No Kid Hungry - Public Service Announcement with Jeff Bridges. Active For Life Public Service Announcement (PSA) Public Service Announcement. Edutopia-stw-manor-pbl-bestpractices-groupcontract. Edutopia-stw-manor-pbl-bestpractices-rubrics-controllingfactor-blankform. Teen in prison for life asks McDonnell for shorter term. A man facing six life sentences for an armed robbery committed as a teen applied Monday for a conditional pardon from Gov. Bob McDonnell. Lawyers for Travion Blount, convicted in 2007, are seeking a sentence of no more than 20 years for a crime their client committed when he was 15. Now 23, Blount faces what may be the longest sentence in the country given to a teenage offender for a crime not involving homicide.
Virginia is one of a handful of states that send juveniles to prison for life without parole for crimes such as rape, abduction and robbery. Taylor Keeney, spokeswoman for McDonnell, said Tuesday morning that the governor was aware of the case and that the pardon request “is working its way through the normal process.” Blount and two 18-year-old men robbed a house party in September 2006, taking cellphones, a small amount of cash and marijuana, according to court records. No shots were fired, and Blount injured no one. Pardons are often granted at the end of elected terms. 10 Supreme Court Cases Every Teen Should Know. Juvenile Injustice and the States. The Miller decision followed earlier rulings that abolished for juveniles the death penalty for all crimes and life without parole for crimes other than homicide. Together, these rulings have forced states to think very differently about how to hold juveniles accountable for crime. In recent times, states increasingly pushed juveniles into the adult criminal justice system and subjected them to overly harsh punishment.
There are an estimated 2,100 people serving mandatory life sentences received when they were juveniles, in 29 states that imposed the penalty. But Miller would change all that. States must henceforth make “individualized sentencing decisions,” in Justice Elena Kagan’s words, rather than imposing mandatory life without parole. How are the states doing? In Iowa, for instance, the governor commuted the life sentences of 38 people convicted of committing murder when they were juveniles, but offered instead only the possibility of parole after 60 years in prison. Richard Wilkinson: How economic inequality harms societies. How income inequality hurts America - Sep. 25, 2013. NEW YORK (CNNMoney) It's a well-established fact that the rich are getting richer, while the poor and middle class are falling behind. "The 400 richest people in the United States have more wealth than the bottom 150 million put together," said Berkeley Professor and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich on a recent CNNMoney panel on inequality.
Meanwhile, the median wage earner in America took home 9% less last year than in 1999. But the rising income gap is manifesting itself in American society in other ways too. Social scientists have long said income inequality is bad for society. So how does inequality hurt? Lifespans: Paychecks aren't the only things that are increasingly unequal. In the early 1980s, wealthy Americans lived 2.8 years longer than the poor, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. But by the late 1990s the rich were living 4.5 years longer, and the gap has only widened since then, HHS said. Related: SEC rule to disclose CEO vs. worker pay. Waiting for Superman Official Trailer. Nation's Student Loan Debt Exceeds Credit Card Debt. Obama Administration Revamps "No Child Left Behind" Lets_say_enough_is_enough_to_lousy_schools. Does Profiling Violate the 14th Amendment? Georgia High School Prepares for First Integrated Prom. Police Counter Racial Profiling as Blacks Protest in Washington.
President Obama Backs Working Women with First Legislative Act. Interracial Couple Denied Marriage in Louisiana. Supreme Court to Hear Two Challenges on Gay Marriage. Invasion of Celeb Privacy: Where to Draw the Line. Today's celebrities seem like some of the luckiest people alive. By doing what they love, they make millions of dollars and gain masses of adoring fans around the world. They get to go wherever they want when they want, and they rarely have to wait in line for anything.
Celebs also receive free products and services as a result of their status. The newest beauty developments, designer clothing, even hotel stays... are complimentary for these stars, who receive them on a regular basis. With such lives of convenience and luxury, being photographed or gossiped about comes with the territory. Do these people really deserve any privacy, given the fact the public has made them rich and famous? The answer is yes, they absolutely do.
Given the conservative terms of what constitutes privacy, paparazzi should not be allowed to encroach on an individual's private property. It was just last year that a line was drawn with regards to photographers in California. CNN.com - Why paparazzi are wrong - May 12, 2006. Should celebrities be more protected from the media. And Justice for All. Students in 11th grade at Tapestry Charter High School created this project during a trimester-long study of constitutional rights and social justice in American history. The learning expedition centered around the question of whether the Declaration of Independence, which set forth a vision of what this country was to be – a society of equals equipped with unalienable rights, holding the power to direct government – is living up to its founding ideals. By exploring the gaps between this ideal and reality, students were able to make connections between history and present life in America and in their community. Guiding questions for the expedition include: What are the gaps between American ideals and reality?
For this project, one of several art projects created during the expedition, students created tableaus based on their exploration of American ideals in English and US History. Students exhibited their work at CEPA Gallery in Buffalo, NY.