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A.G. Bob Ferguson: Investigate Tim Eyman Immediately!Tim Eyman's sleazy and corrupt tactics to promote initiatives in Washington state have finally been called into question by the state's election watchdog, the Public Disclosure Commission. The PDC unanimously ruled on Thursday that Eyman has laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars, which is an extremely serious charge that could lead to fines or criminal charges. Now, it is up to Attorney General Bob Ferguson to investigate Eyman's misuse of campaign funds and lay down a charge, if any.399 of 400 SignaturesCreated by Sara Kiesler
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A petition for my Mother, Darlene knox, to keep the one who murderd her in prison !I am starting this petition because the one who murdered my mother Darlene Knox, August 18th of 2003 is up for a parole hearing next September of 2016. She has missed out on so much in the past 12 years, and never even got to meet her 4 grandchildren. It hurts everyday that she is not here, and Roger A. Toothaker needs to pay for the horrific thing he did, not only to my mother,but her family and friends. She was a loving and amazing person as you all may know, and had a heart of gold. This should never have happened. When I go up in front of the board next year, at the hearing, they will have read this, and what everyone says on here about her. Please sign this, and comment what you would like to tell them! Thank you all!165 of 200 SignaturesCreated by Angela Knox
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Petition for the Release of Andre BridgesAndre is a remarkable person. He was severely depressed after childhood abuse and the difficulty of prison life. With a little encouragement and kindness , Andre took hold and pulled himself out of his deep hole . Now his future is bright with his fiancee and wonderful plans, IF we let him have it. Please do all you can to see he is released.207 of 300 SignaturesCreated by FFUP
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Petition for the release of Randy RottaWhen Randy was approved for parole in 2007, it was as a new parole chairman, Alfonso Graham, was coming in, who felt too new to parole Randy and gave him a defer. He still sits in prison 8 years later. His wife waits. This man has served 34 years! He truly deserves a second chance.10 of 100 SignaturesCreated by FFUP
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Petition for Parole for Rufus WestI have known Rufus West for over 15 years. He has transformed himself in those years. He was angry and seriously mentally ill and often in trouble with prison staff and has become mature and wise . He often mentors the younger prisoners. The judge sentenced him to 28 years knowing he would be elegible for parole after 7 years. At that time, the intent of the parole statutes was honored and prisoners who could show themselves rehabilitated were released shortly after serving 25 percent of their sentence. That he is still in prison after all these years is a true outrage.20 of 100 SignaturesCreated by FFUP
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Petition for release of Hector CuberoHector Cubero is one of the thousands of Wisconsin prisoners who are in prison not on a new felony, but because of a rule violation. He tatooed a minor who lied about his age and produced lots of affidavits from other minors who attested that he did not tattoo them. Hector has proven he can be a contributing member of society and we as taxpayers want to see overcrowding alleviated and more treatment and programs not this unnecessary waste of resources .79 of 100 SignaturesCreated by FFUP
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Demand Real Penalties for VolkswagenIt turns out the company that brought us the Beetle, the flower-powered microbus and “Fahrvergnügen" is also a cheater. The good news: The EPA and other government officials acted quickly to investigate and order a recall, and VW has agreed to stop selling new diesel car. But are you thinking what I’m thinking? Didn’t GM just get away with what critics called a slap on the wrist for hiding a fatal ignition-switch defect linked to at least 174 deaths? The company faces no criminal charges and will pay a $900 million fine — out of $156 billion in revenue last year alone — and that's after we bailed out GM with $50 billion in taxpayer funds. This must change. Tell Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Justice and Congress to hold Volkswagen accountable for threatening our health and safety. If you want VW, GM and other major corporations held accountable when they break the law and endanger the public’s health and safety, please sign this petition. Our friend and ally Clarence Ditlow of the Center for Auto Safety has a saying about GM: “There’s no problem too big that money can’t solve.” It’s time to stop letting big corporations buy their way out of accountability. Let’s stand up to these powerful interests and fight for our health and safety. NOTE: Facing public pressure, VW CEO Martin Winterkorn's recently resigned. So we will be delivering this petition to Volkswagen headquarters in Herndon, VA.7,981 of 8,000 SignaturesCreated by US PIRG
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Equal Justice: Fair Funding for New Orleans Public DefendersTo the New Orleans City Council and Mayor Landrieu: Each year, thousands of men, women and children enter the Orleans Parish criminal justice system. 85% of them are appointed a public defender. Most are charged with nonviolent offenses and many enter the system with undiagnosed and untreated illnesses and addictions. All are supposed to be presumed innocent, however, two-thirds of all arrested remain imprisoned pre-trial – too poor to pay their bond. The Orleans Public Defenders’ office (OPD) plays a critical role in protecting the rights and well-being of our community, reducing recidivism by connecting people to jobs and services, and ensuring our criminal justice system remains fair and just, especially for New Orleans' poorest and most vulnerable citizens. Recent budget shortfalls threaten our community’s right to an open and honest, efficient and effective criminal justice system: OPD is facing a $1 million shortfall. The current funding crisis is brought about in part from systemic, structural underfunding; budget cuts by the state; and declining local revenue. And while the City of New Orleans provides direct support for OPD, our appropriation is one-sixth of the support provided to the District Attorney’s office – and even less when compared to other criminal justice agencies. While OPD handles 85% of all criminal cases in New Orleans, OPD’s budget is about one-third the budget of the District Attorney’s office. This present budget crisis is brought about entirely as a result of an unstable, unreliable and inadequate user-pay funding scheme that too heavily depends on fines and fees. In the absence of sustainable funding by both the city and the state, we will continue to face frequent budget shortfalls. To create and maintain a public defense system that contributes to the goals of the city's criminal justice policy – reducing over-incarceration, connecting the poor and mentally ill with services and jobs, advocating for the rights of incarcerated people to receive services and treatment that will reduce recidivism – then the City of New Orleans must play a more significant part in funding public defense. New Orleans can do better. New Orleans must do better if we are to continue the strides already made toward meaningful criminal justice reform. Please cast your vote in favor of a fully-funded public defender’s office.942 of 1,000 SignaturesCreated by Orleans Public Defenders
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Allow Georgia Citizens to Hold the Georgia Parole Board AccountableIn 2009, my wife was falsely accused and was sentenced to 20 years regarding a charge about a letter found by police in our home in Georgia. This note was actually authored by a relative of ours while we were living in Texas, but my wife's attorney failed to defend her on these reasons. To further increase the injustice, after attorneys were consulted, a determination was made that my wife was denied parole based on charges she was found innocent on and were dropped. The Georgia Parole Board has refused after multiple requests to provide detailed information on the denial decision. It would be important to know from the Georgia Parole Board their reasoning for denial to ensure they are upholding their public claim that they exist to hold accountable the Georgia judicial system. It would also be important to make sure the Georgia Parole Board is judging in an ethical manner. Because of the way the parole board is given power in Georgia, the inmate is not allowed to attend the hearing and the prosecutor is requested to provide their input. No information on the reasons for denying parole ever have to be provided. Any inmate can be denied parole for other reasons besides dropped charges such as race, religious beliefs, etc. without anyone ever knowing it. This year, a law was passed allowing open records for parole decisions regarding death row inmates; however, no such right is given to the citizens of Georgia to know whether a parole decision is fair and ethical for non- death row inmates. I am calling on the government of Georgia to allow the public to hold the parole board accountable by having open access to all information that pertains to the decision making process when any inmate is considered for and denied parole.37 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Paul Hibbard
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End Prison Privatization In The U.S.American prisons systems are corrupt. They do very little to help the individual inmates prepare for life once released. Conditions are so bad for prisoners, most leave the system with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder resulting from wide spread victimization, abuse and even torture. Our nation is less safe from criminals who get released from this corrupt system Recidivism is too high, proving the system is totally corrupt and incompetent. With the advent of prison for proffitt we can expect even worse conditions. We can expect more people being imprisoned. Now is the time to stand up and fight against this dangerous road our nation is heading towards. Arrest and convictions don't just happen to "other people"256 of 300 SignaturesCreated by Carolyn Mullins
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Justice for Calvon ReidCalvon Reid was an unarmed man experiencing agitation and distress and in need of medical attention in February 2015. Police called to the scene tased Mr. Reid repeatedly; he died two days later. The Broward County medical examiner ruled the death a homicide in May 2015 yet the Attorney General's office states the case is still "under review."394 of 400 SignaturesCreated by T.B. Wills
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Stop Youth In Prison, Our FutureI also need to edit the top paragraph second sentence it's APD's job to let us know what our children are up to when we are not looking and thEy see them at a place where they should not be. On 3/2/16 I just want to add that all of these kids need some form of punishment for whatever they did and to learn now that if you do something against the law, you will be punished for what THEY did, but if our children have to pay, should not these adults pushing our children pay as well instead of run around these streets looking like heroes with money and nice cars instead of what they really are? I think so, and they should be given a harsher penalty for willfully destroying so many young lives to the extent that they lose the options of education or a good living. My beautiful son is turning 25 in Goose Creek this month because he has become one of the many to lose their lives to the adults in uniform and the adults in criminal form. They think our children can do their time while they roam free, already living a life of decisions when these youthful men and women have just begun theirs. They say my son has black hair and brown eyes, 2APSIN ID #, 5 different DL #, and was pulled over 34 plus times in 3 years. The lawyers told me yes, they chase the kids around the streets, but pay me $25,000 and I can get your son off. They also told me they cannot pick him out of a line-up, but he's guilty and going to do time. The lawyer also told me that the judge and jury will never see this evidence because he was not going to present it to them, and smiled at me when he said it. They also say my son has black hair and brown eyes and is 6 feet tall, but he has blond hair, blue eyes and is barely 5'5 . This is Justice? Why have we as a community that was once very close-knit allowed this kind of behavior right under our noses to grow such a tremendous amount that it has affected our immediate future and the growth of families, which is the bedrock of our lives. I'm asking everyone to sign this petition and stop the needless sacrifice of such smart minds to the criminal element, and to take responsibility for the guidance of all the youth around us and build back our city to the beauty that brought us here in the first place. Stop chasing our kids and go after the adults that made their decision to live the way they do. Give our youth a chance at a life with support and strength to succeed. Give our communities the chance they deserve to be strong and build a future for our grandchildren to be proud of. Felons are in and out of the system because they can't get a job with a felony, homeless cause they can't rent a house because of a felony, but they can be a criminal with a felony. Adults harassing our youth - and you know who you are - STOP; we love our children and want them back. If you find where the problem began, you can solve the problem. Become part of the solution or be part of the problem. Kids can deal with other kids, but what do you do when the adult we tell them to respect is the bully chasing them around these streets?23 of 100 SignaturesCreated by verda darlene bice