This blog was created solely for my students to generate intellectual dialogue with their classmates. Reach one and teach one. Peace.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
It gets better
Court news, N.J. State Police, News, Statehouse » 
A file photo of the New Jersey State Police logo.A female New Jersey State Police sergeant suspended over accusations that she sexually harassed another female trooper she was training claims the state police treats gay female troopers unfairly.
N.J. State Police sergeant accused in sexual harassment suit says gay bias involved
By The Associated Press
January 12, 2010, 6:14PM
A file photo of the New Jersey State Police logo.A female New Jersey State Police sergeant suspended over accusations that she sexually harassed another female trooper she was training claims the state police treats gay female troopers unfairly. Sgt. Christine Shallcross was suspended without pay on Dec. 31 pending the outcome of an internal investigation.
Another female trooper said Shallcross, a 14-year veteran, sexually harassed her during and after academy training.
A lawyer for Shallcross told The Associated Press that he believes her suspension was the result of an "organized attack on the gay female trooper community" by other troopers who are envious that they have not been promoted.
Shallcross was assigned to the internal investigations bureau at the time of her suspension.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
It happens no matter where you work.
The Pennsylvania State Troopers Association file federal lawsuit
1, September 12, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Saturday, September 12, 2009 10:43 am
Claims of state trooper mistreatment
Federal lawsuit alleges commanders demoted and unfairly disciplined troopers who were union officials.
By Edward Lewis elewis@timesleader.com
Staff Writer / www.timesleader.com
High-ranking Pennsylvania State Police commanders demoted, reassigned and retaliated against trooper union representatives for reporting wrongdoing and processing grievances, according to a federal lawsuit filed on Thursday.
The Pennsylvania State Troopers Association and six of its officials, some who are assigned at state police barracks in Wyoming and Dunmore, filed the 53-page lawsuit against Commander Frank E. Pawlowski, Deputy Commissioner John R. Brown and former Commander Jeffrey B. Miller, who retired in August 2008 to become a security official for the National Football League.
The lawsuit alleges union officials were unlawfully disciplined by Pawlowski, Brown and Miller for acting out their union activities.
State police Cpl. Gerald Williams and Trooper Joseph Plant were wrongly punished, according to the lawsuit, when they were accused of “misrepresenting facts” after they complained Capt. William Oliphant was dumping household garbage at the Wyoming barracks.
Williams and Plant are officials with the PSTA. Oliphant, of Kingston, is the commander of the state police Internal Affairs Division in which the lawsuit says he has a “well-established history” of receiving preferential treatment from Pawlowski, Brown and Miller.
After a complaint was filed against Oliphant for disposing his personal trash at the barracks, Brown assigned Oliphant’s subordinate within the Internal Affairs Division to conduct an internal investigation. The investigation resulted in Plant and Williams being accused of “conducting an unauthorized investigation” that resulted in disciplinary actions filed against them in June, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit further alleges that Williams was “forbidden to perform his duties as a polygraph examiner” after the union’s August newsletter featured a story about his punishment.
Update: They got suspended.
N.J. State Police lieutenant, sergeant accused in sexual assault and harassment suit are suspended
By Chris Megerian/Statehouse Bureau
January 08, 2010, 3:15PM
TRENTON -- Two State Police officers named in a lawsuit alleging sexual harrassment and assault have been suspended indefinitely, a spokesman said today.
Lt. Thomas King and Sgt. Christine Shallcross were suspended without pay at the end of last month pending the outcome of an internal investigation, Sgt. Stephen Jones said.
A file photo of the New Jersey State Police logo.
Trooper Alexis Hayes accused King, a 26-year veteran, of assaulting and impregnating her. She also said Shallcross, a 14-year veteran, sexually harassed her during and after academy training.
In her lawsuit, filed last month in U.S. District Court in Camden, Hayes, 29, said King got her drunk, obtained a key to her hotel room and assaulted her during an April assignment with other troopers in Pittsburgh.
At the time, King was Hayes’ commanding officer in a tactical patrol unit that handles traffic enforcement.
Hayes became pregnant but had an abortion, according to the lawsuit. Despite her moral opposition to the practice, "she could not bear the thought of having a child by King," the lawsuit reads.
During her academy training, Hayes allegedly was harassed by Shallcross, then an instructor there. After Hayes graduated, Shallcross allegedly made advances by whispering in her ear and kissing her on the cheek, the suit contends.
Until her suspension, Shallcross was assigned to the investigations bureau.
Hayes has been on paid sick leave since August after suffering a nervous breakdown, her lawyer, William Buckman, has said.
Her seven-count lawsuit asks for a trial by jury and an independent monitor to oversee the State Police’s internal affairs unit.
Jim Gaffigan, president of the Non-Commissioned Officers Association, which represents sergeants, declined to comment today.
A message left for Steve Sternik, president of the State Troopers Superior Officers Association, which represents lieutenants, was not returned.
Jones declined to comment on the status or contents of the investigation.
Buckman has previously said Pennsylvania authorities are conducting a criminal investigation into the alleged sexual assault in Pittsburgh.
He did not return a call requesting comment today.
Taxpayers will pay for poor behavior by the police.
Elizabeth police sergeant will keep $600K award from whistle blower lawsuit
By Julie O'Connor/The Star-Ledger
December 30, 2009, 5:58PM
ELIZABETH -- An Elizabeth police sergeant who said he was punished after blowing the whistle on police corruption will get to keep his $600,000 jury award, an appellate court ruled today.
The court upheld a 2006 verdict in favor of Sgt. John Guslavage, a decorated narcotics supervisor who said his bosses cast him into a demeaning desk job because he violated their code of silence, reporting a suspected drug-using cop to the Union County Prosecutor’s Office in 1999.
Elizabeth Police Sergeant John Guslavage on the witness stand in Superior Court in Elizabeth in this 2006 file photo. Guslavage received a $600,000 award in a whistle blower lawsuit he filed against the Elizabeth Police Department and the city with harassment.
Guslavage, now 67 years old and retired, referred requests to comment to his lawyer. Attorney David Ben-Asher said simply that his client felt vindicated for "the years of retaliation he experienced," and "we prevailed on all of the issues which the city raised."
Attorney Edward Kologi, who represented the city of Elizabeth in the civil case with co-counsel Robert Varady, called the appellate ruling "totally erroneous."
Kologi said Guslavage’s $600,000 award — plus more than $100,000 in interest — is an unfair burden on taxpayers, and the defense’s only recourse is to seek to take their case to the state Supreme Court.
The defense attorneys had argued in their appeal that the sergeant didn’t qualify as a whistle-blower under state statute, since he suffered no loss or rank or pay, keeping his $100,000 annual pay check.
The Conscientious Employee Protection Act, meant to protect whistle-blowers, does not apply "any time someone’s ego is bruised, because they might not get the perfect assignment that they want," Kologi said.
He and Varady maintained Guslavage was disciplined for going outside the chain of command, but that was his only punishment. They said his allegations against the officer, who was never charged, were shown to be without merit.
Guslavage, a 36-year veteran of the Elizabeth police department who once supervised the prestigious narcotics division, said he was buried in a basement desk job overseeing the evidence and property room just months after ratting out the suspected drug-using cop.
The sergeant said he was belittled and driven into depression, suffering a nervous breakdown that led to 18 months of medical leave. Jurors in the civil case agreed he was targeted, harassed and punished by his superiors.
The 1999 incident was the second of two claims Guslavage made against suspected dirty narcotics officers — in 1994, the sergeant went to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to report on cops he felt had cozied up to a reputed drug dealer.
The jury ruled top officials at the police department acted appropriately in that earlier instance, when they chose to end their investigation into the matter. Those suspected officers were also never charged.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Judge gone wild.
N.J. judge rules woman accused of starving children competent to stand trial
By Joe Moszczynski/The Star-Ledger
January 06, 2010, 6:54PM
A judge ruled today that a New York City woman accused of starving four of her children is competent to stand trial, despite a psychiatrist’s claim that she suffers from a "delusional disorder."
Superior Court Judge N. Peter Conforti found that while Estelle Walker, 50, of Brooklyn may be extremely religious, she is capable of standing trial and participating in her own defense.
Estelle Walker, who is accused of starving her children, in court on Dec. 3.
"This lady ... is clearly educated and can articulate her feelings. She’s a devoutly religious woman, no doubt about that," but her religious beliefs do not hinder her competency, said Conforti, sitting in Newton.
The judge’s abrupt ruling ended a competency hearing for Walker that was expected to continue for two additional days with testimony from two mental health experts for the prosecution. Reports issued by both experts claim Walker is competent for trial.
"I see no effective challenge (from the defense) to those experts," said Conforti.
Conforti’s ruling came after he personally questioned Walker on the witness stand for about 15 minutes about her background and a plea bargain offer she had rejected. The plea deal would have required her to serve no additional jail time other than the year she already served, as well as probation.
Walker calmly testified that she fully understood the court proceedings, and confirmed she has a bachelor of arts degree in sociology with a minor in social work.
When asked by Conforti why she didn’t accept the plea offer, Walker replied, "I’ve prayed about this, I’ve meditated about this, and I think this is how the Lord would have me decide."
After Conforti found her competent for trial, Walker agreed that she would consider pursuing an insanity or diminished capacity defense.
Walker’s testimony came just prior to testimony given by psychiatrist Joel Morgan of Madison, who testified on behalf of the Sussex County Public Defender’s Office.
Morgan claimed that while Walker appears to be mentally stable, she is afflicted with a rare "delusional disorder" that makes her incompetent for trial.
"To the world, Ms. Walker looks fine, well-dressed, articulate," said Morgan. But she has "unusual thinking patters that most individuals don’t see."
Morgan said Walker suffers from a severe lack of personal judgment because of her firm belief in a higher power’s ability to intervene in her worldly affairs.
"She has almost total reliance on God for her to make day-to-day decisions," the doctor testified. "She’s governed by the impressions she draws from the Bible."
Walker is charged with four counts of child endangerment for allegedly allowing her children — ages 8, 9, 11 and 13 — to go for days without food while they were living in a lakefront cabin at Lake Hopatcong.
The Walkers were temporarily placed in the cabin in 2005 by her church, the Manhattan-based Times Square Church, to help Walker escape a husband who she says was an alcoholic.
But when it came time for Walker to leave the cabin in May 2006, she refused and told church officials that God told her to stay. The church then cut off her support and began eviction proceedings.
Walker’s trial was adjourned by Conforti on Dec. 15 when he ordered the competency hearing after defense attorneys raised questions about her mental stability. The trial is now scheduled to resume Jan. 13.
Previous coverage
• Competency hearing to begin for mother accused of starving 4 children
• Mother accused of starving 4 children in Sussex County ordered to undergo evaluation
• Children in Sussex County starving trial tell jury mother said God would provide food, money
• Jurors hear of emaciated state of children in Sussex County starvation case
Friday, January 8, 2010
This is incredible, but it does happen.
Nabbed as hooker on way to hospital for my asthma, grandma says
Sunday, July 13th 2008, 5:59 PM
DeCrescenzo for News
Monica Gonzalez (center) with her granddaughter Jaelyn and her daughters, Laila (left) and Brittany, in Brooklyn home. Gonzalez was arrested on prostitution rap. Case was later dropped.Monica Gonzalez was nabbed in Sunset Park as a hooker - charges that were later dropped.
"This has been a nightmare," the 40-year-old told the Daily News.
"It was very embarrassing and humiliating. ... My husband was appalled. No one should go through this."
Gonzalez works as a receptionist at a medical office and has been married for 15 years to her husband, Louie, a contractor.
She has a 25-year-old son, two daughters, ages 17 and 10, and two grandchildren.
Contrary to Officer Sean Spencer's claim in a sworn complaint, she had never before been arrested for prostitution - or anything else, according to her lawyer Richard Cardinale.
"Clearly, Officer Spencer, who has been sued for civil rights violations in the past, has no qualms about arresting innocent people if it means he gets to put another notch on his belt," Cardinale said.
Gonzalez was walking along Third Ave., between 53rd and 54th Sts. - an area known for prostitution - about 2:30 a.m. last Nov. 8. She said she was on her way to Lutheran Medical Center's emergency room.
She had suffered an asthma attack earlier in the day and her medication wasn't working, she said. Her husband suggested she head to the hospital, four blocks from their home on 53rd St., so she could return in time to get the kids ready for school, she said.
Gonzalez, wearing a long winter coat, was suddenly confronted by Spencer and another cop who jumped out of a marked SUV.
"He [Spencer] said, 'I saw you going up to the car,'" Gonzalez recalled. "His partner said, 'Let her go, I've never seen her here before,' but he [Spencer] wouldn't listen," she said.
"I told him, 'I'm somebody's mother. I'm somebody's daughter.' I was hysterical crying."
Spencer also busted a second woman on Third Ave. for prostitution and drove both suspects to the 72nd Precinct stationhouse, where another cop called an ambulance for the asthmatic Gonzalez.
Spencer - who claimed Gonzalez was carrying a condom and had been arrested before as a hooker - swore out a complaint charging her with loitering for prostitution, according to court papers.
The officer claims the two women were approaching vehicles together, according to a police source.
"I have never, ever been arrested in my life," Gonzalez told The News. "I did not have a condom."
She hired a criminal defense attorney, Leon Schrager, and the Brooklyn district attorney's office dismissed the case on May 29.
Schrager told The News he never saw any evidence that a condom was seized from Gonzalez.
"I'm grateful to my family that I was able to fight back," Gonzalez said. "The officers stick together and the system is abusive."
A spokeswoman for the city's Law Department said her office had received Gonzalez's complaint and is reviewing it.
Spencer has been sued before in Brooklyn Federal Court. The 30-year-old cop was accused in 2004 by Blanca Rodriguez of falsely arresting her for kicking a car during a dispute over a parking space. The charge against Rodriguez was dropped, and the city settled the suit for $10,000.
HERE IS THE FOLLOW-UP.
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