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	<title>San Antonio Current — Blogs &#187; Newsmonger</title>
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		<title>Lamar Smith angry that ICE is finally prioritizing spending</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/lamar-smith-angry-that-ice-is-finally-prioritizing-spending/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/lamar-smith-angry-that-ice-is-finally-prioritizing-spending/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 28 Feb 2013 16:36:33 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget cuts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[congressman lamar smith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[criminal justice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ICE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigrant detention]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration and customs enforcement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lamar smith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[scott henson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sequestration]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26257</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; Low-risk, non-violent immigrant detainees released from ICE detention centers?! Cue the outrage from Congressman Lamar Smith in 3, 2  … “Spending cuts are no excuse for releasing thousands of criminal and illegal immigrants into our streets,” the local GOP rep told the daily. “The (Obama) administration is either incompetent and unable to prioritize spending, or reckless. Neither is acceptable.” If he was either A) a true fiscal hawk or B) not a political opportunist willing bait his base by taking potshots whenever immigration&#8217;s in the news (which he most definitely is), then Smith wouldn&#8217;t be so incensed. News broke this week that ICE has released “several hundred” (officials haven&#8217;t divulged a true number) low-risk detainees from its detention centers nationwide to brace for federal spending cuts slated to kick in tomorrow. ICE says none of those released have been convicted of violent crimes. Conservatives, rightly or wrongly, have criticized the Obama Administration for over-hyping the estimated fallout from so-called sequestration, issuing dire projections meant to scare Americans into supporting Obama&#8217;s budget demands when, in reality, the cuts could be spread out in a much less damaging fashion. Ironically for Smith, though, ICE is cutting exactly where it should, releasing immigrant detainees [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/lamar-smith-angry-that-ice-is-finally-prioritizing-spending/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Group hopes to turn Texas into a battleground state</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/group-hopes-to-turn-texas-into-a-battleground-state/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/group-hopes-to-turn-texas-into-a-battleground-state/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:50:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blue state]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[red state]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rick perry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26194</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Texas is a red state. There&#8217;s no denying that. But this lovely shade of crimson has not always graced our fair state. Throughout the 1960s Texas was deep blue. Congress didn&#8217;t see a Republican Senator from 1877 to 1961. But things slowly changed. More Republicans won at the State House and in Congress. It took nearly 40 years, but the GOP locked in control of Texas Senate seats and the governor&#8217;s mansion by the late 1990s. The illusion of unchallenged Republican power in the Lone Star State is a recent development. Enter Battleground Texas, a self-proclaimed “multimillion dollar effort” hoping to again put Democrats in statewide office in Texas. Leading the campaign is Jeremy Bird, who worked as National Field Director for Obama&#8217;s 2012 campaign. Bird&#8217;s first goal is to get as many people registered to vote as possible, a move Democrats hope will channel the growing Latino vote in their favor. Turning Texas purple, then eventually blue, has been an ongoing discussion since last year&#8217;s Presidential Election. Mayor Julián Castro, for his part, has outspokenly predicted Texas turning to swing state, and eventually to a reliable Democratic voting base, in recent months. On CBS&#8217; Face the Nation, Castro told [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/group-hopes-to-turn-texas-into-a-battleground-state/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<title>Watch Castro&#8217;s State of the City speech at noon</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/watch-castros-state-of-the-city-speech-at-noon/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/watch-castros-state-of-the-city-speech-at-noon/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 26 Feb 2013 16:18:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26189</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Watch live streaming video from nowcastsa at livestream.com After a year of pumping his lofty, transformative vision of SA2020, Mayor Julián Castro attempted to define his legacy as something more fundamental at last year&#8217;s State of the City address: early childhood education. “Let me be very frank, it&#8217;s the initiative in my tenure as mayor that I care about the most. … I am willing to stake my entire mayoral tenure on the need to invest in these young people,” Castro said. By the year&#8217;s end, that idea had grown into Pre-K 4 SA, the mayor&#8217;s single most important policy achievement to date. Today Castro will again deliver his State of the City speech at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center. We&#8217;re assuming most of you weren&#8217;t willing/able to shell out the $550 per table for the event. No worry. Check out NOWCastSA at noon. They&#8217;ll be live streaming the whole thing. – Michael Barajas]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/watch-castros-state-of-the-city-speech-at-noon/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Justice Sotomayor benchslaps local prosecutor for racist comments</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/justice-sotomayor-benchslaps-local-prosecutor-for-racist-comments/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/justice-sotomayor-benchslaps-local-prosecutor-for-racist-comments/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 26 Feb 2013 01:04:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[criminal justice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[department of justice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[racism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sam ponder]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sonia sotomayor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26174</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[“It is deeply disappointing to see a representative of the United States resort to this base tactic more than a decade into the 21 st century," Sotomayor wrote.
]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>How the sequester will hit Texas</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/how-the-sequester-will-hit-texas/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/how-the-sequester-will-hit-texas/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 25 Feb 2013 20:47:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget cuts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CONGRESS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sequester]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26115</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[  The White House last night began releasing state-by-state reports detailing how the sequester will unroll (it&#8217;s worth noting some Republicans are already challenging some of the state-specific numbers). According to the Texas fact sheet, here&#8217;s some of what we can expect to happen this year in the Lone Star State unless Congress intervenes to stop the $85 billion in automatic spending cuts set for March 1: Children: Nearly 10,000 kids wont get vaccinations, and about 2,300 would be left without child care. On the education front, nearly 5,000 kids will lose access to Head Start and schools are slated to lose some $68 million in education funding, putting nearly a thousand teacher and aid jobs at risk. Military: The White House report says the sequester would furlough 52,000 civilian Defense Department employees in Texas. A recent Pew Charitable Trust study puts the total jobs lost due to military cuts around 90,000. The state&#8217;s Army and Air Force bases, meanwhile, stand to receive a collective $260 million in cuts. College: Some 5,000 low-income students in the state would lose federal aid to help fund higher education. About 1,500 Texas students would no longer have access to work-study jobs. Environment: Texas [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Judge recommends overturning former SAPD officer&#8217;s child rape conviction</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/judge-recommends-overturning-former-sapd-officers-child-rape-conviction/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/judge-recommends-overturning-former-sapd-officers-child-rape-conviction/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 22 Feb 2013 01:06:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[child safe]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dr nancy kellogg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[frank navarijo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nancy kellogg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio four]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SAPD]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[uthsc]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wrongful conviction]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26080</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; Frank Navarijo was still recovering from a surgery that removed his cancerous prostate when he was accused of raping his daughter in 1998. At trial, Navarijo, a 23-year SAPD veteran and a former Department of Justice contractor, embarrassingly admitted he was incontinent, sometimes forced to wear adult diapers, and impotent during the period he was accused of assaulting his daughter. The girl&#8217;s maternal grandmother, Paula Garza, first came forward with the allegations, claiming the 5 year old made the outcry during a visit one night. The girl&#8217;s account, however, bounced back and forth. The day after the supposed outcry, she told her mother the abuse never happened. She later divulged to a Child Protective Services caseworker, “grandma told a lie … grandma told me to say that,” records show. But by the time she took the stand, the daughter gave a troubling, scattered account of how her father raped her, sometimes with a “pico,” or, as she put it at trial, “a little sharp knife.” Then last November, some 13 years after Navarijo was handed his 20-year prison sentence, the girl testified that her grandmother hated her father and forced her fabricate the story. Based on her testimony, a [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Malcolm X: The Last Speech</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/malcolm-x-the-last-speech/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/malcolm-x-the-last-speech/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 21 Feb 2013 21:39:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Sound and Fury</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[anniversary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[civil rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Enrique Lopetegui]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ilyasah Shabazz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Malcolm X]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Martin Luther King]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26065</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Remembering Malcolm X on the anniversary of his death (Feb. 21, 1965)]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Executing the mentally ill</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/executing-the-mentally-ill/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/executing-the-mentally-ill/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 21 Feb 2013 18:27:23 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[andre thomas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[death row]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[execution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gov. Rick Perry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mental illness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mentally ill]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=26044</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Texas Tribune managing editor Brandi Grissom has a stunning piece in the March issue of Texas Monthly, highlighting the case of convicted murderer Andre Thomas and posing this uncomfortable, big-picture question: What should the system do with the deeply mentally ill who commit horrific crimes? Grissom follows in excruciating detail how the state&#8217;s mental health care system failed Thomas in the years before he brutally murdered his ex-wife Laura Boren, her 1-year-old daughter Leyha, and his 4-year-old son Andre Jr. in 2004. Thomas stabbed each to death before cutting out their hearts, telling authorities, “I thought it was what God wanted me to do.” For years, Thomas has been too mentally ill to be housed on death row. He&#8217;s attempted suicide multiple times. He&#8217;s pulled out both of his eyes, eating one.  Grissom also traces how Thomas bounced from crisis to crisis during his years-long battle with mental illness, never getting the treatment he needed. Texas routinely ranks last in the amount it spends on mental health care per capita, and fewer than one third of Texas children with severe emotional disturbances get treatment. The state&#8217;s penitentiary system is flooded with mentally ill offenders. Three units designed to house severely [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Fox anchor Karen Martinez dies of cancer at age 37</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/fox-anchor-karen-martinez-dies-of-cancer-at-age-37/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/fox-anchor-karen-martinez-dies-of-cancer-at-age-37/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:36:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Sound and Fury</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cancer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Enrique Lopetegui]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jai Roots]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[KABB Fox]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Karen Martinez]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Laurel Dagger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Laurel Portié]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[obituary]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TV]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25928</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Popular KABB Fox anchor Karen Martinez died Tuesday after battling breast cancer since 2010.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/fox-anchor-karen-martinez-dies-of-cancer-at-age-37/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>23</slash:comments>
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		<title>Spain&#8217;s Beatriz Talegón lambasts Socialist International</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/spaniard-beatriz-talegon-lambasts-socialist-international/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/spaniard-beatriz-talegon-lambasts-socialist-international/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 18 Feb 2013 23:57:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Sound and Fury</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Beatriz Talegon]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Enrique Lopetegui]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[International Youth Socialist Union]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Portugal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[socialism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Socialist International]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Spain]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25904</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Fiery Beatriz Talegón, toughest Socialist alive.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/spaniard-beatriz-talegon-lambasts-socialist-international/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<title>World Press Photo champ is Sweden&#8217;s Paul Hansen</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/world-press-photo-champ-is-swedens-paul-hansen/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/world-press-photo-champ-is-swedens-paul-hansen/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:21:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>EL Cine</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[2013]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gaza]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Paul Hansen]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[photo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[photography]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[picture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[press]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[World Press Photo 2012]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25853</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here's the world's best news photograph of 2012.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Sen. Campbell pushes Creationism during SBOE confirmation hearing</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/sen-campbell-pushes-creationism-during-sboe-confirmation-hearing/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/sen-campbell-pushes-creationism-during-sboe-confirmation-hearing/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 13 Feb 2013 22:17:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[creationism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[donna campbell]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[intelligent design]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[kirk watson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SBOE]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas senate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas state board of education]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25744</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Texas State Board of Education still trying to distance itself from its recent tumultuous past. In 2010, as the board revised curriculum standards for the state&#8217;s science and history textbooks, a super-conservative wing led by Don McLeroy made the SBOE the butt of jokes across the country, injecting charged conservative language into the state&#8217;s history standards and attempting to derail the teaching of evolution in the classroom. Watch documentary filmmaker Scott Thurman&#8217;s The Revisionaries for a superb telling of the culture war that played out at the SBOE. This week SBOE chair Barbara Cargill, in her nomination hearing before a Senate committee, promised lawmakers to keep the board from becoming the “circus” it has been in the past. Sen. Kirk Watson, an Austin Democrat, closely questioned Cargill about her somewhat contentious history. In 2011, Cargill told a conservative crowd they could only count on the “true conservative Christians” on the SBOE, like her. Just earlier this month she told another Senate committee that textbook publishers need to “soften” their language on evolution. Still, Watson came away satisfied Cargill could stick to good science and lead the SBOE away from its crazy yesteryears. *Then freshman Sen. Donna Campbell, a San [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
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		<title>Anti-LGBT pastor will again officiate tonight&#8217;s mass marriage ceremony</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/anti-lgbt-pastor-wil-again-officiate-tonights-mass-marriage-ceremony/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/anti-lgbt-pastor-wil-again-officiate-tonights-mass-marriage-ceremony/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 13 Feb 2013 17:46:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[anti lgbt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bexar county]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Equality Texas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LGBT]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lgbt rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mass marriage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pastor joe sullivan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Valentines Day]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25701</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Last year a dozen or so same-sex couples who showed up on the Bexar County Courthouse steps for the annual Valentine&#8217;s midnight marriage ceremony got good ol&#8217; religious rebuke local pastor Joe Sullivan. “He said we were there solely to be repulsive and disgusting,” GetEqual Texas activist Julie Pousson told us back then. “And for more than five minutes he spoke these hateful words to them (same-sex couples).” Though no official agreement exists between the county and Sullivan, the Pastor has been the sole officiant of the midnight mass marriage ceremony for years. Although activists petitioned Commissioners Court and appealed to the County Clerk&#8217;s office, asking that the county tap a pastor who wouldn&#8217;t shout down LGBT couples, Sullivan will again lead tonight&#8217;s ceremony. “I practice forgiveness,” said Bexar County Clerk Gerry Rickhoff. Rickhoff insisted he recently had a long talk with Sullivan, saying, “He was cautioned against making any kind of divisive language against any people in our community. That&#8217;s just not gonna be tolerated.” Rickhoff says he will personally be at tonight&#8217;s ceremony, and that court security will be on standby. We don&#8217;t figure Sullivan is too repentant for his comments last year. After the dustup, we reached [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>10</slash:comments>
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		<title>Texas Civil Rights Project sues City of San Antonio for banning man from City Hall</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/texas-civil-rights-project-sues-city-of-san-antonio-for-banning-citizen-from-city-hall/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/texas-civil-rights-project-sues-city-of-san-antonio-for-banning-citizen-from-city-hall/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 12 Feb 2013 19:39:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[city attorney michael bernard]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[city of san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[civil rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[first amendment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[john foddrill]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[michael bernard]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[michael cuellar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio police department]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Texas Civil Rights Project]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[william mcmanus]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25639</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Texas Civil Rights Project yesterday filed a lawsuit against SAPD Chief William McManus, San Antonio City Attorney Michael Bernard, and the City of San Antonio for the rare practice of banning troublemakers from City Hall and Municipal Plaza. The group sued on behalf of former SA Fire Department contract coordinator Michael Cuellar, one of two disgruntled ex city employees who have received sweeping criminal trespass notices signed by McManus and Bernard. The letter indefinitely bans Cuellar from attending Council meetings, citizens to be heard sessions, or any other public meeting at City Hall or Municipal plaza. Cuellar could face arrest, along with a fine of up to $2,000 and up to six months of jail time, if he violates the ban by stepping foot in City Hall or Muni Plaza. In December we profiled Cuellar and John Foddrill, the other criminal trespass letter recipient with his own bitter fight against the city. The City hasn&#8217;t fully explained why both are banned, and neither have been provided a way to appeal the decision. While Bernard wouldn&#8217;t speak to us for the December piece or provide us with even a general statement about the process of banning citizens from COSA buildings, McManus [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>12</slash:comments>
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		<title>Gemase Lee Simmons guilty on all counts</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/judge-bogus-tv-producermodeling-agent-has-evil-heart-fatally-bent-on-mischief/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/judge-bogus-tv-producermodeling-agent-has-evil-heart-fatally-bent-on-mischief/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Feb 2013 21:32:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gemase Lee Simmons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[judge fred biery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pornography]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reality tv]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[us district court]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[western district of texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25615</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Judge: bogus reality TV producer/modeling agent has an "evil heart fatally bent on mischief" ]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>(Alleged) Dirtbag of the Week: Glen L. Dukes, charged with human trafficking</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/alleged-dirtbag-of-the-week-glen-l-dukes-charged-with-human-trafficking/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/alleged-dirtbag-of-the-week-glen-l-dukes-charged-with-human-trafficking/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2013 23:05:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crack]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[east side]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[east side san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[glen dukes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human trafficking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Prostitution]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio police department]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SAPD]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25609</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Police say Glen L. Dukes lured in at least two East Side women with food, clothing, shelter, and crack cocaine and in exchange pimped them out, took all their earnings, and beat them if they didn&#8217;t obey his commands. Authorities arrested Dukes, 43, this week on two counts of continuous trafficking of persons. If convicted, he could face at least 25 years in prison. And if Dukes&#8217; &#8220;Pimpin,&#8221; &#8220;Menace,&#8221; and &#8220;Thug,&#8221; tattoos scrawled across his face and neck weren&#8217;t creep-tastic enough, when police executed search warrants on two of Dukes&#8217; East Side homes Wednesday they found hidden rooms that had been set up with make-shift walls to allow for secret viewing. Police are still searching for more women who may have been victimized by Dukes, and ask that anyone with more information call 210-207-2313. Fox 29 reports that authorities are also investigating whether Dukes may have been involved with the unsolved murders of two women on East Side last year.  – Michael Barajas]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>Puppy dies after being burned and stuffed in garbage bag</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/puppy-dies-after-being-burned-and-stuffed-in-garbage-bag/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/puppy-dies-after-being-burned-and-stuffed-in-garbage-bag/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Feb 2013 20:50:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[animal care services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Animal Cruelty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dog burned]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[puppy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25420</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[  Well, here&#8217;s a heartbreaking way to start your weekend&#8230; Police are looking for the dirtbag(s) that burned a puppy alive this week. Early this week, a woman found a badly-burned, barely-alive puppy (pictured above) stuffed in a garbage bag and dumped on her front lawn on the 2400 block of Hicks Avenue. According to Animal Care Services, the puppy most likely suffered chemical burns. “The burns were pretty severe,” said spokeswoman Lisa Norwood. “Some were third degree burns … all over his face, his head, ears, tail, back, legs, you name it.” ACS says the puppy died yesterday. Authorities are still looking for leads, and ask that anyone with information call 311. ACS has handed out the above photo, hoping someone might recognize the pup. Those responsible could be prosecuted for animal cruelty. – Michael Barajas Update (Friday, 3:28 pm): Perhaps this isn&#8217;t such a bad time to mention that ACS will host a “Tail-Gate 2013 adoption party” this Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Dog and puppy adoptions will be $25 and cat or kitten adoptions $10. ACS pets are sterilized, vaccinated, microchipped, and its shelter is open for adoptions seven days a week at 4710 State Highway 151.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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		<title>Soules: Castro&#8217;s ethics reforms fall short</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/soules-castros-ethics-reforms-fall-short/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/soules-castros-ethics-reforms-fall-short/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:43:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[carlton soules]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[city council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ethics breach]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ethics review board]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ethics rules]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[government ethics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[julian castro]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Julian Castro]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pat DiGiovanni]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sheryl sculley]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25294</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With recent ethical lapses casting a pall over City Hall, Mayor Julian Castro this month announced the creation of an ethics auditor. The new watchdog position would be responsible “for helping to achieve a high-caliber ethical culture and maintain that culture here.” The move came after Castro and City Manager Sheryl Sculley for months downplayed complaints over the handling of the $300-million Convention Center construction contract, the largest in the city&#8217;s history. The public scoffed and the Express-News hammered away at the clear conflict of interest city leaders were all too willing to overlook (Council unanimously approved the contract) when former Deputy City Manager Pat DiGiovanni helped award the contract to Zachry Corp, whose CEO David Zachry had just helped hire DiGiovanni to his new gig as Centro Partnership CEO (Zachry is vice chair on the non-profit&#8217;s board and helped negotiate DiGiovanni&#8217;s employment). Castro insisted that, if in fact he violated ethics policy, DiGiovanni certainly didn&#8217;t intend to. Sculley said she “wasn&#8217;t pleased with the optics” of the whole deal, but insisted DiGiovanni didn&#8217;t violate city ethics rules. The city&#8217;s Ethics Review Board disagreed, twice ruling DiGiovanni had broken the city&#8217;s ethics code. Northside Councilman Carlton Soules argues that Castro&#8217;s proposed ethics [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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		<title>Lamar Smith cries &#8216;amnesty&#8217; over bipartisan immigration reform plan</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/lamar-smith-cries-amnesty-over-bipartisan-immigration-reform-plan/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/lamar-smith-cries-amnesty-over-bipartisan-immigration-reform-plan/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:44:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[border security]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dream act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[immigration reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lamar smith]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25267</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[There&#8217;s big news this week that a bipartisan group in the U.S. Senate have drafted a framework plan on how to overhaul the nation&#8217;s broken immigration system. There are many questions not answered by the five-page blueprint drafted by the senators that went public Monday. But the proposal would do two major things: further boost enforcement on the U.S.-Mexico border, and finally offer a pathway to citizenship for the nation&#8217;s estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants. Cue reaction from Rep. Lamar Smith (R-San Antonio). A member of the House judiciary subcommittee on immigration, Smith&#8217;s reaction to most reforms floated on the immigration front has become formulaic: Cry amnesty, over and over. Smith said in a written statement: “No one should be surprised that individuals who have supported amnesty in the past still support amnesty. When you legalize those who are in the country illegally, it costs taxpayers millions of dollars, costs American workers thousands of jobs and encourages more illegal immigration. By granting amnesty, the Senate proposal actually compounds the problem by encouraging more illegal immigration.” Other Texas politicos have announced their reservations, too – albeit, not as strongly as Smith. Newly-minted GOP Senator Ted Cruz admitted to finding “good elements [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<title>E-N analysis shows more mismanagement of Bexar County jail under Ortiz</title>
		<link>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/e-n-analysis-shows-more-mismanagement-of-bexar-county-jail-under-ortiz/</link>
		<comments>http://blogs.sacurrent.com/index.php/e-n-analysis-shows-more-mismanagement-of-bexar-county-jail-under-ortiz/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jan 2013 21:03:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>SA DAILY</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Newsmonger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Staff Blogs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bexar county jail]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[overtime spending]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[san antonio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sheriff amadeo ortiz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sheriff ortiz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sheriff pamerleau]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sheriff susan pamerleau]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[texas]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://blogs.sacurrent.com/?p=25214</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[An Express-News analysis of jail records shows just how out of hand staffing problems got at the local jail under former Bexar County Sheriff Amadeo Ortiz. Reviewing records from October 2009 thru September 2012, the daily found Ortiz failed to fill spots temporarily vacated by several jailers that got called for reserve or National Guard duty. While Ortiz could have “double-filled” their spots – permanently hiring a jailer to fill the vacancy, then shifting that jailer to another open position when the staffer returned from military duty – he inexplicably didn&#8217;t in 12 cases (that&#8217;s half of jailers who went on extended military leave). Those dozen jailers in turn racked up more than 28,000 hours of absenteeism, hours that had to be taken over by another jailer working for time-and-a-half pay. Those 12 spots blew up the jail&#8217;s overtime costs, comprising at least 18 percent of the jail&#8217;s overtime spending, the E-N reports. Just days into her new job, Sheriff Susan Pamerleau discovered that overtime costs had left her office in dire financial straits. While Commissioners Court had allotted the sheriff&#8217;s office a quarter million dollars for jailer overtime pay for FY 2013, which started in October, Ortiz&#8217;s office had [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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