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Thursday, 19 January 2012
Wednesday, 18 January 2012
AP Exclusive: Border Patrol to toughen policy (AP)
SAN DIEGO ? The U.S. Border Patrol is moving to halt a revolving-door policy of sending migrants back to Mexico without any punishment.
The agency this month is overhauling its approach on migrants caught illegally crossing the 1,954-mile border that the United States shares with Mexico. Years of enormous growth at the federal agency in terms of staff and technology have helped drive down apprehensions of migrants to 40-year lows.
The number of agents since 2004 has more than doubled to 21,000. The Border Patrol has blanketed one-third of the border with fences and other physical barriers, and spent heavily on cameras, sensors and other gizmos. Major advances in fingerprinting technology have vastly improved intelligence on border-crossers. In the 2011 fiscal year, border agents made 327,577 apprehensions on the Mexican border, down 80 percent from more than 1.6 million in 2000. It was the Border Patrol's slowest year since 1971.
It's a far cry from just a few years ago. Older agents remember being so overmatched that they powerlessly watched migrants cross illegally, minutes after catching them and dropping them off at the nearest border crossing. Border Patrol Chief Mike Fisher, who joined the Border Patrol in 1987, recalls apprehending the same migrant 10 times in his eight-hour shift as a young agent.
The Border Patrol now feels it has enough of a handle to begin imposing more serious consequences on almost everyone it catches, from areas including Texas' Rio Grande Valley to San Diego. The "Consequence Delivery System" ? a key part of the Border Patrol's new national strategy to be announced within weeks ? relies largely on tools that have been rolled out over the last decade on parts of the border and expanded. It divides border crossers into seven categories, ranging from first-time offenders to people with criminal records.
Punishments vary by region but there is a common thread: Simply turning people around after taking their fingerprints is the choice of last resort. Some, including children and the medically ill, will still get a free pass by being turned around at the nearest border crossing, but they will be few and far between.
"What we want to be able to do is make that the exception and not necessarily the norm," Fisher told The Associated Press.
Consequences can be severe for detained migrants and expensive to American taxpayers, including felony prosecution or being taken to an unfamiliar border city hundreds of miles away to be sent back to Mexico. One tool used during summers in Arizona involves flying migrants to Mexico City, where they get one-way bus tickets to their hometowns. Another releases them to Mexican authorities for prosecution south of the border. One puts them on buses to return to Mexico in another border city that may be hundreds of miles away.
In the past, migrants caught in Douglas, Ariz., were given a bologna sandwich and orange juice before being taken back to Mexico at the same location on the same afternoon, Fisher said. Now, they may spend the night at an immigration detention facility near Phoenix and eventually return to Mexico through Del Rio, Texas, more than 800 miles away.
Those migrants are effectively cut off from the smugglers who helped them cross the border, whose typical fees have skyrocketed to between $3,200 and $3,500 and are increasingly demanding payment upfront instead of after crossing, Fisher said. At minimum, they will have to wait longer to try again as they raise money to pay another smuggler.
"What used to be hours and days is now being translated into days and weeks," said Fisher.
The new strategy was first introduced a year ago in the office at Tucson, Ariz., the patrol's busiest corridor for illegal crossings. Field supervisors ranked consequences on a scale from 1 to 5 using 15 different yardsticks, including the length of time since the person was last caught and per-hour cost for processing.
The longstanding practice of turning migrants straight around without any punishment, known as "voluntary returns," ranked least expensive ? and least effective.
Agents got color-coded, wallet-sized cards ? also made into posters at Border Patrol stations ? that tells them what to do with each category of offender. For first-time violators, prosecution is a good choice, with one-way flights to Mexico City also scoring high. For known smugglers, prosecution in Mexico is the top pick.
The Border Patrol has introduced many new tools in recent years without much consideration to whether a first-time violator merited different treatment than a repeat crosser.
"There really wasn't much thought other than, `Hey, the bus is outside, let's put the people we just finished processing on the bus and therefore wherever that bus is going, that's where they go,'" Fisher said.
Now, a first-time offender faces different treatment than one caught two or three times. A fourth-time violator faces other consequences.
The number of those who have been apprehended in the Tucson sector has plunged 80 percent since 2000, allowing the Border Patrol to spend more time and money on each of the roughly 260 migrants caught daily. George Allen, an assistant sector chief, said there are 188 seats on four daily buses to border cities in California and Texas. During summers, a daily flight to Mexico City has 146 seats.
Only about 10 percent of those apprehended now get "voluntary returns" in the Tucson sector, down from about 85 percent three years ago, said Rick Barlow, the sector chief. Most of those who are simply turned around are children, justified by the Border Patrol on humanitarian grounds.
Fisher acknowledged that the new strategy depends heavily on other agencies. Federal prosecutors must agree to take his cases. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement must have enough beds in its detention facilities.
In Southern California, the U.S. attorney's office doesn't participate in a widely used Border Patrol program that prosecutes even first-time offenders with misdemeanors punishable by up to six months in custody, opting instead to pursue only felonies for the most egregious cases, including serial border-crossers and criminals.
Laura Duffy, the U.S. attorney in San Diego, said limited resources, including lack of jail space, force her to make choices.
"It has not been the practice (in California) to target and prosecute economic migrants who have no criminal histories, who are coming in to the United States to work or to be with their families," Duffy said. "We do target the individuals who are smuggling those individuals."
Fisher would like to refer more cases for prosecution south of the border, but the Mexican government can only prosecute smugglers: smuggling migrants is a crime in Mexico but there is nothing wrong about crossing illegally to the United States. It also said its resources were stretched on some parts of the border.
Criticism of the Border Patrol's new tactics is guaranteed to persist as the new strategy goes into effect at other locations. Some say immigration cases are overwhelming federal courts on the border at the expense of investigations into white-collar crime, public corruption and other serious threats. Others consider prison time for first-time offenders to be excessively harsh.
The Border Patrol also may be challenged when the U.S. economy recovers, creating jobs that may encourage more illegal crossings. Still, many believe heightened U.S. enforcement and an aging population in Mexico that is benefiting from a relatively stable economy will keep migrants away.
"We'll never see the numbers that we saw in the late 1990s and early 2000s," said Edward Alden, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Doris Meissner, who oversaw the Border Patrol as head of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service in the 1990s, said the new approach makes sense "on the face of it" but that it will be expensive. She also said it is unclear so far if it will be more effective at discouraging migrants from trying again.
"I do think the Border Patrol is finally at a point where it has sufficient resources that it can actually try some of these things," said Meissner, a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute.
Tucson, the only sector to have tried the new approach for a full year, has already tweaked its color-coded chart of punishments two or three times. Fisher said initial signs are promising, with the number of repeat crossers falling at a faster rate than before and faster than on other parts of the border.
"I'm not going to claim it was a direct effect, but it was enough to say it has merit," he said.
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Big night for big names at Golden Globes
LOS ANGELES?? Big Hollywood names claimed trophies at Sunday night's Golden Globe awards, with legends Meryl Streep, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen and George Clooney picking up honors.
Streep, who plays former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher in "The Iron Lady," won the award for best actress in a motion picture drama.
Clooney won the best actor award for his role in "The Descendants," and the film itself later won for best motion picture drama. In the film, Clooney plays a Hawaiian land baron who struggles with family issues as his cheating wife lies in a coma.
Scorsese won the Golden Globe for best director for "Hugo," his love letter to the early days of film.
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Allen won the best screenplay award for "Midnight in Paris," but did not attend the show to pick up the trophy in person.
Before the big hitters started their treks to the podium, the honors were fairly evenly split between a number of different actors, movies and TV shows.
Michelle Williams won for actress in a musical or comedy as Marilyn Monroe in "My Week with Marilyn," 52 years after Monroe won the same prize for 1959's "Some Like It Hot."
Williams offered thanks for giving her the same award Monroe once won and joked that her young daughter put up with bedtime stories for six months spoken in Monroe's voice.
"I consider myself a mother first and an actress second, so the person I most want to thank is my daughter, my little girl, whose bravery and exuberance is the example I take with me in my work and my life," Williams said.
Video: Golden Globes: The night?s big winners (on this page)
The supporting-acting Globes went to Christopher Plummer as an elderly widower who comes out as gay in the father-son drama "Beginners" and Octavia Spencer as a brassy housekeeper joining other black maids to share stories about life with their white employers in the 1960s Deep South tale "The Help."
"With regard to domestics in this country, now and then, I think Dr. King said it best: 'All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance.' And I thank you for recognizing that with our film," Spencer said.
"The Adventures of Tintin" won for best animated feature film, with director Steven Spielberg accepting the award.
"The Artist," an almost-silent black and white film, won the award for best movie musical or comedy, and another for Ludovic Bource's original score. Jean Dujardin also won a Golden Globe for best actor in a comedy or musical for the film.
Madonna claimed her second Golden Globe for her original song, "Masterpiece," from her film "W.E.," about the love affair of Wallis Simpson and King Edward VIII.
"A Separation," from Iran, won the award for best foreign-language film. Writer-director Asghar Farhadi uses a divorcing couple's domestic troubles with a young child and an aging parent as the means to examine gender, religious and class distinctions in contemporary Iran.
Fashion blog: Hits and misses on the?style frontTelevision awards were spread between new favorites and old standbys.
Fan favorite "Downton Abbey," PBS' look at the lives of servants and the wealthy family in a British manor house during World War I, claimed the award for best TV series, miniseries or TV movie.
Peter Dinklage won the best supporting actor award in a TV series, miniseries or movie for his role as Tyrion Lannister in HBO's "Game of Thrones." He said that his new daughter was with her first babysitter Sunday night "so I'm a little nervous." Dinklage also mentioned Martin Henderson, a dwarf in England who was picked up and tossed by a drunken stranger last fall. Henderson is now partially paralyzed.
"Modern Family" won the award for best TV comedy or musical, while "Homeland" won for best TV drama.
Story: Five biggest jaw-droppers of the GlobesClaire Danes won the Globe for best actress in a TV drama for her "Homeland" role. She mentioned in her speech that she had won the same award at age 15 for her role in "My So-Called Life," and wanted to be sure to thank her parents since she had forgotten to thank them the first time around.
Laura Dern claimed the award for best actress in a television comedy or musical, for her role in HBO's "Enlightened."
Kate Winslet took home the honor for best actress in a TV series, miniseries or movie for her role in the remake of "Mildred Pierce."
Slideshow: Golden Globes red carpet (on this page)The award for best actor in a TV drama went to Kelsey Grammer for "Boss."
Baby No.5 on the way for Kelsey Grammer
Matt LeBlanc won the award for best actor in a comedy for "Episodes."
Idris Elba won for best actor in a TV series, miniseries or TV movie for "Luther."
Jessica Lange won the award for best supporting actress in a TV series, miniseries or movie for her role in "American Horror Story."
Ricky Gervais, who has ruffled feathers at past shows with sharp wisecracks aimed at Hollywood's elite and the Globes show itself, returned as host for the third-straight year.
While Gervais' comedy seemed toned-down from 2011, he started with some slams at the ceremony itself. Gervais joked that the Globes "are just like the Oscars, but without all that esteem. The Globes are to the Oscars what Kim Kardashian is to Kate Middleton. A bit louder, a bit trashier, a bit drunker and more easily bought. Allegedly. Nothing's been proved."
Great quotes from the Golden GlobesThe Golden Globe Awards are given out by the roughly 90 HFPA members at a gala dinner and ceremony in Beverly Hills that is annually among the key events during Hollywood's awards season because of the media exposure it brings.
Honors bestowed on TV shows often lure audiences that can turn a little-seen program into a hit, and films and stars that are declared Golden Globe winners often go on to compete for Oscars, the world's top movie prizes given out later this year.
Offended? Gervais doesn't care
But veteran Hollywood awards watcher Tom O'Neil of website Goldderby.com notes that in recent years, as more awards shows have aired on TV and Oscar organizers have made changes to their nomination process, the HFPA's influence has waned.
"Six of the last seven years they haven't picked the same best movie. 'Slumdog Millionaire' is the only one," said O'Neil.
? 2012 msnbc.com
Source: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/46007126/ns/today-entertainment/
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Tuesday, 17 January 2012
Skype exec confirms that Windows Phone product is 'coming soon'
Continue reading Skype exec confirms that Windows Phone product is 'coming soon'
Skype exec confirms that Windows Phone product is 'coming soon' originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Sony teases Dot Switch: Multi-display future coming in February (video)
There's only so much Sony could show off at the world's biggest consumer electronics show. According to the video embedded below, the company's looking to tie together all of your (presumably Sony-branded) screens with a single "Dot Switch". On the concept demo, a pair of ethereal arms are able to control music, TV, lights and a confetti shower through what appears to be an Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc. The company's keeping pretty vague on the technicalities of it all at this point, but it looks like it would forgo the typical infra-red communication seen on other devices. Expect to hear more on this in just over a month away. Until then, let the delicate chiploops of this teaser ameliorate that post-CES come-down.
Continue reading Sony teases Dot Switch: Multi-display future coming in February (video)
Sony teases Dot Switch: Multi-display future coming in February (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jan 2012 03:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Monday, 16 January 2012
Palhares spectacular leg lock finishes Massenzio at UFC 142
Don't let Rousimar Palhares get near you. If he does you're probably going to walk away from the fight with a limp
Palhares flashed brilliance in taking down Mike Massenzio, quickly getting a hold of his leg and finishing things with a heel hook just 63 second into pay-per-view fight No. 3 of night at UFC 142.
Palhares (14-3, 7-2 UFC) has posted five submissions in seven UFC wins. The Brazilian has also had his brushes with controversy. He's held onto several submission finishes even after the referee stopped things. Tonight, he behaved himself.
Other popular content on the Y! network:
? Video: Relive frantic final moments of 49ers-Saints playoff classic
? ThePostGame: Touchdown dance inspired by salsa-loving grandma
? Y! Games: Most fascinating gaming gadgets from CES
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Sunday, 15 January 2012
Sisvel International acquires over 450 Nokia patents, most of which relate to wireless
Sisvel International acquires over 450 Nokia patents, most of which relate to wireless originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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