Mainers finding illegal maple taps, Maine Forest Service says — Penobscot. Senate Hearing: Drones Are "Basically Flying Smartphones" Senators, law enforcement officials, and assorted experts attended a judiciary hearing yesterday to discuss the implications of drones in U.S. airspace. Right now drones aren't a part of everyday life for most Americans, but that's changing with 81 organizations--including government agencies, police departments, and universities-- cleared to fly robots in the U.S. and more expected down the line.
In 2015, the Federal Aviation Authority plans to allow the first commercial use of drones in the United States. That might sound scary to people worried about a drone flying overhead and—legally—snapping pictures of them in their backyard sunning in their birthday suit. Thing is, that future has already arrived. I'd hate to see [technology] like that in the hands of an adolescent boy. That's not to suggest that the proliferation of drones doesn't introduce significant challenges. Again, though, smartphones already have similar capabilities. Safety was another big issue raised at the hearing. High-tech video surveillance system planned for Weber District schools. OGDEN — Weber School District administrators are planning to make major upgrades to the surveillance cameras in their schools, but what's even more interesting is how the district plans to use them. District officials are currently testing out a number of high-end cameras they hope they'll be able to fold into a network that Ogden police say is a long-overdue step for schools.
"It's really something we should have been doing a long time ago," said John Harvey, deputy director at the Ogden Police Department. The plan is to use the police department's Real Time Crime Center, which currently monitors surveillance cameras around Ogden city, to monitor surveillance systems inside Weber schools. The district's network will eventually feature roughly 1,000 cameras across 45 schools. The police department's crime center will operate as a nerve center, guiding multiple police agencies in an emergency. Weber officials have been working with every police agency that borders the school district. 'Missing' Police Evidence May Put the Brakes on Internal Investigation - Southampton, NY Patch. In a 27east report this week, police sources said money and drugs might be missing.
When Southampton Town Police Chief Robert Pearce asked to see evidence related to a new internal investigation into the now-defunct street crime unit, officers reported that money and drugs tagged as evidence were "missing," according to a report by 27east. The publication reported the evidence had been stored in a secure room at police headquarters and was originally discovered by former Police Chief William Wilson.
To read the report on 27east, click here. [subscription required] Wilson, who stepped down in November after 18 months on the job, recently spoke out about the Street Crime Unit, stating that a police officer, Eric Sickles, whose job it was to conduct drug investigations, became addicted to prescription painkillers himself, under the noses of his supervisors. Sickles’ commanding officer, Lt. Related Reading: Gun control measures enter critical period. Originally published: March 16, 2013 8:20 PM Updated: March 16, 2013 8:53 PM By TOM BRUNE tom.brune@newsday.com A man holds a Colt AR-15 semi-automatic rifle. (Feb. 4, 2013) (Credit: Getty Images) WASHINGTON -- The next two to three weeks could determine whether Congress will pass legislation this year aimed at curbing gun violence or if guns will become a hot-button issue in the 2014 elections, advocates and experts said last week.
With four gun-related bills on their way to the full Senate after being approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in the past two weeks, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) now must decide how to bring them to the floor next month. Reid said last week that he will meet with Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), the Judiciary Committee chairman, to determine what "we need to put together as a base bill to start legislating on the Senate floor. " READ: Full details of NY's new gun lawVOTE: What do you think of each aspect of the new law? Tennessee governor signs guns in parking lots bill | The Leaf Chronicle -- Clarksville, Tenn., and Fort Campbell | theleafchronicle.com.
Google Glass unwelcome at Seattle bar over privacy concerns. 5 Point Cafe is the first in the city to ban Google Glass. Google Glass isn't even on the market yet and it is already causing a stir. A Seattle watering hole has reportedly banned patrons from bringing in the wearable, always-on, web-connected augmented reality technology that you might be able to buy by the end of the year.The reason? The proprietor says the people who frequent the bar don't want to be "secretly filmed or videotaped and immediately put on the Internet," reports GeekWire. Dave Meinert, owner of the 5 Point Café in Seattle, says he's the first in the city to ban Google Glass from his establishment.
"First you have to understand the culture of the 5 Point, which is a sometimes seedy, maybe notorious place. People want to go there and be not known," Meinert told a local radio station. Google Glass, in addition to recording, will most likely make use of facial recognition, as well as other capabilities such as the ability to find friends in a crowd using GPS. Survivors of CSX rail yard accident expected to face trespassing charges (photos) MOBILE, Alabama -- CSX Transportation is expected to sign warrants against two homeless men who survived an accident which crushed three others early this morning. At the CSX rail yard on Industrial Canal Road East, authorities said CSX would sign warrants against the men for trespassing on the company's property.
Officials with CSX could not be reached for comment. "That'll be up to CSX to sign the warrants," said Cpl. Christopher Levy, public information officer for the Mobile Police Department, earlier this morning. He added that it was not uncommon for the rail yard to sign warrants against individuals who trespass. Along the company's 21,000 miles of track, CSX police "apprehend and remove thousands of trespassers each year," according to CSX Safe, a website designed by the company to familiarize local emergency responders with added precautions at the company's rail yards.
This morning's accident seems to highlight the company's concerns. 'No Trespassing'? Four men ignore signs, steal wire from PSE&G substation, authorities say. The Somerset County Courthouse in Somerville Bill Wichert/The Star-Ledger BRIDGEWATER — On the fence surrounding a PSE&G substation in Bridgewater, multiple signs send a clear message to keep out potential intruders: “Danger High Voltage” and “No Trespassing,” authorities said. But those signs apparently didn’t stop four men from breaking into the fenced-off area at various times during January to steal copper and alumimum wire, which they later sold for about $2,000 to a recycling business in Hillsborough, authorities said.
Those four individuals were indicted last week on burglary charges. They are identified in court documents as: Brandyn Engler, 21, of Wilmington, Del.; and Bridgewater residents Jonathan Kowalchuk, 22; Joseph Palkowitz, 23; and Stanley Zimmerman, 22. Engler, Kowalchuk and Palkowitz also were indicted on theft charges. . • Two Bridgewater men indicted for six alleged burglaries across four Somerset towns. Ninth Circuit says deep laptop searches at border crossings require 'reasonable suspicion' Customs officials need reasonable suspicion before conducting a forensic examination of border crossers' computers and mobile devices, says the Ninth Circuit federal court of appeals in a March 8 ruling. Under the court's ruling (.pdf), which applies only to states within its jurisdiction, Customs and Border Protection agents can still manually review electronic files at ports of entry without cause and use that review as a factor in determining whether reasonable suspicion exists.
"A person's digital life ought not be hijacked simply by crossing a border," writes Judge M. Margaret McKeown in the majority opinion. Sign up for our FREE newsletter for more news like this sent to your inbox! At immediate issue is the forensic search of a laptop owned by convicted child molester Howard Cotterman seized by CBP at an Arizona border crossing from Mexico in 2007. Both the initial search and the later forensic search were reasonable, the Ninth Circuit says. ACLU asks: Is National Guard equipping law enforcement? LINCOLN — Reports of military equipment and tactics finding their way into civilian law enforcement around the country have local civil rights advocates concerned. The American Civil Liberties Union's Nebraska affiliate announced efforts Wednesday to find out the extent to which Nebraska law enforcement agencies are joining the trend. Amy Miller, the group's legal director, said public records suggest that state and local agencies have acquired such military-style equipment as armored vehicles and facial-recognition technology.
She said Nebraskans deserve to know what agencies have and how it is being used. “The militarization of local police is a threat to Americans' right to live without fear of military-style intervention in their daily lives,” she said. She said such resources and tactics should be deployed only with rigorous oversight and strong legal protections. ACLU Nebraska filed a public records request Wednesday with the Nebraska National Guard. Contact the writer: Martha Stoddard. Ohio man charged with shooting police robot that entered his bedroom. (NaturalNews) It's not a zombie apocalypse but it could be the next best - or worst - thing, depending on your point of view, but one thing is for certain: The robots are coming, and with them new laws that will undoubtedly be utilized to protect them. According to the Chillicothe Gazette, a Gannett-owned Ohio newspaper, a 62-year-old man, Michael Blevins, who was heavily inebriated was recently arrested for shooting (but not killing) a police robot following a six-hour stand-off.
The report said that officers in the town of Waverly initially responded to a complaint that shots had been fired inside a bedroom at a home, and that the homeowner had a number of guns and was threatening neighbors. Police knocked on the front door of the home, called on the telephone and even brought in a trained negotiator in an effort to make contact with Blevins, but he refused to speak to anyone for hours. Attack of the drones? The first robot to enter the Blevins' home was camera-equipped. Writes Hill: