FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Russian National Charged in Largest Known Data Breach Prosecution Extradited to United States
Defendant Brought From Netherlands
After Fighting Extradition for Over Two Years
A Russian national appeared in federal court in Newark today after being extradited from the Netherlands to face charges that he conspired in the largest international hacking and data breach scheme ever prosecuted in the United States, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Secretary Jeh Johnson of the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman of the District of New Jersey and Acting Director Joseph P. Clancy of the U.S. Secret Service.
Vladimir Drinkman, 34, of Syktyykar and Moscow, Russia, was charged for his alleged role in a data theft conspiracy that targeted major corporate networks, stole more than 160 million credit card numbers, and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses. Prior to his extradition, he had been detained by the Dutch authorities since his arrest in the Netherlands on June 28, 2012.
Drinkman appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark and entered a plea of not guilty to all 11 counts charged in the indictment and was ordered detained without bail. Trial before U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Simandle was scheduled for April 27, 2015.
“Cyber criminals conceal themselves in one country and steal information located in another country, impacting victims around the world,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “Hackers often take advantage of international borders and differences in legal systems, hoping to evade extradition to face justice. This case and today's extradition demonstrates that through international cooperation, and through great teamwork between the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, we are able to bring cyber thieves to justice in the United States, wherever they may commit their crimes.”
“Drinkman’s extradition on the indictment this office brought more than a year and a half ago shows how relentlessly we will pursue those who are charged with these serious crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “The incredibly sophisticated work with our partners at the U.S. Secret Service to uncover this enormous, far-reaching scheme demanded an equal effort by our colleagues at the Department of Justice Criminal Division in Washington and our law enforcement partners overseas to bring the defendant back to face these charges.”
“This case demonstrates our commitment to fulfilling an important part of our integrated mission; that of protecting our Nation’s critical financial infrastructure,” said Acting Director Clancy. “Our success in this investigation and other similar investigations is a credit to our skilled and relentless cyber investigators. Our determination, coupled with our network of foreign law enforcement partners, ensures that our investigative reach can expand beyond the borders of the United States.”
According to the second superseding indictment, unsealed on July 25, 2013, and other court filings, Drinkman and four co-defendants each served particular roles in the scheme. Drinkman and Alexandr Kalinin, 28, of St. Petersburg, Russia, each allegedly specialized in penetrating network security and gaining access to the corporate victims’ systems. Roman Kotov, 33, of Moscow, allegedly specialized in mining the networks Drinkman and Kalinin compromised to steal valuable data. According to allegations in the indictment, the hackers hid their activities using anonymous web-hosting services provided by Mikhail Rytikov, 27, of Odessa, Ukraine. Dmitriy Smilianets, 31, of Moscow, then allegedly sold the stolen information and distributed the proceeds of the scheme to the participants.
Drinkman and his co-defendants are charged with attacks on NASDAQ, 7-Eleven, Carrefour, JCP, Hannaford, Heartland, Wet Seal, Commidea, Dexia, JetBlue, Dow Jones, Euronet, Visa Jordan, Global Payment, Diners Singapore and Ingenicard. It is not alleged that the NASDAQ hack affected its trading platform.
Drinkman and Kalinin were previously charged in New Jersey as “Hacker 1” and “Hacker 2” in a 2009 indictment charging Albert Gonzalez, 33, of Miami, in connection with five corporate data breaches, including the breach of Heartland Payment Systems Inc., which at the time was the largest ever reported. Gonzalez is currently serving 20 years in federal prison for those offenses. Kalinin is also charged in two federal indictments in the Southern District of New York: one charges Kalinin in connection with hacking certain computer servers used by NASDAQ and the second charges him and another Russian hacker, Nikolay Nasenkov, with an international scheme to steal bank account information from U.S.-based financial institutions. Rytikov was previously charged in the Eastern District of Virginia with an unrelated scheme.
Drinkman and Smilianets were arrested at the request of the United States while traveling in the Netherlands on June 28, 2012. Smilianets was extradited on Sept. 7, 2012, and remains in federal custody. Kalinin, Kotov and Rytikov remain at large. All of the defendants are Russian nationals except for Rytikov, who is a citizen of Ukraine.
The Attacks
According to allegations in the indictment, the five defendants conspired with others to penetrate the computer networks of several of the largest payment processing companies, retailers and financial institutions in the world, stealing the personal identifying information of individuals. They allegedly took user names and passwords, means of identification, credit and debit card numbers and other corresponding personal identification information of cardholders. The conspirators allegedly acquired at least 160 million card numbers through hacking.
The initial entry was often gained using a “SQL injection attack.” SQL, or Structured Query Language, is a type of programming language designed to manage data held in particular types of databases. The hackers allegedly identified vulnerabilities in SQL databases and used those vulnerabilities to infiltrate a computer network. Once the network was infiltrated, the defendants allegedly placed malicious code, or malware, on the system. This malware created a “back door,” leaving the system vulnerable and helping the defendants maintain access to the network. In some cases, the defendants lost access to the system due to companies’ security efforts, but were allegedly able to regain access through persistent attacks.
Instant message chats obtained by law enforcement reveal that the defendants allegedly targeted the victim companies for many months, waiting patiently as their efforts to bypass security were underway, sometimes leaving malware implanted for more than a year.
The defendants allegedly used their access to the networks to install “sniffers,” which were programs designed to identify, collect and steal data from the victims’ computer networks. The defendants then allegedly used an array of computers located around the world to store the stolen data and ultimately sell it to others.
Selling the Data
After acquiring the card numbers and associated data—which they referred to as “dumps”—the conspirators allegedly sold it to resellers around the world. The buyers then sold the dumps through online forums or directly to individuals and organizations. Smilianets was allegedly in charge of sales, selling the data only to trusted identity theft wholesalers. He allegedly charged approximately $10 for each stolen American credit card number and associated data, approximately $50 for each European credit card number and associated data and approximately $15 for each Canadian credit card number and associated data, offering discounted pricing to bulk and repeat customers. Ultimately, the end users encoded each dump onto the magnetic strip of a blank plastic card and cashed out the value of the dump by either withdrawing money from ATMs or making purchases with the cards.
Covering Their Tracks
The defendants allegedly used a number of methods to conceal the scheme. Rytikov allegedly allowed his clients to hack with the knowledge he would never keep records of their online activities or share information with law enforcement.
Over the course of the conspiracy, the defendants allegedly communicated through private and encrypted communications channels to avoid detection. Fearing law enforcement would intercept even those communications, some of the conspirators allegedly attempted to meet in person.
To protect against detection by the victim companies, the defendants allegedly altered the settings on victim company networks to disable security mechanisms from logging their actions. The defendants also allegedly worked to evade existing protections by security software.
As a result of the scheme, financial institutions, credit card companies and consumers suffered hundreds of millions in losses—including more than $300 million in losses reported by just three of the corporate victims—and immeasurable losses to the identity theft victims in costs associated with stolen identities and false charges.
The charges and allegations contained indictments are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Secret Service. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Rick Green of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Chief Gurbir S. Grewal of the District of New Jersey’s Economic Crimes Unit, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Pak of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Section of the District of New Jersey’s Economic Crimes Unit.
The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs assisted with the case, as did public prosecutors with the Dutch Ministry of Security and Justice and the National High Tech Crime Unit of the Dutch National Police.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY'S STATEMENT ON THE LUNAR NEW YEAR
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Lunar New Year
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to express my wishes of good health, good fortune, and happiness to those around the world celebrating the Lunar New Year on February 19.
As many throughout the Asia-Pacific and in the United States gather with family, let us also remember the closeness we share as global citizens. We can feel proud of the bonds we have strengthened as Pacific nations, and the prosperity and mutual understanding we have jointly achieved. Let us also look forward to the great possibilities of the New Year. As we continue to advance shared cultural understanding, economic cooperation, regional security, and educational partnerships, we will open doors to mutually beneficial opportunities. Let us build on the momentum of our agreements concerning environmental protection, health improvement, and poverty reduction to better the lives not just of individual countries, but the entire world.
President Obama and I look forward to the year ahead. There will be great challenges, but there will also be great achievements as we work together toward common goals. We wish you a festive Lunar New Year celebration, and success and prosperity in the days to come.
Lunar New Year
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to express my wishes of good health, good fortune, and happiness to those around the world celebrating the Lunar New Year on February 19.
As many throughout the Asia-Pacific and in the United States gather with family, let us also remember the closeness we share as global citizens. We can feel proud of the bonds we have strengthened as Pacific nations, and the prosperity and mutual understanding we have jointly achieved. Let us also look forward to the great possibilities of the New Year. As we continue to advance shared cultural understanding, economic cooperation, regional security, and educational partnerships, we will open doors to mutually beneficial opportunities. Let us build on the momentum of our agreements concerning environmental protection, health improvement, and poverty reduction to better the lives not just of individual countries, but the entire world.
President Obama and I look forward to the year ahead. There will be great challenges, but there will also be great achievements as we work together toward common goals. We wish you a festive Lunar New Year celebration, and success and prosperity in the days to come.
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
SECRETARY KERRY'S STATEMENT ON DETENTION OF MAZEN DARWISH IN SYRIA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
The Detention of Mazen Darwish by the Assad Regime
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
It has been three years since the Assad regime unjustly detained leading human rights defender Mazen Darwish, founder of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression and a proponent of free speech in Syria.
In February 2012, Darwish and his colleagues were working to expose the Assad regime’s atrocities when regime security forces raided their offices and locked them away. Like tens of thousands of Syrian activists and political prisoners who have been detained and arrested for exercising their universal right to free expression, their support for human rights and non-violent calls for change were met by regime brutality.
Well-documented and horrific abuse within the Syrian detention system has shocked the conscience of the international community. We call on the Assad regime to abide by its international obligations in its treatment of Darwish and all those in its custody.
We reiterate our call for the Assad regime to release Darwish and his colleagues, including prominent blogger Hussein Ghrer and journalist Hani al-Zitani, along with all arbitrarily detained journalists and political prisoners.
The Detention of Mazen Darwish by the Assad Regime
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
It has been three years since the Assad regime unjustly detained leading human rights defender Mazen Darwish, founder of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression and a proponent of free speech in Syria.
In February 2012, Darwish and his colleagues were working to expose the Assad regime’s atrocities when regime security forces raided their offices and locked them away. Like tens of thousands of Syrian activists and political prisoners who have been detained and arrested for exercising their universal right to free expression, their support for human rights and non-violent calls for change were met by regime brutality.
Well-documented and horrific abuse within the Syrian detention system has shocked the conscience of the international community. We call on the Assad regime to abide by its international obligations in its treatment of Darwish and all those in its custody.
We reiterate our call for the Assad regime to release Darwish and his colleagues, including prominent blogger Hussein Ghrer and journalist Hani al-Zitani, along with all arbitrarily detained journalists and political prisoners.
U.S. CONGRATULATES PEOPLE OF GAMBIA ON THEIR INDEPENDENCE DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
The Gambia National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of The Gambia as you celebrate 50 years of independence on February 18.
The United States wishes you a festive Golden Jubilee and a prosperous year.
The Gambia National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 18, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of The Gambia as you celebrate 50 years of independence on February 18.
The United States wishes you a festive Golden Jubilee and a prosperous year.
SAMANTHA POWER'S EXPLANATION OF U.S. VOTE ON UKRAINE
FROM U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you. We’ve gotten used to living in an upside-down world with respect to Ukraine. Russia speaks of peace, and then fuels conflict. Russia signs agreements, and then does everything within its power to undermine them. Russia champions the sovereignty of nations, and then acts as if a neighbor’s borders do not exist. Yet even for those of us growing accustomed to living in an upside-down world, the idea that Russia – which manufactured and continues to escalate the violence in Ukraine – has tabled a resolution today calling for the conflict’s peaceful solution, is ironic, to say the least. Bitterly ironic, given that this Council has dedicated some thirty meetings to calling on Russia to stop escalating the very same conflict, and given the human consequences that are growing daily.
Even as Russia puts forward this resolution, separatists that Russia has trained, armed and that it fights alongside are laying ruthless and deadly siege to the Ukrainian-held city of Debaltseve, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk agreements. Throughout the day, we’ve heard conflicting reports as to whether Debaltseve has fallen. According to press reports, the so-called “road of life” leading out of Debaltseve has become a “road of death,” littered with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. At just the time this Council is calling for the cease-fire that was supposed to take effect Saturday night at midnight, Russia is backing an all-out assault.
We do not know how many civilians are left in Debaltseve, because Russia and the separatists it supports have refused to guarantee the safety of impartial OSCE monitors who have been trying for days to enter the area – a commitment that, in this upside-down world, Russia and the separatists made on February 12th at Minsk.
But we know from credible press reports that thousands of civilians in Debaltseve and neighboring villages have been sheltering from heavy shelling in dank basements, often without running water, food, electricity, or basic medical supplies. We know that many of the civilians left, who are enduring the terror of this relentless assault, are the elderly and small children – people who could not evacuate on their own.
And even with such limited information, we know with certainty that at the same time that Russia signs onto yet another agreement committing itself to de-escalation and peace, forces that Russia trains, equips, and joins on the battlefield have only escalated this fighting, grabbing more territory and killing the Ukrainian soldiers who stand in their way.
We are caught in a deadly feedback loop. International leaders engage in rigorous, exhaustive negotiations to get Russia to commit to peace – in Geneva, in Normandy, in September in Minsk, in Berlin in February, and then again in Minsk on February 12th when the implementations were signed; and now in New York. Yet Russia’s commitments have no bearing on the actions of its soldiers and the separatists they back on the ground.
Mr. President, the United States has maintained the same position across thirty meetings before this Council with respect to Ukraine. Let me reiterate that position. We are for peace in Ukraine. We are for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity. We are for ending the violence in eastern Ukraine that has taken more than 5,600 lives since last April, and displaced already approximately one million people. We are for all of the signatories to the agreements signed in Minsk in September 2014 – particularly Russia and the separatists they back – fulfilling the commitments that they have made. And we are for the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” of September 5 and September 19th, the package of measures endorsed last week by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France. To be clear, the February 12th implementation package is a roadmap to fulfilling commitments made by these same signatories in the September Minsk Agreements.
President Hollande, President Poroschenko, Chancellor Merkel, and President Putin each made this clear when they endorsed the implementation package on February 12th and issued their joint declaration that they “remain committed to the implementation of the Minsk Agreements.” The “Minsk Agreements” in the title – plural – refer to those signed on September 5 and September 19 by the same signatories, while the “measures for implementation” in the title make clear that the February 12th package was designed to begin carrying out the September agreements, and not to supplant them, as Russia has now begun to argue.
The United States rejects any interpretation of this resolution that would abrogate the parties’ earlier commitments. All parties must implement all of the commitments made in the September Minsk agreements. The implementation steps agreed upon in the February 12th package include a comprehensive cease-fire; the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the September line of contact; the release of all hostages; and the eventual restoration of Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty and control of its international border.
Too often, debates in this Council occur in a vacuum, removed from the real world. In the real world, a man named Aleksei Kravchenko, a 73-year-old in the Ukrainian held-town of Svitlodarsk, near Debaltseve, recently told a reporter that he had spent nights huddled together with his grandchildren in a bomb shelter on his property as shelling continued through the night. Aleksei told the reporter that his grandchildren said to him in the shelter, “Grandpa, I don’t want to die young.” He said, “I held my grandchildren, and they were shaking, and I looked in their eyes, and they were afraid.” With the February 12th agreement, Aleksei said, “Now we are hoping.” The fighting, unfortunately, has in fact increased dramatically near Aleksei’s home.
But we call on Russia to translate hope into real action; to translate hope into real results, and to do so urgently.
Today’s Council session is an effort to throw the Council’s weight behind an agreement already jeopardized by statements by the separatists dismissing the full cease-fire, by their continued attacks on Debaltseve, and by the separatists’ refusal – together with Russia’s – to allow access to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission. We are looking to Russia, which manufactured and fueled this conflict, to leave the upside-down world it has created and to honor the resolution it tabled today supporting efforts to end it. Thank you.
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 17, 2015
AS DELIVERED
Thank you. We’ve gotten used to living in an upside-down world with respect to Ukraine. Russia speaks of peace, and then fuels conflict. Russia signs agreements, and then does everything within its power to undermine them. Russia champions the sovereignty of nations, and then acts as if a neighbor’s borders do not exist. Yet even for those of us growing accustomed to living in an upside-down world, the idea that Russia – which manufactured and continues to escalate the violence in Ukraine – has tabled a resolution today calling for the conflict’s peaceful solution, is ironic, to say the least. Bitterly ironic, given that this Council has dedicated some thirty meetings to calling on Russia to stop escalating the very same conflict, and given the human consequences that are growing daily.
Even as Russia puts forward this resolution, separatists that Russia has trained, armed and that it fights alongside are laying ruthless and deadly siege to the Ukrainian-held city of Debaltseve, approximately 30 to 40 kilometers beyond lines established by the September Minsk agreements. Throughout the day, we’ve heard conflicting reports as to whether Debaltseve has fallen. According to press reports, the so-called “road of life” leading out of Debaltseve has become a “road of death,” littered with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. At just the time this Council is calling for the cease-fire that was supposed to take effect Saturday night at midnight, Russia is backing an all-out assault.
We do not know how many civilians are left in Debaltseve, because Russia and the separatists it supports have refused to guarantee the safety of impartial OSCE monitors who have been trying for days to enter the area – a commitment that, in this upside-down world, Russia and the separatists made on February 12th at Minsk.
But we know from credible press reports that thousands of civilians in Debaltseve and neighboring villages have been sheltering from heavy shelling in dank basements, often without running water, food, electricity, or basic medical supplies. We know that many of the civilians left, who are enduring the terror of this relentless assault, are the elderly and small children – people who could not evacuate on their own.
And even with such limited information, we know with certainty that at the same time that Russia signs onto yet another agreement committing itself to de-escalation and peace, forces that Russia trains, equips, and joins on the battlefield have only escalated this fighting, grabbing more territory and killing the Ukrainian soldiers who stand in their way.
We are caught in a deadly feedback loop. International leaders engage in rigorous, exhaustive negotiations to get Russia to commit to peace – in Geneva, in Normandy, in September in Minsk, in Berlin in February, and then again in Minsk on February 12th when the implementations were signed; and now in New York. Yet Russia’s commitments have no bearing on the actions of its soldiers and the separatists they back on the ground.
Mr. President, the United States has maintained the same position across thirty meetings before this Council with respect to Ukraine. Let me reiterate that position. We are for peace in Ukraine. We are for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and unity. We are for ending the violence in eastern Ukraine that has taken more than 5,600 lives since last April, and displaced already approximately one million people. We are for all of the signatories to the agreements signed in Minsk in September 2014 – particularly Russia and the separatists they back – fulfilling the commitments that they have made. And we are for the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” of September 5 and September 19th, the package of measures endorsed last week by the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France. To be clear, the February 12th implementation package is a roadmap to fulfilling commitments made by these same signatories in the September Minsk Agreements.
President Hollande, President Poroschenko, Chancellor Merkel, and President Putin each made this clear when they endorsed the implementation package on February 12th and issued their joint declaration that they “remain committed to the implementation of the Minsk Agreements.” The “Minsk Agreements” in the title – plural – refer to those signed on September 5 and September 19 by the same signatories, while the “measures for implementation” in the title make clear that the February 12th package was designed to begin carrying out the September agreements, and not to supplant them, as Russia has now begun to argue.
The United States rejects any interpretation of this resolution that would abrogate the parties’ earlier commitments. All parties must implement all of the commitments made in the September Minsk agreements. The implementation steps agreed upon in the February 12th package include a comprehensive cease-fire; the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the September line of contact; the release of all hostages; and the eventual restoration of Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty and control of its international border.
Too often, debates in this Council occur in a vacuum, removed from the real world. In the real world, a man named Aleksei Kravchenko, a 73-year-old in the Ukrainian held-town of Svitlodarsk, near Debaltseve, recently told a reporter that he had spent nights huddled together with his grandchildren in a bomb shelter on his property as shelling continued through the night. Aleksei told the reporter that his grandchildren said to him in the shelter, “Grandpa, I don’t want to die young.” He said, “I held my grandchildren, and they were shaking, and I looked in their eyes, and they were afraid.” With the February 12th agreement, Aleksei said, “Now we are hoping.” The fighting, unfortunately, has in fact increased dramatically near Aleksei’s home.
But we call on Russia to translate hope into real action; to translate hope into real results, and to do so urgently.
Today’s Council session is an effort to throw the Council’s weight behind an agreement already jeopardized by statements by the separatists dismissing the full cease-fire, by their continued attacks on Debaltseve, and by the separatists’ refusal – together with Russia’s – to allow access to the OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission. We are looking to Russia, which manufactured and fueled this conflict, to leave the upside-down world it has created and to honor the resolution it tabled today supporting efforts to end it. Thank you.
FORMER MEMBER OF KKK AFFILIATE SENT TO PRISON FOR ROLE IN CROSS BURNING
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, February 13, 2015
Former Klansman Sentenced for Cross Burning
Timothy Flanagan, 33, was sentenced to nine months and ordered to pay a $5000 fine in federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, for his role in the April 30, 2012, cross burning in front of an interracial family’s home in Minor Hill, Tennessee, the Department of Justice announced. Flanagan previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with others to threaten, intimidate and interfere with an African-American man’s enjoyment of his housing rights, and one count of interfering with those housing rights.
Flanagan—a former member of the Church of the National Knights, a Ku Klux Klan affiliate—admitted during the plea hearing that on the night of April 30, 2012, he and two other individuals devised a plan to burn a cross in the yard of an African American man in Minor Hill, Tennessee. Flanagan’s co-conspirator, Timothy Stafford, constructed a wooden cross in a workshop behind his house. Using Flanagan’s credit card, Stafford and co-conspirator Ivan “Rusty” London then purchased diesel-fuel with which to soak the cross. Flanagan and the other co-conspirators then drove the cross to the victim’s residence and, upon arriving at the residence, Flanagan and London exited the truck. The cross was placed in the driveway leading up to the house and was ignited. The co-conspirators burned the cross with the purpose of intimidating the African-American male who resided at that residence.
Timothy Stafford, 41, of Minor Hill, Tennessee, and Ivan “Rusty” London IV, 21, of Lexington, Kentucky, previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy, and will be sentenced on March 3, and March 26, respectively.
“Hate-motivated crimes will not be tolerated in our country,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will vigorously prosecute individuals that violate the rights of others because of race.”
“There can be no tolerance for such acts of intimidation when innocent persons are targeted simply because of their race,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera of the Middle District of Tennessee. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners will work tirelessly to protect the civil rights of all persons and bring to justice, anyone who would attempt to impede the constitutionally protected right to liberty of any person.”
This case was investigated by the Columbia, Tennessee, Division of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Jared Fishman of the Civil Rights Division and by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal McDonough of the Middle District of Tennessee.
Friday, February 13, 2015
Former Klansman Sentenced for Cross Burning
Timothy Flanagan, 33, was sentenced to nine months and ordered to pay a $5000 fine in federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, for his role in the April 30, 2012, cross burning in front of an interracial family’s home in Minor Hill, Tennessee, the Department of Justice announced. Flanagan previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring with others to threaten, intimidate and interfere with an African-American man’s enjoyment of his housing rights, and one count of interfering with those housing rights.
Flanagan—a former member of the Church of the National Knights, a Ku Klux Klan affiliate—admitted during the plea hearing that on the night of April 30, 2012, he and two other individuals devised a plan to burn a cross in the yard of an African American man in Minor Hill, Tennessee. Flanagan’s co-conspirator, Timothy Stafford, constructed a wooden cross in a workshop behind his house. Using Flanagan’s credit card, Stafford and co-conspirator Ivan “Rusty” London then purchased diesel-fuel with which to soak the cross. Flanagan and the other co-conspirators then drove the cross to the victim’s residence and, upon arriving at the residence, Flanagan and London exited the truck. The cross was placed in the driveway leading up to the house and was ignited. The co-conspirators burned the cross with the purpose of intimidating the African-American male who resided at that residence.
Timothy Stafford, 41, of Minor Hill, Tennessee, and Ivan “Rusty” London IV, 21, of Lexington, Kentucky, previously pleaded guilty for their roles in the conspiracy, and will be sentenced on March 3, and March 26, respectively.
“Hate-motivated crimes will not be tolerated in our country,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will vigorously prosecute individuals that violate the rights of others because of race.”
“There can be no tolerance for such acts of intimidation when innocent persons are targeted simply because of their race,” said U.S. Attorney David Rivera of the Middle District of Tennessee. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners will work tirelessly to protect the civil rights of all persons and bring to justice, anyone who would attempt to impede the constitutionally protected right to liberty of any person.”
This case was investigated by the Columbia, Tennessee, Division of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Jared Fishman of the Civil Rights Division and by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal McDonough of the Middle District of Tennessee.
NSF SAYS SCIENTISTS BELIEVE PREHISTORIC MONSTER HURRICANES STRUCK NORTHEAST U.S.
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Monster hurricanes struck U.S. Northeast during prehistoric periods of ocean warming
Scientists find clues in sediment deposits on Cape Cod
Intense hurricanes possibly more powerful than any storms New England has experienced in recorded history frequently pounded the region during the first millennium, from the peak of the Roman Empire to the height of the Middle Ages, according to results of a new study.
The finding could have implications for understanding the intensity and frequency of hurricanes the U.S. Northeast may experience in the future.
Looking back to see into the future
A record of sediment deposits from Cape Cod, Mass., shows evidence that 23 severe hurricanes hit New England between the years 250 and 1150, the equivalent of a severe storm about once every 40 years on average.
Many of these hurricanes were likely more intense than any that have hit the area in recorded history.
"The ability to produce and synthesize thousands of years of data on hurricane paths and frequencies is revolutionizing our understanding of what controls where and how often these dangerous storms make landfall," said Candace Major, program director in the National Science Foundation's Division of Ocean Sciences, which funded the research.
The prehistoric hurricanes were likely category 3 storms (such as Hurricane Katrina) or category 4 storms (Hurricane Hugo) that would be catastrophic if they hit the region today, according to Jeff Donnelly, a scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, and lead author of a paper on the results published online today in Earth's Future, a journal of the American Geophysical Union.
Hurricane record extended by centuries
The study is the first to find evidence of historically unprecedented hurricane activity along the northern East Coast of the United States.
It also extends the hurricane record for the region by hundreds of years, back to the first century.
"These records suggest that the pre-historical interval was unlike what we've seen in the last few hundred years," said Donnelly.
The most powerful storm to hit Cape Cod in recent times was Hurricane Bob in 1991, a category 2 storm that was one of the costliest in New England history.
Storms of that intensity have only reached the region three times since the 1600s, according to Donnelly.
Warmer sea surface temperatures
The intense prehistoric hurricanes were fueled in part by warmer sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean than have been the norm off the U.S. East Coast over the last few hundred years.
However, as ocean temperatures have slowly inched upward in recent decades, tropical North Atlantic sea surface temperatures have surpassed the warmth of prehistoric levels--and are expected to warm more over the next century as the climate heats up, Donnelly said.
"We hope this study broadens our sense of what is possible and what we should expect in a warmer climate," Donnelly said. "We may need to begin planning for a category 3 hurricane landfall every decade or so rather than every 100 or 200 years.
"The risk may be much greater than we anticipated."
Buried in sediment: hurricane remains
Donnelly and colleagues examined sediment deposits from Salt Pond near Falmouth on Cape Cod. The pond is separated from the ocean by a 1.3- to 1.8-meter (4.3 to 5.9-foot) high sand barrier.
Over hundreds of years, strong hurricanes have deposited sediment over the barrier and into the pond where it has remained undisturbed.
The researchers extracted nine-meter (30-foot) deep sediment cores, which they then analyzed in a laboratory.
Similar to reading a tree ring to tell the age of a tree and the climate conditions that existed in a given year, scientists can read a sediment core to determine when intense hurricanes occurred.
The paper's authors found evidence of 32 prehistoric hurricanes, along with the remains of three documented storms that occurred in 1991, 1675 and 1635.
The sediments showed that there were two periods of intense hurricane activity on Cape Cod -- from 150 to 1150, and 1400 to 1675.
The earlier period of powerful hurricane activity matched previous studies that found evidence of hurricanes during the same period in more southerly areas of the western North Atlantic Ocean basin--from the Caribbean to the Gulf Coast.
Powerful storms also battered more southerly U.S. coasts
The new study suggests that these powerful southern storms also battered the coast farther north through New England from 250 to 1150.
These early storms were more frequent, and in some cases were likely more intense, than the most severe hurricanes Cape Cod has seen in historical times, including Hurricane Bob in 1991 and a 1635 hurricane that generated a 20-foot storm surge, according to Donnelly.
The hurricane activity continued in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico until 1400, although there was a lull during this time in New England.
A shift in hurricane activity in the North Atlantic occurred around 1400, when activity picked up from the Bahamas to New England, until about 1675.
Co-authors of the paper are: Andrea Hawkes of the University of North Carolina Wilmington; Philip Lane (deceased); Dana MacDonald, University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Bryan Shuman, University of Wyoming; Michael Toomey, The University of Texas at Austin; Peter van Hengstum, Texas A&M University at Galveston; and Jonathan Woodruff, University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
-NSF-
Media Contacts
Cheryl Dybas, NSF
Monster hurricanes struck U.S. Northeast during prehistoric periods of ocean warming
Scientists find clues in sediment deposits on Cape Cod
Intense hurricanes possibly more powerful than any storms New England has experienced in recorded history frequently pounded the region during the first millennium, from the peak of the Roman Empire to the height of the Middle Ages, according to results of a new study.
The finding could have implications for understanding the intensity and frequency of hurricanes the U.S. Northeast may experience in the future.
Looking back to see into the future
A record of sediment deposits from Cape Cod, Mass., shows evidence that 23 severe hurricanes hit New England between the years 250 and 1150, the equivalent of a severe storm about once every 40 years on average.
Many of these hurricanes were likely more intense than any that have hit the area in recorded history.
"The ability to produce and synthesize thousands of years of data on hurricane paths and frequencies is revolutionizing our understanding of what controls where and how often these dangerous storms make landfall," said Candace Major, program director in the National Science Foundation's Division of Ocean Sciences, which funded the research.
The prehistoric hurricanes were likely category 3 storms (such as Hurricane Katrina) or category 4 storms (Hurricane Hugo) that would be catastrophic if they hit the region today, according to Jeff Donnelly, a scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, and lead author of a paper on the results published online today in Earth's Future, a journal of the American Geophysical Union.
Hurricane record extended by centuries
The study is the first to find evidence of historically unprecedented hurricane activity along the northern East Coast of the United States.
It also extends the hurricane record for the region by hundreds of years, back to the first century.
"These records suggest that the pre-historical interval was unlike what we've seen in the last few hundred years," said Donnelly.
The most powerful storm to hit Cape Cod in recent times was Hurricane Bob in 1991, a category 2 storm that was one of the costliest in New England history.
Storms of that intensity have only reached the region three times since the 1600s, according to Donnelly.
Warmer sea surface temperatures
The intense prehistoric hurricanes were fueled in part by warmer sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean than have been the norm off the U.S. East Coast over the last few hundred years.
However, as ocean temperatures have slowly inched upward in recent decades, tropical North Atlantic sea surface temperatures have surpassed the warmth of prehistoric levels--and are expected to warm more over the next century as the climate heats up, Donnelly said.
"We hope this study broadens our sense of what is possible and what we should expect in a warmer climate," Donnelly said. "We may need to begin planning for a category 3 hurricane landfall every decade or so rather than every 100 or 200 years.
"The risk may be much greater than we anticipated."
Buried in sediment: hurricane remains
Donnelly and colleagues examined sediment deposits from Salt Pond near Falmouth on Cape Cod. The pond is separated from the ocean by a 1.3- to 1.8-meter (4.3 to 5.9-foot) high sand barrier.
Over hundreds of years, strong hurricanes have deposited sediment over the barrier and into the pond where it has remained undisturbed.
The researchers extracted nine-meter (30-foot) deep sediment cores, which they then analyzed in a laboratory.
Similar to reading a tree ring to tell the age of a tree and the climate conditions that existed in a given year, scientists can read a sediment core to determine when intense hurricanes occurred.
The paper's authors found evidence of 32 prehistoric hurricanes, along with the remains of three documented storms that occurred in 1991, 1675 and 1635.
The sediments showed that there were two periods of intense hurricane activity on Cape Cod -- from 150 to 1150, and 1400 to 1675.
The earlier period of powerful hurricane activity matched previous studies that found evidence of hurricanes during the same period in more southerly areas of the western North Atlantic Ocean basin--from the Caribbean to the Gulf Coast.
Powerful storms also battered more southerly U.S. coasts
The new study suggests that these powerful southern storms also battered the coast farther north through New England from 250 to 1150.
These early storms were more frequent, and in some cases were likely more intense, than the most severe hurricanes Cape Cod has seen in historical times, including Hurricane Bob in 1991 and a 1635 hurricane that generated a 20-foot storm surge, according to Donnelly.
The hurricane activity continued in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico until 1400, although there was a lull during this time in New England.
A shift in hurricane activity in the North Atlantic occurred around 1400, when activity picked up from the Bahamas to New England, until about 1675.
Co-authors of the paper are: Andrea Hawkes of the University of North Carolina Wilmington; Philip Lane (deceased); Dana MacDonald, University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Bryan Shuman, University of Wyoming; Michael Toomey, The University of Texas at Austin; Peter van Hengstum, Texas A&M University at Galveston; and Jonathan Woodruff, University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
-NSF-
Media Contacts
Cheryl Dybas, NSF
VP BIDEN SWEARS IN ASHTON CARTER AS U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY
Right: Vice President Joe Biden swears in Ash Carter as the 25th defense secretary as Carter's wife, Stephanie, looks on during a private ceremony at the White House, Feb. 17, 2015. DoD screen shot.
Carter Takes Oath of Office in White House Ceremony
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2015 – With his wife, Stephanie, holding the Bible upon which he swore to support and defend the U.S. Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic, Ash Carter took the oath of office as the 25th secretary of defense in a ceremony at the White House today.
Vice President Joe Biden administered the oath in the Roosevelt Room, characterizing Carter as a genuine scholar of strategic military affairs and nuclear weapons policy and as a profoundly capable manager “with universal respect and affection from the people you work with, reflected in a near-unanimous vote in the U.S. Senate.”
“For me,” Carter said after taking the oath, “this is the highest honor, to be the 25th secretary of defense. I'm grateful to [President Barack Obama] and the vice president for your trust and confidence, and to the U.S. Senate as well for their trust and confidence.”
Attending the ceremony were Carter’s son, Will, Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, Joint Chiefs Vice Chairman Navy Adm. James A. Winnefeld Jr., members of Carter’s transition team, and several men and women in uniform.
A Driving Intellectual Force
In his introduction, Biden called Carter a “physicist and a genuine expert on the acquisition and technical capabilities that are going to help guarantee the U.S. military is second to none in the world.”
Carter has a driving intellectual force behind all he does and all the administration has been doing, the vice president added, including strengthening the nation's cyber capabilities, improving the way the Pentagon does business, and implementing the Asia-Pacific rebalance, including deepening defense cooperation with India.
“Most important of all, you've been a fighter,” Biden told Carter, “like the men and women in uniform here today, for the women and men who serve in uniform.”
The defense secretary, like his predecessor, Biden added, “understands that while this country has many obligations, it only has one truly sacred obligation, and that's to equip and protect those we send to war, care for their families while they're there, and care for them and their families when they come home.”
Tough Missions Ahead
Many tough missions lie ahead, the vice president said, from fighting against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, strengthening NATO, and rebalancing to the Asia-Pacific region, to maintaining the nation’s technological edge and continuous efforts to make the most out of every dollar invested in defense.
“Dr. Carter,” Biden said, “as you take leadership of the greatest military in the history of mankind, … you do so with the confidence of everyone in your building, confidence of the United States Senate, confidence of President Obama and me, and so many other people who admire your work.”
Carter thanked his wife and children, his transition team and the team he joins at the Pentagon, including Work, Dempsey, Winnefeld and others.
The defense secretary characterized the defense of the nation as “the highest calling,” and he made three commitments to the men and women of the Defense Department, to the president and vice president, and to his fellow citizens.
Three Commitments
“The first is to help our president make the best possible decisions about our security and the [world’s] security, and then to ensure that our department executes those decisions with its long accustomed competence and effectiveness,” he said.
While dealing with challenges to national security, Carter said, he wants to help the nation’s leadership grab hold of opportunities that lie before the country, and to help make the world safer and a better place for the next generation.
“My second commitment is to the men and women of the Department of Defense, whom I will lead, to reflect in everything I do and to honor the commitment and dedication that brought them into service,” Carter said, “and to protect their dignity, their safety, their well-being, [and] to make decisions about sending them into harm’s way with the greatest reflection and care.”
A Force for the Future
Carter’s third commitment was to the future, he said, “to building a force for our future that involves not only securing the resources we need but making … the best use of the taxpayers’ dollar, making sure we embrace change so that years from now, … we continue to be a place where America's finest want to serve, and a place that is a beacon to the rest of the world.”
As Obama enters the fourth quarter of his presidency, the defense secretary added, “these commitments, … I think, will help me help him and help the vice president to ensure that those years are productive, and that they leave our country's future in the best possible place -- in the best possible hands.”
STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS TRAVEL TO BAGHDAD, ERBIL TO DISCUSS HUMAN RIGHTS WITH IRAQI OFFICIALS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Readout of Assistant Secretary Tom Malinowski and Ambassador David Saperstein's Travel to Baghdad and Erbil, Iraq
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski and Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom David Saperstein met with Iraqi government leaders, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and civil society activists, including representatives of Iraq’s religious and ethnic minority communities, students, journalists, and residents of a camp for internally displaced persons in Iraq February 8-11. Their visit highlighted the importance of promoting human rights in the fight against ISIL.
Assistant Secretary Malinowski said that the United States will continue to stand with Iraqis in their fight against ISIL. He also underscored the importance of inclusive governance, respect for human rights, and protection of civil society, including Iraq’s diverse religious communities, to fully defeat ISIL’s divisive ideology and prevent its creed of hatred from emerging in another form after ISIL is defeated on the battlefield.
In meetings with Iraqi government officials, including the Ministers of Human Rights and Women’s Affairs, the Deputy Minister of Interior, and Kurdistan Ministers of the Interior, Foreign Affairs, and Peshmerga, Assistant Secretary Malinowski and Ambassador Saperstein expressed their concerns about allegations of human rights abuses by militias in Iraq. Assistant Secretary Malinowski stressed the importance of accountability for these alleged abuses and security for civilian populations, to avoid reinforcing the sectarian divisions that facilitated ISIL’s rise in the first place. Assistant Secretary Malinowski and Ambassador Saperstein also raised concerns regarding the need to protect all civilians from harm and urged the Iraqi and Kurdish authorities to do everything possible to rescue women captives whom ISIL holds and abuses.
Members of Iraq’s minority communities, including Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako and Yezidi, Sabean-Mandaean, Shabak, and Kakai leaders, described the need for inter-faith dialogue and reform of school curricula to promote understanding and conflict resolution, promote religious freedom, and to reduce sectarianism. Those displaced from the Ninewa plains area expressed fear to return to their historic homelands, and stressed the need for security, employment and education opportunities, and conflict resolution. Malinowski pressed them to avoid taking revenge against former neighbors suspected of collusion with ISIL, and Ambassador Saperstein pledged U.S. commitment to helping them return to their homelands and to meeting the needs of the displaced.
Assistant Secretary Malinowski also delivered remarks before the Middle East Research Institute in Erbil, Iraq where he thanked the people of Kurdistan for their generosity in opening their homes to the vast influx of the internally displaced, who now represent almost a third of the Kurdistan region’s population. He said that the United States stands with all people of Iraq to degrade and defeat ISIL, but highlighted that the stabilization of Iraq afterwards must be Iraqi-led and that protection of human rights and freedom of expression is a strategic component of that reconstruction as well as the defeat of ISIL.
Readout of Assistant Secretary Tom Malinowski and Ambassador David Saperstein's Travel to Baghdad and Erbil, Iraq
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski and Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom David Saperstein met with Iraqi government leaders, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and civil society activists, including representatives of Iraq’s religious and ethnic minority communities, students, journalists, and residents of a camp for internally displaced persons in Iraq February 8-11. Their visit highlighted the importance of promoting human rights in the fight against ISIL.
Assistant Secretary Malinowski said that the United States will continue to stand with Iraqis in their fight against ISIL. He also underscored the importance of inclusive governance, respect for human rights, and protection of civil society, including Iraq’s diverse religious communities, to fully defeat ISIL’s divisive ideology and prevent its creed of hatred from emerging in another form after ISIL is defeated on the battlefield.
In meetings with Iraqi government officials, including the Ministers of Human Rights and Women’s Affairs, the Deputy Minister of Interior, and Kurdistan Ministers of the Interior, Foreign Affairs, and Peshmerga, Assistant Secretary Malinowski and Ambassador Saperstein expressed their concerns about allegations of human rights abuses by militias in Iraq. Assistant Secretary Malinowski stressed the importance of accountability for these alleged abuses and security for civilian populations, to avoid reinforcing the sectarian divisions that facilitated ISIL’s rise in the first place. Assistant Secretary Malinowski and Ambassador Saperstein also raised concerns regarding the need to protect all civilians from harm and urged the Iraqi and Kurdish authorities to do everything possible to rescue women captives whom ISIL holds and abuses.
Members of Iraq’s minority communities, including Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako and Yezidi, Sabean-Mandaean, Shabak, and Kakai leaders, described the need for inter-faith dialogue and reform of school curricula to promote understanding and conflict resolution, promote religious freedom, and to reduce sectarianism. Those displaced from the Ninewa plains area expressed fear to return to their historic homelands, and stressed the need for security, employment and education opportunities, and conflict resolution. Malinowski pressed them to avoid taking revenge against former neighbors suspected of collusion with ISIL, and Ambassador Saperstein pledged U.S. commitment to helping them return to their homelands and to meeting the needs of the displaced.
Assistant Secretary Malinowski also delivered remarks before the Middle East Research Institute in Erbil, Iraq where he thanked the people of Kurdistan for their generosity in opening their homes to the vast influx of the internally displaced, who now represent almost a third of the Kurdistan region’s population. He said that the United States stands with all people of Iraq to degrade and defeat ISIL, but highlighted that the stabilization of Iraq afterwards must be Iraqi-led and that protection of human rights and freedom of expression is a strategic component of that reconstruction as well as the defeat of ISIL.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
AG HOLDER ANNOUNCES RECORD DECREASE IN MANDATORY MINIMUMS FOR NONVIOLENT DRUG OFFENDERS
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
In Milestone for Sentencing Reform, Attorney General Holder Announces Record Reduction in Mandatory Minimums Against Nonviolent Drug Offenders
New Data Revealed by Justice Department Shows Rate at Which Feds Pursued Mandatory Minimum Penalties in Drug Trafficking Cases Has Hit Record Low
In One of His Final Speeches Before Stepping Down, Holder Lauds Progress In Sentencing Reform Initiative He Launched in ‘13
In a major advance for the sentencing reform project that has been one of his signature initiatives, Attorney General Eric Holder on Tuesday announced that federal drug prosecutors have shifted away from seeking mandatory minimums at record rates, while reserving stricter sentences for more serious offenders.
Speaking at the National Press Club, Attorney General Holder revealed that in the first full year since he imposed reforms to the Justice Department’s charging policies in nonviolent drug trafficking cases, federal prosecutors not only prosecuted fewer such cases overall, but also pursued mandatory minimum sentences at a dramatically lower rate than the year prior. In fact, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission, in FY2014, federal drug prosecutors pursued mandatory minimums at the lowest rate on record.
“For years prior to this administration, federal prosecutors were not only encouraged – but required – to always seek the most severe prison sentence possible for all drug cases, no matter the relative risk they posed to public safety. I have made a break from that philosophy,” said Attorney General Holder. “While old habits are hard to break, these numbers show that a dramatic shift is underway in the mindset of prosecutors handling nonviolent drug offenses. I believe we have taken steps to institutionalize this fairer, more practical approach such that it will endure for years to come.”
The figures announced Tuesday were compiled by the U.S. Sentencing Commission at the request of the Justice Department to measure the impact of several reforms implemented in 2013 through Attorney General Holder’s “Smart on Crime” initiative. Those reforms—aimed at restoring fairness to the criminal justice system and at confronting the problem of America’s overcrowded prison system—instructed federal prosecutors to exercise greater discretion in selecting drug cases to bring to federal court. The data suggests prosecutors heeded that call, as the overall number of federal drug trafficking cases dropped by six percent in FY2014.
While the sheer number of drug cases went down, the data also showed that federal prosecutors have prioritized more serious cases. Holder pointed to a rise in the average guideline minimum sentence, from 96 months in FY2013 to 98 months this past year. That suggests the severity of offenses prosecuted in FY2014 was slightly higher.
Most important of all, Holder said, was the trend observed with respect to mandatory minimums. After several years in a row that saw federal prosecutors pursue such mandatory sentences in roughly two-thirds of drug cases, last year’s rate dropped to one-in-two. The Attorney General said this showed that the department was succeeding in reserving these strict sentences for the worst types of offenders rather than imposing indiscriminately.
“This figure, perhaps more than any other, shows the significant impact that our policy reforms are having,” said Attorney General Holder. “These are extremely encouraging results.”
Holder also presented statistics rebutting past criticisms of the “Smart on Crime” initiative. For instance, though some warned that the reduced application of mandatory minimums would remove the incentive for defendants to act as government witnesses, the Sentencing Commission’s data showed that defendants provided cooperation at the same rate as in years past.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
In Milestone for Sentencing Reform, Attorney General Holder Announces Record Reduction in Mandatory Minimums Against Nonviolent Drug Offenders
New Data Revealed by Justice Department Shows Rate at Which Feds Pursued Mandatory Minimum Penalties in Drug Trafficking Cases Has Hit Record Low
In One of His Final Speeches Before Stepping Down, Holder Lauds Progress In Sentencing Reform Initiative He Launched in ‘13
In a major advance for the sentencing reform project that has been one of his signature initiatives, Attorney General Eric Holder on Tuesday announced that federal drug prosecutors have shifted away from seeking mandatory minimums at record rates, while reserving stricter sentences for more serious offenders.
Speaking at the National Press Club, Attorney General Holder revealed that in the first full year since he imposed reforms to the Justice Department’s charging policies in nonviolent drug trafficking cases, federal prosecutors not only prosecuted fewer such cases overall, but also pursued mandatory minimum sentences at a dramatically lower rate than the year prior. In fact, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission, in FY2014, federal drug prosecutors pursued mandatory minimums at the lowest rate on record.
“For years prior to this administration, federal prosecutors were not only encouraged – but required – to always seek the most severe prison sentence possible for all drug cases, no matter the relative risk they posed to public safety. I have made a break from that philosophy,” said Attorney General Holder. “While old habits are hard to break, these numbers show that a dramatic shift is underway in the mindset of prosecutors handling nonviolent drug offenses. I believe we have taken steps to institutionalize this fairer, more practical approach such that it will endure for years to come.”
The figures announced Tuesday were compiled by the U.S. Sentencing Commission at the request of the Justice Department to measure the impact of several reforms implemented in 2013 through Attorney General Holder’s “Smart on Crime” initiative. Those reforms—aimed at restoring fairness to the criminal justice system and at confronting the problem of America’s overcrowded prison system—instructed federal prosecutors to exercise greater discretion in selecting drug cases to bring to federal court. The data suggests prosecutors heeded that call, as the overall number of federal drug trafficking cases dropped by six percent in FY2014.
While the sheer number of drug cases went down, the data also showed that federal prosecutors have prioritized more serious cases. Holder pointed to a rise in the average guideline minimum sentence, from 96 months in FY2013 to 98 months this past year. That suggests the severity of offenses prosecuted in FY2014 was slightly higher.
Most important of all, Holder said, was the trend observed with respect to mandatory minimums. After several years in a row that saw federal prosecutors pursue such mandatory sentences in roughly two-thirds of drug cases, last year’s rate dropped to one-in-two. The Attorney General said this showed that the department was succeeding in reserving these strict sentences for the worst types of offenders rather than imposing indiscriminately.
“This figure, perhaps more than any other, shows the significant impact that our policy reforms are having,” said Attorney General Holder. “These are extremely encouraging results.”
Holder also presented statistics rebutting past criticisms of the “Smart on Crime” initiative. For instance, though some warned that the reduced application of mandatory minimums would remove the incentive for defendants to act as government witnesses, the Sentencing Commission’s data showed that defendants provided cooperation at the same rate as in years past.
STATE DEPARTMENT FACT SHEET ON U.S. EXPORT OF MILITARY UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
U.S. Export Policy for Military Unmanned Aerial Systems
Fact Sheet
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
The United States is the world’s technological leader in the development and deployment of military Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). As other nations begin to employ military UAS more regularly and as the nascent commercial UAS market emerges, the United States has a responsibility to ensure that sales, transfers, and subsequent use of all U.S.-origin UAS are responsible and consistent with U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, including economic security, as well as with U.S. values and international standards.
As a result, the United States has established a new policy designed specifically for U.S.-origin military and commercial UAS. This new policy, governing the international sale, transfer and subsequent use of U.S.-origin military UAS, supplements and builds upon the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy and is consistent with the requirements of the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act which govern all U.S. military transfers. The new policy also governs the international sale, transfer and subsequent use of U.S.-origin commercial UAS, supplementing and building upon the Export Administration Regulations which govern all U.S. commercial transfers.
The new export policy is part of a broader United States UAS policy review which includes plans to work with other countries to shape international standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of military UAS.
Enhanced Controls on the Export of U.S.-Origin Military UASs
The United States is committed to stringent standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of U.S.-origin military UAS. The United States’ new UAS export policy establishes the standards by which the United States will assess, on a case-by-case basis under the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy, potential exports of military UASs, including armed systems. The new export policy puts in place stringent conditions on the sale or transfer of military UAS, including potential requirements for:
Sales and transfers of sensitive systems to be made through the government-to-government Foreign Military Sales program;
Review of potential transfers to be made through the Department of Defense Technology Security and Foreign Disclosure processes;
Each recipient nation to be required to agree to end-use assurances as a condition of sale or transfer;
End-use monitoring and potential additional security conditions to be required; and
All sales and transfers to include agreement to principles for proper use.
The new policy also maintains the United States’ long-standing commitments under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which subjects transfers of military and commercial systems that cross the threshold of MTCR Category I (i.e., UAS that are capable of a range of at least 300 kilometers and are capable of carrying a payload of at least 500 kilograms) to a “strong presumption of denial” for export but also permits such exports on “rare occasions” that are well justified in terms of the nonproliferation and export control factors specified in the MTCR Guidelines.
Principles for Proper Use of U.S.-Origin Military UAS
As the most active user of military UAS, and as an increasing number of nations are acquiring and employing UASs to support a range of missions, the United States has an interest in ensuring that these systems are used lawfully and responsibly. Accordingly, under the new UAS export policy, the United States will require recipients of U.S.-origin military UAS to agree to the following principles guiding proper use before the United States will authorize any sales or transfers of military UASs:
Recipients are to use these systems in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, as applicable;
Armed and other advanced UAS are to be used in operations involving the use of force only when there is a lawful basis for use of force under international law, such as national self-defense;
Recipients are not to use military UAS to conduct unlawful surveillance or use unlawful force against their domestic populations; and
As appropriate, recipients shall provide UAS operators technical and doctrinal training on the use of these systems to reduce the risk of unintended injury or damage.
Enhanced Controls on the Export of U.S.-Origin Commercial UAS
The United States is equally committed to stringent standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of U.S.-origin commercial UAS, to include future commercial MTCR Category I systems. All commercial UAS will be reviewed under the requirements and licensing policies described in the Export Administration Regulations.
Implications of the New Policy
The new U.S. UAS export policy provides a disciplined and rigorous framework within which the United States will exercise restraint in sales and transfers and advance its national security and foreign policy interests, which includes enhancing the operational capabilities and capacity of trusted partner nations, increasing U.S. interoperability with these partners for coalition operations, ensuring responsible use of these systems, and easing the stress on U.S. force structure for these capabilities. It also ensures appropriate participation for U.S. industry in the emerging commercial UAS market, which will contribute to the health of the U.S. industrial base, and thus to U.S. national security which includes economic security.
The United States is committed to working with other countries to adopt similar standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use for military UAS.
U.S. Export Policy for Military Unmanned Aerial Systems
Fact Sheet
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
The United States is the world’s technological leader in the development and deployment of military Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). As other nations begin to employ military UAS more regularly and as the nascent commercial UAS market emerges, the United States has a responsibility to ensure that sales, transfers, and subsequent use of all U.S.-origin UAS are responsible and consistent with U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, including economic security, as well as with U.S. values and international standards.
As a result, the United States has established a new policy designed specifically for U.S.-origin military and commercial UAS. This new policy, governing the international sale, transfer and subsequent use of U.S.-origin military UAS, supplements and builds upon the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy and is consistent with the requirements of the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act which govern all U.S. military transfers. The new policy also governs the international sale, transfer and subsequent use of U.S.-origin commercial UAS, supplementing and building upon the Export Administration Regulations which govern all U.S. commercial transfers.
The new export policy is part of a broader United States UAS policy review which includes plans to work with other countries to shape international standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of military UAS.
Enhanced Controls on the Export of U.S.-Origin Military UASs
The United States is committed to stringent standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of U.S.-origin military UAS. The United States’ new UAS export policy establishes the standards by which the United States will assess, on a case-by-case basis under the U.S. Conventional Arms Transfer Policy, potential exports of military UASs, including armed systems. The new export policy puts in place stringent conditions on the sale or transfer of military UAS, including potential requirements for:
Sales and transfers of sensitive systems to be made through the government-to-government Foreign Military Sales program;
Review of potential transfers to be made through the Department of Defense Technology Security and Foreign Disclosure processes;
Each recipient nation to be required to agree to end-use assurances as a condition of sale or transfer;
End-use monitoring and potential additional security conditions to be required; and
All sales and transfers to include agreement to principles for proper use.
The new policy also maintains the United States’ long-standing commitments under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which subjects transfers of military and commercial systems that cross the threshold of MTCR Category I (i.e., UAS that are capable of a range of at least 300 kilometers and are capable of carrying a payload of at least 500 kilograms) to a “strong presumption of denial” for export but also permits such exports on “rare occasions” that are well justified in terms of the nonproliferation and export control factors specified in the MTCR Guidelines.
Principles for Proper Use of U.S.-Origin Military UAS
As the most active user of military UAS, and as an increasing number of nations are acquiring and employing UASs to support a range of missions, the United States has an interest in ensuring that these systems are used lawfully and responsibly. Accordingly, under the new UAS export policy, the United States will require recipients of U.S.-origin military UAS to agree to the following principles guiding proper use before the United States will authorize any sales or transfers of military UASs:
Recipients are to use these systems in accordance with international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, as applicable;
Armed and other advanced UAS are to be used in operations involving the use of force only when there is a lawful basis for use of force under international law, such as national self-defense;
Recipients are not to use military UAS to conduct unlawful surveillance or use unlawful force against their domestic populations; and
As appropriate, recipients shall provide UAS operators technical and doctrinal training on the use of these systems to reduce the risk of unintended injury or damage.
Enhanced Controls on the Export of U.S.-Origin Commercial UAS
The United States is equally committed to stringent standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use of U.S.-origin commercial UAS, to include future commercial MTCR Category I systems. All commercial UAS will be reviewed under the requirements and licensing policies described in the Export Administration Regulations.
Implications of the New Policy
The new U.S. UAS export policy provides a disciplined and rigorous framework within which the United States will exercise restraint in sales and transfers and advance its national security and foreign policy interests, which includes enhancing the operational capabilities and capacity of trusted partner nations, increasing U.S. interoperability with these partners for coalition operations, ensuring responsible use of these systems, and easing the stress on U.S. force structure for these capabilities. It also ensures appropriate participation for U.S. industry in the emerging commercial UAS market, which will contribute to the health of the U.S. industrial base, and thus to U.S. national security which includes economic security.
The United States is committed to working with other countries to adopt similar standards for the sale, transfer, and subsequent use for military UAS.
WHITE HOUSE STATEMENT ON TEXAS IMMIGRATION CASE
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
February 17, 2015
Statement by the Press Secretary on State of Texas v. United States of America
The Supreme Court and Congress have made clear that the federal government can set priorities in enforcing our immigration laws—which is exactly what the President did when he announced commonsense policies to help fix our broken immigration system. Those policies are consistent with the laws passed by Congress and decisions of the Supreme Court, as well as five decades of precedent by presidents of both parties who have used their authority to set priorities in enforcing our immigration laws.
The Department of Justice, legal scholars, immigration experts, and the district court in Washington, D.C. have determined that the President’s actions are well within his legal authority. Top law enforcement officials, along with state and local leaders across the country, have emphasized that these policies will also benefit the economy and help keep communities safe. The district court’s decision wrongly prevents these lawful, commonsense policies from taking effect and the Department of Justice has indicated that it will appeal that decision.
February 17, 2015
Statement by the Press Secretary on State of Texas v. United States of America
The Supreme Court and Congress have made clear that the federal government can set priorities in enforcing our immigration laws—which is exactly what the President did when he announced commonsense policies to help fix our broken immigration system. Those policies are consistent with the laws passed by Congress and decisions of the Supreme Court, as well as five decades of precedent by presidents of both parties who have used their authority to set priorities in enforcing our immigration laws.
The Department of Justice, legal scholars, immigration experts, and the district court in Washington, D.C. have determined that the President’s actions are well within his legal authority. Top law enforcement officials, along with state and local leaders across the country, have emphasized that these policies will also benefit the economy and help keep communities safe. The district court’s decision wrongly prevents these lawful, commonsense policies from taking effect and the Department of Justice has indicated that it will appeal that decision.
U.S. CONGRATULATES PEOPLE OF KOSOVO ON THEIR NATIONAL DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
On the Occasion of Kosovo's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the government and people of Kosovo on the anniversary of your country’s independence. The journey of Kosovo in recent years is remarkable and a stunning contrast to the tragedy that I witnessed as a Senator in the last years of the twentieth century.
Last year’s parliamentary elections, the first held on all of Kosovo’s territory, marked an important moment in building a thriving, multiethnic democracy.
I commend the progress your country has made in the EU-facilitated Dialogue with Serbia on normalization. This is a step forward on your path toward the European Union.
The United States remains dedicated to supporting your country’s full integration into the Euro-Atlantic community.
Kosovo has demonstrated a strong commitment to assisting the broad international coalition working to counter violent extremism and terrorism. On this important occasion, I congratulate you on your Independence Day.
On the Occasion of Kosovo's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 17, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the government and people of Kosovo on the anniversary of your country’s independence. The journey of Kosovo in recent years is remarkable and a stunning contrast to the tragedy that I witnessed as a Senator in the last years of the twentieth century.
Last year’s parliamentary elections, the first held on all of Kosovo’s territory, marked an important moment in building a thriving, multiethnic democracy.
I commend the progress your country has made in the EU-facilitated Dialogue with Serbia on normalization. This is a step forward on your path toward the European Union.
The United States remains dedicated to supporting your country’s full integration into the Euro-Atlantic community.
Kosovo has demonstrated a strong commitment to assisting the broad international coalition working to counter violent extremism and terrorism. On this important occasion, I congratulate you on your Independence Day.
AIR FORCE TRIES FOR $10 BILLION ABOVE SEQUESTRATION ALLOWANCE
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Air Force Seeks $10 Billion Over Sequestration Funding
By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, Feb. 13, 2015 – The demand for Air Force capabilities is increasing, therefore the service is requesting $10 billion more than sequestration-level funding provides, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said today in Orlando, Florida.
Speaking during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium and Technology Exposition, James discussed why the Air Force is taking its strongest stand to date against sequestration.
“There is just absolutely no question in my mind that we are the best Air Force on the planet -- precisely because of who we are, what we believe and what we do,” she said.
Fully Engaged Air Force
“Today, our Air Force is fully engaged in joint operations around the world,” James said, to include participating in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the Middle East, contributing to the maintenance of a strong NATO alliance or deterring possible conflict in the Asia-Pacific region.
“Or it might be humanitarian disasters anywhere around the world,” James added, “or the very important mission of protecting Americans right here at home.”
Regardless, she said, the demand for Air Force capabilities across all three of its warfighting domains -- air, space and cyber space -- continues to rise.
“So, in short, the way I put it is, everybody wants more Air Force,” James said.
Stand Against Sequestration
James explained what the Air Force is doing about a “perfect storm” of factors that are coming together as the budget forms.
“We are trying to take the strongest stand yet, that we have taken, to date, on sequestration,” she said. “We have said many, many times that sequestration, if it is implemented in [Fiscal Year] ’16, will damage our national security.”
Consequently, James said, the Air Force has submitted a proposed FY ’16 budget that contains $10 billion more than sequestration-level funding would provide.
“Now, $10 billion more represents the difference between a force that our Air Force combatant commanders require and our nation expects, as compared to an Air Force that, with $10 billion less, will not be able to meet the defense strategy -- period,” James said.
The Air Force cannot meet the national defense strategy with $10 billion less in the proposed budget as currently written, James said. The additional funding being requested, she added, “recognizes just how important the Air Force is in every joint operation around the world as well as how important the Air Force is in protecting the homeland.”
Saving Taxpayers’ Dollars
The proposed increase in its budget will enable the Air Force to better support its top priorities, which include taking care of its people, striking the right balance between maintaining today’s readiness level and preparing for tomorrow’s anticipated threats, and ensuring that every taxpayer-provided dollar counts, James said.
The Air Force also requires more funding to modernize, she said, while always keeping an eye on spending taxpayer dollars in the most efficient manner.
Force Readiness
The previous day at the Orlando event, James noted, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III discussed the Air Force’s reduced end strength, making it the smallest Air Force since its establishment in 1947.
“You also heard General Welsh talk about our aging aircraft,” she said. “The average age is about 27 years and that’s the oldest that they have ever been in our history.”
The Air Force’s readiness level is also “not where we want it to be,” James said, “especially not for what we call the high-end fight that we might, one day, have to fight.”
James said she’s aware of today’s difficult budget environment. But, she added, the Air Force is under fiscal pressure and it needs more funding to perform its missions.
“These are all serious facts,” James said. “There’s no ignoring these facts. We are the best on the planet, but we are also an Air Force under strain and something’s got to give.”
Air Force Seeks $10 Billion Over Sequestration Funding
By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, Feb. 13, 2015 – The demand for Air Force capabilities is increasing, therefore the service is requesting $10 billion more than sequestration-level funding provides, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said today in Orlando, Florida.
Speaking during the Air Force Association Air Warfare Symposium and Technology Exposition, James discussed why the Air Force is taking its strongest stand to date against sequestration.
“There is just absolutely no question in my mind that we are the best Air Force on the planet -- precisely because of who we are, what we believe and what we do,” she said.
Fully Engaged Air Force
“Today, our Air Force is fully engaged in joint operations around the world,” James said, to include participating in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the Middle East, contributing to the maintenance of a strong NATO alliance or deterring possible conflict in the Asia-Pacific region.
“Or it might be humanitarian disasters anywhere around the world,” James added, “or the very important mission of protecting Americans right here at home.”
Regardless, she said, the demand for Air Force capabilities across all three of its warfighting domains -- air, space and cyber space -- continues to rise.
“So, in short, the way I put it is, everybody wants more Air Force,” James said.
Stand Against Sequestration
James explained what the Air Force is doing about a “perfect storm” of factors that are coming together as the budget forms.
“We are trying to take the strongest stand yet, that we have taken, to date, on sequestration,” she said. “We have said many, many times that sequestration, if it is implemented in [Fiscal Year] ’16, will damage our national security.”
Consequently, James said, the Air Force has submitted a proposed FY ’16 budget that contains $10 billion more than sequestration-level funding would provide.
“Now, $10 billion more represents the difference between a force that our Air Force combatant commanders require and our nation expects, as compared to an Air Force that, with $10 billion less, will not be able to meet the defense strategy -- period,” James said.
The Air Force cannot meet the national defense strategy with $10 billion less in the proposed budget as currently written, James said. The additional funding being requested, she added, “recognizes just how important the Air Force is in every joint operation around the world as well as how important the Air Force is in protecting the homeland.”
Saving Taxpayers’ Dollars
The proposed increase in its budget will enable the Air Force to better support its top priorities, which include taking care of its people, striking the right balance between maintaining today’s readiness level and preparing for tomorrow’s anticipated threats, and ensuring that every taxpayer-provided dollar counts, James said.
The Air Force also requires more funding to modernize, she said, while always keeping an eye on spending taxpayer dollars in the most efficient manner.
Force Readiness
The previous day at the Orlando event, James noted, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III discussed the Air Force’s reduced end strength, making it the smallest Air Force since its establishment in 1947.
“You also heard General Welsh talk about our aging aircraft,” she said. “The average age is about 27 years and that’s the oldest that they have ever been in our history.”
The Air Force’s readiness level is also “not where we want it to be,” James said, “especially not for what we call the high-end fight that we might, one day, have to fight.”
James said she’s aware of today’s difficult budget environment. But, she added, the Air Force is under fiscal pressure and it needs more funding to perform its missions.
“These are all serious facts,” James said. “There’s no ignoring these facts. We are the best on the planet, but we are also an Air Force under strain and something’s got to give.”
FACT SHEET ON UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS AND PRIVACY, CIVIL RIGHTS
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
February 15, 2015
FACT SHEET: Promoting Economic Competitiveness While Safeguarding Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in Domestic Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Today the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum to promote economic competitiveness and innovation while safeguarding privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties in the domestic use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).
This Presidential Memorandum builds on efforts already underway to integrate UAS into the national airspace system (NAS). The Federal Aviation Administration has authorized the testing of UAS at six sites around the country in December 2013 as part of its efforts to safely integrate UAS into the NAS, as required by the Federal Aviation Administration Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.
UAS are a potentially transformative technology in diverse fields such as agriculture, law enforcement, coastal security, military training, search and rescue, first responder medical support, critical infrastructure inspection, and many others.
The Administration is committed to promoting the responsible use of this technology, strengthening privacy safeguards and ensuring full protection of civil liberties.
The Presidential Memorandum released today ensures that the Federal Government’s use of UAS takes into account these important concerns and in service of them, promotes better accountability and transparent use of this technology, including through the following:
First, the Presidential Memorandum requires Federal agencies to ensure that their policies and procedures are consistent with limitations set forth in the Presidential Memorandum on the collection and use, retention, and dissemination, of information collected through UAS in the NAS.
Second, the Presidential Memorandum requires agencies to ensure that policies are in place to prohibit the collection, use, retention, or dissemination of data in any manner that would violate the First Amendment or in any manner that would discriminate against persons based upon their ethnicity, race, gender, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity, in violation of law.
Third, the Presidential Memorandum includes requirements to ensure effective oversight.
Fourth, the Presidential Memorandum includes provisions to promote transparency, including a requirement that agencies publish information within one year describing how to access their publicly available policies and procedures implementing the Presidential Memorandum.
Fifth, recognizing that technologies evolve over time, the Presidential Memorandum requires agencies to examine their UAS policies and procedures prior to the deployment of new UAS technology, and at least every three years, to ensure that protections and policies keep pace with developments.
Consistent with these objectives, the Presidential Memorandum additionally requires the Department of Commerce, through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and in consultation with other interested agencies, to initiate a multi-stakeholder engagement process within 90 days to develop a framework for privacy, accountability, and transparency issues concerning the commercial and private use of UAS in the NAS.
February 15, 2015
FACT SHEET: Promoting Economic Competitiveness While Safeguarding Privacy, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties in Domestic Use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Today the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum to promote economic competitiveness and innovation while safeguarding privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties in the domestic use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).
This Presidential Memorandum builds on efforts already underway to integrate UAS into the national airspace system (NAS). The Federal Aviation Administration has authorized the testing of UAS at six sites around the country in December 2013 as part of its efforts to safely integrate UAS into the NAS, as required by the Federal Aviation Administration Modernization and Reform Act of 2012.
UAS are a potentially transformative technology in diverse fields such as agriculture, law enforcement, coastal security, military training, search and rescue, first responder medical support, critical infrastructure inspection, and many others.
The Administration is committed to promoting the responsible use of this technology, strengthening privacy safeguards and ensuring full protection of civil liberties.
The Presidential Memorandum released today ensures that the Federal Government’s use of UAS takes into account these important concerns and in service of them, promotes better accountability and transparent use of this technology, including through the following:
First, the Presidential Memorandum requires Federal agencies to ensure that their policies and procedures are consistent with limitations set forth in the Presidential Memorandum on the collection and use, retention, and dissemination, of information collected through UAS in the NAS.
Second, the Presidential Memorandum requires agencies to ensure that policies are in place to prohibit the collection, use, retention, or dissemination of data in any manner that would violate the First Amendment or in any manner that would discriminate against persons based upon their ethnicity, race, gender, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or gender identity, in violation of law.
Third, the Presidential Memorandum includes requirements to ensure effective oversight.
Fourth, the Presidential Memorandum includes provisions to promote transparency, including a requirement that agencies publish information within one year describing how to access their publicly available policies and procedures implementing the Presidential Memorandum.
Fifth, recognizing that technologies evolve over time, the Presidential Memorandum requires agencies to examine their UAS policies and procedures prior to the deployment of new UAS technology, and at least every three years, to ensure that protections and policies keep pace with developments.
Consistent with these objectives, the Presidential Memorandum additionally requires the Department of Commerce, through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and in consultation with other interested agencies, to initiate a multi-stakeholder engagement process within 90 days to develop a framework for privacy, accountability, and transparency issues concerning the commercial and private use of UAS in the NAS.
DOJ ANNOUNCES FIRST CRIMINAL PROSECUTION FOR COORDINATION OF FINANCES BETWEEN POLITICAL COMMITTEES
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Campaign Manager Pleads Guilty to Coordinated Campaign Contributions and False Statements
First Criminal Prosecution in the United States For
Campaign Finance Coordination between Political Committees
A campaign finance manager and political consultant pleaded guilty today in the Eastern District of Virginia for coordinating $325,000 in federal election campaign contributions by a political action committee (PAC) to a Congressional campaign committee. This is the first criminal prosecution in the United States based upon the coordination of campaign contributions between political committees.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
“The Department of Justice is fully committed to addressing the threat posed to the integrity of federal primary and general elections by coordinated campaign contributions, and will aggressively pursue coordination offenses at every appropriate opportunity,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.
“Campaign finance laws exist to guard against illegal activity such as coordinated campaign contributions,” U.S. Attorney Boente said. “The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia can rely this office enforce federal campaign finance law.”
“Today, Mr. Harber took responsibility for violating federal election campaign laws by illegally coordinating payments between a super pac and a candidate’s campaign committee,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “The FBI will continue to investigate allegations of campaign finance abuse which are in place to ensure openness and fairness in our elections so the people’s interests are protected.”
Tyler Eugene Harber, 34, of Alexandria, Virginia, pleaded guilty to one count of coordinated federal election contributions and one count of making false statements to the FBI before U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady of the Eastern District of Virginia. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 5, 2015.
According to the plea documents, Harber was the Campaign Manager and General Political Consultant for a candidate for Congress in the November 2012 general election. At the same time, Harber participated in the creation and operation of a PAC, which was legally allowed to raise and spend money in unlimited amounts from otherwise prohibited sources to influence federal elections so long as it did not coordinate expenditures with a federal campaign.
Harber admitted, among other things, that he made and directed coordinated expenditures by the PAC to influence the election with $325,000 of political advertising opposing a rival candidate. The coordination of expenditures made them illegal campaign contributions to the authorized committee of Harber’s candidate, and Harber admitted that he knew this coordination of expenditures was an unlawful means of contributing money to a campaign committee. He further admitted that he used an alias and other means to conceal his action from inquiries by an official of the same political party as Harber’s candidate.
Harber further admitted that he told multiple lies when interviewed by the FBI concerning his activities.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Northern Virginia Resident Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Richard C. Pilger, Director of the Election Crimes Branch of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, and Chief Mark D. Lytle of the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit of the Eastern District of Virginia.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Campaign Manager Pleads Guilty to Coordinated Campaign Contributions and False Statements
First Criminal Prosecution in the United States For
Campaign Finance Coordination between Political Committees
A campaign finance manager and political consultant pleaded guilty today in the Eastern District of Virginia for coordinating $325,000 in federal election campaign contributions by a political action committee (PAC) to a Congressional campaign committee. This is the first criminal prosecution in the United States based upon the coordination of campaign contributions between political committees.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Dana J. Boente of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew G. McCabe of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.
“The Department of Justice is fully committed to addressing the threat posed to the integrity of federal primary and general elections by coordinated campaign contributions, and will aggressively pursue coordination offenses at every appropriate opportunity,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.
“Campaign finance laws exist to guard against illegal activity such as coordinated campaign contributions,” U.S. Attorney Boente said. “The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia can rely this office enforce federal campaign finance law.”
“Today, Mr. Harber took responsibility for violating federal election campaign laws by illegally coordinating payments between a super pac and a candidate’s campaign committee,” said Assistant Director in Charge McCabe. “The FBI will continue to investigate allegations of campaign finance abuse which are in place to ensure openness and fairness in our elections so the people’s interests are protected.”
Tyler Eugene Harber, 34, of Alexandria, Virginia, pleaded guilty to one count of coordinated federal election contributions and one count of making false statements to the FBI before U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady of the Eastern District of Virginia. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 5, 2015.
According to the plea documents, Harber was the Campaign Manager and General Political Consultant for a candidate for Congress in the November 2012 general election. At the same time, Harber participated in the creation and operation of a PAC, which was legally allowed to raise and spend money in unlimited amounts from otherwise prohibited sources to influence federal elections so long as it did not coordinate expenditures with a federal campaign.
Harber admitted, among other things, that he made and directed coordinated expenditures by the PAC to influence the election with $325,000 of political advertising opposing a rival candidate. The coordination of expenditures made them illegal campaign contributions to the authorized committee of Harber’s candidate, and Harber admitted that he knew this coordination of expenditures was an unlawful means of contributing money to a campaign committee. He further admitted that he used an alias and other means to conceal his action from inquiries by an official of the same political party as Harber’s candidate.
Harber further admitted that he told multiple lies when interviewed by the FBI concerning his activities.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Northern Virginia Resident Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Richard C. Pilger, Director of the Election Crimes Branch of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, and Chief Mark D. Lytle of the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit of the Eastern District of Virginia.
U.S. STATEMENT ON DETENTION OF MAZEN DARWISH IN SYRIA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
U.S. Mission to the United Nations: Statement on the Detention of Mazen Darwish, Human Rights Defender, in Syria
02/16/2015 02:31 PM EST
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 16, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Today marks three years since the Syrian regime detained journalist, lawyer and human rights defender Mazen Darwish. Darwish championed freedom of expression and sought to advance the cause of peace and to end the suffering of the Syrian people. A founder of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCMFE) – a partner organization of Reporters Without Borders – he worked to promote journalists’ rights in the face of the oppressive Syrian regime. In July 2011, the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression became the first Syrian-based NGO ever to receive consultative status at the United Nations.
Instead of embracing Darwish for his ideals and the contributions he could have made to Syria’s future, the Assad regime violently silenced him. Darwish is not alone. Two other SCMFE staffers, the prominent blogger Hussein Ghrer and journalist Hani al-Zitani, also remain in prison. They are but a few of the tens of thousands of Syrians arrested by the regime for their non-violent human rights activism.
For three years, Darwish’s powerful voice for reason and peace has been muted by a brutal Syrian regime intent on the complete repression of the civil and human rights of the Syrian people. The United States strongly condemns the continued detention of Mazen Darwish, and we express our deep concern over reports that he and his colleagues have been subjected to torture.
Today, the United States again calls for Bashar al-Assad’s government to release Mazen Darwish, Hussein Ghrer and Hani al-Zitani, along with the staggering tens of thousands of others who are being detained and tortured by the Syrian regime.
U.S. Mission to the United Nations: Statement on the Detention of Mazen Darwish, Human Rights Defender, in Syria
02/16/2015 02:31 PM EST
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 16, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Today marks three years since the Syrian regime detained journalist, lawyer and human rights defender Mazen Darwish. Darwish championed freedom of expression and sought to advance the cause of peace and to end the suffering of the Syrian people. A founder of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCMFE) – a partner organization of Reporters Without Borders – he worked to promote journalists’ rights in the face of the oppressive Syrian regime. In July 2011, the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression became the first Syrian-based NGO ever to receive consultative status at the United Nations.
Instead of embracing Darwish for his ideals and the contributions he could have made to Syria’s future, the Assad regime violently silenced him. Darwish is not alone. Two other SCMFE staffers, the prominent blogger Hussein Ghrer and journalist Hani al-Zitani, also remain in prison. They are but a few of the tens of thousands of Syrians arrested by the regime for their non-violent human rights activism.
For three years, Darwish’s powerful voice for reason and peace has been muted by a brutal Syrian regime intent on the complete repression of the civil and human rights of the Syrian people. The United States strongly condemns the continued detention of Mazen Darwish, and we express our deep concern over reports that he and his colleagues have been subjected to torture.
Today, the United States again calls for Bashar al-Assad’s government to release Mazen Darwish, Hussein Ghrer and Hani al-Zitani, along with the staggering tens of thousands of others who are being detained and tortured by the Syrian regime.
Monday, February 16, 2015
U.S. CONCERNED ABOUT CEASE-FIRE VIOLATIONS IN UKRAINE
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Cease-fire Violations in Ukraine
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Department Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 16, 2015
The United States is gravely concerned by the deteriorating situation in and around Debaltseve in eastern Ukraine. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission confirms that attacks continue in this area as well as other locations, including Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk, and Donetsk city. The Government of Ukraine reports that its forces have been fired on 129 times in the last 24 hours by Russia-backed separatists, killing 5 and wounding 25, including attacks on a convoy evacuating the wounded from Debaltseve. The separatists have publicly declared that they refuse to observe the cease-fire in Debaltseve, and OSCE monitors have not been provided security guarantees for access. These aggressive actions and statements by the Russia-backed separatists threaten the most recent cease-fire and jeopardize the planned withdrawal of heavy weapons, as called for in the February 12 Minsk packet of implementing measures. We are closely monitoring reports of a new column of Russian military equipment moving toward Debaltseve.
We call on Russia and the separatists it backs to halt all attacks immediately, engage with the OSCE to facilitate the cease-fire, and, as called for in the packet of measures agreed to on February 12, fully implement their September 5 and 19 Minsk commitments.
Cease-fire Violations in Ukraine
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Department Spokesperson
Washington, DC
February 16, 2015
The United States is gravely concerned by the deteriorating situation in and around Debaltseve in eastern Ukraine. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission confirms that attacks continue in this area as well as other locations, including Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk, and Donetsk city. The Government of Ukraine reports that its forces have been fired on 129 times in the last 24 hours by Russia-backed separatists, killing 5 and wounding 25, including attacks on a convoy evacuating the wounded from Debaltseve. The separatists have publicly declared that they refuse to observe the cease-fire in Debaltseve, and OSCE monitors have not been provided security guarantees for access. These aggressive actions and statements by the Russia-backed separatists threaten the most recent cease-fire and jeopardize the planned withdrawal of heavy weapons, as called for in the February 12 Minsk packet of implementing measures. We are closely monitoring reports of a new column of Russian military equipment moving toward Debaltseve.
We call on Russia and the separatists it backs to halt all attacks immediately, engage with the OSCE to facilitate the cease-fire, and, as called for in the packet of measures agreed to on February 12, fully implement their September 5 and 19 Minsk commitments.
U.S. EXPLANATION OF UN SECURITY COUNCIL VOTE ON YEMEN
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
U.S. Mission to the United Nations: Explanation of Vote at a Security Council Session on Yemen
02/15/2015 05:09 PM EST
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 15, 2015
AS DELIVERED
The United States is pleased to support the adoption of a Security Council resolution that sends a clear message: all parties in Yemen, especially the Houthi, must commit to resolving the country’s political crisis by consensus through a peaceful and inclusive dialogue. Today, this Council deplores unilateral attempts by the Houthi to take over government institutions and to dissolve parliament by force. And this Council reaffirms the roadmap for implementing Yemen’s transition provided by the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative and its Implementation Mechanism and the outcomes of the comprehensive National Dialogue conference. The people of Yemen deserve a clear path back to the political transition process and a legitimate government based on these agreements and the resolutions of this Council, with a publicly-announced timeline and specific dates for the completion of a new constitution, a constitutional referendum, and national elections.
We continue to strongly support UN Special Adviser Jamal Benomar’s efforts to mediate a consensus solution to this political crisis—a process vital to defusing tensions on the ground. We also underscore the Security Council’s demand for the Houthi to release President Hadi, Prime Minister Bahah, and other members of the Cabinet from house arrest immediately. Their continued detention is unacceptable, and they must be granted full freedom of movement. We strongly condemn the use of force against peaceful protesters in Ibb on February 14th.
The United States will continue supporting all Yemenis who are working toward a peaceful, prosperous, and unified Yemen.
Thank you.
U.S. Mission to the United Nations: Explanation of Vote at a Security Council Session on Yemen
02/15/2015 05:09 PM EST
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
February 15, 2015
AS DELIVERED
The United States is pleased to support the adoption of a Security Council resolution that sends a clear message: all parties in Yemen, especially the Houthi, must commit to resolving the country’s political crisis by consensus through a peaceful and inclusive dialogue. Today, this Council deplores unilateral attempts by the Houthi to take over government institutions and to dissolve parliament by force. And this Council reaffirms the roadmap for implementing Yemen’s transition provided by the Gulf Cooperation Council Initiative and its Implementation Mechanism and the outcomes of the comprehensive National Dialogue conference. The people of Yemen deserve a clear path back to the political transition process and a legitimate government based on these agreements and the resolutions of this Council, with a publicly-announced timeline and specific dates for the completion of a new constitution, a constitutional referendum, and national elections.
We continue to strongly support UN Special Adviser Jamal Benomar’s efforts to mediate a consensus solution to this political crisis—a process vital to defusing tensions on the ground. We also underscore the Security Council’s demand for the Houthi to release President Hadi, Prime Minister Bahah, and other members of the Cabinet from house arrest immediately. Their continued detention is unacceptable, and they must be granted full freedom of movement. We strongly condemn the use of force against peaceful protesters in Ibb on February 14th.
The United States will continue supporting all Yemenis who are working toward a peaceful, prosperous, and unified Yemen.
Thank you.
JAMAICAN MAN EXTRADITED FOR ROLE IN INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY SCHEME
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Jamaican Man First to Be Extradited to Face Fraud Charges in International Lottery Scheme
A 28-year-old man was extradited from Jamaica based on charges that he committed fraud as part of an international lottery scheme against elderly victims in the United States, the Justice Department announced today.
Damion Bryan Barrett is charged in a 38-count indictment in the Southern District of Florida with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. According to the indictment, Barrett and his co-conspirators fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to pay purported fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. Barrett is the first Jamaican citizen to be extradited from Jamaica to the United States based on charges of defrauding Americans in connection with a lottery scheme.
Barrett arrived today in Opa-locka, Florida. He will make his initial appearance on Feb. 13 before Magistrate Judge Alicia O. Valle in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Barrett was indicted by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale on Aug. 9, 2012, and was arrested last month in Jamaica based on the United States’ request that he be extradited. Barrett’s extradition is the latest step in the United States’ ongoing crackdown on fraudulent lottery schemes based in Jamaica.
According to the indictment, beginning in October 2008, Barrett and his co-conspirators contacted victims in the United States announcing that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using voice over internet protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barrett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who then forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“The Department of Justice will find and prosecute those responsible for fraud against American consumers, no matter where the perpetrator resides,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Lottery schemes that target elderly victims for fraud cannot, and will not, be tolerated.”
“Persons who commit crimes against American seniors from outside of the United States will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This case serves as an example that there are no borders when it comes to obtaining justice for the victims of these lottery schemes.”
“Today's extradition signals strong partnership between the Jamaica Constabulary Force and our U.S. law enforcement partners,” said Commissioner of Police Dr. Carl Williams of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. “We use this opportunity to warn other lottery scammers who continue to prey on unsuspecting U.S. citizens, that they too will pay the penalty, whether through conviction in Jamaica or through extradition to the United States. We continue to address this with a high level of attention to contain the scourge.”
If convicted, Barrett faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in prison per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution. Barrett’s co-defendant, Oneike Barnett, 29, pleaded guilty on Feb. 28, 2014, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. On April 29, 2014, U.S. District Court Judge William J. Zloch sentenced Barnett to serve 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release, and to pay $94,456 in restitution for his role in this case.
“These criminal telemarking scams heartlessly target the elderly in the United States, at times stealing their life savings,” said Special Agent in Charge Alysa D. Erichs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “The successful extradition of Damion Bryan Barrett sends a clear message that the cooperation between our countries is focused on bringing these offenders to justice despite borders that separate us. This extradition and hopefully others that may follow suit will have a positive impact on diminishing this crime.”
“Together with our international and domestic law enforcement partners we have proven that justice has no borders,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Ronald Verrochio of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute those who defraud American citizens, anywhere in the world.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service, together with our federal partners, will continue to track down and bring to justice those that would pray on our most vulnerable in our country,” said U.S. Marshal Amos Rojas of the Southern District of Florida.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Branda and U.S. Attorney Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of USPIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) HSI Miami and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kathryn Drenning of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani of the Southern District of Florida.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Jamaican Man First to Be Extradited to Face Fraud Charges in International Lottery Scheme
A 28-year-old man was extradited from Jamaica based on charges that he committed fraud as part of an international lottery scheme against elderly victims in the United States, the Justice Department announced today.
Damion Bryan Barrett is charged in a 38-count indictment in the Southern District of Florida with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. According to the indictment, Barrett and his co-conspirators fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to pay purported fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. Barrett is the first Jamaican citizen to be extradited from Jamaica to the United States based on charges of defrauding Americans in connection with a lottery scheme.
Barrett arrived today in Opa-locka, Florida. He will make his initial appearance on Feb. 13 before Magistrate Judge Alicia O. Valle in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Barrett was indicted by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale on Aug. 9, 2012, and was arrested last month in Jamaica based on the United States’ request that he be extradited. Barrett’s extradition is the latest step in the United States’ ongoing crackdown on fraudulent lottery schemes based in Jamaica.
According to the indictment, beginning in October 2008, Barrett and his co-conspirators contacted victims in the United States announcing that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using voice over internet protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barrett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who then forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“The Department of Justice will find and prosecute those responsible for fraud against American consumers, no matter where the perpetrator resides,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Lottery schemes that target elderly victims for fraud cannot, and will not, be tolerated.”
“Persons who commit crimes against American seniors from outside of the United States will be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Wifredo Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida. “This case serves as an example that there are no borders when it comes to obtaining justice for the victims of these lottery schemes.”
“Today's extradition signals strong partnership between the Jamaica Constabulary Force and our U.S. law enforcement partners,” said Commissioner of Police Dr. Carl Williams of the Jamaica Constabulary Force. “We use this opportunity to warn other lottery scammers who continue to prey on unsuspecting U.S. citizens, that they too will pay the penalty, whether through conviction in Jamaica or through extradition to the United States. We continue to address this with a high level of attention to contain the scourge.”
If convicted, Barrett faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in prison per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution. Barrett’s co-defendant, Oneike Barnett, 29, pleaded guilty on Feb. 28, 2014, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. On April 29, 2014, U.S. District Court Judge William J. Zloch sentenced Barnett to serve 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release, and to pay $94,456 in restitution for his role in this case.
“These criminal telemarking scams heartlessly target the elderly in the United States, at times stealing their life savings,” said Special Agent in Charge Alysa D. Erichs of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami. “The successful extradition of Damion Bryan Barrett sends a clear message that the cooperation between our countries is focused on bringing these offenders to justice despite borders that separate us. This extradition and hopefully others that may follow suit will have a positive impact on diminishing this crime.”
“Together with our international and domestic law enforcement partners we have proven that justice has no borders,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Ronald Verrochio of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division. “We will continue to investigate and prosecute those who defraud American citizens, anywhere in the world.”
“The U.S. Marshals Service, together with our federal partners, will continue to track down and bring to justice those that would pray on our most vulnerable in our country,” said U.S. Marshal Amos Rojas of the Southern District of Florida.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Branda and U.S. Attorney Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of USPIS, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) HSI Miami and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kathryn Drenning of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani of the Southern District of Florida.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
REMARKS BY ASSISTANT SECRETARY ROSE ON U.S.-JAPAN SPACE COOPERATION AND SECURITY IN ASIA-PACIFIC
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Security in the Asia Pacific Region and U.S.-Japan Space Cooperation
Remarks
Frank A. Rose
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance
Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University
Washington, DC
February 13, 2015
Panel Details
9:30 – 10:50 am
Session 1: “Security in the Asia Pacific Region and U.S.-Japan Space Cooperation”
Moderator: Victoria Samson, Secure World Foundation
Yasuaki Hashimoto, National Institute for Defense Studies
Yuichiro Nagai, University of Tokyo
Deputy Assistant Secretary Douglas Loverro, U.S. Department of Defense
Assistant Secretary Frank Rose, U.S. Department of State
Introduction
Thanks to you all for having me this morning. I’m so pleased to be up here with my Japanese colleagues as well as Doug Loverro from the Pentagon. I’d also like to thank the Elliot School and Scott Pace, as well as co-sponsors PARI at the University of Tokyo and the Mitsubishi Research Institute, for organizing this important discussion.
Security in the Asia Pacific
This morning’s panel is particularly well timed, as I’ve recently returned from Japan and will be heading back to the region in just over a week for the U.S.-Japan Space Security Dialogue in Tokyo.
Space cooperation between the United States and Japan has a long history, built on the extensive civil and scientific cooperation among NASA, NOAA, and other U.S. agencies and their Japanese counterparts.
And while U.S.-Japan space security cooperation is relatively new, Japan has taken a critical leadership role in those efforts.
Our discussions on these issues have grown into one of the most important relationships we have with our Allies and partners on outer space security issues.
My work in the region, particularly when it comes to outer space cooperation and security, has really shown me the increasing role Japan is playing to address both regional and global security challenges.
The rebalance in the Asia-Pacific region reflects our recognition that the United States must broaden and deepen our engagement there at all levels, including addressing emerging security challenges such as the long-term sustainability, stability, safety, and security of the space environment.
It’s been a lot of ground to cover in a short amount of time. But as Secretary Kerry will tell you, extraordinary transformations are the norm in the Asia-Pacific region today.
Strengthening the U.S.-Japan Alliance
The United States-Japan Alliance has long been the cornerstone of peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region.
Our partnership with Asia-Pacific nations not only enhances the national security of our respective countries, but also strengthens strategic stability in the region as well as international peace and security globally.
We recognize the need to enhance our Alliance with Japan in wide-ranging areas of common interest in order to address the changing security environment. Part of our effort to strengthen and modernize our Alliance is through enhanced space cooperation.
Cooperation on space security is now part of the Common Strategic Objectives of the Alliance, and bilateral cooperation on civil and security space was recognized in the outcomes of summits between President Obama and former Prime Minister Noda in 2012 and again with Prime Minister Abe in 2014.
Recognizing the need to confront emerging security challenges and update the alliance for the 21st century, we are currently working closely with Japan to ensure that space security cooperation is included for the first time in the U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines, which provide a general framework and policy direction for the roles and missions of the two countries and ways of cooperation and coordination.
Cooperation on space security has expanded alongside the President’s rebalance to Asia. What began as a discussion of threats and possibilities for collaboration has turned into a full-range of cooperative efforts bilaterally, regionally, and multilaterally.
Bilateral Space Cooperation
Recognizing the numerous opportunities for cooperation on space issues, the United States and Japan have held several space security dialogues in the last five years, in addition to ongoing civil space dialogues.
In fact, due to the success and robustness of our space security and civil space dialogues, our governments have also established a Comprehensive Dialogue on Space at the request of President Obama and former Prime Minister Noda, in order to address the bilateral relationship at a strategic level and to ensure a whole-of-government approach to space matters. We have held two Comprehensive Dialogues to date, with a third meeting to be held later this year in Japan.
Through these dialogues, we not only discuss possible avenues of cooperation and exchange space policies, we also have made tremendous progress in furthering our tangible space security cooperation.
In regards to improving our space situational awareness – specifically, improving our shared ability to rapidly detect, warn of, characterize, and attribute natural and man-made disturbances to space systems – in 2013 the United States signed a Space Situational Awareness (SSA) information sharing agreement with Japan.
Building on the foundation of that agreement, we are also exploring the possibility of establishing “two-way” SSA sharing with Japan. We hope that as our space surveillance capabilities improve, we will be able to notify satellite operators earlier and with greater accuracy in order to prevent collisions in space.
We are also looking at how we can expand cooperation on utilizing space systems for maritime domain awareness. To that end, the United States and Japan held the first “Use of Space for Maritime Domain Awareness” table top exercise last year.
We have also worked hard to expand our “people-to-people” cooperation. Between Japanese visits to Washington and my own visits to Tokyo, I find myself engaging with my Japanese counterparts nearly every other month.
Members of the Japanese Ministry of Defense attend U.S. Air Force space training out in Colorado Springs, and a member of my own team at AVC, along with a U.S. airman, has just finished a year-long study on space policy within the Japanese government.
Such cooperation has also produced great successes in the academic and NGO communities, such as the excellent work done here at the Space Policy Institute.
Multilateral Cooperation
We also work closely together to cooperate and to coordinate positions on multilateral space issues. We hold an annual trilateral space security dialogue with Australia and Japan to coordinate our positions on these space security issues.
Our joint efforts to advance the work of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) Working Group on Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities (LTS) continue to make progress.
Perhaps one of the most beneficial transparency and confidence-building measures, or TCBMs, for ensuring sustainability and security in space could be the adoption of an International Code of Conduct to prevent mishaps, misperceptions, and mistrust in space. A code would establish guidelines, or rules of the road, to reduce the risks of debris-generating events, including collisions.
The United States is working with the European Union and other spacefaring nations, like Japan, to advance such a Code and in the Asia-Pacific region. Both Japan and Australia have also endorsed its development.
Conclusion
In his State of the Union, President Obama spoke of the need to modernize our alliances in the Asia Pacific to meet common international challenges.
In his State of the Union, President Obama spoke of the need to modernize our alliances in the Asia Pacific to meet common international challenges.
With the Government of Japan as a strong partner in space security, we are working together to do just that. Thanks very much, and I look forward to the discussion.
Security in the Asia Pacific Region and U.S.-Japan Space Cooperation
Remarks
Frank A. Rose
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance
Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University
Washington, DC
February 13, 2015
Panel Details
9:30 – 10:50 am
Session 1: “Security in the Asia Pacific Region and U.S.-Japan Space Cooperation”
Moderator: Victoria Samson, Secure World Foundation
Yasuaki Hashimoto, National Institute for Defense Studies
Yuichiro Nagai, University of Tokyo
Deputy Assistant Secretary Douglas Loverro, U.S. Department of Defense
Assistant Secretary Frank Rose, U.S. Department of State
Introduction
Thanks to you all for having me this morning. I’m so pleased to be up here with my Japanese colleagues as well as Doug Loverro from the Pentagon. I’d also like to thank the Elliot School and Scott Pace, as well as co-sponsors PARI at the University of Tokyo and the Mitsubishi Research Institute, for organizing this important discussion.
Security in the Asia Pacific
This morning’s panel is particularly well timed, as I’ve recently returned from Japan and will be heading back to the region in just over a week for the U.S.-Japan Space Security Dialogue in Tokyo.
Space cooperation between the United States and Japan has a long history, built on the extensive civil and scientific cooperation among NASA, NOAA, and other U.S. agencies and their Japanese counterparts.
And while U.S.-Japan space security cooperation is relatively new, Japan has taken a critical leadership role in those efforts.
Our discussions on these issues have grown into one of the most important relationships we have with our Allies and partners on outer space security issues.
My work in the region, particularly when it comes to outer space cooperation and security, has really shown me the increasing role Japan is playing to address both regional and global security challenges.
The rebalance in the Asia-Pacific region reflects our recognition that the United States must broaden and deepen our engagement there at all levels, including addressing emerging security challenges such as the long-term sustainability, stability, safety, and security of the space environment.
It’s been a lot of ground to cover in a short amount of time. But as Secretary Kerry will tell you, extraordinary transformations are the norm in the Asia-Pacific region today.
Strengthening the U.S.-Japan Alliance
The United States-Japan Alliance has long been the cornerstone of peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region.
Our partnership with Asia-Pacific nations not only enhances the national security of our respective countries, but also strengthens strategic stability in the region as well as international peace and security globally.
We recognize the need to enhance our Alliance with Japan in wide-ranging areas of common interest in order to address the changing security environment. Part of our effort to strengthen and modernize our Alliance is through enhanced space cooperation.
Cooperation on space security is now part of the Common Strategic Objectives of the Alliance, and bilateral cooperation on civil and security space was recognized in the outcomes of summits between President Obama and former Prime Minister Noda in 2012 and again with Prime Minister Abe in 2014.
Recognizing the need to confront emerging security challenges and update the alliance for the 21st century, we are currently working closely with Japan to ensure that space security cooperation is included for the first time in the U.S.-Japan Defense Guidelines, which provide a general framework and policy direction for the roles and missions of the two countries and ways of cooperation and coordination.
Cooperation on space security has expanded alongside the President’s rebalance to Asia. What began as a discussion of threats and possibilities for collaboration has turned into a full-range of cooperative efforts bilaterally, regionally, and multilaterally.
Bilateral Space Cooperation
Recognizing the numerous opportunities for cooperation on space issues, the United States and Japan have held several space security dialogues in the last five years, in addition to ongoing civil space dialogues.
In fact, due to the success and robustness of our space security and civil space dialogues, our governments have also established a Comprehensive Dialogue on Space at the request of President Obama and former Prime Minister Noda, in order to address the bilateral relationship at a strategic level and to ensure a whole-of-government approach to space matters. We have held two Comprehensive Dialogues to date, with a third meeting to be held later this year in Japan.
Through these dialogues, we not only discuss possible avenues of cooperation and exchange space policies, we also have made tremendous progress in furthering our tangible space security cooperation.
In regards to improving our space situational awareness – specifically, improving our shared ability to rapidly detect, warn of, characterize, and attribute natural and man-made disturbances to space systems – in 2013 the United States signed a Space Situational Awareness (SSA) information sharing agreement with Japan.
Building on the foundation of that agreement, we are also exploring the possibility of establishing “two-way” SSA sharing with Japan. We hope that as our space surveillance capabilities improve, we will be able to notify satellite operators earlier and with greater accuracy in order to prevent collisions in space.
We are also looking at how we can expand cooperation on utilizing space systems for maritime domain awareness. To that end, the United States and Japan held the first “Use of Space for Maritime Domain Awareness” table top exercise last year.
We have also worked hard to expand our “people-to-people” cooperation. Between Japanese visits to Washington and my own visits to Tokyo, I find myself engaging with my Japanese counterparts nearly every other month.
Members of the Japanese Ministry of Defense attend U.S. Air Force space training out in Colorado Springs, and a member of my own team at AVC, along with a U.S. airman, has just finished a year-long study on space policy within the Japanese government.
Such cooperation has also produced great successes in the academic and NGO communities, such as the excellent work done here at the Space Policy Institute.
Multilateral Cooperation
We also work closely together to cooperate and to coordinate positions on multilateral space issues. We hold an annual trilateral space security dialogue with Australia and Japan to coordinate our positions on these space security issues.
Our joint efforts to advance the work of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS) Working Group on Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities (LTS) continue to make progress.
Perhaps one of the most beneficial transparency and confidence-building measures, or TCBMs, for ensuring sustainability and security in space could be the adoption of an International Code of Conduct to prevent mishaps, misperceptions, and mistrust in space. A code would establish guidelines, or rules of the road, to reduce the risks of debris-generating events, including collisions.
The United States is working with the European Union and other spacefaring nations, like Japan, to advance such a Code and in the Asia-Pacific region. Both Japan and Australia have also endorsed its development.
Conclusion
In his State of the Union, President Obama spoke of the need to modernize our alliances in the Asia Pacific to meet common international challenges.
In his State of the Union, President Obama spoke of the need to modernize our alliances in the Asia Pacific to meet common international challenges.
With the Government of Japan as a strong partner in space security, we are working together to do just that. Thanks very much, and I look forward to the discussion.
U.S. CONGRATULATES PEOPLE OF LITHUANIA ON THEIR INDEPENDENCE DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
On the Occasion of Lithuania's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 13, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Lithuania on the 97th anniversary of your independence on February 16.
This year marks 25 years since Lithuanians bravely declared their independence from the Soviet Union and re-established the independent Lithuanian state that first came into existence in 1918.
In 1990, while Lithuanians took to the streets of Vilnius and Kaunas collecting signatures to petition for their freedom, thousands of New Yorkers joined in solidarity across the Atlantic – marching down Fifth Avenue in the name of a sovereign Lithuania.
I appreciate the warm hospitality of the Lithuanian people during my September 2013 visit to Vilnius. We continue to strengthen our bilateral relationship most recently during Vice President Biden’s visit to Vilnius in March 2014 and his meeting with President GrybauskaitÄ on the margins of the 2015 Munich Security Conference.
The ties between our nations are deep, and our cultures are intertwined. As NATO allies, we are committed to freedom, democracy, and human rights. We also share a passion for the expressions of our shared values through art and sports. The works of Jonas Mekas – the godfather of American avant-garde cinema – link our two countries. As does the historic Lithuanian men’s basketball team at the 1992 Summer Olympics, whose famous logo was designed by a New York artist.
The United States is proud of our longstanding friendship with your country and our continued cooperation on today’s pressing challenges. We look forward to working with you to build a future of peace, prosperity, and freedom for all people.
On this day of celebration, I wish all Lithuanians peace and prosperity in the year ahead.
On the Occasion of Lithuania's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
February 13, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Lithuania on the 97th anniversary of your independence on February 16.
This year marks 25 years since Lithuanians bravely declared their independence from the Soviet Union and re-established the independent Lithuanian state that first came into existence in 1918.
In 1990, while Lithuanians took to the streets of Vilnius and Kaunas collecting signatures to petition for their freedom, thousands of New Yorkers joined in solidarity across the Atlantic – marching down Fifth Avenue in the name of a sovereign Lithuania.
I appreciate the warm hospitality of the Lithuanian people during my September 2013 visit to Vilnius. We continue to strengthen our bilateral relationship most recently during Vice President Biden’s visit to Vilnius in March 2014 and his meeting with President GrybauskaitÄ on the margins of the 2015 Munich Security Conference.
The ties between our nations are deep, and our cultures are intertwined. As NATO allies, we are committed to freedom, democracy, and human rights. We also share a passion for the expressions of our shared values through art and sports. The works of Jonas Mekas – the godfather of American avant-garde cinema – link our two countries. As does the historic Lithuanian men’s basketball team at the 1992 Summer Olympics, whose famous logo was designed by a New York artist.
The United States is proud of our longstanding friendship with your country and our continued cooperation on today’s pressing challenges. We look forward to working with you to build a future of peace, prosperity, and freedom for all people.
On this day of celebration, I wish all Lithuanians peace and prosperity in the year ahead.
THE HOUSEHOLD BOT
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Human insights inspire solutions for household robots
New algorithms designed by Berkeley and UMass researchers allow autonomous systems to deal with uncertainty
People typically consider doing the laundry to be a boring chore. But laundry is far from boring for artificial intelligence (AI) researchers like Siddharth Srivastava, a scientist at the United Technologies Research Center, Berkeley.
To AI experts, programming a robot to do the laundry represents a challenging planning problem because current sensing and manipulation technology is not good enough to identify precisely the number of clothing pieces that are in a pile and the number that are picked up with each grasp. People can easily cope with this type of uncertainty and come up with a simple plan. But roboticists for decades have struggled to design an autonomous system able to do what we do so casually--clean our clothes.
In work done at the University of California, Berkeley, and presented at the Association for Advancement of Artificial Intelligence conference in Austin, Srivastava (working with Abhishek Gupta, Pieter Abbeel and Stuart Russell from UC Berkeley and Shlomo Zilberstein from University of Massachusetts, Amherst) demonstrated a robot that is capable of doing laundry without any specific knowledge of what it has to wash.
Earlier work by Abbeel's group had demonstrated solutions for the sorting and folding of clothes. The laundry task serves as an example for a wide-range of daily tasks that we do without thinking but that have, until now, proved difficult for automated tools assisting humans.
"The widely imagined helper robots of the future are expected to 'clear the table,' 'do laundry' or perform day-to-day tasks with ease," Srivastava said. "Currently however, computing the required behavior for such tasks is a challenging problem--particularly when there's uncertainty in resource or object quantities."
Humans, on the other hand, solve such problems with barely a conscious effort. In their work, the researchers showed how to compute correct solutions to problems by using some assumptions about the uncertainty.
"The main issue is how to develop what we call 'generalized plans,'" said Zilberstein, a professor of computer science and director of the Resource Bound Reasoning Lab at UMass Amherst. "These are plans that don't just work in a particular situation that is very well defined and gets you to a particular goal that is also well defined, but rather ones that work on a whole range of situations and you may not even know certain things about it."
The researchers' key insight was to use human behavior--the almost unconscious action of pulling, stuffing, folding and piling--as a template, adapting both the repetitive and thoughtful aspects of human problem-solving to handle uncertainty in their computed solutions.
By doing so, they enabled a PR2 robot to do the laundry without knowing how many and what type of clothes needed to be washed.
Out of the 13 or so tasks involved in the laundry problem, the team's system was able to complete more than half of them autonomously and nearly completed the rest--by far the most effective demonstration of laundering AI to date.
The framework that Srivastava and his team developed combines several popular planning paradigms that have been developed in the past using complex control structures such as loops and branches and optimizes them to run efficiently on modern hardware. It also incorporates an effective approach for computing plans by learning from examples, rather than through rigid instructions or programs.
"What's particularly exciting is that these methods provide a way forward in a problem that's well known to be computationally unsolvable in the worst case," Srivastava said. "We identified a simpler formulation that is solvable and also covers many useful scenarios."
"It is exciting to see how this breakthrough builds upon NSF-funded efforts tackling a variety of basic-research problems including planning, uncertainty, and task repetition," said Héctor Muñoz-Avila, program director at NSF's Robust Intelligence cluster.
Though laundry robots are an impressive, and potentially time-saving, application of AI, the framework that Srivastava and his team developed can be applied to a range of problems. From manufacturing to space exploration to search-and-rescue operations, any situation where artificially intelligent systems must act, despite some degree of uncertainty, can be addressed with their method.
"Using this approach, solutions to high-level planning can be generated automatically," Srivastava said. "There's more work to be done in this direction, but eventually we hope such methods will replace tedious and error-prone task-specific programming for robots."
-- Aaron Dubrow, NSF
-- Siddharth Srivastava, United Technologies Research Center
Investigators
Siddharth Srivastava
Shlomo Zilberstein
Related Institutions/Organizations
United Technologies Research Center
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Locations
Berkeley , California
Amherst , Massachusetts
Related Programs
Robust Intelligence
Related Awards
#0915071 RI: Small: Foundations and Applications of Generalized Planning
Years Research Conducted
2009 - 2015
Total Grants
$503,519
Human insights inspire solutions for household robots
New algorithms designed by Berkeley and UMass researchers allow autonomous systems to deal with uncertainty
People typically consider doing the laundry to be a boring chore. But laundry is far from boring for artificial intelligence (AI) researchers like Siddharth Srivastava, a scientist at the United Technologies Research Center, Berkeley.
To AI experts, programming a robot to do the laundry represents a challenging planning problem because current sensing and manipulation technology is not good enough to identify precisely the number of clothing pieces that are in a pile and the number that are picked up with each grasp. People can easily cope with this type of uncertainty and come up with a simple plan. But roboticists for decades have struggled to design an autonomous system able to do what we do so casually--clean our clothes.
In work done at the University of California, Berkeley, and presented at the Association for Advancement of Artificial Intelligence conference in Austin, Srivastava (working with Abhishek Gupta, Pieter Abbeel and Stuart Russell from UC Berkeley and Shlomo Zilberstein from University of Massachusetts, Amherst) demonstrated a robot that is capable of doing laundry without any specific knowledge of what it has to wash.
Earlier work by Abbeel's group had demonstrated solutions for the sorting and folding of clothes. The laundry task serves as an example for a wide-range of daily tasks that we do without thinking but that have, until now, proved difficult for automated tools assisting humans.
"The widely imagined helper robots of the future are expected to 'clear the table,' 'do laundry' or perform day-to-day tasks with ease," Srivastava said. "Currently however, computing the required behavior for such tasks is a challenging problem--particularly when there's uncertainty in resource or object quantities."
Humans, on the other hand, solve such problems with barely a conscious effort. In their work, the researchers showed how to compute correct solutions to problems by using some assumptions about the uncertainty.
"The main issue is how to develop what we call 'generalized plans,'" said Zilberstein, a professor of computer science and director of the Resource Bound Reasoning Lab at UMass Amherst. "These are plans that don't just work in a particular situation that is very well defined and gets you to a particular goal that is also well defined, but rather ones that work on a whole range of situations and you may not even know certain things about it."
The researchers' key insight was to use human behavior--the almost unconscious action of pulling, stuffing, folding and piling--as a template, adapting both the repetitive and thoughtful aspects of human problem-solving to handle uncertainty in their computed solutions.
By doing so, they enabled a PR2 robot to do the laundry without knowing how many and what type of clothes needed to be washed.
Out of the 13 or so tasks involved in the laundry problem, the team's system was able to complete more than half of them autonomously and nearly completed the rest--by far the most effective demonstration of laundering AI to date.
The framework that Srivastava and his team developed combines several popular planning paradigms that have been developed in the past using complex control structures such as loops and branches and optimizes them to run efficiently on modern hardware. It also incorporates an effective approach for computing plans by learning from examples, rather than through rigid instructions or programs.
"What's particularly exciting is that these methods provide a way forward in a problem that's well known to be computationally unsolvable in the worst case," Srivastava said. "We identified a simpler formulation that is solvable and also covers many useful scenarios."
"It is exciting to see how this breakthrough builds upon NSF-funded efforts tackling a variety of basic-research problems including planning, uncertainty, and task repetition," said Héctor Muñoz-Avila, program director at NSF's Robust Intelligence cluster.
Though laundry robots are an impressive, and potentially time-saving, application of AI, the framework that Srivastava and his team developed can be applied to a range of problems. From manufacturing to space exploration to search-and-rescue operations, any situation where artificially intelligent systems must act, despite some degree of uncertainty, can be addressed with their method.
"Using this approach, solutions to high-level planning can be generated automatically," Srivastava said. "There's more work to be done in this direction, but eventually we hope such methods will replace tedious and error-prone task-specific programming for robots."
-- Aaron Dubrow, NSF
-- Siddharth Srivastava, United Technologies Research Center
Investigators
Siddharth Srivastava
Shlomo Zilberstein
Related Institutions/Organizations
United Technologies Research Center
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Locations
Berkeley , California
Amherst , Massachusetts
Related Programs
Robust Intelligence
Related Awards
#0915071 RI: Small: Foundations and Applications of Generalized Planning
Years Research Conducted
2009 - 2015
Total Grants
$503,519
Sunday, February 15, 2015
DEPUTY DEFENSE SECRETARY SAYS MORAL STRONG AT ICBM/BOMB WING BASE
Right: Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work tours a B-52 weapons loading training hangar on Minot Air Force Base, N.D., Feb. 11, 2015. Work, who chairs the Nuclear Deterrent Enterprise Review Group, met with nuclear enterprise airmen and toured base facilities. DoD photo by Claudette Roulo.
Deputy Secretary Visits Minot, Notes Strong Morale
By Claudette Roulo
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
ABOARD A MILITARY AIRCRAFT, Feb. 12, 2015 – Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said morale is strong at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, after he visited facilities and spoke with airmen yesterday at the only base to host two legs of the nuclear triad.
Work spent the day visiting the base, home to the 91st Missile Wing, responsible for the operation and maintenance of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the 5th Bomb Wing, which flies the B-52H Stratofortress bomber.
The visit provided the deputy secretary with an opportunity to speak with service members and get a first-hand look at the issues he has been discussing in Washington as chairman of the Nuclear Deterrent Enterprise Review Group.
"Nothing's better than being able to look the troops in the eye and … hear what they're saying," he said. "I now know what a ‘rising B-plug’ is and what it looks like, and I understand all of the different challenges they're facing. It's really good to put eyes on target."
Renewed Effort to Improve Quality of Life
Following a string of incidents dating back to March 2013, when missile-launch crews failed an inspection, the Defense Department has focused renewed effort on improving the quality of life for service members and families at the base.
Some of the facilities the deputy secretary saw during his tour dated back to the 1950s, and are under scrutiny as part of the initiative to reinvigorate the nuclear force.
“These systems are so old that right now what happens is [airmen] will order a part and the part has to be fabricated -- there are not a lot of parts on the shelves -- so it takes longer for them to get parts than they would like,” Work said.
Outdated facilities and equipment haven't stopped the airmen at Minot from performing their mission, Work said. The sign over the base’s gate reads “Only the Best Come North,” and outside-the-box thinking by operators and maintainers is keeping the mission on track, he said.
"Some of the stuff they're doing is just amazing," the deputy secretary said. "The stuff they're doing in there is just unbelievable. … It's because the troops are so damn good, so, the mission-capable rate of the missiles is really quite high. But man, they're so old.”
Airmen Outline Concerns
Work held a private lunch with 12 Air Force maintainers who outlined some of their concerns for the deputy secretary. The airmen agreed that the attention focused on the aging missile and bomber fleets is beginning to bear fruit, he said.
“They've seen the improvements in manning already occurring, they were very happy about that,” the deputy secretary said. “The one area that they're worried about is the overall experience level of the force.”
As manning levels are brought back up, mid-level noncommissioned officers are leading an increasing number of new, inexperienced airmen. At the same time, those NCOs aren’t as experienced as the service would like, Work said.
“That's going to be something that, as the force grows, we'll grow out of it,” the deputy secretary said.
Will the Focus Continue?
The airmen he spoke with all are encouraged by the changes, he said, but they wondered if the attention would continue under the next defense secretary.
“I told them, 'Look, Ash Carter is literally a nuclear physicist. This is one of the areas that he really is both strong on and thinks very much about.' I told them that I thought it would continue, and certainly as long as I was the deputy secretary, it will continue,” Work said.
Morale is high, he said. “The troops were dedicated to the mission,” Work said. “Overall, I was pretty pleased.”
TECHNOLOGY AND SENSING FAILURE
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Warding off failure
Tiny, self-powered sensors push the limits of health and usage monitoring
Imagine a world where bridges, roads, heart valves or knee replacements could monitor themselves and send a warning signal before they fail. Imagine then, if these advanced pieces of technology could power themselves and operate for years without needing any maintenance.
Shantanu Chakrabartty, a researcher at Michigan State University (MSU), has worked for almost a decade on these safety-critical goals. Using four National Science Foundation (NSF) grants since 2006, the associate professor of electrical and computer engineering in MSU's College of Engineering has focused on the fundamental science behind self-powered sensors for health and usage monitoring.
"My part is the core science that drives this technology," Chakrabartty said. "I am interested in the device's physics and in exploring new ways to sense and compute on the sensor. The technology is currently being piloted in different applications, and every new application allows me to optimize the sensor in different ways."
Self-powered sensors developed by Chakrabartty and his collaborators may be attached to or embedded inside bridges, pavements, vehicles, rotating parts and biomedical implants. They can autonomously sense, compute and store cumulative statistics of strain rates, without the aid of batteries.
Tiny sensor networks
With NSF support, Chakrabartty discovered a unique synchrony between the physics of flash memory and the physics of devices that convert mechanical stress into energy.
The innovation, called piezoelectricity-driven hot electron injection (p-IHEI), enables energy-harvesting sensors to be miniaturized.
These tiny sensors can then be embedded inside structures like wind turbines or rotor blades. They can even be placed inside the human body--for instance, in a knee implant or a heart valve.
A network of micro-sized sensors can self-diagnose any catastrophic failure, according to Chakrabartty. Once fully packaged, he hopes the sensor will become an integral part of any "smart" structure, whether it is civil, mechanical or biomechanical.
Remote access to foil failure
The sensors can be remotely retrieved with a smartphone and used to predict the onset of mechanical failure. Users may be alerted to potential problems, minimizing the risk of bodily harm and significantly reducing maintenance costs.
"Currently, we're looking at using a diagnostic ultrasound to retrieve data from the sensors implanted in the body," Chakrabartty said. "This will be highly cost-effective and will be compatible with instrumentation already used by health care professionals."
"My goal is now to explore new biomedical applications of these sensors and push its limits of performance," he said.
One of the new sensor applications is smart sports helmets that diagnose concussions.
"At a time when we all carry sensors in our pockets and on our wrists to monitor many of our daily activities, technology that enables the assessment of the health of critical infrastructure, vital organs or the occurrence of life-threatening events is long overdue and sorely needed," said Massimo Ruzzene, program director in NSF's Engineering Directorate. "Dr. Chakrabartty's innovations in the area of remote, self-powered sensing significantly contributes to this need."
Chakrabartty won an NSF CAREER Award in 2010 for his research in energy-harvesting sensors and processors. Though his Adaptive Integrated Microsystems (AIM) Laboratory at MSU, he has been working on a revolutionary sensing paradigm to help engineers and doctors monitor the health of mechanical structures.
The self-powered sensor research has spawned two U.S. and international patents with several other patents pending. The technology is being marketed by the MSU Technologies Office and has led to the formation of Piezonix, a start-up company based in Michigan.
Key outcomes:
Chakrabartty's technology has led to two issued U.S. patent with several patents pending. The technology also won him the Michigan State University 2012 Innovation of the Year Award, and has created an array of ongoing scientific collaborations.
Nizar Lajnef, assistant professor of civil engineering at MSU, earned his PhD through a related NSF award. His research monitors the degradation of asphalt and bridges. Read more in "Street Smarts – Monitors being created to watch for road and bridge defects."
Formation of Piezonix, a start-up company responsible for commercialization of the self-powered sensing technology.
Several undergraduate senior design projects led to the development of software used for collecting data from the sensors.
Spin-off collaborations include research on smart infrastructure (roads and bridges), smart aircraft skins, smart orthopedic implants, smart heart valves and smart football helmets.
-- Patricia Mroczek, Michigan State University College of Engineering
Investigators
Yang Liu
Niell Elvin
Subir Biswas
Tracey Covassin
Rigoberto Burgueno
Shantanu Chakrabartty
Related Institutions/Organizations
Piezonix LLC
Michigan State University
Warding off failure
Tiny, self-powered sensors push the limits of health and usage monitoring
Imagine a world where bridges, roads, heart valves or knee replacements could monitor themselves and send a warning signal before they fail. Imagine then, if these advanced pieces of technology could power themselves and operate for years without needing any maintenance.
Shantanu Chakrabartty, a researcher at Michigan State University (MSU), has worked for almost a decade on these safety-critical goals. Using four National Science Foundation (NSF) grants since 2006, the associate professor of electrical and computer engineering in MSU's College of Engineering has focused on the fundamental science behind self-powered sensors for health and usage monitoring.
"My part is the core science that drives this technology," Chakrabartty said. "I am interested in the device's physics and in exploring new ways to sense and compute on the sensor. The technology is currently being piloted in different applications, and every new application allows me to optimize the sensor in different ways."
Self-powered sensors developed by Chakrabartty and his collaborators may be attached to or embedded inside bridges, pavements, vehicles, rotating parts and biomedical implants. They can autonomously sense, compute and store cumulative statistics of strain rates, without the aid of batteries.
Tiny sensor networks
With NSF support, Chakrabartty discovered a unique synchrony between the physics of flash memory and the physics of devices that convert mechanical stress into energy.
The innovation, called piezoelectricity-driven hot electron injection (p-IHEI), enables energy-harvesting sensors to be miniaturized.
These tiny sensors can then be embedded inside structures like wind turbines or rotor blades. They can even be placed inside the human body--for instance, in a knee implant or a heart valve.
A network of micro-sized sensors can self-diagnose any catastrophic failure, according to Chakrabartty. Once fully packaged, he hopes the sensor will become an integral part of any "smart" structure, whether it is civil, mechanical or biomechanical.
Remote access to foil failure
The sensors can be remotely retrieved with a smartphone and used to predict the onset of mechanical failure. Users may be alerted to potential problems, minimizing the risk of bodily harm and significantly reducing maintenance costs.
"Currently, we're looking at using a diagnostic ultrasound to retrieve data from the sensors implanted in the body," Chakrabartty said. "This will be highly cost-effective and will be compatible with instrumentation already used by health care professionals."
"My goal is now to explore new biomedical applications of these sensors and push its limits of performance," he said.
One of the new sensor applications is smart sports helmets that diagnose concussions.
"At a time when we all carry sensors in our pockets and on our wrists to monitor many of our daily activities, technology that enables the assessment of the health of critical infrastructure, vital organs or the occurrence of life-threatening events is long overdue and sorely needed," said Massimo Ruzzene, program director in NSF's Engineering Directorate. "Dr. Chakrabartty's innovations in the area of remote, self-powered sensing significantly contributes to this need."
Chakrabartty won an NSF CAREER Award in 2010 for his research in energy-harvesting sensors and processors. Though his Adaptive Integrated Microsystems (AIM) Laboratory at MSU, he has been working on a revolutionary sensing paradigm to help engineers and doctors monitor the health of mechanical structures.
The self-powered sensor research has spawned two U.S. and international patents with several other patents pending. The technology is being marketed by the MSU Technologies Office and has led to the formation of Piezonix, a start-up company based in Michigan.
Key outcomes:
Chakrabartty's technology has led to two issued U.S. patent with several patents pending. The technology also won him the Michigan State University 2012 Innovation of the Year Award, and has created an array of ongoing scientific collaborations.
Nizar Lajnef, assistant professor of civil engineering at MSU, earned his PhD through a related NSF award. His research monitors the degradation of asphalt and bridges. Read more in "Street Smarts – Monitors being created to watch for road and bridge defects."
Formation of Piezonix, a start-up company responsible for commercialization of the self-powered sensing technology.
Several undergraduate senior design projects led to the development of software used for collecting data from the sensors.
Spin-off collaborations include research on smart infrastructure (roads and bridges), smart aircraft skins, smart orthopedic implants, smart heart valves and smart football helmets.
-- Patricia Mroczek, Michigan State University College of Engineering
Investigators
Yang Liu
Niell Elvin
Subir Biswas
Tracey Covassin
Rigoberto Burgueno
Shantanu Chakrabartty
Related Institutions/Organizations
Piezonix LLC
Michigan State University
COMPANY SETTLES SEC ALLEGATIONS OF NOT CONTROLLING ASSOCIATES
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that the former CEO of a global investment services firm’s brokerage subsidiary agreed to pay more than $783,000 and admit wrongdoing to settle a case involving employees under his control misleading customers.
The SEC previously charged ConvergEx Group subsidiaries, which paid $107 million and admitted wrongdoing to settle the charges. The SEC also charged two former employees in that enforcement action, and later separately filed a case against a different former ConvergEx subsidiary CEO that is pending in federal court.
According to the SEC’s complaint against Craig S. Lax filed today in federal court in Newark, N.J., the ConvergEx subsidiaries under his control engaged in a scheme that caused customers to pay substantially higher amounts than the disclosed commissions for buying and selling securities. The scheme involved concealing the practice of routing trading orders to an offshore affiliate in order to take hidden mark-ups and mark-downs commonly referred to as “trading profits” or “TP.” Lax authorized employees to temporarily suspend taking TP when a customer asked for a certain report that could reveal the hidden charges. Lax also authorized the use of a proprietary trading algorithm to hide the charges from a customer in an otherwise transparent market. To avoid potential questions from customers about why one particular trader was located offshore, Lax requested new business cards falsely indicating the trader was located in New York.
In settling the SEC’s charges, Lax additionally agreed to be barred from the securities industry for at least five years.
“Senior executives cannot permit deceptive practices by their subordinates,” said Stephen L. Cohen, an Associate Director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “Lax not only condoned such conduct, but he specifically authorized practices that kept customers in the dark.”
Lax consented to the entry of a judgment, subject to court approval, permanently enjoining him from future violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5. Lax has entered into an agreement to cooperate in the SEC’s ongoing investigation and pending litigation. The amount of any financial penalty to be imposed against Lax will be determined at a later date.
The SEC’s investigation is being conducted by Sarah L. Allgeier, Richard E. Johnston, and Thomas D. Manganello and supervised by Jennifer S. Leete. Litigation is being led by Cheryl L. Crumpton and Kyle M. DeYoung. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Fraud Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Saturday, February 14, 2015
G-7 LEADERS MAKE STATEMENT ON UKRAINE
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
February 13, 2015
G-7 Leaders Statement on Ukraine
We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission welcome the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” adopted by their original signatories on 12th February 2015 in Minsk. Implementation of the “Minsk Package” offers a way forward to a comprehensive, sustainable, and peaceful resolution to the crisis in eastern Ukraine.
However, the G7 remains concerned about the situation in Ukraine, in particular in view of the fighting around Debaltseve where Russian-backed separatist militias are operating beyond the line of contact agreed upon in the Minsk agreements of September 2014, causing numerous civilian casualties. We urge all sides to adhere strictly to the provisions of the Package and to carry out its measures without delay, starting with a ceasefire on the 15th of February. All parties should refrain from actions in the coming days that would hinder the start of the ceasefire. The G7 stands ready to adopt appropriate measures against those who violate the “Minsk package” and therefore intensify the costs for them, in particular against those who do not observe the agreed comprehensive ceasefire and withdrawal of heavy weapons.
We again condemn Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea which is in violation of international law.
The G7 welcomes the agreement in principle reached on the 12th of February by the IMF and the government of Ukraine on a new economic reform program that will be supported by an IMF Extended Fund Facility. The G7 members look forward to prompt consideration of the program by the IMF Executive Board. We are providing financial assistance to support Ukraine. This international assistance will help Ukraine in the ambitious economic reforms it is undertaking to restore economic growth and improve the living standards of the Ukrainian people. We commend the government of Ukraine for its commitment to implement this ambitious reform agenda with regard to economic, rule-of-law, and democratic reforms.
February 13, 2015
G-7 Leaders Statement on Ukraine
We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission welcome the “Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements” adopted by their original signatories on 12th February 2015 in Minsk. Implementation of the “Minsk Package” offers a way forward to a comprehensive, sustainable, and peaceful resolution to the crisis in eastern Ukraine.
However, the G7 remains concerned about the situation in Ukraine, in particular in view of the fighting around Debaltseve where Russian-backed separatist militias are operating beyond the line of contact agreed upon in the Minsk agreements of September 2014, causing numerous civilian casualties. We urge all sides to adhere strictly to the provisions of the Package and to carry out its measures without delay, starting with a ceasefire on the 15th of February. All parties should refrain from actions in the coming days that would hinder the start of the ceasefire. The G7 stands ready to adopt appropriate measures against those who violate the “Minsk package” and therefore intensify the costs for them, in particular against those who do not observe the agreed comprehensive ceasefire and withdrawal of heavy weapons.
We again condemn Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea which is in violation of international law.
The G7 welcomes the agreement in principle reached on the 12th of February by the IMF and the government of Ukraine on a new economic reform program that will be supported by an IMF Extended Fund Facility. The G7 members look forward to prompt consideration of the program by the IMF Executive Board. We are providing financial assistance to support Ukraine. This international assistance will help Ukraine in the ambitious economic reforms it is undertaking to restore economic growth and improve the living standards of the Ukrainian people. We commend the government of Ukraine for its commitment to implement this ambitious reform agenda with regard to economic, rule-of-law, and democratic reforms.
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