Did Toyota's crappy car help send this man to prison?

This man was convicted by jury of vehicular manslaughter, all the while claiming his Toyota went out of control. Doesn't sound so unbelievable now, does it?

(Some) Prosecutors are idiots

Reason 10,984 why I am a public defender is to help people charged with bullshit cases. Check this shit out: a couple is being charged with misdemeanors for removing their lawn in an effort to save money and reduce water usage. They have a new baby and are trying to reduce their monthly expenses. As a new mommy, I can totally appreciate that. The City Attorney of Orange, California apparently does not appreciate that. Even after the couple installed a pretty decorative fence and some drought resistant plants, still not good enough. The Code says 40% of the lawn must have living plants, god damn it! These people must be PUNISHED! They must COMPLY! If they don't, they can get up to 6 months in jail!!

So, let me get this straight...California is constantly in a drought. City officials are always telling people to CONSERVE WATER. This couple went from using 299,221 gallons a year to 58, 348 gallons a year. Good for the environment, right?? No, fuck these criminals says the prosecutor. These people are more concerned with providing for their daughter than with keeping their fucking grass green. If they didn't provide for their daughter, then the city attorney would charge them with child abuse.

Read the article here. And don't ask me why the dumbass author of this article doesn't realize that the couple isn't being sued, as the headline implies, they are being prosecuted. Just a smidge of a difference.

Juvies abused by probation officers, county does little about it

People wonder why juvies re-offend, well here is just one reason...when your probation officer commits crimes against you, it makes the road to rehabilitation that much harder. Oh, and of course when your abuser is able to escape punishment and stay employed supervising you and other young people, the message that you are a worthless, unlovable, lost cause gets driven home even harder. FUCK YOU LA County Dept of Probation! A tight budget is no excuse for this, it's a smoke screen for the real issue: you don't give a shit about these kids. Shameful.

Articles here and here.

Ask me again why I do my job

This woman, Biurny Peguero Gonzalez, recently plead guilty to perjury in NY and is looking at 1-3 years in prison. What did she do, you ask?

She lied about being raped, and an INNOCENT man was sentenced to 20 years in prison. William McCaffrey served 4 years in prison because of this despicable woman. And you know branded as a rapist, that 4 years was really easy time to do.

She lied over, and over, and over. To doctors, to cops, to prosecutors, and to a jury of 12 people. She said she was 110% sure that this man had raped her at knife point. You know why she lied?? Because she went off with McCaffrey and his friends while she was out drinking with her friends, and when she met back up with her friends they were all pissed off. So she told them she had been raped in order to get them to stop picking on her. That's it.

This should be on the front page of every newspaper in the country, so that every citizen can get it through their thick skulls why it is that we have a criminal justice system rooted on the concept of innocent unless proven guilty.

Dear potential jurors/DA's/judges/cops: COMPLAINING WITNESSES LIE ALL THE TIME!! Sometimes they lie for revenge. Sometimes they lie to gain advantage in a child custody case. Sometimes they lie to cover up for their own criminal behavior. And sometimes, like in this case, they lie for the most ridiculous reasons that would never motivate a normal person to lie. People just lie sometimes. Period. And sometimes because of those lies, innocent people rot away in prison. I've stood in courtrooms shocked, holding back tears, powerless, and watched it happen. It is a nightmare.

Don't misunderstand me, most witnesses are telling what the truth, or at least what they believe is the truth. But even the most emphatic witnesses is often times honestly mistaken about what they think they experienced. Just look at all of the innocent people released after spending decades in prison for crimes they didn't commit. If it wasn't for DNA and The Innocence Project, those people would never get out. Now think about the fact that most crimes do not have DNA evidence to be reviewed, and for so many wrongfully convicted people there is no exoneration possible.

The bottom line is this; gross injustices occur every day in this country. And the thought of innocent people being convicted or crimes they didn't commit is something that should scare the shit out of all of us. Not only out of empathy, but out of self-preservation - because it could happen to any of us. And if you don't think so, you are living in a dream world. Have a nice time there.

As far as rotting away in prison goes, I hope this woman gets maxed out. She should have to serve at least as much time as her victim did.

Seriously?

I have never really understood the attraction of sororities and fraternities, not even when I was in college. Part of me is a very much a girly girl, but the other part of me loves football and curses like a sailor. I just wouldn't fit in, and I wouldn't want to, frankly.

Check out the rules that a Cornell sorority "rush chair" -whatever the hell that means - sent to all the poor souls trying to get into this dumb ass sororotiy.

I know I am painting with an awfully broad brush here, but this is exactly the type of shit I imagine goes on in every sorority. I suppose that if you are the type of girl who wants to "look like someone that others would die to hang out with" (I am quoting, here) then you are also the type of girl who would be desparate enough to allow someone else to dictate exactly what shade of eyeshadow to wear in order to get into an allegedly "exclusive" group of girls as friends, and would be willing to pay for this privilege.

Needless to say, if someone every handed me a list like this I would tell them to go fuck themselves.

It is awesome!

Date Night!!

Mmmmm, first post-baby date night with the hubby was a smashing success! This was the first time since Sam arrived that we have had dinner, just the two of us. It was long overdue. We live about 6 hours away from family ever so willing to babysit, so getting to go out on a date is tough. We make date nights at the house (rent a movie, yummy dinner), but there is really no substitute for the real thing.

Words cannot express my gratitude that my father and step-mother who were in town this weekend, and begged to babysit for us.

Cozy Italian spot near the house. Panzanella salad (heirloom tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, basil, dressed simply in olive oil and red wine, with a touch of oregano), a glass of a delicious barolo. Ok, TWO glasses of barolo. The most amazing osso bucco, served over saffron risotto, and an apple tart with a light and airy crust, drizzled with a touch of caramel sauce that was not at all overpowering, or too sticky.

To top it all off, we came home and the baby was asleep in the exact same spot he was in when we left. Nana and Papa said they hadn't heard a peep out of him while we were gone. We fed him, put him right back to bed, and are now headed off to sleep ourselves.

Nice Sunday!

Sam Law #1

The cuter the outfit, the better the chance that my son will spit up on it, and necessitate a change of clothes, before leaving the house.

Strange

Why is it that (according to the ratings) no one is really watching any of the late night shows, but so many people - me included - seem to care about this whole NBC Leno/Conan debacle??

And btw, even though I never ever watch his show, I am fully Team CoCo. When in doubt, the person with a ginge pompadore wins.

Roll Tide

Was it just me, or did Nick Saban look PISSED at his players for that gatorade shower after Bama won the National Championship last night??

Ok, yeah he probably has an ear infection now from that gatorade being dumped in his ear, and possibly a concussion from the bucket hitting him in the head, but still, he just won the National Championship (lucky Colt McCoy got hurt though, Bama. Sorry to say it).

Why so mad, Nick Saban? Is it because you heard that I always, inexplicably get you and Dave Wannstedt confused? Understandable that you would be mad. I honestly cannot explain why I always screw you two up, considering you don't really look anything alike. Sorry, homie.

Why??

Katharine McPhee, what have you done to yourself?

I had a love/hate relationship with McPhee when she was on Idol. I was a big, big, big Elliot Yamin fan - so not until he got booted out of a spot on the finale did I start rooting for McPhee (because, I mean, let's face it...Taylor Hicks was lame). She has a great voice, but she was always taking herself and that voice just a tad too seriously. But I appreciated her training and her effort. And she certainly looked the part of a pop star. Please see exhibit A:

Yawza! By the time the finale rolled around, she was polished and pulled together, and hot (that is some impressive cleavage). She was lovely in all her brunette glory, so why would she go and make herself into a short haired blond girl? I don't get it! She had PERFECT hair: long, shiny, bouncy. Hmph! If I had hair like she had I would never cut it or mess with the color so drastically. I would spend lots of tossing it around triumphantly as lesser haired women stood open-jawed with jealousy, and I might even occasionally allow peons to be photographed with me and my fabulous hair. But cut it and bleach it blond - never!

She has a new album coming out this month, the release of which was pushed back a few months which is never a good sign. But I will have to check out the clips on Amazon and see if it is a workout music worthy download.

And I wish her and her hair the best of luck in all future endeavors.

Blond McPhee photo by Liz O. Baylen/ LA Times

Yellow dressed McPhee photo via WireImage