Bail Bonds Services Sanford – “Immigrant Surge Rooted in Law to Curb Child Trafficking”

Source     : NY Times
By             : CARL HULSE
Category  : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Immigrant Surge Rooted in Law to Curb Child Trafficking

It was one of the final pieces of legislation signed into law by President George W. Bush, a measure that passed without controversy, along with a pension bill and another one calling for national parks to be commemorated on quarters. “This is a piece of legislation we’re very proud to sign,” a White House spokesman, Tony Fratto, told reporters on Dec. 23, 2008, as the president put his pen to the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, named for a 19th-century British abolitionist. “This program has been very effective around the world in trying to stop trafficking in persons.”em from being quickly sent back to their country of origin. Now the legislation, enacted quietly during the transition to the Obama administration, is at the root of the potentially calamitous flow of unaccompanied minors to the nation’s southern border. Originally pushed by a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers as well as by evangelical groups to combat sex trafficking, the bill gave substantial new protections to children entering the country alone who were not from Mexico or Canada by prohibiting them from being quickly sent back to their country of origin.

Instead, it required that they be given an opportunity to appear at an immigration hearing and consult with an advocate, and it recommended that they have access to counsel. It also required that they be turned over to the care of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the agency was directed to place the minor “in the least restrictive setting that is in the best interest of the child” and to explore reuniting those children with family members. The Obama administration says the law is partly responsible for tying its hands in dealing with the current influx of children. Officials have suggested that the White House might seek flexibility in the law’s requirements when it asks Congress to provide emergency funds to contend with the latest immigration crisis, a request that could come as early as Tuesday. About 52,000 minors without their parents have been caught at the Southwest border since October. “Giving the secretary of homeland security additional authority and discretion that he can use to confront that situation more efficiently, making sure that we are acknowledging the humanitarian issues that are at stake while also enforcing the law, is a priority,” Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said Monday. “It’s the priority of this administration, and if you listen to the public comments of Democrats and Republicans, it sounds like it’s a bipartisan priority.” Senator Dianne Feinstein, the California Democrat who helped write the measure, said the White House does not need new power to act. “That law already provides the administration with flexibility to accelerate the judicial process in times of crisis,” she said. “The administration should use that flexibility to speed up the system while still treating these children humanely, with compassion and respect.” On Capitol Hill, Democrats said they expected that the administration’s initial request for border money would not push for changes in the trafficking law but that the White House would try to work with relevant congressional committees to eventually win revisions.

Democrats have shown reluctance to endorse narrow immigration law changes after House Republicans balked at a much more sweeping overhaul and seem hesitant to tinker too much with the William Wilberforce Act. In a recent letter to Speaker John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, said Congress must ensure that the provisions of the trafficking victims act, “which passed the House and Senate unanimously and was also signed into law by President Bush, are fully enforced, so that due process is provided to unaccompanied children and the safety and well-being of unaccompanied children is protected.” Republicans, who are calling for changes that would make it easier to send them back, blame President Obama for the surge of children at the border, saying he provided a lure by instituting a program that deferred deportations for some immigrants who entered the nation illegally as children. They say the effort to point to the Bush-era law is a meant to deflect attention from the administration and make both parties culpable.

SOURCE : nytimes.com/2014/07/08/us/immigrant-surge-rooted-in-law-to-curb-child-trafficking.html?_r=0

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford – “City Responds to Plaza Towers Lawsuit”

Source     : MMZM 13
By             : Bob Brenzing
Category :  Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

The City of Grand Rapids is responding to a lawsuit filed by a building owner over flooding that took place in the spring of 2013. The Plaza Towers Condominium Association filed the lawsuit last week for an undisclosed amount. The association said that condo owners were displaced for several weeks and suffered millions in damages. In response Monday, Grand Rapids City Attorney Catherine Mish said the city “would aggressively defend against the unsubstantiated claims,” of Paul Huele, the building owner. The lawsuit stated, “The invasion of ‘superinduced’ water from the Grand River into Plaza Towers’ property was the direct, natural, and necessary result of the City of Grand Rapids’ decision to cut a breach into the floodwall.”

The city says that the floodwalls were not breached during the flooding in April and that the Grand River was at “historically high water levels.” City attorneys contend that Plaza Towers did not make the necessary changes after the building had a similar event in 1991. “We believe that water came into the structure from underground, as concrete slabs were pushed up by extraordinary hydraulic pressure,” said City Attorney Catherine M. Mish. “Water had entered the structure before, yet Plaza Towers building owners chose not to repair the structure to prevent it from happening again. Their intentional business decision to ignore the structural problems for 23 years is what caused the Plaza Towers parking garage to flood in 2013.”

Mish also says that the mechanical and electrical systems of Plaza Towers are in a vulnerable location in the underground parking ramp. Consumers Energy had to cut power to the entire building when flood waters came in. “It is not the responsibility of the taxpayers of Grand Rapids to pay an individual for a faulty building design,” said Mish in the press release. The city also maintains that it declared a state of emergency and assisted Plaza Towers in the pumping water away from the building and assisting in the reopening of the building and now are trying “to pass along these costs to the taxpayers of Grand Rapids.”

SOURCE : wzzm13.com/story/news/local/grand-rapids-central/2014/06/16/city-responds-plaza-towers-lawsuit/10625581/

Bail Bonds Services Sanford – “Supreme Court To Hear Case on Facebook Threats”

Source     : USA Today
By             : Richard Wolf
Category : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Supreme Court to hear case on Facebook threats

The Supreme Court agreed Monday to consider a classic free speech conundrum for the 21st century: When do threatening comments made on social media sites such as Facebook cross the line into criminal activity? Two lower federal courts ruled that Anthony Elonis crossed that line in 2010 when he mused on his Facebook page about killing his wife and others, including an FBI agent who was investigating his actions. “Did you know that it’s illegal for me to say I want to kill my wife?” he wrote in one of many posts. “It’s illegal. It’s indirect criminal contempt. It’s one of the only sentences that I’m not allowed to say.”

The lengthy diatribe copied nearly word-for-word a satirical sketch by The Whitest Kids U’ Know comedy troupe, concluding with Elonis’ own summation: “Art is about pushing limits. I’m willing to go to jail for my constitutional rights. Are you?” In seeking the high court’s review of his conviction, Elonis’ attorneys contend he never intended actual violence. What the justices have to decide is whether that matters, as long as a “reasonable person” would feel threatened. The court’s precedent for such cases is now 11 years old. In 2003, the Supreme Court ruled in Virginia v. Black that a state law equating cross-burning with intimidation went too far, reasoning that not all cross-burning was meant as a threat. Justice Clarence Thomas, the lone black jurist, dissented.Since then, lower state and federal courts have split on what constitutes a threat — the perpetrator’s subjective intent to threaten, or anyone else’s objective interpretation. Most but not all courts have agreed it’s the latter standard, used to convict Elonis.

The Supreme Court has refused to get involved in such disputes. Last year, for instance, it denied a petition from a man convicted of threatening on YouTube to kill the judge in his child custody case. The new case dates back to 2010, when Elonis’ wife left him after a seven-year marriage and took their two children. Apparently despondent at age 27, he lost his job at an Allentown, Pa., amusement park and began a series of dark postings, often in the form of rap lyrics. In his Facebook profile, he said the rants were therapeutic and disclaimed any “true threat.” Elonis’ wife wasn’t amused. She obtained a “protection from abuse” order against him, which only led to more rants directed at more people. He was arrested that December and eventually given a 44-month sentence plus three years’ supervised release. He finished his prison term in February.
The federal law that tripped up Elonis states: “Whoever transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing any threat to kidnap any person or any threat to injure the person of another, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.” Many states have similar statutes. Elonis’ attorneys say the “reasonable person” standard should not be used because members of a broad social media audience who don’t know the author might misinterpret his words or guess incorrectly at his intentions.

“The issue is growing in importance as communication online by e-mail and social media has become commonplace,” Elonis’ petition for Supreme Court review says. “Modern media allow personal reflections intended for a small audience (or no audience) to be viewed widely by people who are unfamiliar with the context in which the statements were made and thus who may interpret the statements much differently than the speakers intended.” The Justice Department, which wants the appeals court’s ruling to stand, notes that the federal law is aimed at preventing not only real violence but the fear and disruption induced by perceived threats. The current Supreme Court has been a strong defender of free speech rights, going so far as to permit distasteful protests at military funerals and online videos depicting animal torture. But it also has drawn lines, ruling this term against the free speech rights of a previously convicted military protester and opponents of then President George W. Bush who were moved from their protest site by the Secret Service.

SOURCE : usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/06/16/supreme-court-facebook-threats-free-speech/10326233/

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford – “12,000 Europeans ask Google to forget them”

Source     : theregiste
By             : Simon Sharwood
Category :  Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

A widely-distributed report by Agence-France Presse quotes a Google official as saying 12,000 Europeans have asked the ad-slinging giant to omit some search results linked to their name. Google last Friday posted a form offering Eurozone citizens the chance to inform it about material they’d like the ad company’s search sideline to ignore in future, to comply with a recent European Court of Justice decision.

If the AFP report is correct, Europe clearly houses a decent number of folks who want Google to just forget they ever existed, at least partially. And that’s just the day one total: how many more might Google have collected over the weekend as Europeans had a chance to hit the keyboards at home?

How long, too, before complaints surface that Google hasn’t scrubbed the web clean enough for some? Google’s admitted that the form it has put in place is a placeholder for proper processes it will develop in the near future. The Chocolate Factory remains grumpy it has to make these efforts, arguing that it is hard to balance the public’s right to know and individuals’ desire for privacy but that regulation is not the best way to approach the problem.

SOURCE : theregister.co.uk/2014/06/02/12000_europeans_ask_google_to_forget_them/

Bail Bonds Services Sanford – “Why Apple No Longer Innovates”

Source    : Cincinnati
By            : Joe Wilcox
Category :  Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Why Apple no longer innovates

The more I ponder Apple’s Beats acquisition, the less sense it makes. Buying big well-known brands that compete with yours is usually a bad idea — worse when the acquirer owns no foreign brands. Extinguishing the big name, as Microsoft does with Nokia, is marketing murder. There’s no place for the Beats brand in the Apple lexicon. The gun is drawn and ready to fire.What I do see is another sign that Apple has lost its way. Tim Cook is a very able CEO, but as stated previously he is Star Trek’s Spock without Captain Kirk (Steve Jobs). Cook’s approach to business logistics, while brilliant, unmakes Apple. Beats is an acquisition that is off-key — out of tune with the culture that made the fruit-logo company great. As such, on this Thursday in May, comes my confession. I was wrong five years ago in post “Why Apple succeeds, and always will”. That company is gone.

Dynamic Duo

Like Kirk and Spock, Jobs and Cook were complimentary, when working together: The inspired visionary looking to bring good taste and understated design to otherwise complex products and the man responsible for getting them to market. Kirk is the leader, the charismatic one. Spock is the empowering sidekick but not as effective leader. Jobs, like Kirk, was a risk-taker who took logic-defying gambles that played to his strengths. Based on what Apple has done — or hasn’t — since autumn 2011, Cook is more cautious, more corporate in approach. Mixing metaphors, he doesn’t exhibit what I have long called “David Thinking”.

David Thinking

During the Steve Jobs era, Apple repeatedly defied the status quo by using guerilla tactics that changed the rules of engagement. I wrote five years ago, when praising the approach:

Apple doesn’t play by the rules. It reinvents them. Apple applies what I call ‘David Thinking’ to its broader business, product development and marketing. Apple is David to Microsoft Goliath — and other ones, too. Goliath plays by one set of rules. David choses to change the rules, which favor his strengths rather than those of Goliath. David Thinking derives from research political scientist Ivan Arreguín-Toft conducted. In 2005 book, How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Tactics, he explains how seemingly weaker opponents can prevail against stronger ones by changing the rules of engagement. (So that you don’t have to purchase the book, review paper “How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict” as an alternative.) Arreguín-Toft produces excellent historical data showing that, in wars, when smaller rivals apply David Thinking they are more likely to win, even against mightier opponents. The Biblical example of David vs. Goliath is good analogy. Rather than fight like Goliath — and almost certainly lose by dawning armor and sword — David relied on his own strengths. A slingshot and stone kept him out of Goliath’s reach but still on the offensive.

Preserving Status Quo

But Apple has gone through dramatic transformation since my “always will succeed” post. The fruit-logo company is no longer David but Goliath. Apple’s size and success makes it the status quo and encourages management decisions that seek to preserve what is rather than take forward-reaching risks. Under Cook’s leadership, rather than innovate, Apple iterates. Over more than a year of conference calls, I heard the chief executive promise new innovations that the company has yet to deliver. The only industry-transforming products are those put forth by scads of rumor-spreading Apple blogs. They promote vaporware. That said, Cook the tactician brilliantly preserves status quo revenue streams through exceptional control of manufacturing and distribution logistics. I wouldn’t want to play chess with the man. But Jobs the poker player — master of bluff and misdirection — made Apple a great innovator. Cook chooses to preserve what is rather than reach for something more, and use daring tactics in process. From a different perspective, he acts responsibly. Every public company’s first moral mandate is to shareholders, whose priority is profitable. Cook magnificently squeezes high-margins from Apple’s supply chain, whether existing or new markets. That’s how Apple succeeds today, but the “always will” I asserted in 2009 is gone.

SOURCE : betanews.com/2014/05/29/why-apple-no-longer-innovates/

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford- “Android Headliner: What Happened To Google TV?”

Source     : Android Headlines
By             : Justin Diaz
Category  : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Google TV

Not more than just a few short years ago Google was coming out with a product that at the time, sounded quite amazing and was starting to raise some excitement. It was Google TV. In the beginning, Google TV was something that plenty of people would have been happy to have in their homes, and after success of Android started to take off back before Google TV’s actual arrival, it was no surprise that Google was ready and willing to take on the living room to provide such a product. The idea of having a TV that could browse and search the web, and have access to many of Google’s services and the Play Store was something that seemed entirely desirable. Over time though Google TV fizzled out, and there wasn’t really just any one factor. Google TV was based off of Honeycomb which at the time was fairly current and was Google’s tablet build for the OS. It only seemed natural that if they were going to build Google TV to run on an Android based OS it would be based off of something that was potentially more suited for the job. Google’s smartphone builds for the OS weren’t being used for bigger screen devices like tablets because the design just didn’t look good on larger screens, so there was no way it could ever work for TVs. Using Honeycomb was fine at first, but as time went on most Google TV boxes and Google TV powered televisions were never updated, so the OS became quickly outdated which made it increasingly difficult to grab support for some of peoples favorite apps.

That’s another huge pain point for many Google TV users, and another part of why it failed. The lack of apps. While most people who were using Google TV were probably not expecting to have all the same available content on their TVs as they had on their Android devices, there was a glaring setback that would stare users right in the face every time they turn on their TVs. There just simply wasn’t enough applications. For years I was envious of everyone who ever owned and used a Google TV set top box or had one of those TVs with Google TV built right in. I wanted to have that kind of access, and I needed to have a high powered TV experience that I could use to bring up and browse the web or play a game, or even watch YouTube. The thing is, there were already numerous other ways for me to do those things without Google TV, and after I had finally acquired a Google TV box for myself just last year(some three years after it was launched), I quickly realized this fact and quickly became less interested with it.

So I had browser access now through my actual TV set with a remote. That was great, but by this time I also already had browser access through my Xbox 360 so if I really wanted to browse the web I could use that too, and I was using that more often anyways. YouTube? Xbox had that as well and it was way easier to navigate then using the clunky remote that came with Netgear Neo TV Prime box. To be quite honest, past those two specific applications and uses, there wasn’t really much to capture me in terms of applications and many users probably felt the same way. This was evident after reading many reviews, both before and after having purchased my own box. Applications weren’t just a headache for the users, they were a headache for developers too. It was difficult to get apps built for the Google TV platform because of the bigger size screen. If building apps was more difficult than anticipated and developers were losing interest, then eventually it was only a matter of time before they stopped trying to build apps entirely. Which left consumers without more content to use.

Lack of apps wasn’t Google TVs only setback of course, initially it was also more expensive than competing options. Google TV was built off of Intel architecture in the beginning so they were more costly to make and thus ended up more costly to buy as well. That eventually changed but perhaps by that point it was too late. Fast forward to now and you have a much cheaper option than Google TV to use some of the same services. The Chromecast, Google’s $35 HDMI streaming dongle does all the best parts of Google TV(minus the browser portion of course)for a fraction of the cost and all by navigating things from our phones or tablets, which is infinitely more user friendly than trying to use any of the Google TV remotes that were ever manufactured. YouTube, Google Play Movies and Music, Hulu, Netflix, they were all usable through Google TV at some point even if not from the get go, but they’re also now usable with Chromecast all without developers having to build a separate app. This not only cuts out extra work for developers to have the need to build for a totally different platform, but users don’t have to use an entirely different app to access the same content as they would with a Google TV.

While Google didn’t plan for Google TV to turn out this way, the fact that it never really caught on with consumers for various reasons had caused them to rethink how they plan to attack the living room. Rumors had started spreading about Android TV last year in October, and we now know that Android TV is on its way and is Google’s idea of redefining how apps work on our TV. We have already seen some devices powered by Android like the new line of Phillips Ambilight 4K TVs, as well as the Hisense Pulse Pro that was unveiled at CES. These may not be exactly the Android TV that Google is envisioning and may be completely separate devices that simply run version of Android, nevertheless, Google TV had enough standing in the way of its success from an expensive start to the lack of interest from consumers which has finally led Google to say goodbye to the project it once felt so strongly for. Google TV won’t be forgotten though. Perhaps it is being reborn like a Phoenix in the form of Android TV, and hopefully we’ll see much more success and a more compelling nature of content to get consumers excited.

SOURCE : androidheadlines.com/2014/05/ah-prime-time-happened-google-tv.html

Bail Bonds Services Sanford – “The Many Different Ways to ‘Right-Click’ in OS X”

Source     : Yahoo Tech
By             : David Pogue
Category  : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Bail Bonds Services Sanford

They’re so important, in fact, that it’s worth taking the time to explain the different ways you can trigger a “right-click” (or a secondary click, as Apple calls it, because not all of these methods actually involve a second mouse button, and it doesn’t have to be the right one):

1. Control-click. For years, you could open the shortcut menu of something on the Mac screen by Control-clicking it — and you still can. That is, while pressing the Control key (bottom row), click the mouse on your target.

2. Right-click. Experienced computer fans have always preferred the one-handed method: right-clicking. That is, clicking something by pressing the right mouse button on a two-button mouse. Every desktop Mac since late 2005 has come with a two-button mouse — but you might not realize it. Take a look: Is it a white, shiny plastic capsule with a tiny, gray  scrolling track-pea on the far end? Then you have a Mighty Mouse. Is it a cordless, flattened capsule instead? Then it’s a Magic Mouse. Each has a secret right mouse button. It doesn’t work until you ask for it.

To do that, choose System Preferences. Click Mouse. There, in all its splendor, is a diagram of the Mighty or Magic Mouse. Your job is to choose Secondary Button from  the pop-up menu that identifies the right side of the mouse. (The reason it’s not called a “right button” is because left-handers might prefer to reverse the right and left functions.) From now on, even though there aren’t two visible mouse buttons, your Mighty Mouse does, in fact, register a left-click or a right-click depending on which side of the mouse you push down. It works a lot more easily than it sounds like it would.

3. Use the trackpad. If you have a trackpad (a laptop, for example), you can trigger a right-click in all kinds of ways. Out of the box, you do it by clicking the trackpad with two fingers. The shortcut menu pops right up. Or you can point to whatever you want to click. Rest two fingers on the trackpad — and then click with your  thumb. But even those aren’t the end of your options. In System Preferences → Trackpad, you can also turn on even more right-click methods (and watch little videos on  how to do them). For example, you can “right-click” by clicking either the lower-right or lower-left corner of the trackpad — one finger only. `There are plenty of  shortcut combinations, but you’ll find only the two best methods are these: Right-click (if you have a desktop Mac) or two-finger click (if you have a trackpad).

SOURCE : yahoo.com/tech/the-many-different-ways-to-right-click-in-os-x-84954004439.html

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford – “Judge Confirms Link Between Apple and Patent Troll Rockstar”

Source    : OS News
By            : Thom Holwerda
Category : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Rockstar, the massive patent troll in which Apple is a majority shareholder, sued Google for patent infringement. Of course, Rockstar filed suit in the Eastern District of Texas, the usual venue for patent trolls. Because of Apple’s involvement, Google motioned to have the suit take place in California instead, where it stands a much greater chance of winning. Judge Claudia Wilken sides with Google. She states in the ruling:

Google and Apple’s rivalry in the smartphone industry is well-documented. Apple’s founder stated that he viewed Android as a “rip off” of iPhone features and intended to “destroy” Android by launching a “thermonuclear war.” Defendants’ litigation strategy of suing Google customers is consistent with Apple’s particular business interest… This ‘scare the customer and run’ tactic advances Apple’s interest in interfering with Google’s Android business. Every now and then, someone just gets it. Judge Wilken looked beyond the constructed sham companies and legal cobwebs – such as Rockstar setting up a sham company in Delaware with zero California contacts and transferring all patents-in-suit to that company a day before it sued Google. The world needs more judges like this. In addition – it seems like Jobs’ remarks about Android are catching up to the company. Delightful.

SOURCE : osnews.com/story/27683/Judge_confirms_link_between_Apple_and_patent_troll_Rockstar

Bail Bonds Work In Sanford – “Legal Costs Hit Bank of America’s Bottom Line”

Source     : Money CNN
By             : Ben Rooney
Category :  Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Legal Costs Hit Bank of America’s

The nation’s second largest bank by assets reported a net loss of $276 million, or five cents per share, in the first three months of 2014. That’s down significantly from 10 cents per share from the same period last year. It looks as though the bank wanted to get as many of its legal woes sorted out as possible and take a hit all in one quarter. The loss reflects $6 billion in litigation expenses tied to legal costs, including Bank of America’s recent settlement with the Federal Housing Finance Agency over mortgage-backed securities. The bank announced the $9.5 billion settlement in March. Bank of America also set aside another $2.4 billion for previously disclosed legal costs.”The cost of resolving more of our mortgage issues hurt out earnings this quarter,'” said CEO Brian Moynihan in a statement. But he said the bank “generated solid results” and added that it is returning excess capital to shareholders.

The Federal Reserve recently approved Bank of America’s plan to buy back $4 billion in shares and boost its quarterly dividend to 5 cents. Bank of America has been resolving various lawsuits stemming from the 2008 mortgage bust, many of which were inherited from Countrywide, the mortgage lender it bought in 2011. The bank also reached legal agreements with Financial Guaranty Insurance Co. and Bank of New York Mellon in the first quarter.  Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) shares fell over 3% in early trading. “We expect shares to sell off following today’s result,” analysts at Nomura Securities wrote in a note to clients. While revenue growth was in line with expectations, Nomura said the gains from fees came from “lower-quality areas,” such as equity investments and debt gains. Excluding legal fees, which totaled 40 cents a share, Bank of America earned 35 cents per share in the first quarter. That topped analysts’ expectations for earnings of 26 cents per share, according to FactSet.

“We are obviously pleased to have this issue behind us,” said Bruce Thompson, chief financial officer at Bank of America, referring to the settlement with FHFA. Bank of America said revenue in the quarter was $22.8 billion. Low interest rates continue to be a headwind for the financial sector, and Bank of America was no exception. Net interest income fell 5% in the quarter to just over $10 billion. Meanwhile, non-interest income was flat. Earnings from mortgage banking were weak and trading profits were down. But the bank reported gains in its investment and brokerage unit, along with profits from equity investments and the sale of certain debt securities. The bank does appear to be managing expenses well. Excluding all the legal fees and costs associated with pensions, non-interest expenses declined $1.2 billion in the quarter. Bank of America has been one of the top performing banks in the stock market this year. Even with Wednesday’s decline, the stock is up more than 5% this year. Wells Fargo is the only other big U.S. bank stock that is in positive territory this year. The results came amid a mixed quarter for the banking industry. JPMorgan’s (JPM, Fortune 500) earnings disappointed investors last week, but investors cheered results from Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) and Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500). Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) and Morgan Stanley (MS, Fortune 500) will report later this week. To top of page

SOURCE : money.cnn.com/2014/04/16/investing/bank-of-america-earnings/

Bail Bonds Services Sanford – “More Talks Expected in ‘Central Park Five’ Lawsuit”

Source     : New York Times
By            : BENJAMIN WEISER
Category : Bail Bonds Services Sanford, Bail Bonds Work In Sanford

Bail Bonds Services Sanford

Lawyers for New York City said in a court filing on Tuesday that they expected to be able to resume settlement talks shortly in the protracted lawsuit by five men convicted in the 1989 rape of a jogger in Central Park, and would work to resolve the case by the end of May. The city’s statement came several days after one of the lawyers for the men said in an interview that the city’s lawyers were “dragging their feet” on settlement talks, and had not responded to a settlement demand made by the plaintiffs in early March. Mayor Bill de Blasio had pledged a quick settlement of the lawsuit by the so-called Central Park Five during his campaign and after his election, saying in December that “a huge injustice was done.”

The five men sued in 2003, seeking damages of $50 million each and alleging that they had been convicted on the basis of confessions that were coerced by the police. The convictions of the men, who were imprisoned for periods from seven to 13 years, were vacated in 2002 after an investigation by the Manhattan district attorney’s office found that DNA and other evidence showed that the jogger had been attacked and raped by someone else, Matias Reyes.

The Bloomberg administration had fought the lawsuit, but in January, with the plaintiffs’ consent, a city lawyer, Elizabeth M. Daitz, said in court that the new corporation counsel, Zachary W. Carter, had asked for a short delay in the discovery process “to allow him to get up to speed” on the case, so that he could “advise the new administration as to how he believes we should proceed.” Ms. Daitz, in the filing on Tuesday, sought an additional delay, through late May, with the plaintiffs’ consent. She said more time was needed, “particularly given the notoriety of this matter and the implications for future cases.” The Law Department had no comment beyond the letter. Jonathan C. Moore, the lawyer who last week criticized the pace of the settlement talks, said: “It’s well past time to sit down and get it resolved. This would appear to be a step in that direction.”

SOURCE : nytimes.com/2014/04/16/nyregion/more-talks-expected-in-rape-lawsuit.html