EL RRUN RRUN
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CASCOS STAYS IN CAMERON COUNTY, NO SOS FOR HIM
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By <b>Terence Stutz</b><br /><i>Dallas Morning News</i><br />Gov. Rick Perry today appointed San Antonio lawyer and public safety commissioner John T. Steen Jr. as secretary of state.<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX5GQxPKJALmi3Pyt094dK-wRNoIo-V4q_950nY-3ndDcbsU5SrSSmqk2-4jH4HCmznjEYXMqvipCRmPSUxno6W-7_ZPyEYQfOxRlEUGqNIFnbHCjci_h8ehhlabhmLC-b8Ac49rof_kY/s1600/steen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX5GQxPKJALmi3Pyt094dK-wRNoIo-V4q_950nY-3ndDcbsU5SrSSmqk2-4jH4HCmznjEYXMqvipCRmPSUxno6W-7_ZPyEYQfOxRlEUGqNIFnbHCjci_h8ehhlabhmLC-b8Ac49rof_kY/s200/steen.jpg" width="160" /></a>Steen replaces Hope Andrade, who stepped down from the post last week after four years as the state’s chief elections officer. The secretary of state also serves as the governor’s adviser on border and Mexican affairs, as well as the chief protocol officer for state and international matters. Steen has been serving on the Public Safety Commission, which oversees the Texas Department of Public Safety.<br />“John’s strong business background and dedication to public service throughout the years make him uniquely qualified to serve in this important role,†Perry said in announcing the appointment.</div><div> Steen, a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, said he was deeply honored by his appointment as Texas’ 108th secretary of state.</div><div>“As chief elections officer, I will make it my highest priority to preserve the integrity of our elections and ensure they are fair, accessible and secure,†he said in a statement.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6016803033174468094-7805345437379321227?l=rrunrrun.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>
LINK: http://rrunrrun.blogspot.com/2012/11/cascos-stays-in-cameron-county-no-sos.html
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ARE FIRES AT WILKINSONS LEGIT? OR DELIBERATELY SET?
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By <strong>Juan Montoya</strong><br />With a handful of fires reported at Wilkinson Brothers Recycling Company on 3145 E. 14th St. in the past few years, local residents have become suspicious of their convenience and frequency.<br />"It seems that every time they get a large amount of rubbish and trash that can't be recycled, there's a fire in the middle of the night and it's gone in a few hours," said a woman living on Taft Street near the recycling plant. "It's too convenient for my liking."<br />The latest fire occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 3, a Saturday, where Brownsville Fire Department dispatchers report that a call came in at 1:55 a.m. of a fire of an undetermined type had erupted again at the back of the recycling yard. The firefighters remained at the blaze until the last entry was made at 6:36 a.m that morning.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitTtvgfX0k_8NJ6h1IqilP-bPaoDxSpn-OugwmTyoTj_ktQnKJFAUi7coCmDCcWRhrNU3H4r3f8Z-P1tIP-5aDnXVm6wYf9s-yjlAqKStWGAKisesPPsDotznO1xDUDDK54RIciitcGUo/s1600/firephoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitTtvgfX0k_8NJ6h1IqilP-bPaoDxSpn-OugwmTyoTj_ktQnKJFAUi7coCmDCcWRhrNU3H4r3f8Z-P1tIP-5aDnXVm6wYf9s-yjlAqKStWGAKisesPPsDotznO1xDUDDK54RIciitcGUo/s400/firephoto.jpg" width="400" /></a>In their report, firefighters indicated none of them or any civilians were hurt..<br />The report also noted that upon arrival, they found a large pile of debris consisting of trash metal, "foam, plastic and other discarded material on fire...no known property loss occurred since pile was basically made up of rubbish."<br />This last entry is what has made local residents suspicious of the reoccurring blazes at the recycling plant. They note that the fires â€" spaced at about six months apart (April to November) â€" usually occur in the wee hours of the morning when there are no workers on the site. They say the fires usually involve the foam and moldings from cars and other objects from which metal is removed. The only thing that burns is the trash, with none of the recyclable metal reported damaged.<br />"Why does it always happen that it's only the trash that gets burned, and not the valuable copper and aluminum that is stored at the plant, too?" asked a neighbor. "It seems like everytime the trash starts to pile up and it's going to cost the plant money to get rid of it at the landfill, a fire erupts and just like that it's gone."<br />However, since none of these suspicions have spurted in the minds of the local fire chief Lenny Perez or his Fire Prevention investigators, the reoccurring trash fires at the plant will probably continue, despite the fact that the resultant clouds of toxic smoke and fallout rain down upon the adjacent neighborhoods. At the time of the Nov. 3 fire, residents reported chemical droplets raining down on their homes and people having to go inside to avoid getting splattered by the toxic rain.<br />So far, no investigation into the suspicious nature of the fires there or the potential health effects on the residents in nearby neighborhoods has been reported.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6016803033174468094-8604974239754192310?l=rrunrrun.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>
LINK: http://rrunrrun.blogspot.com/2012/11/are-fires-at-wilkinsons-legit-or.html
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ACCION AMERICA'S QUINTANILLA LEADS POLICE ABUSE FIGHT
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<strong>HURST (CBS 11 NEWS) -</strong> A performance review for a Hurst police officer under investigation, notes he can be overzealous and it can cloud his judgment. The release came as another resident filed a complaint Monday about Officer Disraeli Arnold.<br />Hurst Police officials used the word “embarrassing†to describe the videotaped, expletive laced arrest that’s made one the uniformed officer the latest YouTube tarnished star. Arnold was placed on administrative leave Monday, pending the outcome of an internal investigation.<br />A May 2010 review says: “Officer Arnold’s enthusiasm may make him overzealous at times, which can cloud his judgment when it comes to policy, procedure and tactics. Sometimes he needs to step back and see the big picture to weight the risks involved.â€<br />Future reviews don’t mention the issue. His only discipline was for damage to a patrol vehicle, losing a cellphone of someone arrested, and problems with showing up on time for his shift.<br />Arnold has received mostly positive reviews for his work for the department, referred to by superiors as a “team player†interested in being promoted to supervisor. City employees wrote letters commending him for his patience dealing with an upset couple, and for his concern over a subject’s ongoing panhandling and drinking.<br /><strong>VIEW THE ENTIRE, UNEDITED VIDEO BELOW. </strong><br /><strong>WARNING: CONTAINS PROFANITY</strong><br /><span class="embed-youtube" style="display: block; text-align: center;"><iframe class="youtube-player" frameborder="0" height="267" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LJV2BsM12sY?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent" type="text/html" width="420"></iframe></span><div class="entry-injected-ad narrow"> </div>Last week, Officer Arnold came to the aid of a fellow officer who was struggling with a teenage suspect, Andrew Rodriguez. The cell phone video taken by a friendâ€"also arrested for being a minor in possession of tobacco and drug paraphernaliaâ€"appears to show Officer Arnold tackling the teenager who was already on the ground.<br />Recordings of police radio traffic released Monday contain a calm call for backup from Officer Miguel Jimenez. Arnold responds by simply saying, “coming around the corner now.†The taped incident that followed show Arnold repeatedly cursing at the teen, and asking him at least three times if he wanted to die.<br /><em><strong>“We’ve never seen this kind of aggressive behavior by a police officer against a member of our community,†said Carlos Quintanilla, a local civil rights activist. “There was no justification, there was no reason for that officer to act that way.â€</strong></em><br /><em><strong>Quintanilla and a group of local civil rights activists joined the teenager’s mother, Kelly Pope, for an afternoon meeting with Hurst’s Chief of Police Steve Moore. Pope says she is pleased with what she is hearing from department leaders thus far. But, insists that when their internal investigation confirms that they believe the video shows, the officer should be fired and face criminal charges.</strong></em><br />During the expletive laced videotaped arrestâ€"that quickly went viralâ€"Rodriguez was taken into custody for a 4-year-old disorderly conduct warrant that his mother says had already been resolved. She says Andrew got a ticket for being on school grounds after hours.<br />“He didn’t have the money to pay it, I didn’t have the money to pay it, so it turned into a warrant,†says Pope. “So, yeah, it was from Junior High.â€<br />Pope says she does not excuse the role her son played in the incident. The videotape also shows him ignoring the first officer’s demands. But, supporters stress that more should be expected of those professionals sworn and paid to protect and serve.<br />Hurst Police, meanwhile, are promising a thorough investigation.<br />“I don’t think you can define the Hurst Police Department by just one act; but, you can define us by how we react to it,†says Asst. Chief Niecamp.<br />The teenager is expected to file a formal complaint against Officer Arnold on tomorrow.<br />Monday night another man met with Hurst police and indicated he plans to file a complaint regarding an incident with Arnold in August. Gared Matusz was pulled over for speeding and said the officer asked to search his car for drugs. He agreed and Arnold responded as backup. Matusz said Arnold forced him to the ground, cursed at him to be quiet, then detained him in a patrol car for several hours. Matusz said his elderly mother, who he was taking to the airport, was forced to stand against the truck during the search.<br />“It hurts me so bad because I didn’t keep following up on it,†he said. “He’s damaging someone else.â€<br />Matusz said he filed a complaint in person immediately after the incident in August but police said they didn’t receive it.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6016803033174468094-6965095506741506000?l=rrunrrun.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>
LINK: http://rrunrrun.blogspot.com/2012/11/accion-americas-quintanilla-leads.html
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MEDIOCRITY REWARDED: BEN REYNA NAMED UTB'S TOP COP
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<br />By <strong>Juan Montoya</strong><br />Benigno G. Reyna, the Brownsville Chief of Police who got the boot as director of the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) in 2005 and left Washington in disgrace, has been named interim Chief of Police of the University at Texas-Brownsville by UTB president Juliet Garcia.<br />In a release made available to <em>El Rrun-Rrun</em>, Garcia made the announcement today. It is expected that he will continue to draw his current salary of $108,233.<br />Some say the "interim" prefix is just the tried-and-true bureaucratic method of circumventing the Equal Opportunity Commission's hiring guidelines and after a "search" Reyna will remain at the UTB helm. How many times has that happened in local governmental entities?<br />Reyna, who left the Marshals Service after he failed to adequately protect the families of federal judges even after he had been instructed specifically to apply funds provided by the U.S. Congress, currently holds the title of Special Assistant to the Provost for Governmental Relations. <br />Reyna went to Washington in 2001 after President George W. Bush nominated him to the post.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2005/06/24/PH2005062401640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="bottom" alt="Outgoing U.S. Marshals Service Director Benigno G. Reyna, with Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, background, has led the 4,200-member Marshals Service since October 2001." border="0" height="241" src="http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2005/06/24/PH2005062401640.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Immediately after the small-town cop in charge of some 130 officers found himself at the head of an agency with a staff of 4,200 and a budget of $733 million, trouble was afoot.<br />Reyna had navigated the bureaucratic waters of the BPD for some 25 years before being named Chief of Police in 1995, a position he left in 2001 to go to Washington at the behest of W.<br />According to a<em> Washington Post</em> article, he almost immediately faced skepticism from judges and regional U.S. marshals about his experience for the job.The US Marshals Service had come under fire from judges over the issue of security of judges and their families when Reyna headed the agency. He was soon the target of criticism about judicial security lapses and his leadership from federal judges and some members of Congress.<br />Then â€" only three years into his tenure â€" the Justice Department's Inspector General issued a report in 2004 critical of the way the US Marshals assessed threats against judges. Congress felt strongly enough about the issue that it authorized $12 million to spent on security systems for the homes of federal judges. Of 1,700 judges who requested these systems be installed, only 500 have received them before an event galvanized protest against his leadership.<br />The straw that broke the camel's back and which drove Reyna to resign came after typically reserved judges publicly criticized his management to Congress after a frustrated litigant broke into the Chicago home of U.S. District Judge Joan H. Lefkow in February and killed her husband and mother. <br />They complained that Reyna had failed to devote staff and money to the service's primary duty of protecting judges and was channeling resources into other projects. <br />When Reyna could not weather the congressional onslaught, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales announced his resignation without explanation and thanked him for his service. <br />"Benigno Reyna has served as director of the U.S. Marshals Service with integrity and skill," Gonzales, who would also take his turn at the resignation podium later, said in a statement. "As a law enforcement officer with more than 29 years of experience, he has shown steadfast leadership in directing the Service in the months and years following the September 11th attacks, as well during its work with state and local law enforcement in Operation Falcon, which resulted in the arrests of more than 10,000 fugitives." <br />Leaving Washington D.C. in disgrace and heading home, Reyna was soon taken under the wing of University of Texas-Texas Southmost College partnership President Juliet Garcia and a position was made for him in the Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs as a Special Assistant to the VP for Administrative Affairs at $100,000 a year.<br />That increased to $102,000 in 2006-2007, $104,040 in 2007-2008, $106,000 in 2008-2009, and finally to $108,233 from 2010 until today. However, he was no longer is assistant in academic affairs. His niche was described as Administrative Asst. to the Office of the Provost for Governmental Affairs.<br />As interim Chief of Police for the UTB, we expect that Reyna will now hav to do more than ride around in his golf cart inspecting the real estate at UTB. <br />Meanwhile, decorated academics and researchers have begun looking toward a legal remedy after they have been put on the chopping block as the downsizing of the UTB staff continues wholesale. Those Garcia favorites like Reyna, however â€" with minimal contributions to the academic or communitys' well-being â€" continue to flourish and prosper in her dwindling empire.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6016803033174468094-3396262772406490015?l=rrunrrun.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>
LINK: http://rrunrrun.blogspot.com/2012/11/mediocrity-rewarded-ben-reyna-named.html
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