my way” until then.

Sarah Mercer, 34, Sacramento. Following a public policy and health advocacy career in the state capitol, Mercer said she realized she needed a law degree to makes sure the bills she’d worked to see passed into law actually were enforced. “Having public policy skills along with the legal skills, I can help the most vulnerable in our society,” she said. Mercer said she will open the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network’s Sacramento office.

Justice Moreno was presented with an honorary degree – his first from Santa Clara. He is a Stanford alum, noted retired state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ed Panelli in an introduction. “His GPS probably wasn’t working when he applied to law school, and he ended 20 miles north instead of stopping here at Santa Clara,” joked Panelli, a Santa Clara law graduate.

Panelli turned to Moreno and said his fellow former justice was being honored “because of your long outstanding commitment to the fair and efficient administration of justice and your leadership of the judiciary.”

Contact Pete Carey at 408-920-5419.

Some notable SCU Law ALUMNI:

Former San Jose mayor (and former 49ers part-owner) Al Ruffo, ’36
CIA Director Leon Panetta, ’63
Former state Supreme Court chief judge Ed Panelli, ’55
California Appeals Court associate justice (and former California State Senator) Charles Poochigian, ’75
U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, ’75
Santa Clara County Assistant District Attorney Rolanda Pierre-Dixon, ’80

Source: Santa Clara University

Key moments in the history of Santa Clara University School of Law:

1911 ““ Law school founded.
1914 ““ First graduating class.
1926 ““ Mission church burns, including 1,000 books from the nearby law library. No degrees conferred next two years.
1937 ““ Accreditation by American Bar Association.
1942 ““ Maseo Kanemoto receives his diploma and passes the bar while interned with other Japanese-Americans during World War II.
1943 ““ Law school closed for duration of the war
1947 ““ School reopened.
1952 ““ Aurelius “Reo” Miles becomes first African American to graduate from Santa Clara law.
1955 ““ Women permitted to apply.
1963 ““ First three women graduate.
1970 ““ George Alexander becomes dean, embarks on efforts to diversify the law school’s student body.
1974 ““ Beginnings of Institute of International and Comparative Law, focusing on Asia.
1990 ““ High Tech Law Institute formed.
1999 ““ SCU’s Social Justice and Public Service law program started.
2000 ““ Northern California Innocence Project is formed.
2011 ““ Centennial year.

Source: Santa Clara University

Notification issued for setting up Tribunal to probe into Kharotabad incident

QUETTA: A notification for setting up tribunal headed by Balochistan High Court judge Justice Muhammad Hashim Kakar has been issued to conduct judicial enquiry into the Kharotabad incident. into the matter.
Provincial Home Secretary, Zafrullah Baloch told that the Home Ministry has issued the notification for constitution of Kakar tribunal after the approval of the Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Muhammad Aslam Raisani.
According to the notification, the tribunal headed by Justice Muhammad Hashim Kakar would conduct an enquiry into the incident and submit the report to the provincial government in the light of which the actions against those found responsible would be taken.
Replying to a question, he said that the tribunal according to law will present its report within fourteen days, but if required more time could be given. He said that none has contacted so far for handing over of the bodies of victims.
Bolan Medical Hospitals Police Surgeon, Dr. Baqar Shah said that the final post mortem report of those five foreigners killed in the Kharotabad incident would be submitted by Monday, May 23 and added the main reason for the death of the foreigners was gunshot.
A high level investigating committee and tribunal have been established under the supervision of Chief Secretary Balochistan Ahmed Bakhsh Lehri whereas department inquiry has been initiated by police and Frontier Corps.

Santa Clara University law school marks centennial with graduation ceremony

Click photo to enlarge

Santa Clara University’s School of Law sent 300 of its students into the world Saturday armed with new law degrees, encouraging them to become “the conscience of Silicon Valley” and the country.

“Be the conscience that our society needs,” said the Rev. Michael Engh, president of the university, who addressed the graduates beneath a sunny California sky in the school’s Mission Garden.
The Jesuit university’s law school, which prides itself on its social justice and non-profit law focus as well as a more recent specialty in high tech, is celebrating its centennial year.
The Class of 2011 joins more than 11,000 other graduates who have received degrees from the school since its founding in 1911, noted Dean Donald J. Polden. The student’s graduation gowns came with a special tassel to mark the anniversary, he said.
Next stop: the bar exam. And after that, a profession that as the commencement speaker, retired State Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno, observed, has vast potential for doing good and helping society’s weak and vulnerable.
“You will be truly amazed at the impact you will be able to have with it,” he said of the student’s new degrees. “Your law degree will, I assure you, give you the power to insure access to justice for all,” he said.
“Don’t think for single moment that because you are one person, that you can’t make a difference. You are one lawyer.”
The school estimates that 58 percent of its graduates
still live in the greater Bay Area. Many of them have gone on to prominence in public service or private practice.
Google’s chief legal officer is an alumnus of the law school. Others hold key legal jobs at Charles Schwab, Safeway, Rambus, Oracle and eBay, and up north, Microsoft.
Other alumni are in top-tier positions in intellectual property practice in the valley.
A third of Santa Clara County’s superior court judges are alumni, and about 220 graduates are judges throughout the country and elsewhere, according to the university.
Still others have risen to prominence on the national stage, including U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, who was at the commencement; and Leon Panetta, the former congressman, White House chief of staff, CIA director and now Defense Secretary-designate.
With these examples to focus their ambitions, a few graduates talked about their plans:

Brittney Salvatore, 27, Napa. After taking the bar exam in July, she plans to spend four months in China and India “and a few other places,” laying the groundwork for a non-profit. Her idea is to help large organizations such as universities connect their research to places that can use it best. “A lot of great ideas don’t get implemented,” she said, because they are simply tried in the wrong place. She did her undergraduate work at Santa Clara. “The Jesuit mentality really infiltrated,” she said, “asking us to think outside the box.”

Carlos Rosario, 28, Santa Clara. President of the student bar association, Rosario has lined up a job with a boutique San Jose intellectual property firm. “I always wanted to work around here, and I figured tech was the best way to go,” he said. A Bellarmine alumnus with computer engineering degrees from the University of Southern California and UCLA , Rosario left a six-figure aerospace job in Southern California to study law. Political aspirations: “Maybe one day in the future.”

Jennifer McAllister, 43, San Jose. After 20 years in cosmetics, publishing and culinary work, the Chatham University graduate decided to return to school for a law degree. “I didn’t want to sell cosmetic packaging all my life,” she said; and after she served on a grand jury for a month, she was hooked. “The work that the district attorneys did was very interesting,” she recalls. “I saw that they had to think for a living.” She says her “dream job” would be working in transgender law, “but I’m pretty much prepared to take any work that comes my way” until then.

Sarah Mercer, 34, Sacramento. Following a public policy and health advocacy career in the state capitol, Mercer said she realized she needed a law degree to makes sure the bills she’d worked to see passed into law actually were enforced. “Having public policy skills along with the legal skills, I can help the most vulnerable in our society,” she said. Mercer said she will open the California Pan-Ethnic Health Network’s Sacramento office.

Justice Moreno was presented with an honorary degree – his first from Santa Clara. He is a Stanford alum, noted retired state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ed Panelli in an introduction. “His GPS probably wasn’t working when he applied to law school, and he ended 20 miles north instead of stopping here at Santa Clara,” joked Panelli, a Santa Clara law graduate.

Panelli turned to Moreno and said his fellow former justice was being honored “because of your long outstanding commitment to the fair and efficient administration of justice and your leadership of the judiciary.”

Contact Pete Carey at 408-920-5419.

Some notable SCU Law ALUMNI:

Former San Jose mayor (and former 49ers part-owner) Al Ruffo, ’36
CIA Director Leon Panetta, ’63
Former state Supreme Court chief judge Ed Panelli, ’55
California Appeals Court associate justice (and former California State Senator) Charles Poochigian, ’75
U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, ’75
Santa Clara County Assistant District Attorney Rolanda Pierre-Dixon, ’80

Source: Santa Clara University

Key moments in the history of Santa Clara University School of Law:

1911 ““ Law school founded.
1914 ““ First graduating class.
1926 ““ Mission church burns, including 1,000 books from the nearby law library. No degrees conferred next two years.
1937 ““ Accreditation by American Bar Association.
1942 ““ Maseo Kanemoto receives his diploma and passes the bar while interned with other Japanese-Americans during World War II.
1943 ““ Law school closed for duration of the war
1947 ““ School reopened.
1952 ““ Aurelius “Reo” Miles becomes first African American to graduate from Santa Clara law.
1955 ““ Women permitted to apply.
1963 ““ First three women graduate.
1970 ““ George Alexander becomes dean, embarks on efforts to diversify the law school’s student body.
1974 ““ Beginnings of Institute of International and Comparative Law, focusing on Asia.
1990 ““ High Tech Law Institute formed.
1999 ““ SCU’s Social Justice and Public Service law program started.
2000 ““ Northern California Innocence Project is formed.
2011 ““ Centennial year.

Source: Santa Clara University

Notification issued for setting up Tribunal to probe into Kharotabad incident

QUETTA: A notification for setting up tribunal headed by Balochistan High Court judge Justice Muhammad Hashim Kakar has been issued to conduct judicial enquiry into the Kharotabad incident. into the matter.
Provincial Home Secretary, Zafrullah Baloch told that the Home Ministry has issued the notification for constitution of Kakar tribunal after the approval of the Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Muhammad Aslam Raisani.
According to the notification, the tribunal headed by Justice Muhammad Hashim Kakar would conduct an enquiry into the incident and submit the report to the provincial government in the light of which the actions against those found responsible would be taken.
Replying to a question, he said that the tribunal according to law will present its report within fourteen days, but if required more time could be given. He said that none has contacted so far for handing over of the bodies of victims.
Bolan Medical Hospitals Police Surgeon, Dr. Baqar Shah said that the final post mortem report of those five foreigners killed in the Kharotabad incident would be submitted by Monday, May 23 and added the main reason for the death of the foreigners was gunshot.
A high level investigating committee and tribunal have been established under the supervision of Chief Secretary Balochistan Ahmed Bakhsh Lehri whereas department inquiry has been initiated by police and Frontier Corps.

Fallen comrades honored at law enforcement ceremony

CONCORD — The annual New Hampshire Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Ceremony is always bittersweet for Frances Charron, whose son, Epsom Police Officer Jeremy Charron was shot to death Aug. 24, 1997, when he sought to check out a car where two men were sleeping.
“It’s nice that other people honor the loss,” she said, but it is also a reminder that her son is gone through a violent action. “It is important that they are remembered.”
She said each time Jeremy is honored with an award or a naming ceremony, or when she attends this annual event, it is melancholy. She said it is a reminder she is a member of a club nobody wants to join.
But she also is glad to see other members of that club, like Sue Miller Habaj, the widow of Manchester Police Officer Ralph Miller who was fatally shot Oct. 2, 1976, when he and his partner responded to a reported domestic incident on Somerville Street.
Charron said she looks forward to seeing Habaj and others who fully appreciate the pain of her loss. There are also happy moments, as when Portsmouth Police Officer Michelle Montville greeted her and told her how proud she was to have been the recipient of the Jeremy Charron Award given annually to a criminal justice student at New Hampshire Technical Institute, where Charron also studied.
“I have it hanging on my wall,” said Montville, who hugged Charron.
Charron and others noted that Friday’s ceremony, like most of the past ceremonies, was conducted in an intermittent light rain. But many in the audience at the New Hampshire Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on State Street, behind the State House, ignored the weather, forgoing umbrellas during the ceremony that is solemn and reassuring.
Gov. John Lynch said the ceremony is an opportunity to honor those “who have given their own lives so that we can be safe (and) to ensure that the sacrifice of the 43 officers being honored was not in vain.”
Lynch said New Hampshire has stood with the families, continues to do so, and will tomorrow. “You will forever remain in our thoughts and our prayers,” said Lynch. “Thank you.”
Keynote speaker David Cargill, U.S. Marshal for the District of New Hampshire, spoke of the bonds of those in law enforcement. He said he was one of six men sworn in together as New Hampshire State Troopers in 1986. He said they forged an unbreakable bond, despite later being given different troop assignments.
Only three years later, he said, one of those men was gone. Trooper Gary Parker died in a patrol car/lumber truck accident in November 1989 along with fellow trooper Joseph Gearty and the prisoner they were escorting.
“Today we pay tribute,” said Cargill, but he said members of the law enforcement community honor the fallen by doing their jobs every day.
A new name was added to the list of honorees this year, that of the first known New Hampshire law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty.
The name of Laconia Officer Charles H. Dolloff, who died at age 45 of a heart attack after breaking up fights at the horse races at the Laconia Fair Grounds on July 18, 1889, brings the Roll of Honor total to 43.
Robin Moyer, the Laconia Police Department’s information technology manager, learned of Dolloff’s death in a newspaper article while she was researching the history of the department.
As Attorney General Michael Delaney read the names of the 43 fallen officers, Moyer was the first person escorted to the commemorative star wreath, where she placed a red flower for Dolloff. Moyer was followed by family and law enforcement officers representing the remaining 42 fallen officers, who placed red flowers for each fallen officer.
In addition, white flowers were placed to honor New Hampshire officers who died outside the line of duty, officers outside New Hampshire who died in the line of duty, soldiers who fought and gave their lives in the effort, the daily sacrifices of all living officers, and those officers injured in the line of duty.
The Londonderry High School Marching Band and the New Hampshire Police Association Pipes and Drum Band performed musical selections, and Concord’s Beaver Meadow School fourth- and fifth-grade chorus sang a medley of patriotic songs.
Also at the ceremony was the girder from a 24th-floor elevator shaft at the World Trade Center, which was recently brought to New Hampshire by the Hudson Fire Department. Noting that the 10th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks is approaching, retired Fish and Game Major Timothy J. Acerno, who heads the memorial committee, said the American flag-draped girder provides an opportunity to reflect on the events of that day, when so many law enforcement officers and firefighters made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to assist and protect those in the buildings struck by the hijacked airplanes.

Fallen comrades honored at law enforcement ceremony

CONCORD — The annual New Hampshire Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Ceremony is always bittersweet for Frances Charron, whose son, Epsom Police Officer Jeremy Charron was shot to death Aug. 24, 1997, when he sought to check out a car where two men were sleeping.
“It’s nice that other people honor the loss,” she said, but it is also a reminder that her son is gone through a violent action. “It is important that they are remembered.”
She said each time Jeremy is honored with an award or a naming ceremony, or when she attends this annual event, it is melancholy. She said it is a reminder she is a member of a club nobody wants to join.
But she also is glad to see other members of that club, like Sue Miller Habaj, the widow of Manchester Police Officer Ralph Miller who was fatally shot Oct. 2, 1976, when he and his partner responded to a reported domestic incident on Somerville Street.
Charron said she looks forward to seeing Habaj and others who fully appreciate the pain of her loss. There are also happy moments, as when Portsmouth Police Officer Michelle Montville greeted her and told her how proud she was to have been the recipient of the Jeremy Charron Award given annually to a criminal justice student at New Hampshire Technical Institute, where Charron also studied.
“I have it hanging on my wall,” said Montville, who hugged Charron.
Charron and others noted that Friday’s ceremony, like most of the past ceremonies, was conducted in an intermittent light rain. But many in the audience at the New Hampshire Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on State Street, behind the State House, ignored the weather, forgoing umbrellas during the ceremony that is solemn and reassuring.
Gov. John Lynch said the ceremony is an opportunity to honor those “who have given their own lives so that we can be safe (and) to ensure that the sacrifice of the 43 officers being honored was not in vain.”
Lynch said New Hampshire has stood with the families, continues to do so, and will tomorrow. “You will forever remain in our thoughts and our prayers,” said Lynch. “Thank you.”
Keynote speaker David Cargill, U.S. Marshal for the District of New Hampshire, spoke of the bonds of those in law enforcement. He said he was one of six men sworn in together as New Hampshire State Troopers in 1986. He said they forged an unbreakable bond, despite later being given different troop assignments.
Only three years later, he said, one of those men was gone. Trooper Gary Parker died in a patrol car/lumber truck accident in November 1989 along with fellow trooper Joseph Gearty and the prisoner they were escorting.
“Today we pay tribute,” said Cargill, but he said members of the law enforcement community honor the fallen by doing their jobs every day.
A new name was added to the list of honorees this year, that of the first known New Hampshire law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty.
The name of Laconia Officer Charles H. Dolloff, who died at age 45 of a heart attack after breaking up fights at the horse races at the Laconia Fair Grounds on July 18, 1889, brings the Roll of Honor total to 43.
Robin Moyer, the Laconia Police Department’s information technology manager, learned of Dolloff’s death in a newspaper article while she was researching the history of the department.
As Attorney General Michael Delaney read the names of the 43 fallen officers, Moyer was the first person escorted to the commemorative star wreath, where she placed a red flower for Dolloff. Moyer was followed by family and law enforcement officers representing the remaining 42 fallen officers, who placed red flowers for each fallen officer.
In addition, white flowers were placed to honor New Hampshire officers who died outside the line of duty, officers outside New Hampshire who died in the line of duty, soldiers who fought and gave their lives in the effort, the daily sacrifices of all living officers, and those officers injured in the line of duty.
The Londonderry High School Marching Band and the New Hampshire Police Association Pipes and Drum Band performed musical selections, and Concord’s Beaver Meadow School fourth- and fifth-grade chorus sang a medley of patriotic songs.
Also at the ceremony was the girder from a 24th-floor elevator shaft at the World Trade Center, which was recently brought to New Hampshire by the Hudson Fire Department. Noting that the 10th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks is approaching, retired Fish and Game Major Timothy J. Acerno, who heads the memorial committee, said the American flag-draped girder provides an opportunity to reflect on the events of that day, when so many law enforcement officers and firefighters made the ultimate sacrifice in an effort to assist and protect those in the buildings struck by the hijacked airplanes.

How do I add Reactions to my blog?

Adding Reactions is done through the settings page of the Blog Post widget. From the Layout | Page Elements tab, simply click the 'Edit' link under the Blog Post widget and a settings window will pop up.

The Configure Blog Post window will display a handful of options, and the Reactions feature is near the bottom of the list:

To turn on Reactions just select the checkbox, and then you will be able to customize the feature by adding words of your choosing. Finally, you can choose the exact location of Reactions by dragging the widget at the bottom of the Configure Blog Post page:

How do I add Reactions to my blog?

Adding Reactions is done through the settings page of the Blog Post widget. From the Layout | Page Elements tab, simply click the 'Edit' link under the Blog Post widget and a settings window will pop up.

The Configure Blog Post window will display a handful of options, and the Reactions feature is near the bottom of the list:

To turn on Reactions just select the checkbox, and then you will be able to customize the feature by adding words of your choosing. Finally, you can choose the exact location of Reactions by dragging the widget at the bottom of the Configure Blog Post page:

The stupidity of our copyright laws is finally laid bare

Watching British politicians engage with technology companies is a bit like listening to maiden aunts wondering if they would look better in thongs. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, to name just two such aunts, fantasised that Microsoft was cool, and spent years trying to associate themselves (and New Labour) with Bill Gates – even going to the lengths of making the Microsoft boss an honorary knight. Then we had the equally ludicrous spectacle of Cameron and co believing that Google is cool, which is why its CEO, Eric Schmidt – who for these purposes is the Google Guys’ representative on Earth – was an honoured guest at Cameron’s first party conference as leader. Given that, it’s only a matter of time before Ed Miliband discovers that Facebook is the new cool. And so it will go on.
Cameron’s worship of Google did, however, have one tangible result. Mortified by the Google Guys’ assertion that the UK’s intellectual property regime would have made it impossible to launch their company in the UK, he decided to commission an inquiry into said regime under the chairmanship of Professor Ian Hargreaves. This was a mite puzzling, because the previous government had in 2005 commissioned a similar inquiry under the former FT editor Andrew Gowers. His report had concluded that the UK’s intellectual property was fundamentally sound but made 54 specific recommendations about possible improvements. Most interestingly, though, Gowers also concluded that copyright on music recordings should not be extended from its current limit of 50 years after the date of recording, a finding that reawakened Cliff Richard’s fears that his heirs and descendants would be reduced to penury. For the copyright industries, therefore, Gowers had clearly reached the wrong conclusion, a fact that their representatives lost no opportunity of pressing upon Lord Mandelson on various luxury yachts moored off the coast of Greece.
Some of us feared, therefore, that Hargreaves would be pressured into being more sensitive to the needs of hard-pressed pop stars and their agents. His report, published this week, suggests that we seriously underestimated him. What he has produced is a tough, intelligent and radical analysis of our current IP regime. “Could it be true,” he asks, “that laws designed more than three centuries ago with the express purpose of creating economic incentives for innovation by protecting creators’ rights are today obstructing innovation and economic growth? The short answer is: yes.”
Hallelujah! At last we are getting somewhere. The notion that laws framed in an era when copying was difficult, imperfect and expensive could work in an era when copying was effortless, perfect and cheap was a proposition that only imbeciles and industry lobbyists could entertain. But up to now, our politicians subscribed to it.
Hargreaves usefully explains why this ludicrous state of affairs has persisted for so long. “Lobbying,” he writes, “is a feature of all political systems and as a way of informing and organising debate it brings many benefits. In the case of IP policy and specifically copyright policy, however, there is no doubt that the persuasive powers of celebrities and important UK creative companies have distorted policy outcomes. Further distortion arises from the fact (not unique to this sector) that there is a striking asymmetry of interest between rights holders, for whom IP issues are of paramount importance, and consumers for whom they have been of passing interest only until the emergence of the internet as a focus for competing technological, economic, business and cultural concerns.”
It’s a measure of the ludicrousness of our intellectual property regime that some of the most mundane, commonsensical recommendations in the Hargreaves report read like great leaps forward. Take, for example, for example, the idea that henceforth none of us – or at any rate, none of us who use an iPod – should be criminals. Eh? Well, under current arrangements, if you copy music from a legally purchased CD and transfer it to your iPod, then you are, technically, breaking the law.
Then there’s Hargreaves’s proposal that, in future, British lawmaking on intellectual property should be “evidence-based”. As opposed to what, asks the legal scholar James Boyle: “Astrology-based?” But our lawmaking in this area has been so weird that the idea that we might try rationality for a change seems genuinely radical.
Hargreaves is also very good on the thorny problem of “orphan” works – works still technically in copyright but for which no rights-holder can be traced. He wants the government to legislate to enable the licensing of these works – a commonsensical idea but one that in the insane world of IP lawyers sounds like revolutionary talk.
No doubt there will be lots of expert cavilling about this report. But overall it’s a refreshingly intelligent and welcome document. I’ve a good mind to start a Facebook page for it – and invite Ed Miliband to click on “Like”.

The stupidity of our copyright laws is finally laid bare

Watching British politicians engage with technology companies is a bit like listening to maiden aunts wondering if they would look better in thongs. Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, to name just two such aunts, fantasised that Microsoft was cool, and spent years trying to associate themselves (and New Labour) with Bill Gates – even going to the lengths of making the Microsoft boss an honorary knight. Then we had the equally ludicrous spectacle of Cameron and co believing that Google is cool, which is why its CEO, Eric Schmidt – who for these purposes is the Google Guys’ representative on Earth – was an honoured guest at Cameron’s first party conference as leader. Given that, it’s only a matter of time before Ed Miliband discovers that Facebook is the new cool. And so it will go on.
Cameron’s worship of Google did, however, have one tangible result. Mortified by the Google Guys’ assertion that the UK’s intellectual property regime would have made it impossible to launch their company in the UK, he decided to commission an inquiry into said regime under the chairmanship of Professor Ian Hargreaves. This was a mite puzzling, because the previous government had in 2005 commissioned a similar inquiry under the former FT editor Andrew Gowers. His report had concluded that the UK’s intellectual property was fundamentally sound but made 54 specific recommendations about possible improvements. Most interestingly, though, Gowers also concluded that copyright on music recordings should not be extended from its current limit of 50 years after the date of recording, a finding that reawakened Cliff Richard’s fears that his heirs and descendants would be reduced to penury. For the copyright industries, therefore, Gowers had clearly reached the wrong conclusion, a fact that their representatives lost no opportunity of pressing upon Lord Mandelson on various luxury yachts moored off the coast of Greece.
Some of us feared, therefore, that Hargreaves would be pressured into being more sensitive to the needs of hard-pressed pop stars and their agents. His report, published this week, suggests that we seriously underestimated him. What he has produced is a tough, intelligent and radical analysis of our current IP regime. “Could it be true,” he asks, “that laws designed more than three centuries ago with the express purpose of creating economic incentives for innovation by protecting creators’ rights are today obstructing innovation and economic growth? The short answer is: yes.”
Hallelujah! At last we are getting somewhere. The notion that laws framed in an era when copying was difficult, imperfect and expensive could work in an era when copying was effortless, perfect and cheap was a proposition that only imbeciles and industry lobbyists could entertain. But up to now, our politicians subscribed to it.
Hargreaves usefully explains why this ludicrous state of affairs has persisted for so long. “Lobbying,” he writes, “is a feature of all political systems and as a way of informing and organising debate it brings many benefits. In the case of IP policy and specifically copyright policy, however, there is no doubt that the persuasive powers of celebrities and important UK creative companies have distorted policy outcomes. Further distortion arises from the fact (not unique to this sector) that there is a striking asymmetry of interest between rights holders, for whom IP issues are of paramount importance, and consumers for whom they have been of passing interest only until the emergence of the internet as a focus for competing technological, economic, business and cultural concerns.”
It’s a measure of the ludicrousness of our intellectual property regime that some of the most mundane, commonsensical recommendations in the Hargreaves report read like great leaps forward. Take, for example, for example, the idea that henceforth none of us – or at any rate, none of us who use an iPod – should be criminals. Eh? Well, under current arrangements, if you copy music from a legally purchased CD and transfer it to your iPod, then you are, technically, breaking the law.
Then there’s Hargreaves’s proposal that, in future, British lawmaking on intellectual property should be “evidence-based”. As opposed to what, asks the legal scholar James Boyle: “Astrology-based?” But our lawmaking in this area has been so weird that the idea that we might try rationality for a change seems genuinely radical.
Hargreaves is also very good on the thorny problem of “orphan” works – works still technically in copyright but for which no rights-holder can be traced. He wants the government to legislate to enable the licensing of these works – a commonsensical idea but one that in the insane world of IP lawyers sounds like revolutionary talk.
No doubt there will be lots of expert cavilling about this report. But overall it’s a refreshingly intelligent and welcome document. I’ve a good mind to start a Facebook page for it – and invite Ed Miliband to click on “Like”.

Legislature’s lower-profile laws change lives, too

By Anna M. Tinsley

atinsley@star-telegram.com

GREAT FALLS, Mont. — Landowners in the path of a proposed power line in northwestern Montana have filed a lawsuit against the state and a utility company targeting a business-backed eminent domain law that went into effect earlier this month.
The 11 plaintiffs in Pondera and Teton counties in the lawsuit filed Friday in Teton County District Court contend the new law is unconstitutional and will harm farming operations.
The group is asking the court to void the law that allows utilities to take private property for a public good if they cannot reach an agreement over compensation. The law ensures private utilities can continue major projects but deals a blow to landowners fighting business developments.
Tonbridge Power Inc. wants to build the 214-mile Montana Alberta Tie Line between Alberta and Great Falls. The new law will likely let the company resolve extended negotiations with landowners.
Montana lawmakers started creating the new law after a judge last year denied Tonbridge the right to eminent domain while the company was building the power line, causing concerns among power and telecommunications industries that infrastructure projects could be easily halted in Montana.
Earlier this year, Montana lawmakers passed House Bill 198 and Gov. Brian Schweitzer allowed it to become law, saying it was imbalanced and left landowners at a disadvantage but it would protect the state’s economy.
The new law gives eminent domain power to companies that receive permits under the Major Facilities Siting Act after September 2008.
The group seeking to void the law contends it is special legislation for Tonbridge Power, and allows the company to condemn land retroactively.
The group also said it unfairly singles out rural citizens because Montana lawmakers in 2007 passed a law prohibiting condemning private property for economic reasons in urban areas.
And the group said the public process leading to the building certificate in 2007 for the power line didn’t empower Tonbridge to condemn private property. The group contends that means the public process needed for such an outcome wasn’t followed, making the law invalid.
“We got a raw deal over at the Legislature,” Bruce Maurer of Maurer Farms, the lead plaintiff, told the Great Falls Tribune. “It treats an urban guy different from a rural guy, and it’s not supposed to be legal to pass a law for one individual.”
A phone call from The Associated Press to the state attorney general’s office seeking comment went unanswered Saturday.
Tonbridge earlier this week said it planned to commission a six-month study from independent experts to improve relations with landowners.