Deafweekly March 3, 2010 Deafweekly
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Deafweekly March 3, 2010 deafweekly March 3, 2010 Vol. 6, No. 18 Editor: Tom Willard Deafweekly is an independent news report for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community that is mailed to subscribers on Wednesdays and available to read at www.deafweekly.com. These are the actual headlines and portions of recent deaf-related news articles, with links to the full story. Minor editing is done when necessary. Deafweekly is copyrighted 2010 and any unauthorized use is prohibited. Please support our advertisers; they make it possible for you to receive Deafweekly. SIGN UP HERE for a free subscription. Be sure to open the confirmation email and click on the link to activate your subscription. It is required by law and prevents others from signing you up without your permission. Last issue's most-read story: TWO FORMER EXECUTIVES OF VRS COMPANY PLEAD GUILTY TO DEFRAUDING FCC PROGRAM / PR Newswire Last week's website page views: 5,240 Deafweekly subscribers as of today: 3,672 ADVERTISE IN DEAFWEEKLY FOR AS LITTLE AS $18.46 PER WEEK. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ NATIONAL +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Akron, OH DEAF JUROR SHOULD HAVE BEEN EXCLUDED IN DROWNING TRIAL, OHIO SUPREME COURT RULES The Ohio Supreme Court ruled today that a judge should have excused a deaf juror in a murder case involving a Fairlawn man. The court's decision means a new trial will be held for Scott Speer, who was accused of murdering his friend, James Barnett of Barberton. Barnett, 39, drowned in Lake Erie after falling off -- or, as prosecutors alleged, being pushed from -- a boat into choppy nighttime waters near Port Clinton. The 6th District Court of Appeals concluded he didn't receive a fair trial because a hearing-impaired woman was on the jury and she couldn't fully comprehend the vocal nuances in Speer's 911 call, a key piece of evidence in the case. / Akron Beacon Journal Washington, D.C. FCC REAFFIRMS RULES AND POLICIES OF VIDEO RELAY SERVICE http://www.deafweekly.com/backissues/030310.htm[6/23/2011 10:19:14 AM] Deafweekly March 3, 2010 Last Thursday, as a step toward comprehensive reform of Video Relay Service (VRS), the Commission’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau issued a Declaratory Ruling to reaffirm the FCC’s rules and policies concerning VRS reimbursement and calling practices, and maximize efficiency and effectiveness of this program to ensure that the communications needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing consumers are met. Bureau Chief Joel Gurin said: “Today’s action is a first step in fixing a system that is broken. It is essential to keep VRS on a sound footing." / FCC News Rocklin, CA PURPLE FILES EMERGENCY STAY REQUEST AND EVALUATES OPTIONS BASED ON RISK OF INSOLVENCY Purple Communications, Inc. has filed an Emergency Stay Request and Application for Review with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in order to grant the company due process regarding the FCC's withholding of funds owed to Purple. Absent an immediate release of funds, Purple will soon be insolvent, forcing either a bankruptcy proceeding or liquidation of Purple. A liquidation of Purple would result in a loss of more than 1,000 jobs, a significant percentage of which are held by deaf or hard of hearing employees and the termination of all relay- and on-site interpreting services provided to the deaf community. / Purple Detroit, MI DETROIT BUS HITS, KILLS WOMAN DURING SAFETY TEST-DRIVE A Detroit city worker test-driving a bus for safety hit and killed a woman today on the city's west side, according to police. Killed was Ethel Davis, 49, a woman known as Miss Jazz to those who lived in her neighborhood a couple of blocks from where she died at Livernois and Courtland. "All of this is a shock," said her niece Shonda Jones, 31, of Detroit. Born deaf, Davis didn't work but was very involved with her family, who are devastated about the accident, Jones said. / Detroit Free Press New York, NY COPS NAB AIDE IN ALLEGED SEX ATTACK ON MAN AT HOSPITAL Cops have arrested an employee at Kings County Hospital's new psychiatric unit on charges of raping a disabled male patient in the shower, the Daily News has learned. Sources said the victim is developmentally disabled, deaf and mute. He reported the sexual attack two weeks ago to relatives, who notified hospital staff. Larry Taylor, 30, was charged last Wednesday with a forcible sex act and sex abuse. / NY Daily News Pocatello, ID MAN PLACED ON PROBATION FOR LEWD CONDUCT WITH 6-YEAR-OLD A local man convicted of felony lewd conduct was placed on probation Monday after successfully completing a six-month prison diversionary program. Daniel Lloyd, 34, was sentenced to a five-year fixed, five-year indeterminate sentence by now-retired Sixth District Judge Peter D. McDermott in August. McDermott placed Lloyd in the retained jurisdiction program -- also known as a rider -- for six months so the underlying criminal behavior could be addressed in a boot camp-like setting. Lloyd’s counsel at his sentencing had expressed concern that his client, who is deaf, would do poorly in the rider and in prison due to his hearing impairment. / Idaho State Journal Buffalo, NY MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO ALTERING LOTTERY TICKET A Buffalo, New York, man has admitted he altered a Mega Millions lottery ticket to make it look he'd won a $252 million jackpot. The New York Lottery last Thursday announced that 26-year-old Yann Spindler of Buffalo, entered a plea of guilty to charges of attempted Grand Larceny in the fourth degree, in connection with an altered Mega Millions ticket Spindler presented at the Lottery's Buffalo Customer Service Center on August 26, 2009. Upon his arrest, Spindler, a 2002 graduate of the New York State School for the Deaf, told police he altered the ticket because he wanted money to open a school for the deaf. / Lottery Post Dayton, OH http://www.deafweekly.com/backissues/030310.htm[6/23/2011 10:19:14 AM] Deafweekly March 3, 2010 FAMILY SERVICES ASSOCIATION SETTLES DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT Family Services Association, Inc., a Dayton-based community service provider, has agreed to settle a disability discrimination filed on behalf of a former employee who is hearing impaired, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Monday. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in September 2008, charged that FSA refused to promote Deron Emmons because of his disability. The FSA made Emmons “an inferior and disingenuous offer” to be director of Community Services for the Deaf “under terms he could not accept,” according to a statement released by the EEOC. / Dayton Daily News Sioux Falls, SD CSD RAISES OVER $10K FOR HAITI DISASTER RELIEF EFFORTS CSD, the nation’s largest deaf and hard of hearing service organization, announced today it will be sending over $10,000 to two separate Haiti entities to assist them in serving their deaf, hard of hearing and other disabled population in the wake of Haiti’s recent national disaster. Employees from around the nation participated in this fundraiser in various capacities, either by simply donating cash or buying “Jeans for Haiti” coupons, which allowed staff to wear jeans for one day; purchasing Candygrams with flowers for their fellow coworkers; buying custom-made Valentines for office friends and colleagues; and several other means. / CSD Warwick, RI R.I. SCHOOL FOR DEAF FACULTY LACKING QUALIFICATIONS The entire faculty of the Rhode Island School for the Deaf -- about 35 teachers -- has been put on notice that they will be laid off at the end of the school year if they do not meet the professional qualifications required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act. For many years, the state has required a certification for teachers of deaf and hard-of-hearing students that emphasizes special skills in communication but does not address particular areas of academic study. But the No Child Left Behind Act, enacted in 2002, requires certified teachers to have expertise in the content areas in which they teach, whether it be English, math, history or the sciences. / The Providence Journal Council Bluffs, IA MOTHER BATTLING FOR DEAF DAUGHTER'S SAFETY When Maggie Wittland and her husband found out that their little girl Hannah was partially deaf and suffering from significant hearing loss, Maggie says it came as a shock. "I have to admit that when we found out, it was probably our darkest day," she says. But since the realization, the couple says they've grown even closer to their youngest daughter. It's one reason Maggie wants to see a Deaf Child sign placed on her Council Bluffs street. "All I'm asking for is a sign to have drivers be aware that there is a child with limited hearing," she says. / KPTYM FOX 42 See also: CITY REVERSES STANCE ON 'DEAF CHILD' SIGNAGE / Daily Nonpareil Pompano Beach, FL PARENTS: POMPANO PRESCHOOL LEAVES DEAF KIDS IN THE DARK When Latrice Safford first brought her son to Baby Boomers International Preschool in Pompano Beach last August, she noticed some strange things about the classroom. There was no chalkboard, no desks, no alphabet poster on the wall. But the worst part, she says, was that the teacher didn't speak sign language. Safford's 4-year-old son, Jermeko Harris, is deaf. He can put on his shoes, use the potty, and warm up Hot Pockets in the microwave. But he can't hear what his teacher is saying, and it leaves him endlessly http://www.deafweekly.com/backissues/030310.htm[6/23/2011 10:19:14 AM] Deafweekly March 3, 2010 frustrated.