955 Howard Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70113-1179
(504) 529-2260 (800) 441-7899
www.vinsonguard.com
US unveils new driver's license rules
Americans born after Dec. 1, 1964, will have to get more secure driver's licenses in the next six years under ambitious post-9/11 security rules to be unveiled Friday, 01/18/08 by federal officials.
The Homeland Security Department has spent years crafting the final regulations for the REAL ID Act, a law designed to make it harder for terrorists, illegal immigrants and con artists to get government-issued identification. The effort once envisioned to take effect in 2008 has been pushed back in the hopes of winning over skeptical state officials.
Even with more time, more federal help and technical advances, REAL ID still faces stiff opposition from civil liberties groups. read more...
Bank robberies on the rise
The FBI reports that bank robberies are on the increase in East Tennessee and other areas of the country. FBI authorities note that the majority of bank robberies take place at branches prior to noon during the work week. Over 50 percent of those robbers ask for money with a written note and say they have a weapon, although just one-eighth of them bring out a gun, knife, or bomb. During 2006, there were 17 of these crimes in the Chattanooga region. Across the United States, though, there were 7,000 crimes for that period. Thieves got away with $72.7 million, and law-enforcement recovered just $11.2 million of that amount. In Chattanooga, the FBI says banks lost $295,000 to thieves. While bank officials do not like to talk about specifics, many institutions employ high-tech security equipment, including cameras, money outfitted with electronic trackers and dye packs, and silent alarms.
Source: Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN) (01/12/08) ; Williams, Amy O.
BBB names top 10 scams
The Better Business Bureau of Chicago and Northern Illinois has released its top 10 scam list for 2007. In 2006, the list was topped by advance fee lenders, followed by check scams. Those two have reversed for 2007, with check scams now the number 1 scam reported to the bureau. Also, still on this year’s list but falling from number 4 to number 9 is the “phishing” scam. While consumers are becoming more aware of this scam and the dangers of identity theft, phishing remains very problematic, and consumers must always be on guard to protect their personal and financial information from being compromised, said the director of the Bureau’s regional office.
Source: http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com
FACT: Former U.S. President Franklin Pierce was arrested during his term as President for running over an old lady with his horse, but the charges were later dropped.
Key factor in murder trends: youth, gang violence
Although the current national homicide rate is almost half of what it was during the early 1990s, the murder rate is rising in cities that are plagued by an increase in gang violence. Between 2002 and 2006, there was a 52 percent increase in murders committed by teenage African-American males, with much of that violence gang-related.
Experts blame the threat of terrorism, which has forced a shift in law enforcement resources away from domestic street crime. Although New York has fewer officers on the street than in 2000 and has a large antiterrorism budget, the murder rate is at a 40-year low because the city can still afford youth and anti-gang programs. Meanwhile, middle-sized cities such as Baltimore and Detroit have been forced to cut anti-drug and anti-gang programs because the resources are needed for homeland security initiatives. The city of New Orleans has the highest murder rate in the country, nine times higher than most similarly sized cities, and 34 percent higher than it was prior to Hurricane Katrina. Although the National Guard is still patrolling the streets, an influx of guns and drugs is blamed for the increase in murders.
The additional gang violence has also led to an increase in the number of police officers killed in the line of duty nationwide. In 2007, 186 officers across the country were killed, the highest number since 1989 if the 2001 terrorist attacks are excluded.
Source: Christian Science Monitor (01/04/08) P. 1 ; Marks, Alexandra
QUOTE: "100% of the shots you don't take don't go in." - Wayne Gretzky