The bill (SB 92) prevents law enforcement use of drones unless a judge has issued a warrant, or in cases where there is a “high risk of terrorist attack,” or a case of imminent danger, such as in a missing person case where the person is thought to be in immediate danger.
police state
Duping Court Ruling, Florida Replacing Life Juvenile Sentencing With 50-Year Minimum
Legislation aimed at putting Florida in line with a U.S. Supreme Court ban on automatic life sentences for juvenile murderers cleared a House panel Tuesday, but with a 50 year minimum sentence that opponents say may keep the state’s law at odds with the court’s aim.
Should Teachers Be Able to Spy on Students’ Study Habits?
An electronic-textbook company called CourseSmart lets teachers track whether and how their students are reading assigned textbooks, allowing them to tack on “engagement index” scores to the students’ performance. It’s the latest form of intrusion in private habits driven more by marketing and gimmickry than good intentions.
Facebook Effect: For Workers On or Off the Job, Individual Rights Are Dead
Employers’ presumptions on workers’ behavior on and off the job have more in common with the inquisition or police states than with the bill of rights. Transgressors are routinely humiliated, silenced, censured or fired over speech or behavior companies should have no right to police.
In Florida Case, U.S. Supremes Strike Down Drug-Sniffing Cop Dogs Outside of Home
The U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in Florida v. Jardines is the second out of the state dealing with how search and seizure limits under the U.S. Constitution affect the ability of police to use sniffer dogs to find drugs.
No Drones Over Flagler, Sheriff Pledges, as He Details 16 Arrests from Latest Drug Sweep
Sheriff Jim Manfre said he won’t seek to arm the Flagler Sheriff’s Office with surveillance drones, remarks he made in the context of a sweep of drug-dealing suspects arrested Tuesday following a two-month investigation based on surveillance and residents’ tips.
As Local Governments Tackle Candy-Flavored Tobacco, Teen Trends Contradict Alarm
Palm Coast, Bunnell and Flagler Beach have each passed a resolution asking merchants not to sell flavored tobacco products, which are especially appealing to youths, but teen use of tobacco products (including smokeless tobacco) has been on the decline since the mid-1990s.
Responding to ACLU, Manfre Restores His Own More Permissive Jail Mail Policy
Flagler County Sheriff Jim Manfre has rescinded a policy that for the last two years, under Sheriff Don Fleming, prohibited inmates at the county jail from receiving letters at all, or writing letters longer than two pages.
Proposed Law to End Red-Light Camera Ticketing of Right Turns Advances
If they become law, the restrictions would seriously crimp the use of red-light cameras as revenue generators, as is the case in Palm Coast, where up to 52 such cameras are in place–at least for the companies operating the cameras, since Palm Coast is guaranteed revenue regardless of the number of tickets issued.
Beyond Sheriff Joe’s Tactics: Looking at Prison Reform in Florida With Fresh Eyes
Analyzing Florida’s prisons and jails is a revelation of unsustainable incarceration rates and prison-building, argues Milissa Holland, who explores more logical alternatives to end the vicious cycle of punishment and recidivism.
Bill Would Require Warrant for Now-Routine Cell Phone Searches and Electronic Tracking
Currently, police can search the possessions – including the contents of a personal electronic device – of someone who is arrested. The bill would require a warrant except under certain circumstances, including scenarios related to national security and missing children.
Proposed Law Would Curtail Palm Coast’s Ability to Convict Red-Light Camera Violators
The proposed law, by Sen. Joseph Abruzzo, would shift the burden of proof of a red-light violation to the government imposing the fine, it would eliminate citations for right-turns on red, and it would require a live, government representative at hearings to prove that a violation took place.
Florida Posts 32% Drop in Youth Lock-Up Rate Since 1997, In Line With U.S. Numbers
The peak nationally came in 1995, with 107,637 juveniles incarcerated on a single day, and dropped to 70,792 on a single day in 2010, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. During that time, the overall incarceration rate dropped by 41 percent.
Gov. Scott Loses Welfare Drug-Testing Case Again, But Vows to Fight On to Supreme Court
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta said the state had not shown a “special need” for drug testing applicants to the program known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. It upheld a preliminary injunction issued in 2011 by U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven.
ACLU Sues Sheriff Manfre Over Jail Policy Restricting Incoming Mail to Postcards
Beginning in January 2011 under Sheriff Don Fleming, inmates at the Flagler County jail have been forbidden from receiving mail other than small postcards, or from writing letters longer than two pages. Judges have generally not endorsed the restrictions, which also apply to inmates awaiting trial, who are presumed innocent.
Bipartisan Bill to Repeal Red-Light Cameras Advances in Florida Legislature
A bi-partisan proposal would repeal the three-year-old Florida law allowing cities to install spy-and-snap cameras. The repeal, if enacted, would again crimp the revenue of local governments such as Palm Coast, which use the cameras’ ticker revenue to supplement their general fund.
Three-Year Effort to Abolish Death Penalty in Florida Fails in 9-4 Justice Committee Vote
The rare vote to kill a bill in committee, rather than just bottling it up never to be heard, gave death penalty opponents their first chance to extensively argue for a repeal, following several years in which the measure’s sponsor, Rep. Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda, has been unable to persuade Republican leaders to put the bill before a committee.
Drones Among Us: Florida Police Want Video Surveillance Power Over Big Sports Events
Bill sponsor Sen. Joe Negron and police couldn’t agree on the use of drones as extra eyes in the sky at large-crowd events, such as a football game, with Negron saying monitoring crowds goes too far – and that he’d vote against his own bill (SB 92) if it were changed to allow that.
Flagler School Board Approves Posting Cops at All Elementary Schools Through Year’s End
The doubling of cops to cover all of Flagler County’s 11 public schools would bring the total school-cop program cost to between $1 million and $1.2 million. The district’s share would be less than half, but would still require dipping into savings–or cutting programs–because the district has no money budgeted for additional security.
School Security’s Buy-A-Cop Delusions
The Flagler County School board this week will debate adoption of a new security plan that includes adding armed cops in elementary schools. The approach would be costly, ineffective, and more emotional than intelligent. Smarter approaches–and far greater priorities–abound.
“Don’t Miss the Signs”: In Florida, Campaign and Means to Report Child Abuse Broaden
Last year, the Florida Legislature passed the nation’s most protective child abuse reporting law. The state’s abuse hotline will accept reports of abuse committed by people other than parents and primary caregivers, such as a coach, teacher or neighbor.
Red-Light Cameras on Palm Coast Parkway Used to Arrest Hit-and-Run Suspect
The arrest is the latest indication of the sheriff’s office stepped-up use of Palm Coast’s traffic cameras, which are increasing from 10 to more than 50, and blanketing all the city’s major and medium intersections.
After Abuse at Girls’ Lock-Up, Promises of More Oversight from Florida’s Juvenile Justice
In the wake of allegations of abuse by staffers at a girls’ lockup in Milton, the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice is tightening its oversight of private residential facilities – adding interviews with youths and a partnership with the non-profit Annie E. Casey Foundation to its monitoring procedures.
Senate Committee Approves Drone Ban in Florida Skies, With Some Police Exceptions
The ban on unmanned drones used by police in Florida would include exceptions for use with a search warrant or in certain cases, as when a child in danger. The measure (SB 92) was approved unanimously Tuesday by the Senate Criminal Justice Committee.
Spying on Grandma: Health Companies Sell Surveillance as a Benefit and a Saving
Health care is joining a national trend toward greater surveillance of everyday life. Whether this costly technology will ultimately prove clinically or economically effective remains uncertain. So, too, is whether a benign health care purpose can help overcome the unsettling “Big Brother” overtones.
Showing Cops the Middle Finger
When John Swartz was arrested for flipping off a cop, he sued, and appears headed for a win–as he should: rude expression is not a crime, and the obscenity is far surpassed by that of cops exercising arbitrary authority over bruised egos.
Bill Filed in Florida to Repeal Red-Light Cameras as State Report Points to Fewer Crashes
A South Florida lawmaker filed legislation Friday to repeal the law allowing the use of red light cameras, following a report earlier this week that says intersections where they’re used have seen drops in crashes in most places.
City Thuggery: Florida Supreme Court Should Ban Red-Light Spy-and-Snap Traffic Cameras
Florida’s new law legalizing red-light cameras ensures that state coffers are on the take. But it does not address the fundamental problems with spy-and-snap cameras. There are innumerable reasons to ban them. There’s only one reason to keep them, and it’s a slimy one: money.
Abuse of Girls at Milton Detention Facility Exposes Flaws in Florida’s Juvenile Justice
The Florida juvenile prison for girls got a 100 percent satisfactory rating from the state a year ago, though two staffers have been accused of abusing girls there, and one was caught on video.
Civil Citations for Non-Violent Offenses Can Reduce Jail Needs, Court Costs, and Undue Arrests
Even with no criminal intent, we can easily be caught breaking a law. Until now, law enforcement officers in Florida have had only two choices in these circumstances: let you go or arrest you. Civil citations are the smarter alternative, argues Mark Flynn, CEO of the Florida Smart Justice Alliance.
Palm Coast’s Plan to Install Red-Light Spy Cameras on SR100 Faces New Obstacle
Flagler County runs the lights’ infrastructure, and must give its permission to Palm Coast to plug in its spy-camera system. The county, which opposes cameras on SR100, won’t grant permission.
Bill Filed to Ban Police from Using Drones To Gather Evidence Anywhere in Florida
Miami Police were the first civilian police agency in the nation to use unmanned drones, but police anywhere in Florida would be prohibited from using un-manned drones to gather evidence or other information, under a bill filed Thursday by Senate Republican Joe Negron.
In Juvenile Detention for Girls, Health Care Is Shoddy, Absent or Geared Only to Boys
Incarcerated girls are “one of the most vulnerable and unfortunately invisible populations in the country,” and up to 90 percent have experienced physical, sexual, or emotional abuse, yet the health care provided to children, and girls in particular, in juvenile detention is often ill-equipped to deal with their complex health needs.
Your Homeland Security At Work: $430 Million on Radios No One Knows How to Use
DHS has spent $430 million over the past nine years to provide radios tuned to a common, secure channel to 123,000 employees across the country. Problem is, no one seems to know how to use them.
Do Prisoners Have a Constitutional Right to Dental Floss?
In Florida, five inmates have separately sued Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw in federal court, claiming deprivation of federally protected civil rights through the denial of dental floss. The sheriff is denying it to them. Angel Castillo argues the sheriff is wrong.
How Companies Mine Your Facebook Profile, Tweets and Posts, and Sell Your Habits
Some companies record — and then resell — your screen names, web site addresses, interests, hometown and professional history, and how many friends or followers you have, according to a report released this week. Some companies also collect and analyze information about users’ “tweets, posts, comments, likes, shares, and recommendations.”
How Companies Track Your Politics And Assemble Profiles Through the Internet
If you’re a registered voter and surf the web, one of the sites you visit has almost certainly placed a tiny piece of data on your computer flagging your political preferences. That piece of data, called a cookie, marks you as a Democrat or Republican, when you last voted, and what contributions you’ve made. It also can include factors like your estimated income, what you do for a living, and what you’ve bought at the local mall.
Anti-Terror “Fusion Centers” Like Central Florida’s Slammed as Ineffective and Intrusive
A two-year Senate investigation finds that Department of Homeland Security efforts to engage state and local intelligence “fusion centers”–six of which are set up in Florida, including one in central Florida–has not yielded significant useful information to support federal counterterrorism intelligence efforts.
The Palm Coast City Council’s Disturbing Synthetic Marijuana High
On synthetic pot, the Palm Coast City Council and other local governments are being had, as governments trample due process to enforce a legal shortcut against a ghost epidemic–the latest hysteria in the derelict war on drugs.
From Red Lights to School Buses: Florida Looks For Traffic Spy Cameras’ Next Perch
Despite having by far the safest record of any mode of transportation, including in Flagler, Florida school officials are looking to add spy-and-snap cameras on school buses similar to red-light cameras at Palm Coast and other cities’ intersections. School districts would reap most of the cash benefits from fines.
Using Straw Man, Palm Coast Ridicules County’s Opposition to Red-Light Cameras
Rather than address questions raised by County Commission Chairman Barbara Revels, the Palm Coast Council invented a claim that the county wanted to enable law-breaking, unsafe drivers, and dismissed Revels’s request to reconsider installing spy cameras on State Road 100.
County Sends Protest Letter to Palm Coast Over Red-Light Spy Cameras on SR100
The Flagler County Commission is asking the Palm Coast City Council to reconsider installing some of its 52 spy-and-snap traffic cameras on SR100 because the county claims it will inhibit shopping and tourism, and leave a bad taste in visitors’ mouths just as the county is advertising itself as a welcoming beachside destination.
DCF Defends Drug Testing of Welfare Recipients
The head of the state welfare agency is asking a court to throw out a challenge to the state law requiring drug testing of public assistance recipients, which could allow the program to restart.
On Garage Sales, Palm Coast Rejects $5 Fee But Preserves Registration Requirement
Facing almost unanimous public opposition, the Palm Coast City Council reversed plans to impose a $5 fee for garage sales but will still require a computerized permit and registration system to enforce a 2-sale limit per year.
Judge Sides With Counties Again Over Juvenile Justice Costs Florida Is Passing On
For the second time in little more than a month, a state judge has found that the Department of Juvenile Justice improperly carried out a law that requires counties to help pay juvenile-detention costs.
Without Evidence But Plenty of Cash, Palm Coast Approves 52 Spy Cameras, Up from 10
The Palm Coast City Council’s agreement to increase the city’s traffic spy cameras to up to 52 is backed by no crash data and no scientific evidence that the 10 existing cameras improve safety, but Palm Coast stands to make up to $437,000 a year from the new scheme.
Two-Week DUI Crackdown Begins on Flagler and Florida Roads as FHP and Sheriff Mobilize
The Florida Highway Patrol and the Flagler County Sheriff’s “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign begins Aug. 17 and stretching through the Labor Day weekend, which ends Sept. 3. It’s part of a national anti-DUI campaign, but no local checkpoints are scheduled.
Smart-Phone Canvassing: Is Your Neighbor A Democrat? Obama Has an App for That.
![For each targeted address, the app displays the first name, age and gender of the voter or voters who live there: "Lori C., 58 F, Democrat." All this is public information, which campaigns have long given to volunteers. But you no longer have to schedule a visit to a field office and wait for a staffer to hand you a clipboard and a printed-out list of addresses. With the Obama app, getting a glimpse of your neighbor's political affiliation can take seconds. While The New York Times dubbed the app "the science-fiction dream of political operatives," some of the voters who appear in the app are less enthusiastic about it. "I do think it's something useful for them, but it's also creepy," said Lori Carena, 58, a long-time Brooklyn resident, when she was shown the app. "My neighbors across the street can know that I'm a Democrat. I'm not sure I like that." It's unclear if the app displays all registered Democrats who live in a certain area, or only a subset of voters President Obama's campaign is trying to reach. Asked about the privacy aspects of the new app, a spokesperson for the Obama campaign wrote that "anyone familiar with the political process in America knows this information about registered voters is available and easily accessible to the public." The information included in the app has "traditionally been available to anyone who walks into a campaign field office," said the spokesperson, who declined to be named. While the app makes voter information instantly available, it displays only a small cluster of addresses at a time. It has built-in mechanisms to detect when people are misusing the data, "such as people submitting way too many voter contacts in a short period of time," the spokesman said. "The campaign is strongly committed to ensuring the safety and privacy of the public and follows up with appropriate action, including alerting appropriate authorities if necessary, in any case of abuse or inappropriate behavior," said the spokesperson. "Any voter who requests not to be contacted again is immediately removed from any provided to volunteers." This isn't the first time campaigns have released digital tools that make voter information freely available. Both the Obama and Romney campaigns currently have online calling tools that give anyone who registers for their websites the names and phone numbers of voters to contact. In 2008, the Obama campaign's "Neighbor to Neighbor" program allowed volunteers to use their home computers to print out lists of names and addresses to contact. Two years later, the Democratic group Organizing for America, formed to keep mobilizing the president's supporters after Obama was elected, released a mobile app that was in some ways a prototype of Obama's new app. Volunteers in the 2010 midterm elections could use their mobile phones to map voters in their immediate vicinity and then send in responses from the voters they had contacted, which eliminated the need for clipboards and printed lists. Natalie Foster, who was the new media director of Organizing for America, said the tools used in 2010 had built-in privacy limits, "where you are only given a certain number of voters that you could conceivably canvass. If somebody goes above that limit, or is just obviously clicking a button over or over, we'll just shut it down." Privacy "was definitely a consideration and something that was focused on, to make sure people aren't just going in and downloading a lot of data," said Joshua Hendler, the former director of technology for Organizing for America. Foster, who is now the CEO of the economic advocacy group Rebuild the Dream, and Hendler, who now works for PR firm Hill and Knowlton Strategies, said that making voter information more open makes the political process more democratic, because it lowers the barrier for people to get involved in political campaigns. Shaun Dakin, a voter privacy advocate and longtime critic of political robocalling, flagged the Obama app last week as a "total privacy fail." Dakin, who criticized the Obama campaign's 2008 Neighbor to Neighbor program on similar grounds, said voters should have the right to opt out of being contacted by political campaigns. He also questioned why the Obama app included the ages of nearby voters, another piece of information that people might not want to have made public. Lori Carena, the Brooklyn voter, said she doesn't object to having canvassers knock on her door. In fact, she said she wishes it happened more often in New York, a state that's such a Democratic stronghold she feels the campaign isn't interested in hearing her concerns. Asked what she feels is the difference between the traditional way of canvassing — with voter names and addresses on a printed-out list — and the new mobile app, she said, "Well, I just don't get all this new stuff with computers and apps. That's probably more creepy to me." Even low-tech tools used to distribute voter data can upset some voters. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported this June that a liberal group in Wisconsin was sending fliers to voters which included a list of their neighbors and whether they had voted in 2008 and 2010. The fliers encouraged recipients to help get out the vote for the recall election of Gov. Scott Walker. Some voters were angry that their names and addresses were being distributed publicly. "I think this is invasion of my privacy and every other woman's privacy. It's like — 'Here, this is where all the women are,'" one woman told the Journal Sentinel. Jonathan Zittrain, a Harvard law professor and the co-founder of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society, said the Obama app represented a significant shift. While voter data has been "technically public," it is usually accessed only by political campaigns and companies that sell consumer data. He said it was "heartening" that the app makes data available to citizens who want to talk to their neighbors about their political choices. "The purpose of this app may be Democrats visiting Democrats. I can see apps where you ask Republicans to visit Democrats and Democrats to visit Republicans." "If we're comfortable enough to have [this information] go into the maw of big data processors, both political and otherwise, it seems consistent for neighbors to talk to neighbors over it," he said. "Much of our feelings around privacy are driven by what you might call status-quo-ism," he said, so many people may feel that the app is creepy simply because it represents something new. Interested to learn more about how political groups are using your personal information? See our reporting on tailored campaign emails and the new wave of targeted online ads.](https://flaglerlive.com/wp-content/uploads/obama-app.jpg)
The Obama for America app, “the science-fiction dream of political operatives,” is turning canvassing on its head as public information long available no longer has to scheduled through a visit to a field office and waits for staffers to hand volunteers clipboards and a printed-out lists of addresses.
Drug War Collusion: Top Cops, Lapdog Press, And the Art of Tax-Funded Campaigning
With State Attorney R.J. Larizza, Flagler Sheriff Don Fleming and Putnam Sheriff Jeff Hardy in starring roles (all three are running for re-election next month), Wednesday was the latest shameless example of local and state police using a minor drug sweep for maximum political effect, at taxpayers’ expense.
Florida’s High Court Affirms Guilty Until Proven Innocent Standard in Drug Possessions
In not requiring “knowledge” of the illegality of whatever they were carrying, the law puts Florida at odds with at least 48 other states that require prosecutors to convince a jury that defendants knew they were carrying illegal drugs.