A Nine Year Old Psychopath?

Micheal is a nine year old boy whose problems began showing themselves at the age of three. His mother, Anne, said that after his brother, Allan, was born he was just acting like a brat. All the doctors said that sibling rivalry was to blame. However, Anne remembers that his behaviors weren't those of normal children; they were really odd. Anything would set him off and his parents were almost afraid of him. He would punch holes in the doors and kick the walls until all of a sudden he snapped out of his tantrum... but it was more than that.

When Micheal turned five, he had developed the ability to switch instantly from full blown anger to a state of somberness. Anne says she can recall a specific arguement that hit her as extremely unsettling. They were working on a homework assignment and he was crying about it. She tried to calmly speak with him. "I said: 'Micheal, remember the brainstorming we did yesterday? All you have to do is take your thoughts from that and turn them into sentences, and you're done!' He's still screaming bloody murder, so I say: 'Micheal, I thought we brainstormed so we could avoid all this drama today.' He stopped dead, in the middle of screaming, turned to me in this flat, adult tone and said, 'Well, you didn't think that through very clearly then, did you?'"

Micheal has been labelled a CU kid - callous, unemotional. Read about CU in the next post!

Degrees of Murder

As most  of you know, when being tried for murder, there are several different categories to fall under. Sometimes I think it's unclear how murders are ranked so I'm here to clear that up!

1st Degree/Capital Murder

This is, by far, the most serious type of murder. In most states, it involves premeditation and planning or malice. Planning is deliberate if the perp make a clear decision to take the victim's life. Premeditation is when the perp thinks through the murder before it is committed. In some states, there are additional factors used to distinguish 1st degree murder. First and foremost, motive is looked at thoroughly. Another factor is the context of the murder - how it occured. Also, certain states will charge a person for 1st degree murder is more than one victim is killed at the time or if the victim's age caused them to be vulnerable. Things like sexual assault and robery coexsisting with the murders are also factors that can push a murder into the capital murder category.

2nd Degree Murder

This is when someone kills with malice. There's no premeditation or deliberate planning. Malice is doing a harmful act without just cause or legal excuse. So, for 2nd degree murder, you're still killing intentionally, you just didn't plan as well. This usually takes place in heat-of-the-moment, emotional situations.

Felony Murder

These murders are particularly planned or intended; while committing a felony, murder happened to take place as well. Even an accidental death will be considered murder if it takes place during the time of the felony.

When defendants are charged with murder, they should understand the degree of murder they're being charged with because it affects the level of punishment and the defensive strategies used. In some states, the death penalty is justified for 1st degree murder.

Trayvon Martin

Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman on Feburary 26, 2012 in Sanford, Flordia. He was seventeen years old and an African American. Zimmerman was a 28 year old multi-racial man who was the community watch coordinator.

Zimmerman was on a private errand when he saw Martin walking inside the gated community. He was visiting his father and his father's fiancee. Zimmerman then called the police to report that Martin's activities seemed suspicious. Shortly after, there was an altercation followed by a bullet in the chest of Martin at close range.

When the police arrived on the scene, Zimmerman told the police that Martin had attacked him and that the shooting was only a form of self-defense. Zimmerman had a wound to the back of the head & his nose was bleeding. EMS treated Zimmerman on the scence and, afterwards, he was taken to the police station for hours of questioning. A video statement was taped and he was released without being arrested.

Allegations of a racist motivation for the crime sprung up and a special prosecutor was appointed to the case. She chose to file for murder in the second degree against Zimmerman.

Family & friends have a hard time dealing with the tragic loss of Trayvon Martin and the supposed racism behind his death.

info from wiki

image from google images

video from youtube

Missing Kids.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is doing all they can to make sure missing kids are returned safely to their families. They are a nonprofit organization that was started in 1984. The organization provides information and resources to law enforcement, families, and children.

An estimated 800,000 children are reported missing; that's more than 2,000 children every day! It is estimated that 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys will be sexually victimized before the age of 18. Out of these minors, only 1 in 3 will tell anyone.

The Center's website has a number of different features that helps to spread the message and find the missing children. There is a quick search bar that let's you search state, gender, and the number of years they've been missing. You are also able to report things on the website, such as a sighting. There is also a cyber tipline that allows people to report things dealing with sexual abuse.

The website also allows you to donate and stay informed on current issues. It provides resources for parents, law enforcement, childcare providers, attorneys, and the media.

This is depressing, I know. So, they also include a number of success stories. These children need prayers and  help. Put yourself out there. Learn about the system and what's going on with these poor, missing kids. Take the time to get involved; it could mean saving a life.

info from http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PublicHomeServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US

Kidnapping & Abuse

As far as I'm concerned, a parent's worst nightmare is the kidnapping of their child. Last weekend, my mother and I went shopping in Sam's Club. All of a sudden, my sugar dropped really low. She went to the food stand and got me some pizza. We both sat there in silence eating. When my blood sugar came back up and I was more coherent, I began reading the ads on the billboard. It broke my heart to see the age enhanced faces of missing children - to see that they've been lost for that long. I began asking my mother questions like "What happens to them? Do they runaway? Are they ever found? Why would someone take a child?" She couldn't answer my question.  Instead, she told me to look it up.

Here are some cases of kidnapping where the truth came out. Let's take a look at what happened:

• Masha
• Masha lived in a Russian orphanage when an American man decided he wanted to adopt her. He was divorced but no background checks or follow-up visits were ever conducted. He took her home and immediately began sexually assulting her. Soon after, he started using her for internet child pornography. Several years after the adoption, police rescued Masha. They only began looking for her because her pictures were pasted all over the internet.
• Elizabeth Fritzel

• Joseph Fritzel, Elizabeth's father, kept her locked in a secret basement in Austraila for 24 years, along with three children that he fathered to her. Supposedly, the Fritzel family was shocked to find out what was going on in the cellar and said they were "completely unaware of Joseph's evil tendencies." The three children had been in the cellar for so long that they developed their own type of communication growls and cannot communicate with words like you and I. Elizabeth Fritzel tried to teach them and to let them have a normal life in the cellar.
• Shawn Hornbeck & Ben Ownby




Shawn Hornbeck


• Michael Delvin is a convicted child molester currently serving 74 life sentences. Shawn Hornbeck lived with Delvin, disguised as father and son, for a total of four years and three months. He also participated in child pornography.

For the next blog, we will focus on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In the meantime, check out their website at http://www.missingkids.com/

info from listverse.com

pictures from google images.

Poverty & Crime: The Correlation Pt. 1

A study done my McClatchy Newspapers found that the percentage of poor Americans who are living in extreme poverty has reached a 32-year high. Nearly 16 million Americans live in "deep or severe poverty."

The connection between poverty and crime has been an ongoing debate for many years. Many scholars argue that the poverty rate has nothing to do with crime rate because of all the extremely poor countries that have relatively low crime rates. I, however, believe that it is hard to deny the connection between poverty and crime in our country. An overwhelming 53% of prisoners earned less than $10,000 per year before incarceration.

Sociologists and criminal justice scholars have found a direct correlation. One theory assumes that the consequences of a crime are weighed. Sometimes the outcome could be better than not committing the crime.. at least in their eyes. This theory proves that people in poverty are more likely to commit crimes such as burglary, larceny, or theft.

What do you believe??

info from capaassociation.org

Parole vs. Probation

Parole and probation are often confused and used interchangeably. However, they are two very different things even though they are based on the same concept.

Someone may be sentenced to probation instead of being confined to a correctional facility. Along with probation comes strict guidelines. Some of the most common requirements include checking in regularly with your probation officer, attending drug/alcohol rehab, attending counseling sessions, and apply for employment or keep a job. Community service is also a common requirement for probation.

Parole is a conditional release from prison. With parole, time has already been served and an early release is considered. There is no set time you must wait before applying for parole, however, the minimum is usually set within the sentence. When an opportunity arrives for parole, the offender goes before a parole board to plead their case. Parole also has many conditions which can include checking in regularly with a parole officer, holding down a job, abstaining from committing any more crimes, attending drug/alcohol rehab, attending anger management/therapy sessions, and not associating with other convicted criminals.

Here is a list of celebrities who are or have been on probation:

• 50 Cent - battery and assault in 2002.
• Chris Brown - assaulting Rihanna in 2009.
• Hugh Grant - attempting to purchase a prostitute in 1995.
• Khloe Kardashian - DUI in 2007.
• Lindsay Lohan - her whole life... drugs.
• Paris Hilton -  DUI in 2006.

picture from google images
info from ranker.com