New Program In A Transparent YACA.

Consistent with the Youth & Adult Corrections Agency's policy of becoming more transparent, the privileges of the bureaucratic bourgeoisie are now being extended to the rank-and-file proletariat and requests to back-date appointments, for the purpose of avoiding those unnecessary probationary periods, are now being accepted.

http://www.cimccpoa.org/back_date_req.pdf

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Another Officer's Death Waiting In The Wings!

In the perusal of the Inspector General’s report into the murder of Correctional Officer Manual Gonzales, the most important finding is the first. It is pivotal because it addresses the seminal event without which the murder would not have occurred.

“FINDING 1
The Office of the Inspector General found that the California Institution for Men inappropriately housed Blaylock in a general population unit despite his recent parole from a security housing unit and his demonstrated violence toward other inmates.”

Indeed, it was the failure to appropriately house inmate Blaylock that commenced the sequence of events that led to that fatal day of January 10, 2005 and a fatality that occasioned the necessity for the Inspector General’s report. Unfortunately, the California Institution For Men seems to have learned nothing regarding the correlation between proper classification/appropriate housing and employee safety.

Information that has, anonymously, arrived on my fax machine tells me that, on December 19th, 2004, an East Coast Crip, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, arrived at CIM's Reception Center. He is an associate of Inmate Blaylock, and one who attempted to cause a riot in CIM’s Reception Center where he was housed. This action earned him an immediate transfer to Palm Hall.

However, pursuant to an Inmate Classification Committee action, this inmate, inmate Wilson, Fred V-48078, was confirmed for CIM’s East Facility, level three and, even with the windows falling out, was transferred there on March 9th, 2005.

Apparently, the very next day, a loud OOPS was heard, presumably from the Associate Warden who headed the Classification Committee on the day Wilson was classified for CIM’s East Facility, as he realized he had placed inmate Wilson in a facility that was, unquestionably, insufficient for Inmate Wilson’s custody needs. A transportation team was quickly dispatched on March 10, 2005 and brought Wilson back to Palm Hall from bed 211U.

Another Officer’s death waiting in the wings? Perhaps.

Another failure of classification? ABSOLUTELY!

Putting The Cart Before The Horse.

In January, the "New And Improved" Youth And Adult Corrections Agency published, on the web, an inaugural edition of the YACA News¹.

With all of the style and grace of Charles Durning, the dancing Governor of Texas in the movie "The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas", YACA danced around the problems they now face in a transparent attempt to improve the cosmetics while masking the substance of a failed tax-devouring agency.

With such statements as , "Most of the system's ills can be traced to the structure of the Youth and Adult Corrections Agency." and "Key managers will be held accountable for performance.", Mr. Hickman's double-talking propaganda machine tells us that he will reform the "system" and then, at some point down the road - if time permits, he will assess the culpability for failure of "key managers". I do have my doubts that the time will ever arrive.

The failure of this strategy is predictable. Ultimately, it is the agency's plan to thwart accountability for "key managers" by blaming "the system" that will insure continuing scandal and failure. This is much like blaming the gun for the homicide or the automobile for the vehicular manslaughter. Clearly this plan was developed by Agency lawyers who think they are still practicing trial law.

A direct analogy can be drawn between the systems of YACA and the systems of an aircraft, another structure comprised of a multitude of component parts.

When an airplane crashes and it is determined that the cause is a defective component, the systems within the aircraft are not redesigned around the defective part. It is the part which is replaced and/or redesigned within all similar aircrafts. YACA seeks to ignore its defective parts and redesign the agency around that which is flawed, a castle of granite built on a foundation of sand.

Mr. Hickman's plan seems to be to throw out the baby and keep the dirty bath water.

No Mr. Hickman, fixing the system will have no effect until you purge the agency of its defective component parts - "key manager" parts. This will be a more daunting task than replacing a defective jack screw in the tail elevator of an Air Bus, because aircraft parts have no political influence and have no idea which closet holds the skeletons, but, like the aircraft analogy, it must be accomplished before you will realize success.

To do less is putting the cart before the horse.

______________________
¹http://www.corr.ca.gov/CDC/PDFs/YACANews.pdf

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

The Coup That Failed.

In today's Los Angeles Times is an article in which Governor Schwarzenegger expresses a desire for the Youth & Adult Corrections Agency to re-enter the era of incarceration based on the "rehabilitation model" of corrections. A model which, historically, has cost plenty.

In a statement issued by Roderick Q. Hickman, "We just lost our way with respect to preparing offenders for their return to the community.", Mr. Hickman's first priority doesn't seem to be the Agency's breach of the public trust through the misappropriation of tax dollars. Agency tax dollars and expenditures which have come under the scrutiny of Assemblyman Rudy Bermúdez, D-Norwalk who chairs the Assembly committee which oversees the Corrections Agency budget.

If taxpayers are to throw any more money at an agency for, yet, another change in its mission shouldn't the taxpayer be assured that the agency's fiscal house is in order?

In fact, Assemblymember Bermudez, in questioning departmental expenditures for safety equipment that sits in departmental warehouses unissued and unused, has come under fire by the Director of the Department of Corrections, Jeanne Woodford, along with her sycophant, Todd Slosek.

In a recent Sacramento Bee article, as reported, it was apparent that Ms. Woodford was outraged by Mr. Bermudez' inquiries relevant to Department of Corrections expenditures. In fact, after her character assassination of Assemblymember Bermudez had ended, she abused her authority as the Director by calling for Mr. Bermudez' resignation as a Parole Agent for the Department of Corrections. A position for which he is on an unpaid leave of absence while serving in the Assembly as an elected representative. A right he has availed himself of pursuant to §3302 of the Government Code. However, in the Youth & Adult Corrections Agency, law is nothing while spin is everything.

By demanding that Agency and Departmental managers be held accountable for their failings, Assemblymember Bermudez has come under fire by a departmental bureaucrat in a transparent attempt at intimidation. In a bizarre reversal of roles, Ms. Woodford has tried to leverage Assemblymember Bermudez out of his duties as the Chair of the prisons budgetary oversight committee.

Fortunately, the California democratic process survived and repelled Ms. Woodford's unsuccessful coup d'etat as exemplified by the statement issued from the office of the Assembly Speaker, Assemblymember Fabian Núñez:

"Núñez spokesman Vincent Duffy said the Assembly speaker would not remove Bermúdez from the post.

The speaker's office, he said, has obtained a legal opinion from the Legislature's lawyers saying Bermúdez has no conflict of interest because he is not currently getting a salary from the department.

"This is a non-issue for us," Duffy said."

Clearly designed to enforce the "Sacramento Code of Silence", Ms. Woodford's attempts to manipulate California's democratic process for her own gain, through the silencing of the prison budgetary oversight committee, is an act which MUST be addressed by State Senator Gloria Romero's Senate prison oversight committee. As much as Romero would like to place the blame for all of the department's ills on the "powerful prison guards union", as she has done in the past, it is clear that this ploy no longer works.

Ms. Woodford, through her actions, has expressed a sweeping contempt for the California Legislature. If Ms. Woodford does not like the governmental structure of California then, perhaps, she is the one who should resign.

Ms. Romero, the gauntlet has been thrown down at your committee's feet. Will you continue to ignore it?

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Woodford's Folly

Through all of Jeanne Woodford's vitriol, the truth emerges.

CLICK HERE FOR THE LETTER!

"Spy-Cams" in YACA!

Have you ever wondered just what goes on in those "closed door", Youth & Adult Corrections Agency meetings?

As another first, I have managed to smuggle several "spy-cameras" into the YACA meeting rooms and offices for a candid look into the inner workings of YACA!

CLICK HERE FOR LIVE, "SPY-CAM", ACTION OF ACTUAL YACA MEETINGS IN PROGRESS!

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Russian Roulette, YACA Style!

As they both sat across from each other, only the card table and a stack of money between them, the young, dark haired, man picked up the .357 revolver, swung open the cylinder while cradeling it with his left hand and inserted one single bullet into one of the six empty chambers it contained.

With eyes locked, the two contestants stared at each other while the dark haired man spun the cylinder and slapped it shut into the frame. He slowly placed the muzzle against his temple, as if to savor the last fleeting moments of his life, and, as the sweat beaded and ran down his face, he inched the trigger backward against his grip. The sudden "click" caused the other man to flinch, now it was his turn.

To read about Russian Roulette, YACA style, CLICK HERE!

To play on-line Russian Roulette, CLICK HERE!

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

A Reminder To Warden Dicarlo - CIM, Chino!

Before you leave CIM, don't forget the paperwork!






CLICK THIS!

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Historic Moment In SCOTUS History!

A HISTORIC MOMENT IN THE UNITED STATES HAS ARRIVED!

For the first time in history, cameras have been allowed into the chambers of the Supreme Court Of The United States (SCOTUS).

A short film clip shows the California State's Attorney General's Office presenting an argument in front of SCOTUS.

CLICK HERE FOR THIS, HISTORIC, CLIP!

You can become a part of history!


OR

The California Attorney General's Office wouldn't suborn perjury - would they???

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Another Site Of Interest

http://www.cimccpoa.org

State Hearings - A Dog And Pony Show?

HEADLINE:

"STATE SENATOR WANTS HEARING ON CALIF. PRISON GUARD'S SLAYING"

KLICK ME HARD!

Will this be more "SPIN" designed to blame CCPOA, while exonerating the Agency and agents that Gloria Romero oversees?

An agency and agents that consistently fail in their mission?

An agency for which Ms. Romero has become little more than a cheerleader?


"Rod, Rod, he's our man - If he can't do it no one can!"

Politics being what they are, we should ALL be VERY skeptical that these will be TRUE fact finding sessions and not a repeat of January's debacle which turned out to be little more than an ambush for the "Powerful Prison Guard's Union".

Ms. Romero, the employees at the California Institution For Men need REAL ANSWERS, NOT MORE OF YOUR, SELF-SERVING, SPIN! Don't you think they deserve that?

In other words Ms. Romero, please keep it real and don't pander to the press at the expense of a fallen hero.

Contact Gloria Romero's office, with any comments you may have, by clicking here!

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

More Blogs On Prison Corruption.

For more excellent reading on the corrupt nature of the California Prison System, please visit the following, excellent, blogs:

PacoVilla's Blog    http://ccpoa.blogspot.com

AND

Osapians Blog       http://patrioticrants.blogspot.com

Involuntary Manslaughter.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

Involuntary Manslaughter

California Penal Code

§192. Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without
malice. It is of three kinds:
     (a) Voluntary--upon a sudden quarrel or heat of passion.
     (b) Involuntary--in the commission of an unlawful act, not amounting to felony; or in the commission of a lawful act which might produce death, in an unlawful manner, or without due caution and circumspection. This subdivision shall not apply to acts committed
in the driving of a vehicle.
     (c) Vehicular

A theory for the reader's consideration:

An examination of §192 (b), Manslaughter - Involuntary.

As we know by now, through press reports and statements of CCPOA and/or State officials, the California Institution For Men's decision to withhold the, approximately, 600 stab-proof vests was a conscious decision and, in an attempt to expedite the distribution process, officials at the Chino Chapter of CCPOA, reportedly, had filed a grievance relevant to the vest distribution, thereby keeping the distribution of the vests within the attention of Prison Management. Prison Management was cognizant of their failure to distribute these vests.

The failure to distribute the vests, under these conditions, vests which were unquestionably possessed and controlled by the Prison Management, cannot be reasonably viewed as an oversight or omission. Therefore, reason dictates that the failure to distribute was, clearly, an act of commission.

Since there was no crime being committed in the mere failure to distribute the life-saving vests, the commission of the withholding of the vests then becomes "the commission of a lawful act".

The Bargaining Unit 6 Memorandum Of Understanding is a clear statement of both the State of California and CCPOA that Stab-Proof Vests are a critical piece of Safety Equipment. Safety equipment that needs to be issued immediately upon receipt¹. The very nature of stab-proof vests is for the protection from stabbing wounds to the chest and abdominal areas of the body, wounds of the type that the Medical Examiner's report may well show, led to the death of Officer Gonzales.

Therefore, the death through the murder of an unprotected Correctional Officer would, reasonably, be a foreseeable event that, in the intentional absence of the issuance of available stab-proof vests, constitutes a lack of "due caution and circumspection" by those who failed to issue the vests - one or more administrators or managers at the California Institution For Men.

It appears to me that the elements of the crime of Involuntary Manslaughter, committed by one or more agents of the California Institution For Men, are present, and this crime should be investigated and prosecuted by a statutory authority. Since administrators hide behind each other's apron strings, a credible investigation into this crime, for the identification and prosecution of the appropriate perpetrators, is mandatory.

It has been my experience that asking the Office of the San Bernardino County District Attorney to conduct any investigation at all involving State officials is useless².

If you agree with me, contact the Attorney General through the web link provided below:

http://www.ag.ca.gov/contact/index.htm

__________________________
¹§7.05 (I) (2), BU6 MOU
²http://www.e-kard.com/ss/dacspndnc.pdf


Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Tribute To A Fallen Officer.

Monday, January 10, 2005 a tragedy occurred.

A fine Correctional Officer's life came to a violent end at the hands of three East Coast Crips, an end which was avoidable.

He was a Correctional Officer, a father of five and a friend to all who knew him. He was Manuel A. Gonzalez Jr., a 16 year veteran of the California Department Of Corrections.

Officer Gonzales was stabbed to death while handing out sack lunches to the inmate population within the maximum security facility at the California Institution For Men known as the Reception Center Central. According to news reports, Officer Gonzales was not wearing one of the approximately 600 stab-proof vests that were languishing within the prison armory awaiting a delayed distribution to the Officers. A delay that violated CCPOA's labor contract with the State. A delay occasioned by Institutional officials who, according to CCPOA Chino Chapter insiders, inexplicably cut the 1200 vest order in half of the number required to outfit the total number of Officers at the California Institution For Men.

According to union insiders, the Administration at the California Institution For Men is holding up distribution of the vests to Officers working General Population until after the "Post and Bid" reconciliation procedure has been accomplished sometime this year - little comfort to the family of Officer Gonzales. However, there is a question among many Correctional Officers I spoke with as to whether or not the reduction of the 2004 order was merely a ploy to extend the expenditure over two budgetary years, with the remaining half ordered and paid for in 2005.

This, then, raises another question: "Where did the money for the additional vests go in 2004?"

It certainly was not utilized to fix the outside cell windows which are falling out of the walls at the Reception Center East Facility of CIM. Windows that one inmate exited through last week on his way to freedom!

A grievance is reportedly on file which seeks to establish policy and procedure enabling the release of available vests held hostage by the California Institution For Men. Vests which could have prevented or minimized the fatal wounds incurred by Officer Gonzales.

For all of those in Sacramento and the press who fantasize about inmates being "clients", "stakeholders" and "kids", let this be your reality check as to the true nature of the populations that Bargaining Unit 6 members serve.

For all of those in Sacramento and the press who fantasize about agency and institutional managers and administrators being competent and capable, think again!

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

California Kudos!

KLICK ME HARD!

The Endless Sacramento Pass

DATE:                    Monday, December 27, 2004

TO:                          The Honorable Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor
                                 State of California
                                 State Capitol Building
                                 Sacramento, CA 95814

FROM:                   Lorraine Bradley, Author
                                 State Secrets
                                 P.O. Box 543
                                 Newport, VT 05855

SUBJECT:        "Blowing Up Boxes."

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

It is said that, "Actions speak louder than words" and it is this simple, axiomatic, philosophy that is at the heart of the bipolar relationship between the California Department of Corrections, the United States District Court and the looming specter of Federal Receivership.

If there is one thing that Rod Hickman, YACA Secretary, and Jeanne Woodford, Director CDC, are good at, it is the continuing regurgitation of established Departmental and Agency mantra, portraying a diseased correctional system which pretends to be self-sufficient and self-healing if given adequate time. However, the continuing actions (or inactions) of the Department of Corrections sing a much different song in this ongoing dichotomous opera. A fact which is not lost on Senator Jackie Speier who, in a recent article, published in the Mercury News, stated:

``The question I keep asking is why does it take a lawsuit being filed for the governor and his administration to do the right thing?'' asked Sen. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, who has presided over oversight hearings into the state's $6 billion-a-year prison system.

``The only reforms that have taken place,'' she asserted, ``are a result of lawsuits or special-master reports or district court judges demanding that certain steps take place.''

These observations of Senator Speier are, once again, validated in the recent Alameda County Superior Court adjudication of a Public Records Act lawsuit in favor of Stephen James, Investigative Journalist for the alternative weekly "Sacramento News and Review". Mr. James was, unlawfully, refused access to parolee records by the California Department of Corrections, access that is guaranteed under the California Public Records Act as well as the Department of Corrections internal policies¹. Once again, as the result of a lawsuit which should have been unnecessary had the Department of Corrections done their job properly, a Judge had to instruct the Department of Corrections to do the right thing - and how to do it. Once again, the taxpayer has to take it on the chin and pay ALL court costs due to the childish tantrums of Departmental leaders.

Through all of the rhetoric extolling its "New and Improved" proactive management strategies, YACA remains reactive and defensive in their continuing failure to rehabilitate an agency with no credibility or moral fiber, thereby inviting continuing judicial intervention.

The Youth Adult Corrections Agency and their subsidiary, the California Department of Corrections, can't seem to get it right. Too many years of Sacramento's Central Office being allowed, with impunity, to circumvent its own, as well as public policy, has certainly taken its toll. California is left with an agency which has fallen down and can't get up, continuing to wallow in their own corruption despite their prevarications of progress towards a glorious future.

Intentional failure to release public record information, a release which is well within unambiguous Departmental policy, unquestionably constitutes an act of employee misconduct by one or more employees within the Central Office, Sacramento, of the California Department of Corrections. Further, this misconduct may constitutes a cause for employee discipline in conformance with the Government Code². However, if past history is any measure of future events, I seriously doubt that the office of the Director of Corrections, the office of the Secretary of the Youth/Adult Corrections Agency, the office of the Inspector General or the State Personnel Board will be up to the task of determining who was culpable, much less holding those responsible to any degree of accountability.

The guilty scoundrel(s) will, once again, hide behind the apron strings of the Administrative bureaucracy, secure in the knowledge that accountability for them will never come. Comforted by the awareness that cronyism will protect them. After all, today's scoundrel will become tomorrow's Director or Secretary, a maxim which persists, year after year, decade after decade. The power brokers in Sacramento have an established track record of sweeping their dirt under an ever expanding rug.

Even the report by the Corrections Independent Review Panel, part of the California Performance Review, officially acknowledges the existence of only an institutionally based code of silence, totally ignoring the shenanigans and cover-ups occurring by the Sacramento Administration.

Refusing to address Central Office misconduct will have far greater deleterious consequences as those contemplated by the Corrections Independent Review Panel when the code of silence is practiced within California's institutions, because we lead by example. What kind of following has this type of leadership produced over the years? If, in fact, there is an institutionally based Code Of Silence, who were the architects who's actions and immunities fostered this institutional misconduct? Why isn't Sacramento's misconduct acknowledged, exposed, investigated and dispatched in similar fashion to alleged misconduct by line employees? A stalwart Russian axiom reminds us that, "A fish rots from the head".

Perhaps the refusal to acknowledge the "Sacramento Code Of Silence" lies in the composition of the Governor's blue ribbon panel, all former and retired members of the "Sacramento Club", none of which were willing to cast aspersions on their powerful politico pals, heaping all of the sins of the Correction's agency on politically vulnerable institutional line staff.

A human sacrifice which applies only to the lowest levels of State Service, while the administration in Sacramento persists with their shouts of "Let them eat cake". The classic conflict between the privilege of the bourgeoisie and the suffering of the proletariat, is maintained and perpetuated by the Sacramento Insider's Club.

As with their predecessors, maintaining the Sacramento Code Of Silence will be the combined legacy of both Jeanne Woodford, Director CDC and Rod Hickman, Secretary, YACA and, like their predecessors, they will probably spend their golden years either dodging Federal Indictments or lounging at the V.I.P. table at CCPOA's Annual Conventions.

It has been my experience that the higher one climbs the ladder of success in California State Service, the lower are the standards and expectations of conduct.

The decades old reliance on the courts to do the administrative thinking for the Department of Corrections has debilitated the correctional system to a point where the courts must now command them to perform even the most rudimentary functions mandated by their own internal policy. Like petulant children, Department of Corrections administrators refuse to follow their own procedures and guidelines. Like a bunch of churlish kindergartners on a field trip to the court, a judge must read and explain their own policies to them. All of this while the taxpayer continues to foot the bill for this Sacramento Romper Room.

Since, through their own inaction, the Office of the Director of Corrections and the Office of the Secretary of the Corrections Agency have become vestigial, little more than extraneous middlemen for the courts, the next logical and cost-effective step would be their downsizing or, perhaps, their eventual elimination in favor of Federal Receivership. Conceivably, through Federal Receivership of the California Prison System, adults can regain control over the "Lord Of The Flies".

After all, toddlers have no place in prison.

____________________
¹Departmental Operations Manual, §13010.11; Title 15, Division 3, California Code of Regulations, §3261.2
²Government Code §19572 (d) & (t)


Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com


"A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest."

Paul Simon, "The Boxer"

Cc:

R. Hickman, Secretary
Corrections Agency

Jeanne Woodford, Director
California Department of Corrections

Jackie Speier, Senator

Gloria Romero, Senator

Stephen James, Investigative Reporter
Sacramento News And Review

Copy posted to:
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Bcc:

Advertisement

1515 K Street, Suite 520 Sacramento, CA 95815 (916) 323-6001	YACA QUANTUM OPTOMETRY Helping you to see an alternate reality. Two offices to serve you. Specializing in Rose Colored glasses!	1515 S Street Sacramento 95814 (916) 445-7682

---

Orwellian Doublespeak!

It is more "Business As Usual" as the California Department of Corrections, through taxpayer's dollars, buys their way out of accountability.

Through all of the rhetoric of Rod Hickman, nothing has changed in the CDC as, year-after-year, accountability for the Correctional Managers and Administrators remains non-existent. No other scandal of the Department of Corrections exemplifies this as well as the Richard Krupp affair¹.

As if taken from an episode of "The Sopranos", Richard Krupp, in suggesting ways for the California Department of Corrections to save money, incurred the wrath of the CDC and was retaliated against, along with his wife, who was uninvolved with the suggestions.

In a recent settlement between the Department of Corrections and the Krupps, one of the reported stipulations² is that there would be NO accountably for the perpetrators of the retaliation, clearly a departure from the value statement found on the Youth/Adult Corrections Agency website³:

"VALUES

We commit ourselves to principled leadership – a set of core values that guide our behavior:

INTEGRITY - We conduct ourselves professionally, achieving the highest ethical standards.

ACCOUNTABILITY - We take responsibility for our actions and the consequences.

JUSTICE - Everyone receives equitable process and fair outcomes.

COLLABORATION - Everyone supports mutual understanding of ideas, open exploration of our differences, and works constructively and cooperatively with our stakeholders.

EMPLOYEE WELL-BEING - We foster an environment that supports professional development and personal health"

Either this deal was made without the knowledge of Hickman or with his blessing.

If made without his blessing or knowledge, then Rod is guilty of ignorance and his agency is out of control.

If made with his knowledge, then Rod is a liar.

Either way, it is time for Rod Hickman to resign as Agency Secretary.

___________________________________

¹http://newsreview.com/issues/sacto/2004-05-13/cover.asp
²http://newsreview.com/issues/sacto/2004-11-18/news2.asp
³http://www.yaca.ca.gov/statements.asp

===========================

My personal thanks to Stephen James - on the web at:
http://www.newsreview.com/
And
http://newsreview.com/issues/sacto/authors/stephenjames.asp

===========================

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com

Another Example of the Code Of Silence - Sacramento Style!

Click on Rod's Picture, Read HIS memo, and ask yourself, "Is it time for Rod to step down as Secretary of YACA?"

==================================

New open records act faces prison challenge

The Associated Press

(Updated Tuesday, November 23, 2004, 6:40 PM)

SACRAMENTO (AP) - An open records measure approved by voters this month will get an early test in a reporter's lawsuit against the California Department of Corrections.

Stephen James, who writes for the alternative weekly Sacramento News and Review newspaper, sued under Proposition 59 after the department denied his request for data about parolees.

The suit was filed last month in Alameda County Superior Court by attorney James Chadwick, who helped draft Proposition 59. A hearing is set for Dec. 15.

The suit alleges the department violated the California Public Records Act, which was strengthened when 83 percent of voters approved Proposition 59 on Nov. 2. The constitutional amendment requires judges to interpret state law broadly when it comes to granting access to government documents, and narrowly on efforts to withhold them.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who pledged more open government during his campaign last year, actively supported the amendment and said he would make public his appointments calendar shortly after the measure was approved by voters. James said he asked for the parolee data in February for an article about the department's parole program, its recidivism rate and related issues, but the department denied the request.

Corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton said she couldn't comment on pending litigation.

However, the department's formal response to the request in March cited privacy laws in refusing to turn over the names of 125 specific individuals and their records.

---

On the Net:

Department of Corrections: www.corr.ca.gov

California First Amendment Coalition www.cfac.org

News From Stepford, California (11-20-2004)

Rod Hickman and Matthew Cate become the most recent inductees into the DNC

Senator Jackie Speier - A WHISTLEBLOWER?

==============================

The Do-Nothing Crew (DNC) of Stepford, California has recently inducted Rod Hickman (Secretary YACA) and Matthew Cate (Complicitor General) into their growing club.

Joining the ranks of such DNC superstars as Robert Presley and Steve White, Rod and Mat have hit the ground running with great rhetoric, but little action, and blowing off requests to reinvestigate botched Central Office investigations.

With all of the recently garnered powers of the offices of the Secretary of YACA and the Office of the Complicitor General, the DNC has proposed that their motto be taken from the Athiest's Epitaph:

"All dressed up and nowhere to go."

==============================

Jackie Speier breaks ranks to become the Department of Corrections' most recent Whistleblower.

In an article written by Mark Gladstone, Mercury News Sacramento Bureau, and published in the Mercury News on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2004, is the following excerpt from Senator Jackie Speier:

``The question I keep asking is why does it take a lawsuit being filed for the governor and his administration to do the right thing?'' asked Sen. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, who has presided over oversight hearings into the state's $6 billion-a-year prison system.

``The only reforms that have taken place,'' she asserted, ``are a result of lawsuits or special-master reports or district court judges demanding that certain steps take place.''

A little truth goes a long way. In this case it appears as if not everybody in the community of Stepford, California is totally pleased with the performance of the most recent members of the DNC.

Watch out for the pods Jackie.

==============================

Lorraine Bradley, Author
State Secrets, The Website.
State Secrets, The Book.
lbradley282@msn.com
http://prisoncorruption.blogspot.com