2008 Woodie Awards
National Updates
Issue date: 2/2/05 Section: News
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As reported by CNN, Juan Manuel Alvarez has been charged with 11 counts of murder, caused by a devastating Southern California train crash in Glendale, California. Although such charges warrant the Death Penalty, Cooley said a decision has not been made on whether to pursue capital punishment. The accused murderer, Alvarez, was scheduled to appear that Thursday afternoon in a Los Angeles court. Apart from the 11 people who died, nearly 200 others in the crash were hospitalized, according to Glendale Fire Department Chief Christopher Gray.
The police reported that last week, Alvarez allegedly parked his Jeep Cherokee on the railroad tracks of Glendale Station while a commuter train approached it shortly after 6 A..M. with the intent to commit suicide. After changing his mind, he then, exited his sport utility vehicle and watched as the Metrolink train hit, derailed, and ran into a northbound Metrolink commuter train and crashed into a parked Union Pacific train.
[b]Same-Sex Marriage Battle Shifts to California[/b]
As reported by FOX News, the legal fight over same-sex marriage has shifted to the battlefield of Santa Ana in Southern California since a lawsuit filed by a gay couple from suburban Orange County is the only remaining challenge to the Federal Defense of Marriage Act, signed in 1996 by former President Bill Clinton. Christopher Hammer and Arthur Smelt plan to be in U.S. District Court on Thursday as their attorney argues that the federal law, as well as California's Proposition 22, are violations of their civil rights akin to a woman's equal right to vote and hold public office as well as African-Americans' right not to be subject to involuntary servitude via slavery.
California law only recognizes marriages between a woman and a man in which the Federal Defense of Marriage Act allows individual states the right to deny the recognition of gay marriages performed in other states and foreign nations. In effect, the hearing comes just two days after Gay couples in Florida decided to drop similar lawsuits. "Certainly, eyes are going to be focused on this particular case," said Matthew Staver, President of Liberty Counsel, an organization that opposes of Gay marriage and is currently involved in some 30 cases nationwide. The only other same-sex marriage case pending in federal court, according to lawyers on both sides of the debate, is one in Nebraska that challenges a state law on same-sex marriages. The judge has not rendered a decision as of yet.
[b]States Increasing Share of Advanced Placement Students[/b]
As reported by CNN on Tuesday, January 25h (2005), The College Board reported that in every single state, including the District of Columbia, more students are passing at least one Advanced Placement test which is one of the signs of progress in a nation eager to improve college preparation. Though AP participation booms nationwide, noticeable gaps still remain, concludes the first State-by-State report in the 50-year history of the college-level testing program. For example, many students are still entering college without having passed at least one AP test, and Black students have unique challenges such as low test participation and test scores a level behind those of Whites.
Trevor Packer, the Executive Director of the AP program, comments that the expanding percentage of successful AP test-takers has been noteworthy given the record size of the high school population. He said more states are committed to holding students accountable irrespective of their background. "Much of the credit goes to teachers, principals, and superintendents," Packer said. He further notes, "They're the ones saying, 'What happens if we expose these students to rigorous curriculum?' They're seeing such tremendous results, in terms of students feeling connected to college." Research has verified that success on AP exams is a strong predictor of success in college, even more so than the SATs.
[b]Mock Customers to Monitor French Quarter[/b]
As reported by CNN, the city of New Orleans in Louisiana will hire mock customers to visit businesses and report on how they are treated in an effort to suppress allegations of racism after the gruesome New Year's Eve death of a Black motorist outside of a bar. Levon Jones, a college student from Georgia, died after he was engaged in a scuffle outside of a Bourbon Street bar with three bouncers. The bouncers were later charged with negligent homicide. The coroner reported that Jones suffocated as one held him in a headlock for 12 minutes and another pushed down on his back, thereby preventing him from breathing. A third is reported to have held the boy's legs. His family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the bar claiming race was a factor in the fight. Jones was black and the bouncers were white.
The utility of mock customers-who would be of diverse racial backgrounds and ages-was part of an implemented plan outlined Wedsnday (1/26/05) by Mayor Ray Nagin and members of the city's Human Relations Commission. "Today we are taking steps to determine if patterns of discrimination exist in our shops, restaurants and nightclubs," Nagin said. The commission also plans to hold a public hearing February 24th, during which people can witness about their experiences with French Quarter businesses, the city of New Orleans reported in a news release.