Migration Category: NCWP Old Site

The US Supreme Court heard arguments in a case today that will determine whether police departments and local governments can be held accountable for failing to enforce restraining orders. The case, Castle Rock v. Gonzales, stems from a $30 million lawsuit filed by Jessica Gonzales against the Castle Rock, Colorado police department for failing to respond to five phone calls she made reporting that her estranged husband had violated the restraining order she had placed against him and taken her three young daughters. When Jessica Gonzales showed up at the police station after midnight, the police officers took an incident report, but still did not attempt to find and arrest the husband, Simon. Simon eventually showed up at the police station at 3:20 a.m. and opened fire with an automatic weapon, which he had purchased after abducting the girls. The police fired back and killed Simon. All three girls had been shot and killed with multiple gunshots to the head; their bodies were in the back of Simon’s truck.

Under Colorado state law, the police are required to enforce court-ordered restraining orders by arresting violators, according to the ACLU. By failing to do so in this case, Gonzales and her lawyers argue that the police violated her 14th Amendment right to due process. In an en banc opinion, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. Joined by the Bush administration and many police groups, including the National Sheriffs’ Association, the town of Castle Rock appealed the decision, arguing that it would be unrealistic to enforce every restraining order, Newsweek reports.

“I want to make sure that no parent ever has to go through the pain that I went through,” Jessica Gonzales told the ACLU explaining why she sued the Castle Rock police. “I want to make sure that police are ultimately accountable for doing their jobs. We rely on the courts and the police for protection against violence. A restraining order is the only legal alternative offered for protection against domestic violence.”

This case is about protecting the vulnerable from further violence and abuse evident by the fact of the court issued restraining order,” said Margie Moore, director of the Feminist Majority Foundation’s National Center for Women and Policing. “If these restraining orders are not subject to mandatory enforcement by the police, the victims are absolutely defenseless, and we are turning back the steady progress many police departments have made to effectively combat this type of crime.”

The National Center for Women and Policing joined Women in Federal Law Enforcement, the National Black Police Association, the National Association of Black Law Enforcement Officers, the National Center for Women & Policing, and Americans for Effective Law Enforcement, Inc. in filing an amicus brief in support of Gonzales’ claim that her due process rights were violated.

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Two abortion clinics have accused Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline of violating a gag order barring him and the clinics from discussing publicly Kline’s attempts to obtain the unedited medical records of 90 women and girls who sought late-term abortions in 2003. Kline is accused of holding press conferences and giving interviews on his investigation while the gag order was still in place. According to the Associated Press, the Kansas Supreme Court agreed tp the clinics’ request last week to lift the gag order following Kline’s violation. The clinics have announced that they plan to inform the patients whose unedited medical records are being requested.

The Washington Post called Kline’s subpoena of these medical records the strongest move yet by a state official against providers of late-term abortions. Attorneys for the two clinics targeted by Kline have told the Kansas Supreme Court that “the logical and natural progression of this action could well be a knock on the door of a woman who exercised her constitutional right to privacy, by special agents of the attorney general who seek to inquire into her personal, medical, sexual or legal history,” the Washington Post reports.

Kline, who has said that he would like to see Roe v. Wade overturned, began his attempt to force the release of private medical files in secret last fall, claiming that he needs these records in order to prosecute child rape. However, Kline has also subpoenaed the records of women over the age of 16, which is the age of legal consent in the state. The Attorney General is refusing to give the clinics more details about the investigation, with the state’s lawyers saying that doing so would be akin to “arguing that suspects in a criminal investigation should be allowed to oversee the investigation,” according to the Washington Post.

In 2004, then US Attorney General John Ashcroft sought abortion records from hospitals and Planned Parenthood clinics in order to prosecute those who had violated the abortion procedures ban passed by Congress in 2003. Several federal judges ruled against Ashcroft’s action, and the abortion procedures ban has since been ruled unconstitutional three times.

US District Court Judge C Lynwood Smith ruled that anti-abortion extremist Eric Robert Rudolph could be tried under a federal arson law, which would allow him to face the death penalty if convicted. According to the Associated Press, the defense attorneys pushed for Rudolph to be tried under the 1994 Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act—which prohibits not only violence against abortion providers, clinic staff, patients, and volunteers, but also threats of violence—and only carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.

Rudolph is facing charges of the 1998 bombing of a Birmingham, Alabama women’s health clinic, which killed an off-duty police officer and severely maimed a nurse. Smith also recently set back the date for preliminary jury selection, from March 23 to April 6, the Associated Press reports. This could also delay opening arguments, which are set for the end of May. Rudolph is currently being held in solitary confinement in the Jefferson County jail in Alabama.

Rudolph is also accused of bombing an Atlanta-area abortion clinic in 1997, a lesbian and gay nightclub in Atlanta, and the Atlanta Olympic Park in 1996, which killed one person and injured 111 others. Rudolph was captured last May in North Carolina after eluding authorities for five years. He was placed on the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted list in 1998 after the Birmingham clinic bombing.

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An amendment to legislation that would have barred anti-abortion extremists from escaping legal judgments and fines by declaring bankruptcy was defeated in the Senate on Tuesday with a vote of 53-46. Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), who introduced the amendment with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) described the amendment as going “right to the heart of what America is all about. It says those who use violence to achieve their political goals cannot get a benefit, in this case bankruptcy,” the Associated Press reports.

Four Republicans voted in favor of Schumer’s amendment: Arlen Specter (PA), Lincoln Chafee (RI), Susan Collins (ME), and Olympia Snowe (ME). Two Democrats—Robert Byrd (WV) and Ben Nelson (NE)—voted against it.

Another amendment was defeated on Monday that would have raised the minimum wage over two years to $7.25. Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), who introduced the amendment, said that employees who receive minimum wage currently earn $5000 under the poverty line yearly, according to the Associated Press. The bankruptcy legislation enables wealthier citizens to shelter personal assets when filing for bankruptcy, while making it harder for lower-income, elderly, and sick Americans to get rid of their debt. If passed in the Senate, it is expected to sail through the House with no delay.

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Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) is expected to propose an amendment next week to bankruptcy legislation which would bar anti-abortion extremists from escaping legal judgments by declaring bankruptcy. According to the Los Angeles Times, Randall Terry, founder of the anti-abortion organization Operation Rescue, openly stated in 1998 that he was declaring bankruptcy in order to avoid paying the court fines he was levied as a result of abortion clinic protests that violated the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE). The FACE Act prohibits not only violence against abortion providers, clinic staff, patients, and volunteers, but also threats of violence. Other anti-abortion extremists have been known to rid themselves of personal assets prior to staging illegal protests, as well.

“I will do my best to hold this bill up in every way until this amendment is supported,” Schumer has said, hinting at the possibility of a filibuster. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) also has shown support for the amendment, saying, “I don’t think there ought to be [debt forgiveness] if someone has blocked an abortion clinic and caused damage, injury, perhaps even fatalities as a result of that blocking,” Specter said, the Los Angeles Times reports.

The bankruptcy legislation enables wealthier citizens to shelter personal assets when filing for bankruptcy, while making it harder for lower-income, elderly, and sick Americans to get rid of their debt, according to the San Francisco Gate. Another amendment is expected from Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) that would raise the minimum wage over two years to $7.25.

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Two clinics in Kansas are fighting attempts by Attorney General Phill Kline to subpoena unedited medical records of 90 women and girls who sought late-term abortions in 2003. Kline’s attempt to force the release of private medical files began in secret last fall, according to the Kansas City Star. “I find the potential to reveal very personal health histories of women and girls extremely troubling,” said Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D), according to the Knight Ridder. Although Kline claims that he needs these records in order to prosecute child rape, in a brief filed with the state Supreme Court the clinics called Kline’s action a “fishing expedition,” the New York Times reports. The age of legal consent in Kansas is 16, but Kline has also subpoenaed the records of women over the age of 16.

“Why focus on the records of patients who had late-term abortions, after 22 weeks – even though many underage teens presumably obtain abortions sooner – if the intention is to punish sexual predators, not late-term abortion providers?” asks an editorial by the Wichita Eagle critical of Kline’s action. In their brief, the clinics challenging the subpoena point out that not only does Kline want the names to remain on the medical records, but also personal details such as sexual history, marital status, and employment history. “How can a woman’s method of birth control or prior history of abortions or use of drugs and medication be relevant?” the clinics ask, according to the Times.

Women’s Health Care Services in Wichita is one of the two clinics targeted by Kline. Lawyers representing the clinic, run by Dr. George Tiller, called Kline’s action “a direct and potent threat to the exercise of fundamental constitutional rights,” the LA Times reports. The clinic is also the target of an ongoing campaign by Operation Rescue West, which has been constantly picketing the clinic, the homes of clinic workers, and businesses that supply goods and services to the clinic. The Feminist Majority Foundation’s National Clinic Access Project has worked closely with Dr. Tiller’s clinic over the years to counter violent attacks and threats by anti-abortion extremists. Dr. Tiller himself has courageously withstood repeated attacks by anti-abortion extremists, including an attempted assassination in 1994 by an Army of God adherent in which he was shot five times.

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More than 300 Nigerian women living with injuries caused by fistula have been treated during the first week of the United Nations campaign entitled “Fistula Fortnight.” Twelve Nigerian doctors with four doctors from the US and United Kingdom have trained local doctors, nurses, and social workers to surgically repair and rehabilitate women who are suffering from injuries caused by fistula, reports the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

Obstetric fistula mainly affects girls ages 15-19. Approximately two million girls around the world are currently living with the condition. The UNFPA describes obstetric fistula as an injury to the pelvic organs that most often occurs when a young girl undergoes long and obstructed labor, sometimes for as long as 5 days. Often, the girl is poor and cannot reach or afford the necessary medical care, which then causes her to suffer extensive tissue damage that eventually leads to the death of the baby. Another problem associated with obstetric fistula is that the injury causes women to lose control of their bowels and bladder unless treated appropriately, which often leads to the women becoming ostracized. Studies show that as many 800,000 Nigerian women currently live with fistula, and there are approximately 20,000 new cases annually, reports the UNFPA.

Since July 2002, the Bush Administration has withdrawn $34 million annually for the UNFPA, a major player in the fight to eradicate fistula, based on false allegations that the UNFPA participated in coercive abortion and involuntary sterilization in China.

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The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops on Friday released the second annual survey of how the church is preventing and dealing with sexually abusive priests, reporting that they have received 1,092 new accusations of sexual abuse against clergy. The New York Times reports that the allegations were made against a total of 756 priests, and that most of them regarded incidents that happened 30 years ago.

The aim of the survey, conducted by Gavin Group Inc, is to determine if the nearly 200 Catholic dioceses have implemented programs to assist victims of abuse and educate church employees and parishioners to identify and avoid sexual abuse, the New York Times reports. However, flaws were found in the survey’s process. For instance, only 135 victims of abuse were interviewed for the Gavin Group’s survey, according to the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP), and the report clearly states that “The audit process does not ensure that all offenders or potential offenders have been appropriately removed from ministry.” Additionally, all of the information collected was voluntarily given by dioceses. Policies and procedures were reviewed, but their effectiveness was not.

Of the allegations released last Friday, 22 were made by children in 2004, all of which were turned over to police as required by the Catholic Church’s policy that incidents of sexual abuse must be reported to civil authorities. Unfortunately, this policy is set to expire on March 1, the Los Angeles Times reports, and in order to extend these policies until new rules are agreed upon, the Vatican will need to do so formally.

The Washington Post reports that victims advocates are working to repeal the statutes of limitations that enable many of the priests accused of sexual abuse to go unpunished, protecting them from lawsuits and prosecution. Many of those abused by priests come forward years later as adults, past the time allowed by law to bring a case to trial. In Massachusetts, where the clerical abuse scandal first broke in Boston, state Representative Ronald Mariano (D) has introduced two bills that would eliminate statutes of limitations for civil and criminal cases, the Washington Post reports. Four other states have extended statutes of limitations on sex crimes in the past three years: California, Connecticut, Illinois, and Missouri.