North Georgia Judge David Barrett pulls gun out in open court | Online Athens

Judge Barrett

North Ga. judge pulls gun out in open court | Online Athens

Honorable and not without humour ...  His version of "Annie Get Your Gun."  We should applaud him!  A screenwriter couldn't have set this one up better ...

Excerpt:

"The woman who filed the charges against Sugarman was on the witness stand and had testified Sugarman had abused her and, on one occasion, had put a gun to her head. During the latter part of her testimony, the woman was not being cooperative, Langley said."

Barrett told the woman she was "killing her case" and pulled out his gun and, feigning to offer it to her, said, "You might as well shoot your lawyer."

To read more:http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2012-02-25/north-ga-judge-pulls-gun-out-open-court

Georgia DFCS investigating four child deaths | ajc.com

Georgia DFCS investigating four child deaths ajc.com

Georgia DFCS investigating four child deaths

By Craig Schneider

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution8:57 p.m. Friday, February 11, 2011

The state's child welfare agency is investigating the deaths of four children within three weeks who had prior contact with the agency, officials said Friday.The children died in separate instances, and the police are investigating several of the deaths. None of the children were in the care or custody of the state Division of Family and Children Services at the time of their deaths, spokesman Lisa Marie Shekell said.DFCS officials are investigating the degree of contact that the children had with the agency, which handles cases of child abuse and neglect."We are staffing these cases to collect details to determine the extent of the DFCS interaction with the families and the children," Shekell said.The children's deaths represent the first major challenge for a new administration over DFCS and its parent agency, the state Department of Human Services. DFCS is under a court settlement to improve foster care treatment for children in Fulton and DeKalb counties following problems that included numerous deaths of children under the watch of the agency."Any child's injury or death is a tragedy, and certainly when you have a series of these tragedies, the agency is going to move quickly to determine that current policies are what they need to be," Shekell said.Brian Robinson, a spokesman for Gov. Nathan Deal, said the governor's office is aware of the cases and that "the death of any child is a critical matter and warrants an investigation."

COMMENTARY:

If Georgia's DFCS (Department of Family and Children's Services (DFCS) under the Department of Human Services (DHS) is investigating themselves, lots of luck. 

Given the history of the DHS and DFC's unethical and secretive behavior, it would be more believable if Governor Deal appointed an objective, outside agency such as the Georgia Advocacy Office to investigate;  that is, if Governor Deal is truly concerned,  desiring justice and transparency - something clearly lacking under his administration, or is it "agenda." If the Governor so chooses he can effect reforms and change.

The DHS and its sister agencies need a total cleansing - and not from the bottom up!

And that's my take.
"For the Children Left Behind"

In a Texas Home, 11 Children Found in Grim Conditions - NYTimes.com

In a Texas Home, 11 Children Found in Grim Conditions - NYTimes.com
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 Michael Stravato for the NY Times

by Manny Fernandez

Published: February 22, 2012.

DAYTON, Tex. — A 2-year-old girl was tied up in a restraint attached to her bed. Nearby another 2-year-old child, a boy, was restrained to his bed, too. A third child, a blind 5-year-old girl who appeared to be in a daze, was tied up on a filthy mattress.

An 11-year-old boy had a black eye and finger marks on his forearms, and one of his teeth had been knocked out. They were among the 11 children found in a home in this rural town of about 7,200 people 40 miles northeast of Houston, their plight described in a court document filed by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, the state’s child welfare agency. They were discovered last month when a Dayton police sergeant and an investigator with the child welfare agency visited the house in response to a report made to the police alleging physical abuse of the children. 

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/us/in-a-texas-home-11-children-found-in-grim-conditions.html     

No one has been criminally charged....?  With the conditions reported, pay particular attention to what Sergeant Doug O'Quinn had to say.  Then, seek reforms.  Oh, btw, "do the children have a dog in the hunt?"

      

UPDATES:JADE BENEBY HAS BEEN FOUND SAFE IN MIAMI/ DISAPPEARS IN DELRAY BEACH FLORIDA

Update: February 23, 2012 - HOAX -  READ: http://jilliestake.blogspot.com/2012/02/jade-beneby-police-provide-update-in.html

Update:  February 22, 2012 - It is being reported that the godfather of Jade Beneby has stated that Jade was abducted by a man she met on the internet with the promise of work that would have paid her $4,000.00.  This has not been confirmed by police.

Update: It has been reported that a Mercedes was towed by police from the hotel, although not confirmed.

Update:  Hialeah police say the Florida Department of Law Enforcement recovered Jade Beneby at El Paraiso Motel, 1615 West Okeechobee Road in Hialeah.



Read more: http://www.wptv.com/dpp/news/region_s_palm_beach_county/delray_beach/delray-beach-police-investigating-abduction-of-teen-jade-beneby-from-bus-stop-this-morning#ixzz1n3RLbhpL

Jade Beneby

Delray Beach, Florida. Jade Beneby, 17 years old, disappeared Tuesday morning as she was walking to her school bus.  Her mother received two texts from her.  She first texted she needed help. Jade then texted she did all she could, but she was in the trunk of a car.

PLEASE:

Anyone with information on Jade's whereabouts should contact the Delray Beach Police Department at 561-243-7800.

For updates and to read more: http://www.wpbf.com/news/30506525/detail.html#ixzz1n1yUtBq1

Child Deaths Up In Families Watched By Ga. Agency « CBS Atlanta

  

 (Photo by YURI CORTEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Georgia's DFCS:

February 18, 2012 AP
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s child welfare agency has confirmed that child deaths are higher than normal among families who have been under its watch.


The Division of Family and Children Services said that 35 children died in the 10-week period since Dec. 1, all of them from families that have a history with the agency that investigates reports of child abuse and neglect. That’s more than 1/3 the number of child deaths — 92 total — the agency saw in all of 2011 in families it had investigated or monitored.

To read more:
http://atlanta.cbslocal.com/2012/02/18/child-deaths-up-in-families-watched-by-ga-agency/#.T0L7H-b2X2o.blogger

"Angry Dad Shoots Daughter's Laptop"

Warning: Language

Universal Health Services and Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. - A little insight

Like CRC Health which was acquired by Bain Capital, who acquired Aspen Education, Universal Health Services(UHS) acquired Psychiatric Solutions (PSYS) a Tennessee based chain.

Covering all bases within the industry, Psychiatric Solutions was rewarded with a contract for our veterans.

http://nashvillepost.com/news/2009/11/23/psych_solutions_expands_services_to_military
http://www.miwatch.org/2010/01/military_awards_behavioral_ser.html
http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/17/universal-health-services-to-acquire-psychiatric-solutions-marketnewsvideo.html

Universal Health Services beat out Bain Capital for this acquisition. 
http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/17/universal-health-services-to-acquire-psychiatric-solutions-marketnewsvideo.html

Psychiatric Solutions, Inc.  Articles A must read:
http://www.propublica.org/tag/Psychiatric+Solutions+Inc.


Chicago tribune :Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. - A collection of news and information related to Psychiatric Solutions, Inc.

"Illinois' largest psychiatric hospital left sexual predators unguarded despite allegations that at least 10 mentally disabled children were assaulted during the last three years.


The youngest victim was an 8-year-old state ward admitted for evaluation after expressing suicidal thoughts.

Administrators at west suburban Riveredge Hospital and government authorities failed to share basic information as the savage violence left some youth worse off than when they arrived, a Tribune investigation found.... " read more..

http://www.chicagotribune.com/topic/economy-business-finance/psychiatric-solutions-incorporated-ORCRP012656.topic

Outsourcing Troubled Kids: D.C.'s Addiction to Residential Treatment Centers

Outsourcing Troubled Kids: D.C.'s Addiction to Residential Treatment Centers

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

D.C. is addicted to the most costly, most scary way of treating vulnerable youngsters.
by Jason Cherkis January7, 2011

"Jumiya Crump was on the run. It was close to 9:30 p.m. on July 1, 2009. “I just left,” she blurted into the phone. “I don’t know what to do.”
To read more:

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/40237/outsourcing-troubled-dc-kids/full/

H.R. 3126 - Mandatory Reporters: "The Clampetts Two cents"



"The Beverly Hillbillies"
The Clampetts

Jethro:        Where we goin' Uncle Jed?

Uncle Jed:   Georgia

Jethro:        Why's that?  We got peaches in our own backyard.

Uncle Jed:  'Cause every time ya put that noose around my neck,

                   I gotta figure a way to call the po--lice.

                  'Aint  worth the trouble.  From what I bin hear'in, in Georgia,  

                   don't have ta call no one.

                   Shoot,  I hear even if ya did, they'd pay no mind.

Elly May:   That's a rule only for young'ins, Daddy.

Granny:      Shoot, how much ya know Jed.  Hear'in most all states that

                  way.  Lookee at Utaw and  Pennseevanee.

                 

 Support stricter State and Federal laws for prosecuting mandatory reporters.  Take a  hard look at state agencies that continually and subjectively, by their actions and behavior, rob our children and families of their constitutional rights. There is no recourse for the common citizen.  The 11th amendment was not meant to offer "safe harbor" to those that are deserving of prosecution and that includes state employees.

Resource
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/constitution/pdf/con022.pdf

In Georgia, state records attest to the fact that at one "Therapeutic Boarding School" facility there were 12-14  children whom attempted suicides by hanging within one year.  This does not include cutters.  A few children tried to end their lives twice.  Most of these incidents were not reported.  If the facility  staff were caught by the state for not reporting as mandated reporters, no one was prosecuted, a report was written up, and that was the extent of it.  There were no sanctions placed on licenses and still none to this date. No one has been held accountable either at the facility level or the state for their negligent, unethical  behavior. Georgia simply allowed children's well-being and human rights to be violated, while enabling the facility.  Educational consultants continued to refer to this facility after receiving copies of state reports.
This is only "one' facility and only one year.

  Support H.R. 3126  "Stop Child Abuse in Residential Programs for Teen Act of 2011."  What has been    allowed to continue and flourish is a very creative, well-orchestrated, unethical masking that is tantamount to human trafficking of children  in the name of non-evidence based therapy. This lacks any regard for human dignity or humanity.

Resource
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-h3126/show



 

Asperger’s History of Over-Diagnosis - NYTimes.com

Asperger’s History of Over-Diagnosis - NYTimes.com
by Paul Steinberg

Asperger syndrome and Aspies — the affectionate name that people diagnosed with Asperger syndrome call themselves — seem to be everywhere.

Considered to be at the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum, Asperger syndrome has become more loosely defined in the past 20 years, by both the mental health profession and by lay people, and in many instances is now synonymous with social and interpersonal disabilities. But people with social disabilities are not necessarily autistic, and giving them diagnoses on the autism spectrum often does a real disservice. An expert task force appointed by the American Psychiatric Association is now looking into the possibility of changing the way we diagnose Asperger.

To read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/opinion/aspergers-history-of-over-diagnosis.html