Judge approves redaction of details in Lanza search warrants

Judge approves redaction of details in Lanza search warrants 27 Mar 2013 A Superior Court judge approved a prosecutor's request Wednesday to redact details from search warrant applications related to the investigation of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. In several motions made public Wednesday, Danbury State's Attorney Stephen Sedensky had asked Superior Court Judge John Blawie to consider redacting the name of a "citizen witness" who is referred to in various parts of the search warrant applications for Nancy Lanza's house and a car. It's unclear whether Sedensky is referring to more than one witness. The state's attorney also requested the omission of serial numbers for several items that were seized by investigators from the Lanza home at 36 Yogananda St. in Newtown, as well as phone numbers and credit card numbers that were related to the case. [See also: Sandy Hook Shooting 'Oddities'.]

US troops will stay in Afghanistan to support local forces, Allen insists --Recently retired general says reports of 'zero option' are untrue and expects US and allies to stick in Afghanistan for long haul [to secure the CIA's opium and gas routes] 25 Mar 2013 The US and its allies will retain a presence in Afghanistan big enough to bolster Afghan forces after the withdrawal of international combat troops at the end of 2014, the recently retired commander in Afghanistan, General John Allen, said on Monday. Speaking in Washington, Allen said he had never been asked to produce a report on the so-called "zero option" - the suggestion that no American troops would remain after the 2014 deadline, floated by one White House adviser in January. Instead, Allen said that he expected that Obama would approve a force that would be commensurate with ensuring that the Afghan security forces Blackwater could be properly supported..

FBI to monitor online chats in real-time by 2014 27 Mar 2013 The Federal Bureau of Investigation doesn't have the ability to monitor everyone's one-on-one Internet chats in real-time just yet, but the agency's chief lawyer says all that should soon change. FBI general counsel Andrew Weissmann discussed the Justice Department's power to put pressure on cyber-criminals during an address last week at the National Press Club in Washington, and during the engagement he opened up about what exactly the country’s top domestic police patrol wants in their bag of tricks: By the years' end, the attorney says the FBI hopes to be able to snoop on conversations that occur over the Web by gaining access to up-to-the-second feeds of seemingly secretive chats.

FBI Pursuing Real-Time Gmail Spying Powers as 'Top Priority' for 2013 26 Mar 2013 Despite the pervasiveness of law enforcement surveillance of digital communication, the FBI still has a difficult time monitoring Gmail, Google Voice, and Dropbox in real time. But that may change soon, because the bureau says it has made gaining more powers to wiretap all forms of Internet conversation and cloud storage a "top priority" this year. Last week, during a talk for the American Bar Association in Washington, D.C., FBI general counsel Andrew Weissmann discussed some of the pressing surveillance and national security issues facing the bureau.

Lawyers for accused Colorado theater gunman offer guilty plea 27 Mar 2013 Defense attorneys for the 25-year-old man accused of killing 12 people in a shooting rampage at a Denver-area movie theater have offered to have him plead guilty in exchange for a life prison term, according to court documents filed on Wednesday. Lawyers for James Holmes said in the court papers that prosecutors have not yet responded to their offer, which would spare their client the death penalty. Holmes is scheduled to be in court on Monday for a hearing in the high-profile case.

Supreme Court indicates it may strike down marriage law 27 Mar 2013 A majority of Supreme Court justices on Wednesday indicated they could be inclined to strike down a law that denies federal benefits to legally married same-sex couples, a move that would reflect the evolving nationwide sea change in attitudes to gay marriage. As a packed courtroom listened attentively on a second day of arguments on gay marriage, Justice Anthony Kennedy, a potential swing vote, warned of a "real risk" that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) infringes on the traditional role of the states in defining marriage. A conservative, Kennedy is viewed as a key vote on this issue in part because he has twice authored decisions in the past that were viewed as favorable to gay rights.

Wyoming Judge rules chemicals used in fracking can remain 'trade secrets' 25 Mar 2013 A judge [sic] in Casper has sided with the state of Wyoming and ruled against environmentalists who sought to obtain lists of the ingredients that go into hydraulic fracturing fluids. Environmental groups had requested the ingredient lists from the Wyoming Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, arguing that the public needs to know what chemicals companies are putting underground. They were denied on the grounds that the lists are trade secrets that may be withheld under Wyoming's open records law. Natrona County District Judge Catherine Wilking has upheld the denial, ruling that the state official who withheld the information acted reasonably.

Protesters successfully shut down California Monsanto office 21 Mar 2013 A recent two-day protest in Northern California against genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) led to the complete shutdown of a Monsanto corporate office for an entire day, according to reports. On Friday, March 16, 2012, activists affiliated with the 'Global Days of Action to Shut Down Monsanto' began rallying in front of the Davis, Calif., office of Monsanto, where they held up banners, gave speeches, and set up tents in front of the Monsanto building on Fifth Street, which caused the biotech giant to shutter its operations.

Protesters march against Chicago school closures 27 Mar 2013 Hundreds of teachers, parents and other opponents marched through downtown Wednesday, vowing to fight a plan to close 54 Chicago Public Schools, despite Mayor Rahm Emanuel's comments that he's done negotiating and the closings are essentially a done deal. Emanuel and schools chief Barbara Byrd-Bennett say the nation's third-largest district must close dozens of schools because CPS faces a $1 billion budget shortfall and has too many schools that are half-empty and failing academically. At a rally before the march, Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis called the closings "injustices" and said lawsuits are planned. Other speakers called for state and federal lawmakers to intervene.

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