Threatening Letters Keep Teen Killer in Prison

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At 13-years-old, Billy Ray White was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 10 years for armed robbery, theft of a motor vehicle and the murder of J.D. Hall in Douglasville, GA.  Four years later, White wrote threatening letters to Hall’s family.  Now, 15 years later, they are fighting his possible release.  CNN’s Emanuella Grinberg reports. In a handwritten letter to J.D. Hall’s daughter, the convicted killer promised to carve her up like a turkey and make her head into a flower pot.  In another letter to Hall’s son, he said he would put him through a meat grinder and force his relatives to eat him. You can run but you can’t hide.  You can go to the police, but they can’t protect you.  You can change your name, address, or even move, but I will always find you,” he wrote in a letter postmarked May 15, 1989.  “They can’t keep me in here for the rest of my life.”
White has admitted to writing the letters and that they were a “stupid thing.”  His sister stands up for him, saying that he was the product of alcoholic parents who neglected and abused him, and that he deserves a chance to prove he's changed

The Georgia Parole Board has refused to release him six times, the last time in June.  He comes up for parole again in April. Click here for Grinberg’s full story.

Teen Faces Child Porn Charges

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A 17-year-old boy was arrested in Milton for 10 counts of sexual exploitation of minors, according to a WSB-TV report. Child pornography was downloaded onto an IP address in Milton and detected by the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit.  The Special Victims Unit then alerted the Milton Police Department, the report states. The children in the movies ranged from ages 5 to 13 years old, according to Detective S.W. Hewitt of the Milton Police Department. Read the full story here.

Atlanta Grad Rate Investigation

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Atlanta Public Schools claim a 30 percent increase in high school graduation rates since 2002, but the boost in numbers may be the result of hidden truancy rates, according to an Atlanta Journal Constitution investigation. The story says:
The mass exodus from Atlanta’s high schools may be the primary reason for one of the district’s proudest academic achievements: a dramatic increase in its graduation rate… District officials boast that the rate of students getting diplomas within four years has risen 30 percentage points since 2002. But the rate’s only surge, from 43 percent to 72 percent, came between 2003 and 2005, the Journal-Constitution’s analysis of state data found. During that time, the district removed from its rolls about 30 percent of all pupils in grades nine through 12 — roughly 16,000 students. As a result, most of those students no longer figured into the district’s calculation of what Superintendent Beverly Hall has descried as the “all-important” graduation rate: The fewer students being counted, the fewer graduates needed to make the rate higher.  A student listed as a dropout would count against the rate.  A transfer would not – even if school officials didn’t know, or didn’t try to find out, where a student went.

Judge Key: Show Us Evidence Your Program Really Works

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The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges is looking for evidence-based programs that are effective in dealing with status offenders and their families. The new NCJFCJ President, Judge Michael Key of LaGrange, GA, sent a letter to his members across the country this week.  Here is part of that letter:
August 11, 2010

Dear Colleagues:

On March 14, 2010, the Board of Trustees of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (“the Council”) voted in support of the re-authorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act, including the provision which would repeal the Valid Court Order Exception to the detention of status offenders. The re-authorization bill includes a phase-out period, a hardship clause, and support for resource allocation for status offenders and their families. The Council was aware of the concerns this position raised in places where there are scarce or ineffective resources for the status offender population, and received a resolution from the Georgia Council of Juvenile Court Judges calling upon us to address these concerns.  A copy of the Georgia Resolution is available here. The Council's Board of Trustees presented a resolution addressing these issues to the Membership at the July 2010 Annual Conference in San Diego. The Membership approved the Council Resolution Regarding Efforts to Ensure Availability of Evidence-Based Services to Meet the Needs of Status Offenders and Their Families.

Teen Sex Crime Splits Community

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Two 13-year-old boys face adult charges for allegedly forcing three young girls to perform sexual acts in Augusta, according WRDW-TV News 12. As the TV station reports, the girls, ages 7, 9 and 12, claim they were lured behind a vacant building and forced to perform oral sex.  The crime was reported by one of the girls’ parents who overheard the girls talking about it. The boys claim the actions were consensual, but under Georgia law, no child that young can consent.  They are being charged as adults and could spend ten to 30 years in prison if convicted. This issue is splitting the community and drawing heated comments.  Here’s a sample:

“Whether [you] like it or not, the boys [were] probably given consent…Unfortunately 13 is not a "consensual age.”

“It would never have been an issue whether the girls consented or not if the parents kept a closer eye on the children.”

To read more, click here.

Usher and Friends Speak Out

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By Chandra R. Thomas

The raindrops cascading from the sky Friday didn’t put a damper on the mood of the celebrities inside the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center. They strolled the red carpet in support of pop star Usher Raymond’s first ever World Leadership Awards. Touted as a salute to those who are "committed to inspiring and encouraging youth," the event was held in conjunction with his New Look Foundation, which mentors young people as global leaders. Currently in seven cities, New Look has worked with over 8,700 young people, and has provided more than 150,000 hours of leadership training. The program trains high school youth in leadership, business, education and service.

Courthouse Security Plan in Danger

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A $6 million plan to beef up security at the Fulton County Courthouse is in jeopardy.  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the county commission is considering redirecting that money to other projects and will talk about the issue at their next meeting on August 18. Five years ago, Brian Nichols went on a shooting rampage at the courthouse, killing four people, including a judge.  The enhanced security plan was recommended by a federal panel that reviewed the tragedy. Some county commissioners would now prefer to spend the money on stimulus projects, including a museum for the Tuskegee Airmen, better security at bus stops, and transportation for senior citizens.

Cartoon Net Fights Bullying

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Cartoon Network will launch a Bullying Prevention Campaign in October called Stop Bullying: Speak Up.  A series of public service announcements will target young people who often witness bullying and urge them to take action.  According to a company news release, “Bystanders represent the 75-85% of students in schools that witness incidents of bullying every year, whether on the playground, in the classroom, on the bus, on social media websites, or cell phones.”

Cartoon Network execs made the announcement at the National Bullying Prevention Summit in Washington today. Campaign partners include sister company CNN, and the Anti-Defamation League, which released it's own set of recommendations to fight bullying, as well.

Complaint Forces Judge to Resign

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Judge Kenneth O. Nix, Chief Judge of Cobb County Superior Court, is resigning amid allegations that he innappropriately touched two courthouse workers.   Nix, who turns 71 on  Oct. 4, will step down on his birthday.  He tells the Marietta Daily Journal that it's all a misunderstanding.  The veteran judge posed for a photo with two women sitting on his lap,  The MDJ has the photo, and explains what happened next.

Children in Need of Services

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Anyone passing by room 450 at Georgia’s capitol on Monday probably thought lawmakers were talking about facial parts. The Senate Judiciary Committee was actually discussing CHINS—the acronym for Children in Need of Services—an important concept in the rewrite of the state’s juvenile code. In the proposed code, expected to be introduced when the legislature convenes in 2011, the term would replace language in the current code about “status offenders.” The change is more than semantic. Status offenses are acts that would not be crimes for adults, such as truancy or running away from home. Children who commit such offenses in Georgia can be classified as “unruly” or “ungovernable,” and under the current code can be detained “for days, weeks or even months in secure detention facilities,” according to a report prepared for the Senate committee by the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic at Emory University School of Law.