Tuesday, January 31, 2017

01312017 - Updates on Michigan OIDV Cases - 2016











2017: New Posts Added:











2016: New Posts Added:
12092016 - 2007  Pam Aukerman murder and Officer Kevin Brainard suicide - revisited














11182016 - Portage Indiana Mayor James Snyder - Indicted For Federal Corruption
Crossing fingers here at Michigan OIDV, that the continuing FBI investigation will result in answers and justice for Abbi and Bailey. Mayor Snyder was one of the officials who covered up the deaths of Abbi and Bailey, after an unlawful police entry into my home for reporting an Indiana Magistrate for his failure to protect DV victims...
















Houghton County Sheriff Brian McLean is hoping voters don't care about OIDV



In 2007, Houghton County Sheriff Deputy Jeffrey Stromer was arrested and charged with a domestic violence charge and THREE charges of First-degree criminal sexual conduct - a felony punishable by up to life in prison.

Under MCL 769.4a [Michigan's loophole to the  Lautenberg Gun Ban Amendment], Stromer pleaded no contest to the DV charge - and the three charges of CSC were dropped. Stromer was placed on probation.... 

After Deputy Jeffrey Stromer completed his probation, Sheriff Brian McLean rehired Stromer at the Houghton County Sheriff Department.

Sheriff McLean's reasoning behind rehiring a man who had been charged with THREE counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct?


"He [Deputy Jeffrey Stromer] tried to change his life around," he said. "We gave him an opportunity to 













October 2016: The latest on Officer McCowan's possible involvement in Amanda Bach's murder case:

RE: Amanda Bach murder case and the possible involvement of Officer Joseph Elliot McCowan in covering up and protecting his son. Dustin McCowan [who was convicted of Amanda's murder].

Newest missing gun / murder weapon rumors: While Dustin McCowan was in Porter County jail, awaiting trial, a construction friend of Officer McCowan posed as a pastor -- getting info in and out of the jail to/from Dustin about the gun used to murder Amanda. Rumor has it that the construction worker / "pastor" may have been involved in assisting in hiding the gun -- possibly in one of the foundations of a home he was building at the time.













RE: Since the enactment of the Lautenberg DV Gun Ban [09301996], Michigan officials have been more concerned in protecting abusive police officers - than in protecting OIDV victims!


Also See:















RE: BULLARD-PLAWECKI ACT: Internal Investigation Of Criminal Complaints - OIDV



In cases where an OIDV victim's complaint is handled as an internal complaint/department policy violation [instead of as a criminal complaint with the court system], the Bullard-Plawecki Employee Right To Know Act applies in not only keeping the investigation, department hearing, and reprimand confidential, but also in allowing the OIDV complaint to be deleted from the officer's employment file after two to three years.











RE: Officer Brian Klonowski - Will NOT Be Southgate PD's new police chief, due to public outrage over  Klonowski's 2004 assault of Gina Falconer








09072016 - Officer Brian Klonowski - Will NOT Be Southgate PD's new police chief, due to public outrage over Klonowski's 2004 assault of Gina Falconer












If we don't hire a person who has committed a crime of domestic violence to the position of a police officer -- then why the hell is it okay to not only allow a police officer with an OIDV conviction to retain his position, but to also appoint them to the position of Police Chief?
















2015: New Posts Added:

RE: Senator Virgil Smith [Detroit]
Senator Virgil Smith - Detroit - Arrested for shooting at ex-wife & shooting her car 

On May 10th, Senator Virgil Smith [Detroit] was arrested after he shot at his ex-wife, and shot several rounds into her vehicle.
During his May 12th arraignment, Smith's attorney claimed that it was Senator Smith's ex-wife who was "obviously the aggressor". 
Smith is charged with felonious assault; malicious destruction of personal property, $20,000 or more; domestic violence, assault and battery; and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
He was released from jail on a $25,000, 10 percent bond.
Senator Smith's probable cause conference is scheduled for May 22nd. His preliminary examination is scheduled for May 29th.











RE: April 2015 shooting death of Terrance Kellom by Detroit Federal ICE Officer Mitchell Quinn [Fomer Detroit Police Officer who was arrested / criminally charged with OIDV in 2008]:
Family attorney claims that Kellom was shot in the back by Officer Quinn.

"That's one of our demands. (Quinn) needs to go. Period..."Even though he was acquitted, I'm concerned about a person involved in domestic violence situation being anywhere in law enforcement." [Ron Scott.  Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality]











RE: April 2015 shooting death of Terrance Kellom by Detroit Federal ICE Officer Mitchell Quinn [Fomer Detroit Police Officer who was arrested / criminally charged with OIDV in 2008]:
Following the shooting death of unarmed Kellom during an arrest, the Detroit Chief of Police claimed - incorrectly - that Officer Quinn was a DECORATED 12-year veteran of the department.
VIA Michigan OIDV, media and federal officials discovered that 7 years prior to Kellom's death, Officer Quinn had been arrested and criminally charged for holding his loaded duty gun to his ex-wife's head. The media has insured that Officer Quinn's OIDV record is not forgotten - again. 



On May 10, 2015, Senator Virgil Smith [Detroit], was arrested by the Detroit PD for shooting at his ex-wife and shooting her vehicle. Smith's ex-wife was not injured. However, the Senator put approximately 10 rounds into her vehicle. One of the Senator's neighbors reported hearing about 30 rounds being fired from a gun that sounded like an oozie. 



After Senator Virgil Smith's arrest, Detroit Police Chief James Craig refused to name the shooter. He only told the media, that "someone" fired a shotgun at a car parked outside the home of state Senator Virgil Smith. Chief Craig also failed to mention that Senator Smith's ex-wife had been shot at.



Apparently, the Detroit PD doesn't like to talk about OIDV. We all recall the recent shooting death of Terrance Kellom by Detroit ICE officer Mitchell Quinn. Detroit PD claimed that Officer Quinn "was a decorated 12-year veteran of the Detroit Police Department". Detroit PD didn't mention Officer Quinn's 2008 arrest and felony criminal charges when  Quinn pointed his loaded duty gun at his ex-wife's head. The media and government officials / agencies found the Detroit Police Commission minutes for Quinn's 2008 OIDV arrest and charges here on MIOIDV.


"Someone"
 ...originally arrested for assault with intent to commit murder and aggravated assault











RE: Officer Mitchell Quinn - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ICE]

In 2008, the U.S. Immigration & Customs hired Officer Mitchell Quinn, just months after he was arrested, charged, and suspended from the Detroit PD for an OIDV incident, in which he aimed his loaded duty gun at his wife's head..



April 27, 2015: U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement Officer Mitchell Quinn shot and killed fugitive Terrance Kellom, who was reportedly wielding a hammer...  "There was no evidence Kellom had a gun...The agent fired his weapon as he was retreating" [Detroit Police Chief James Craig]
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Detroit Police and Michigan State Police are investigating the fatal shooting of Kellom.















RE: [IN] Dustin McCowan - son of Crown Point Police Officer Joseph Elliott McCowan:
Dustin McCowan's conviction for the murder of Amanda Bach, upheld by the Indiana Supreme Court - 03/25/2015
Question from the Peanut Gallery: LE believe that Dustin's father - [IN] Crown Point Police Officer Joseph Elliott McCowan - was involved in destroying evidence in Amanda Bach's murder. Will Dustin McCowan - now with all his appeals behind him and looking at 60 years in prison - turn over evidence to LE, regarding his father / Officer McCowan???











RE: Officer Ronald Dupuis - Video of assault
An online video surfaced showing Officer Dupuis beating a hancuffed man during an arrest. "Highland Park city attorney Todd Perkins said he's aware of Dupuis' checkered past, although he said he will "draw no conclusions" from it."





















Wednesday, January 25, 2017

01252017 - A shout-out of support for wrongfully fired Iron River Police Chief Laura Frizzo / Police Chief Laura Frizzo's investigation Of Christopher Regan Murder - Kelly Cochran Conviction



Dead North Documentary: Iron River PD Chief Laura Frizzo's Investigation of the murder of Christopher Regan
Police chief Frizzo races to find a missing man in Michigan.

Chief Laura Frizzo is hot in pursuit of two suspects.

A suspects in a double-murder case goes missing months after the crime.

Police Chief Laura Frizzo is on a mission to arrest Kelly Cochran.
 





Documentaries: Iron River PD Chief Laura Frizzo's Investigation of the murder of Christopher Regan
 











Iron River PD Chief Laura Frizzo Investigation: Murder of Christopher Regan - Kelly Cochran Trial (Convicted)
02162017 - Neighbors testify in Cochran case - ABC 10 UP News



















Iron River PD Chief Laura Frizzo Investigation: Murder of Christopher Regan - Kelly Cochran Conviction






Iron River Michigan City Manager David Thayer's wrongful firing of Police Chief Laura Frizzo







12122018 - Day three of Frizzo lawsuit - WJMN News








12202018 - Day 9 of Laura Frizzo lawsuit - WJMN News







From the blog of: Jason Asselin - UP News & Video and Jason Asselin Facebook page









Who is Iron River City Manager David Thayer?


David Thayer was formerly the City Manager for Grayling Michigan, In 2010, he illegally released the social security numbers of 22 residents. He was criminally charged and convicted:

01172007 - David Thayer, new Grayling City Manager

03262010 - Misdemeanor warrant issued for Grayling City Manager David Thayer


After Thayer's conviction, he moved on and became the city manager for Mackinaw City:

03262015 - Thayer Offered Manager Position at Mackinaw City

04182015 -  Mackinaw Village draws criticism for city manager pick

04182015 - Mackinaw City manager candidate fired from last post - Mayor said he was unaware of candidate’s past


AND, after being fired from Mackinaw City for his criminal convictions in Grayling, Thayer moved on to become city manager for Iron River:

09292015 - IR MAKES CITY MANAGER CHOICE


September 2016 - Iron River Police Chief Laura Frizzo took medical time off from work - shortly thereafter, she was fired by city manager Thayer






Sunday, January 1, 2017

01012017 - 2017 VAWA/Violence Against Women Act AND Political Agendas - News Articles

 




VAWA Posts:











































Obama Backdoor Amnesty Provided ‘U visas’ For 140,000 Illegal Aliens
Breitbart
June 27, 2017


President Barack Obama’s deputies hugely expanded a little-known “crime visa” program to help roughly 140,000 illegal aliens obtain amnesty and U.S. citizenship.

The U visa program was created by the Battered Immigrant Women Protection Act within the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000. It offers visas and eventually citizenship to illegal aliens who testify in court against criminals.

Supposedly, the program was limited to 10,000 visas per year. But Obama’s lax regulations encouraged a huge number of illegals to file for U visas — and also allowed many illegals to get residency and work permits years before they receive the actual U visa.

This year, Democratic officials are still trying to use the “U visa” program to help illegal aliens dodge President Donald Trump’s policy of enforcing immigration law. For example, a Texas sheriff is encouraging illegals in Travis County to file for U visas so judges can block their enforced return home.

One applicant for the U visa is Demecio Flores-Martinez, 38, a 1995 illegal immigrant now in process for repatriation to his Mexican homeland. According to his May 15 “Motion to Stay” to a judge in Michigan, Flores-Martinez argues he should be given a U visa because:
On July 2, 2014, Mr. Flores-Martinez became eligible for a U-Visa as he fell victim to a spiked drink otherwise known as “being roofied”, kidnapping outside a known gay club in Detroit by the name of Gigi’s, battery using a gun, and assault with a deadly weapon.

A police report about the incident included this line: “crew obs[erved] no blood, shell casing and no evidence of any kind at this time in the area.”

According to a legal claim to the district court in the eastern district of Michigan, also made May 15 and titled “Petition for writ of habeas corpus and review of enforcement of removal order.”
1.  Petitioner, Demecio Flores-Martinez, hereby petitions this Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 to issue a writ of habeas corpus to review the lawfulness of the enforcement of a removal order …

33. Petitioner is entitled to the relief of U-Visa and is currently actively pursuing that option by submitting his application for relief with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Petitioner’s friend, and other victim on the same incident, has filed his U-Visa Application and is currently awaiting his approval.

So far, the judge has ordered the Department of Homeland Security to delay repatriation pending further legal arguments in June.
Numbers
The U visa was created in 2000 to provide visas for up 10,000 witnesses to crimes each year.  But that 10,000 visa-a-year cap was blown wide open by numerous exceptions and expansions because the law gave the residents’ agency officials much authority over how the program is run. 

In 2009, 10,937 people applied for the visa. Six years later, 60,710 people applied, according to data provided by DHS to the Immigration Law Reform Institute. 

In Obama’s first term, officials approved 63,000 visa requests. In his second four-year term, officials approved 78,637 U visas. That is a total of 141,921 visas — or 62,000 above the apparent level of 10,000 per year.

The formal rejection rate was low — averaging only 9 percent during Obama’s second term — although many applications remain undecided. 

People who get the U visas can apply after several years for green cards, which is the next step towards citizenship. Once they become citizens, they can petition to bring in siblings and their children, as well as their parents, further boosting the U visa inflow. In 2015, Obama’s officials at DHS provided 14,112 green cards to U visa recipients.



Expansion
The program expanded far beyond the initial description for several reasons.

Firstly, each applicant gets to include their spouse and minor dependents and even parents on their visa application — and those extra U visas don’t count against the annual cap of 10,000 visas. 

If the original witness is approved for a basic U visa, dubbed the U-1 visa, the witnesses’ spouse can get a U-2 visa, the children can get U-3 visas and in the case of a witness under age 18, the parents can get U-4 visas. Moreover, once the visa recipients become a citizen, he or she can petition to bring in their siblings via chain migration rules. So the annual cap of 10,000 U-1 visas actually means far more than 10,000 immigrants.

Secondlythe claimed original goal was to encourage courtroom testimony by illegal aliens — especially battered women — who are afraid of being deported if they volunteered to appear in court. “The purpose of this section is to create a new nonimmigrant visa classification that will strengthen the ability of law enforcement agencies to detect, investigate, and prosecute cases of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking of aliens, and other crimes … against aliens, while offering protection to victims of such offenses in keeping with the humanitarian interest of the United States,” says the legislation. But the law allowed agency officials enough leeway to greatly expand the program.

For example, officials have gradually expanded the list of qualifying crimes, according to a DHS guide to the visa:  




In 2015, Obama officials expanded the program to allow illegal-alien workers to get visas if they provide testimony in civil lawsuits against employers, and the investigations of extortion, forced labor, and fraud in foreign labor contracting. This policy flipped the underlying purpose of immigration law — the exclusion of illegals from the labor market — into a mechanism where the hiring of illegals become a mechanism to grant them citizenship.

That’s a problem for companies which have illegal aliens in their workforce. In 2011, for example, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claimed Mississippi-based Koch Foods “subjected a class of female Hispanic employees in its Morton, Miss., poultry processing plant to various forms of sex-based harassment, including sexual assaults over several years … [and discriminated]  against a class of male Hispanic employees because of their national origin.” In turn, the company argued in 2015 that the EEOC’s case relied on workers who hoped to get U visas by testifying against the company. “An ‘opportunity’ arose for the individual plaintiffs and other claimants in this case to obtain immigration benefits providing invaluable security for them and their families that were attainable through allegations of abuse,” the company’s lawyers argued. 

Thirdly, the program has grown because Obama’s agencies allow a very large number of people to apply for the benefit — and they provide each applicant most of the benefits of a visa, such as a temporary residency and work permits.

In 2011, Obama’s deputies began minimizing enforcement of immigration laws, via the so-called “Morton memos,” which also pushed officials to loosen U visa rules. For example, the Obama administration in 2016 allowed for the foreigners outside the United States who apply for the visa to live and work in the United States while they waited for the visas. Roughly 9,000 people outside the United States — including 7,000 children — have received U visas from U.S. embassies during the Obama administration.

The various expansions converted U visas a very powerful tool for immigration lawyers. An Obama-era Department of Justice guidebook, titled “U Status: A Guide for Crime Victims,” described their power:
the perpetrator of the crime does not have to have been arrested or convicted. It doesn’t matter if the prosecutor decided not to try the case – the most important thing is that you cooperated with the investigation … A U status grant can waive almost any ground of inadmissibility except for those who are Nazis or perpetrators of genocide, torture, or extrajudicial killing. .. Because certain prior immigration violations, criminal conduct or convictions, and diseases or mental health issues may make you inadmissible, you might need to submit one extra form along with your U status application to request that these problems be waived … Although the judge cannot grant your U status application, he or she may be willing to grant you continuance while it is pending or reconsider her bond decision. Also, ICE might consider releasing you from detention, dismissing your case, or administratively closing the proceedings until USCIS makes decision on your U application.
“The federal government’s threshold is low — they don’t care that victim gets justice in court, they only care that the victim was willing to help the prosecution … whether it was [as a] witness, or just being part of the plea agreement,” said Dearborn lawyer Shahad J. Atiya.  “They don’t care about the end of the case, they only care if you’re available” to testify, she said.

GOP leaders say Obama’s deputies went beyond the law:
U visas are capped at 10,000 annually for principal applicants. However, under an apparently unlawful USCIS policy, cases that would have otherwise been approved in the absence of the cap may receive “conditional approval” and a work authorization until U visas become available the following year.

In some cases, despite no statutory authorization, the application itself may serve to halt deportation until it is adjudicated.

Petitioners in foreign countries who apply for a U visa after the cap is exceeded, until now, remained abroad until their application was fully adjudicated. However, in August, USCIS announced its intent to  implement a new  “parole policy” under which eligible U visa petitioners who live abroad, along with their derivatives, can apply for parole and be admitted to the U.S. prior to adjudication. Such a policy has the potential to allow thousands of individuals the ability to wait for their adjudication results in the United States, during which time they could be granted work authorization and additional benefits.

Fourthly, some state and local officials promote the use of the U visa. For example, the Democratic mayor of New York, and the Democratic governor of California, and Arizona have directed police officials to process paperwork rapidly for U visas. In California, for example, police officials must finish their paperwork in 14 days when an illegal is slated for repatriations by DHS.

That welcome policy is being copied by local officials, including the Texas sheriff is encouraging illegals in Travis County. “I think that just with the political climate in general across the U.S. that we have victims not reporting crime and that’s a concern for us. I mean, we care about all of the victims regardless of immigration status,” Captain Craig Smith of the Travis County Sheriff’s Office told Fox 7 News. “We want to make sure that we have an avenue to ensure them they’re safe to come and speak with us.”

Labor unions are also trying to use the U visa program to unionize workplaces. 

GOP leaders highlight concerns that crooks are also gaming the U visa program. A December 2016 letter from the House and Senate judiciary committees, Sen. Chuck Grassley and Rep. Bob Goodlatte, said:
Recent cases have highlighted how the program is being exploited through falsified police reports and bribes to secure U visas allowing foreign nationals to avoid deportation.  According to whistleblowers, such illicit activity to secure U visas is common.

In October, a lawyer, a cop and several foreigners pled guilty to charges faked U Visa applications to help win at least temporary legal status. 

Cases
These lax rules have also encouraged lawyers to use the U visa as a get-out-of-jail card for clients about to be deported, and also to promote the U visa as a service for illegal immigrants.

For example, Flores-Martinez is being held by DHS, which almost repatriated him a few weeks ago. His lawyer quizzed him about his past and found the prior claimed street robbery which could get him a U visa. 

Even if Flores-Martinez is deported, he will be able to return to the United States if the U visa application is approved, his Dearborn lawyer, Shahad Atiya, told Breitbart News. “Yes, in fact, if you are deported, you are able to come [back] … that is the only [visa] release that does that,” she said. 

The visa application also helps any “derivative,” or spouse and child, she said. Another of her clients “was held up [in a robbery] … all of her children will be able [to stay] if she is approved,” she added.

A third client, she said, tried to give police a statement after a crime, but her name was not recorded by the police officer. That is a problem because the U visa application needs a statement from the police about the applicant’s willingness to testify in a trial. “The police report does say there was a language barrier — maybe I could argue they could not properly communicate with my client, and maybe I could add her name” to the report if the police officer agrees, she said. But, she added, “it is very difficult to go back” to fix incomplete police records. 

Costs and Benefits
The law does not ask officials to consider the cost to Americans of providing lifetime citizenship benefits to unskilled foreign migrants. Those costs are mostly paid by state and local taxpayers, and also by Americans kids who lose educational opportunities as ore resources are diverted to support unskilled migrants. Already, first-generation immigrants cost state and local taxpayers $57 billion more than they contribute in taxes, according to a September 2016 report by the National Academies of Sciences.

Immigration lawyers and Democrats say the U visas are needed to encourage illegal aliens to report crimes and to testify in trials. But their campaign to extend American law to illegals contradicts the purpose of immigration law, which is to exclude illegal immigrants and to welcome legal immigrants.

Moreover, according to Obama’s DHS, there are several other visa programs which allow illegals to safely testify in American courts. According to the DHS guide to the U visa program, “Federal law provides additional options to assist law enforcement with providing immigration status to victims and witnesses of crime that may or may not be eligible for the U visa,” including:
The T nonimmigrant status (or T visa) provides immigration protection to victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons who comply with reasonable requests for assistance from law enforcement …

VAWA Recognizing that immigrant victims of domestic violence may remain in an abusive relationship because his or her immigration status is often tied to the abuser, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in 1994 created a self-petitioning process that removes control from the abuser and allows the victim to submit his or her own petition for permanent residence without the abuser’s knowledge or consent…

Continued Presence (CP) is a temporary immigration status provided to individuals identified by law enforcement as victims of human trafficking who are potential witnesses in an investigation or prosecution …

Significant Public Benefit Parole (SPBP) may be utilized to bring an individual to serve as a witness, defendant, or cooperating source, and if necessary in extremely limited cases, the individual’s immediate family members, into the United States for up to one year. It must be emphasized that SPBP will only be granted for the minimum period of time required to accomplish the requested purpose, e.g., if a trial is 3 months long, parole will be granted for 3 months …

Deferred Action (DA) is a discretionary decision-making authority that allows DHS to determine which cases merit the commitment of limited resources [but] does not provide a pathway to permanent residency.

The oversight of the U visa program needs reform, say advocates of pro-American immigration policies.

“The U visa was yet another example of Obama expanding sympathy-laden programs without considering the implications for working Americans and agency oversight capabilities,” said Dale Wilcox, the executive director and general counsel at the Immigration Law Reform Institute. “The ease of fabricating a crime coupled with the bounty of US wage-rates and welfare benefits already made the program wide open for fraud,” he said. “Obama’s expansions made it even easier.”
















Lori Jackson Domestic Violence Survivor Protection Act
S.2044 - 115th Congress (2017-2018)
October 31, 2017 - Introduced in Senate

This bill amends the federal criminal code to modify the prohibition on firearm sale or transfer to or purchase or possession by an individual who is subject to a court order that restrains the individual from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of an intimate partner. Specifically, the bill revises the elements of a qualifying court order. It also broadens the definition of "intimate partner" to include a dating partner or former dating partner.






SEC. 4. LIST OF PERSONS SUBJECT TO A RESTRAINING OR SIMILAR ORDER PROHIBITED FROM POSSESSING OR RECEIVING A FIREARM EXPANDED.
Section 922(g)(8) of title 18, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “that”;
(2) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the following:
“(A) (ii) in the case of an ex parte order, relating to which notice and opportunity to be heard are provided—















Lori Jackson Domestic Violence Survivor Protection Act
H.R.4186 — 115th Congress (2017-2018)
October 31, 2017 - Introduced in Congress

This bill amends the federal criminal code to modify the prohibition on firearm sale or transfer to or purchase or possession by an individual who is subject to a court order that restrains the individual from harassing, stalking, or threatening an intimate partner or child of an intimate partner. Specifically, the bill revises the elements of a qualifying court order. It also broadens the definition of "intimate partner" to include a dating partner or former dating partner.



SEC. 4. LIST OF PERSONS SUBJECT TO A RESTRAINING OR SIMILAR ORDER PROHIBITED FROM POSSESSING OR RECEIVING A FIREARM EXPANDED.
Section 922(g)(8) of title 18, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “that”;
(2) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the following:
“(A)(ii) in the case of an ex parte order, relating to which notice and opportunity to be heard are provided—