Courts & Corrections Homeland Security & Disasters

• Arizona Presses Ahead on Border Fence Despite Obstacles
• BY: Stateline   |   Arizona   |   April 4, 2013
• After nearly two years of preparation, an Arizona state senator says a plan will be unveiled in a few weeks to build a fence along the border with Mexico to keep out illegal immigrants.

• Connecticut Governor to Sign Gun Bill
• Source: Hartford Courant   |   Connecticut   |   April 4, 2013
• After more than 13 hours of debate that was at moments impassioned and agonized, the General Assembly approved an historic and far-reaching gun-control bill that proponents said was their toughest-in-the-nation response to the Newtown school massacre.
• 3 Comments

• Maryland House OKs Strict Gun Bill
• Source: Baltimore Sun   |   Maryland   |   April 4, 2013
• The House of Delegates voted to give Maryland one of the toughest gun laws in the nation, passing a bill that would ban the sale of assault-type weapons, set a 10-bullet limit on magazines and require fingerprints and a license to buy a handgun.

• Sequester Squeezes Massachusetts Judiciary
• Source: Boston Globe   |   Massachusetts   |   April 4, 2013
• Nationwide, the judiciary’s budget has been cut nearly $350 million for the 2013 fiscal year, leading to the layoffs or involuntary furloughs of 2,000 employees, according to the court system.

• Indiana Could Be 1st to Require Armed Employees in Schools
• Source: Indianapolis Star   |   Indiana   |   April 3, 2013
• Legislation approved Tuesday by the House Education Committee would mandate the creation of a protection officer for each school.
• 3 Comments

• In Atlanta Cheating Scandal, All But 4 Turned Themselves In
• Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution   |   Atlanta   |   April 3, 2013
• Some of the educators spend several hours in jail before posting bond amounts starting at $40,000.

• The Benefits of Drones, Police on Pinterest, and a Successful IT Consolidation
• BY: Governing   |   April 2, 2013
• News you should know about government and technology.
• 4 Comments

• Prescription Drug Deaths Rise Despite Efforts to Combat Abuse
• BY: McClatchy News   |   Nation   |   April 2, 2013
• Despite efforts by law enforcement and public health officials to curb prescription drug abuse, drug-related deaths in the United States have continued to rise, the latest data show.

• Police Discover New Uses for Old Technology
• BY: Government Technology   |   Nation   |   April 2, 2013
• Radio transmitters help police track stolen items, such as bicycles, laptops, boats and firearms -- even drugs.

• Georgia Town Votes to Require a Gun in Every Home
• Source: AP/Atlanta Journal-Constitution   |   Nelson, Ga.   |   April 2, 2013
• Backers of the newly adopted ordinance requiring gun ownership in a small north Georgia town acknowledge they were largely seeking to make a point about gun rights.
• 7 Comments

• Connecticut Leaders Agree on Nation's Strictest Gun Control Bill
• Source: Hartford Courant   |   Connecticut   |   April 2, 2013
• The bipartisan deal would strengthen the state's existing ban on semiautomatic assault rifles to include weapons such as the Bushmaster AR-15 used by Adam Lanza to kill 20 first-graders and six women at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown.

• Feds Accuse Oregon of Segregating Disabled in Sheltered Jobs
• Source: Oregonian   |   Oregon   |   April 2, 2013
• Oregon unlawfully segregates people with disabilities in sheltered workshops instead of providing them more work opportunities in the public midst, federal authorities allege.

• Chicago's Homicide Rate Falling
• Source: Chicago Tribune   |   Chicago   |   April 2, 2013
• After a rough 2012 with more than 500 homicides, violence in the first quarter of 2013 fell 42 percent from a year earlier.

• Marijuana Accidents Spur Calls for Childproof Packaging in Colorado
• Source: Denver Post   |   Colorado   |   April 2, 2013
• When medical marijuana became legal in Colorado and federal officials backed off prosecution, Children's Hospital Colorado had 14 emergency-room visits by kids who had ingested marijuana.