Recent works have considered the use of a linear combination of separable filters to approximate a non-separable filter bank (FB) to obtain computational advantages in CNNs and convolutional sparse representations / coding (CSR / CSC). However, it has been recently shown that there are advantages to directly solving the convolutional dictionary learning (CDL) problem considering a separable FB.
A separable filter bank of M 2-d filters is typically constructed from a paired set of M horizontal filters and M vertical filters. In contrast, here we propose an outer product construction involving all possible combinations of vertical and horizontal filters, so that M vertical and M horizontal filters generate M 2 2-d filters. Our computational experiments show that this alternative form results in a reduction in computation time of 10% and 80% for the CDL and CSC problems respectively, while matching the reconstruction performance of the typical separable FB approach for the same cardinality.


Palestinian youth activists Yousef Nijim and Faris Arouri, in collaboration with the Dutch NGO "Send a Message Foundation," are engaged in a nonviolent campaign to combat the oppressive infrastructure of Israeli occupation. Setting their sites on the separation barrier which destructively meanders through Palestinian life and land, they assert their international solidarity and national identity through graffiti art. Stenciling words, images and ideals loftier than the heights of their concrete canvas, they hope to draw international attention to the plight of the Palestinian people. In an article on the Palestine News Network, Nijim notes that "The messages bond people to this place." He believes that engaging with the Wall is the best way to resist it. "If you don't deal with it, it won't be gone," he adds.
This artistic and creative approach to resisting the occupation and denouncing the wall has led to confrontation with Israeli Occupation Forces, yet Nijim notes that the army is generally reluctant to interfere with their projects. "I would say [there have been] a few face to face encounters," he says. "But the whole project is about media, so they stay away from us." Criticism of their work is not exclusive to Israeli forces, but also comes from Palestinians who believe they are trying to capitalize on the Wall. On the whole, however, local sentiment continues to be encouraging and supportive of the work that Send a Message is doing.
I recall the moments of my work organizing protests and demonstrations against the wall in Qalqilya and Jayyous with the International Solidarity Movement. I remember the bouts of frustration that led many youth to attempt to dismantle portions of the wall, only to be met with harsh reprisals and collective punishment by the Israeli Occupation Forces. As in Jayyous and other rural areas of the West Bank, not all portions of the barrier are concrete but rather chain link fences reinforced with steel and barbed wire. Graffiti is not an option there. Soldiers would often close the barrier's entry/exit points and deny farmers access to their lands if they found evidence that locals were attempting to tamper with or destroy any portion of the barrier.
But Palestinians must continue to imbue their own lives with meaning in the ways that they see fit given their circumstances. And those struggling in the path of nonviolence must be even more creative, patient and enduring. The fact remains that the Wall must fall. Whether concrete or fence, none of it is morally sustainable nor can it resist the tides of justice. The writing on the wall reminds us all.


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The Defamation Suit Against Rachel Maddow: Why It Should Fail
Updated: 29 Apr 2012
Julie Hilden
Posted in: Speech and Religion
Bradlee Dean is a Christian preacher and metal music performer who calls homosexuality an "abomination"; blames the "homosexual agenda" for America's problems; and claims to seek the restoration of Judeo-Christian and family values. Recently, Dean sued television host and commentator Rachel Maddow, NBC Universal, and MSNBC for defamation based on two segments that Maddow had aired about Dean, and additional comments that Maddow had made about Dean on her show. (The material on Dean in the two segments, which together constitute a single YouTube video, starts at 1:58.) Dean also sued the Minnesota Independent and its reporter, but here, I'll focus on the Maddow claims.
On April 16, Maddow's attorneys moved to get Dean's defamation case dismissed now, at the very beginning of the litigation, under D.C.'s Anti-SLAPP law. (SLAPP is an acronym for Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation; Anti-SLAPP laws were passed to address the problem of frivolous defamation suits, the real motive of which was to silence the speaker.)
Based on the allegations in Dean's complaint, Maddow should prevail on her Anti-SLAPP motion.
Dean claims in his complaint that Maddow defamed him by making the following statements: (1) Dean and his organization You Can Run But You Cannot Hide International ("YCR") advocated the execution of gays; (2) Dean and YCR advocated using foreign enemies against America because Christians aren't doing the job by killing gays and lesbians; and (3) Dean and YCR are "bloodthirsty" and have called for the "upping of the bloodshed" in America's culture wars.
Maddow's Abridged Version of What Dean Said on the Radio, and Her Later Comments About Dean
The defamation issue here is a bit complicated because Maddow broadcast an abridged version of Dean's remarks, as follows (Maddow's omissions are in bold.):
Muslims are calling for the execution for homosexuals in America, this was just released yesterday and it shows you that they themselves are upholding the laws that are even in the Bible, the Judeo Christian God. They seem to be more moral than even the American Christians do. Because these people are livid about enforcing their laws, they know homosexuality is an abomination. And I continually reach out to the homosexual communities on this radio show, and I warn them, which ones love? Here you have Obama condemning it behind the backs of the homosexuals but to their faces he's promoting it. I say this to my gay friends out there the ones that continuously nitpick everything I say. Hollywood is promoting immorality and the God of the Heavens in Jesus names is warning you to flee from the wrath to come, yet you have Muslims calling for your execution. If America won't enforce the laws, God will raise up a foreign enemy to do just that's what you're seeing in America today. Read Leviticus 26 America.
Maddow also ran Dean's later disclaimer stating that he has "never and will never call for the execution of homosexuals," although Dean takes issue with the querying tone of voice in which Maddow read the disclaimer.
In addition, Maddow reportedly called Dean (along with Michele Bachmann) part of the "bloodthirsty" contingent of social conservatism, and characterized Dean as having called for the "upping of the bloodshed."
Evaluating the Libel Claims That Dean Has Brought Against Maddow: The Abridgment
There is no question as to whether Dean actually said what Maddow claimed he said. Thus, the only possible argument grounding a libel lawsuit, here, would have to come from (1) Maddow's abridgment of Dean's lengthy statement, (2) her characterization of Dean as belonging to the "bloodthirsty" part of social conservatism, or (3) her characterization of Dean as calling for an "upping of the bloodshed."
Regarding the abridgement of Dean's statement, set forth above, the abridged statement did omit some remarks about Dean's reaching out to homosexual communities and persons. Yet those remarks simply pale in comparison to Dean's expression, in the same set of remarks, of admiration for Muslims who call for the execution of homosexuals—calling them "more moral" than American Christians.
If someone thinks it's moral to call for your execution, it hardly softens the bite to know that he'd also like to offer you community outreach and has done so to people like you in the past. Thus, while some defamation claims can be based on misleading abridgments of texts, this surely isn't one of them.
Indeed, as Dean himself is an American Christian, his remarks seem to imply that Dean sees those Muslims who call for the execution of gay people as even more moral than he himself is. If so, then he's not only applauding those who call for the killing of gay people, he's actually putting them on a pedestal. Again, no amount of outreach to gay people could ever soften the sting of that position.
Granted, Dean may see Maddow's abridgement of his words as unfair in what it left out. In particular, his defamation complaint, in paragraph 14, claims that he and YCR "stated publicly on many occasions that they did not advocate the executions of gays, but that to the contrary gays should be loved as the Children of God." He clearly thinks Maddow should have mentioned this in her broadcast.
Even assuming that this is true, however, it only means that Dean made two contradictory statements—one suggesting that calling for gay people's execution is moral, and one saying that gay people should be loved as the Children of God.
Faced with that contradiction, it was eminently reasonable for Maddow—if she even knew about the "loved as the children of God" stance—to decide that that stance was the disingenuous one of the two.
The "Bloodthirsty" Statement
Moving on to the other comments Maddow made, I believe that it is fair, based on Dean's admiration for those who call for the execution of gay people, to call him "bloodthirsty," especially as the word "bloodthirsty" is metaphorical, and can have a number of meanings. And, one such meaning would surely be "welcoming violence," which is exactly what Dean did when he expressed admiration for Muslims who call for the execution of gay people.
At worst, then, Maddow in using the word "bloodthirsty" indulged here in what libel law calls "rhetorical hyperbole"—fanciful language that might be a bit exaggerated or poetic, but is not properly deemed to be grounds for a defamation suit.
Defamation law deals with statements of fact, not literary devices such as metaphors and similes—which can be apt or inapt, and poorly-fitting or well-fitting, but are no more true or false than, say, a poem or song is.
The "Upping of the Bloodshed" Statement
Finally, Maddow's reported characterization of Dean as calling for an "upping of the bloodshed" poses a slightly more difficult question. As I noted just above, Dean expressed admiration for Muslims who call for the executions of gay people, deeming them "more moral" than even American Christians like himself. Thus, Dean certainly seems to welcome whatever bloodshed will come at the hands of the anonymous Muslims to whom he's referring.
But does Dean also want more such bloodshed, as Maddow suggested by her "upping" comment? You could read Dean's comments about God raising up a foreign enemy as seeking more violence, or as just predicting it.
Still, the subtlety here—the difference between applauding violence, which Dean surely did, and seeking more of it, which he arguably did not quite do—is probably too fine for defamation law to parse. And no court, I believe, would entertain such hair-splitting for long, let alone award damages to Dean on such a slim legal reed.
In the end, the goal of libel law is to remedy genuine reputational damage. And once a person has voluntarily taken the reputational hit associated with applauding calls to execute innocent people simply because they are gay, in the eyes of most people, he doesn't have much further to fall. Thus, it's probably Dean himself who has most harmed his own reputation here. Moreover, Maddow's reading of Dean's statement on air—despite Dean's qualms about her tone—should remedy some substantial part of any reputational damage Maddow's words inflicted on Dean.
Ultimately, I don't believe any court is likely to entertain this suit for very long, although it will be interesting to see if the Anti-SLAPP motion is granted, or if a later motion disposes of the case.
Either way, Dean—who openly applauds hate crimes perpetrated on innocent victims as moral, then turns around and asks a court to protect him from mere criticism of his views—may well find that his plea falls on deaf ears.
Author: Julie Hilden
Julie Hilden, a former Justia columnist, graduated from Yale Law School, practiced First Amendment law at the D.C. law firm of Williams & Connolly from 1996-99 and wrote about First Amendment issues for over a decade. Hilden was also a novelist. In reviewing Hilden's novel, 3, Kirkus Reviews praised Hilden's "rather uncanny abilities," and Counterpunch called it "a must read... a work of art."
Follow @JulieHilden on Twitter
One response to "The Defamation Suit Against Rachel Maddow: Why It Should Fail"
Apache Cheynne says:
Julie, What you have brought forth is enough to make me believe that our Constitution is founded on peaceful accord for all people against violence. You have brought forth something I missed in News worthy stories. Thank You for what you have provided against all the superficial backlog of news stories that cross my state because of political favortism.
The First Amendment is so important and how we allow people to speak without being a victim of violence or to aim words to envoke violence on another. No one person should be held in greater accord than what the Judges have been elected to do even when states sabotage the rights of those who do not follow the co-culture of those hired within states.
Rachel Maddow is very educated, thought provoking and stands as a human being not swayed by indifference but by what is truthful. This man Bradlee Dean may be a preacher that brings no merit to my Chrisitian beliefs because my beliefs are based on the manner in which I was to obey the Ten Commandments but to not speak or hurt another based on their belief. Religion is not God nor is Man above God or Law. Thank You for Sharing This!
Animal Rights Activists Should Have Clear Notice of the Bounds of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA)
A Ninth Circuit Decision Sends A Message On Public School Student Uniforms
A Ninth Circuit Panel Balances First Amendment Rights Against School Safety
Gawker Media Versus Hulk Hogan: A Court Fight Over a Sex Tape
The Ninth Circuit Holds—Correctly—That a Blogger Has the Same Defamation Protection as a Journalist
A Battle Between A Rapper And A Notorious Former Cocaine Dealer Over Intellectual Property Rights Ends Up in a California Court
Publications by Julie Hilden
A Contractarian View of Animal Rights: Insuring Against the Possibility of Being a Non-Human Animal
by Julie Hilden

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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There is a "love hate" relationship with policital parties. There are many who "hate" the fact that party MPs or MPPs are loyal to the parties and not to their consituents. On the other hand, there are many who see Independent Candidates has having a harder time winning elections.
We are now seeing "parties of independent candidates". For example, in Ontario, in the October 2011 election, Onarians were introduced to the Canadians Choice Party – a party of Independent Candidates. In Quebec, the CAQ is a party (at least according to the following article) formed largely from Independent Candidates.
See the following article:
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/1085378–a-powerful-new-party-rises-in-quebec
Jacques Boissinot/THE CANADIAN PRESS
Andrew Chung Quebec Bureau
MONTREAL—No one will say it now, but people like Benoit Charette could be one of the first faces of a movement that is turning Quebec politics on its head.
In June, he dumped the Parti Québécois, for which he acted as the immigration critic and is sitting as an independent for the riding of Deux Montagnes, northwest of Montreal. But over the summer, he said, he found himself more and more captivated by the new Coalition pour l'avenir du Québec.
"I find it interesting, and I think many Quebecers are on the same page," Charette said. "For the first time in 40 years we are proposing to bring people together on a base different from the national question. It's refreshing."
Come the next legislative session early in 2012, he and a handful of other independents and members of the rightist party Action démocratique du Québec, could become members of the CAQ.
On Monday, the new party will officially join the restless Quebec political landscape, but unlike most start-ups, this one stands a good chance at winning power.
Polls say if an election were held today, François Legault's new party would win. Support for his coalition at 39 per cent, the Liberals at 22 per cent, the PQ at 17 per cent and the ADQ at 11 per cent.
Led by a former ardent sovereignist within the PQ, the coalition believes strongly that Quebec has big problems with its economy, debt, health and education systems that must be tackled before the old federalism-sovereignty debate.
Legault's remarkable polling numbers — coming before his party is even formally launched — comes from a general appetite for his ideas, to put off any referendum and focus on the economy, for instance, but also from the current upheaval in provincial politics.
The Liberals are dogged by corruption allegations and a premier who appears out of touch. The PQ faces internal squabbling, backstabbing and resignations, fuelled by an inability of leader Pauline Marois to capitalize on the Liberals' problems.
"People have the impression that nothing is going on in Quebec and they want to see change," said Legault's spokesperson, Jean-François Del Torchio. "What Mr. Legault is proposing is positive change."
Legault was not doing interviews before the Monday launch, but he is sufficiently a threat to Premier Jean Charest and Marois that both are both questioning his motives and leadership.
Recalling that Legault has called himself a "leftist sovereignist," Charest said earlier this week that "the people know what they're getting with a Liberal government, not with a party led by a former péquiste minister who has put aside sovereignty."
The sovereignty issue has been a touchy one. Legault says he's been a sovereignist his whole life, and used to be the PQ's most vocal pusher of independence.
But since leaving the party and founding the coalition he has managed to attract prominent federalists, including his coalition founding partner Charles Sirois. Del Torchio, for instance, worked with three federal Liberal leaders, including most recently, Michael Ignatieff.
"What he's saying," Del Torchio explained, "is that he's not going to promote sovereignty. Nobody wants to hear about it anymore. Quebecers want to see the real challenges tackled."
Legault, 54, is married with two teenaged children. His wife, Isabelle Brais, runs a high-end clothing store in Montreal's trendy Plateau neighbourhood. He grew up in a household of modest income, his father a postmaster, his mother a homemaker.
But he became a successful businessman, co-founding Air Transat, before turning to politics. Within the PQ government in the 1990s, he headed several ministries, including education and health. As a critic, he dealt with finance.
For Charette, the party might be ideal; he left the PQ precisely because Marois wasn't promising hold off on a referendum. Sovereignty, for him, remains an ideal but is the "dream of a young man." He'd prefer to work on pressing issues until such time as the debate is viable again.
For Marc Picard, another independent legislator and former member of the ADQ, the coalition fits his style for ideological reasons. It has a centre-right orientation. "The coalition wants to tell the truth to the citizens," Picard says, "and it has the courage to . . . deal with things that have never been dealt with, like the debt."
Legault's team is preparing an "action plan" to present Monday. He's proposing to cut thousands of government jobs, do away with school boards and mid-level heath agencies, raise teachers' and doctors' salaries, use resource royalties to pay down the debt, and finally make Quebec a "have" province.
Whether from genuine support of his ideas or traditional party malaise, polls indicate Legault would win the premier's seat.
The figure of 39 per cent support for the coalition, reported in the CROP poll of 1,000 Quebecers in late October, would translate into a landslide 102 of the province's 125 seats, according to the website threehundredeight.com.
And if the coalition and the ADQ merge — a real possibility — the party would get a whopping 48 per cent of the vote, something a CROP executive called "surreal."
These numbers spell catastrophe for Marois.
Despite record support at the party's congress last April, she has had to deal with a kind of ongoing mutiny. Last spring, five prominent members quit the caucus. In late October several caucus members, fearing Bloc Québécois -style obliteration, were said to urge her to pass the torch. There have been resignations in local riding associations. One Laval association sent a letter to her last week asking her to go.
But following Monday's party launch, Charest and Marois will have their work cut out for them. So, too, will Legault.
The honeymoon period will come to an end. Legault, however, has committed to give 10 years more of public service.
It could be a long romance.
This entry was posted in Democracy on November 13, 2011 by admin.
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text:
newswire article reposts united states 28.Jun.2004 01:03
In Surprise Move, Coalition Transfers Power in Iraq Early, Bremer to Leave Sometime Today
author: A WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE NEWS ROUNDUP
BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The U.S.-led coalition transferred sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government Monday, speeding the move by two days in an apparent bid to surprise insurgents who may have tried to sabotage the step toward self rule.
Legal documents transferring sovereignty were handed over by U.S. governor L. Paul Bremer to interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi in a ceremony in the heavily guarded Green Zone.
"This is a historical day," Mr. Allawi said. "We feel we are capable of controlling the security situation."
Mr. Bremer will leave Iraq sometime Monday, coalition officials told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
"You have said, and we agreed, that you are ready for sovereignty," Mr. Bremer said in the ceremony. "I will leave Iraq confident in its future."
Iraq's foreign minister suggested earlier Monday that the transfer of sovereignty could be moved up, media reports said. Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari spoke on the sidelines of a NATO summit after meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
"We will challenge these elements in Iraq, the antidemocratic elements, by even bringing the handover of sovereignty before June 30 as a sign we are ready for it," Mr. Zebari was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Arab television broadcast videotape Sunday of two men taken hostage by militants, one described as a U.S. Marine lured from his base and the other a Pakistani driver for an American contractor. Insurgents threatened to behead them both.
Also, militants hit a coalition transport plane with small arms fire after takeoff from Baghdad's airport, killing an American passenger and forcing the aircraft to return. Turkey rejected demands by militants threatening to behead three Turkish hostages unless Turkish companies cease business with U.S. forces in Iraq.
Death threats against hostages as well as insurgent attacks on U.S. and Iraqi security forces have accelerated as Iraq's interim government prepares to assume sovereignty Wednesday.
Turkey rejected the demands of Islamic militants who are threatening to behead three of its kidnapped citizens during a visit by President Bush to Turkey. Meanwhile, a bombing south of Baghdad killed more than 20 people.
The Arab satellite television network Al-Jazeera broadcast a videotape purportedly of a Marine taken hostage by a militant group threatening to behead him if the U.S. military did not release all prisoners in Iraq.
The tape showed a blindfolded, mustached man, and displayed a Marine identification card in the name of Wassef Ali Hassoun. Al-Jazeera said he was of Pakistani origin.
Al-Jazeera said the militants demanded the release of all Iraqis "in occupation jails" or the man would be killed. The group claimed it infiltrated a Marine outpost, lured the man outside and abducted him.
Write to the Online Journal's editors at newseditors@wsj.com
homepage: http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB108840466948348940,00.html?mod=special_coverage


Bored by Cotswold Morris? You've heard of real bread and real ale?
Have a look at Silurian Border Morrismen of Ledbury's site to find out what Real Morris is all about.
The first theatre in the world to open in 2000 was The Market Theatre in Ledbury, Herefordshire.
Check out items I have For Sale!
Sometimes during an eclipse, the moon is too far away to cover the Sun's disc completely. Such an occasion was the Annular Eclipse of 3rd October 2005, which I witnessed during a cycling holiday in Spain.
WARNING In 2013, I was diagnosed with possible sun damage to my right eye - despite wearing the recommended glasses whilst viewing these eclipses. This seems strange owing to the passing of over 13 years, but it does look like such damage takes time to become apparent. In my case, a developing cataract highlighted it.
Total lunar eclipses, though not so spectacular, occur more frequently and can be seen from anywhere that the moon is visible. Often, light is refracted by the earth's atmosphere to create a 'blood moon'. This is due to red light being refracted more than other colours, as in a prism.
There was a good one the night of 3rd - 4th March 2007 - see here.
Further on matters astronomical, check out Celestia - a fantastic solar system (and further afield) simulator that runs under Windows. The best part is that it's free!! You'll need a good graphics card, but otherwise it works reasonably well on an 800MHz machine. If you get into using its script files to re-run eclipses, etc, you will need a Julian Date calculator. My version, which was cribbed from the US Navy's site, also works in timezones east of London(?!?) - see more.
Want an accurate clock? Click here for an explanation of why the US government's official clock doesn't necessarily display the correct time for your local timezone. Also included is a link to a very useful site that can display an accurate clock within an IFRAME on your own website.
Have a look here for other utilities I have amassed..


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text:
THE PEOPLE v. PHILIP RAYMOND MEJIA
Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division 2, California.
THE PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. PHILIP RAYMOND MEJIA, Defendant and Appellant.
Decided: November 22, 2016
Jennifer A. Gambale, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant. Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Julie L. Garland, Assistant Attorney General, Charles C. Ragland and Kathryn Kirschbaum, Deputy Attorneys General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
Defendant and appellant Philip Raymond Mejia appeals his conviction for torture, spousal rape, spousal abuse, and criminal threats. We reject his contention that the court should have conducted a hearing pursuant to People v. Marsden (1970) 2 Cal.3d 118 (Marsden) based on defendant's statements during a hearing on his request to represent himself and his contentions concerning the improper admission of evidence. We agree, however, that the trial court erred in imposing an unstayed sentence on count 3. Accordingly, we will remand the matter with directions to stay imposition of that sentence.
Defendant was charged with one count of torture (Pen. Code, § 206; count 1);1 one count of spousal rape with tying and binding (§ 262, subd. (a)(1); count 2); one count of corporal injury to a spouse (§ 273.5, subd. (a); count 3); and one count of criminal threats (§ 422; count 4). As to all four counts, the information alleged that defendant administered methamphetamine to the victim in the commission of the offenses.
A jury returned guilty verdicts on all four counts. It found the allegation of tying and binding true, but found the allegation of administration of methamphetamine not true as to all counts.
The trial court imposed the upper term of four years in state prison on count 3, with a consecutive term of eight months on count 4. On count 2, the court imposed a term of 15 years to life, and on count 1, it imposed a term of seven years to life in state prison. Defendant filed a timely notice of appeal.
Defendant and the victim met when she was 15 years old. When she was 18 or 19 years old, they were married. By the time the victim was 20 years old, she had three children. She and defendant used methamphetamine together but stopped when the third child was born. From the beginning, defendant said "mean things" to the victim and would sometimes hit her. In approximately March 2013, when defendant lost his job, his abusiveness slowly got worse. On one occasion, defendant burned her leg with a methamphetamine pipe when she said she did not want to smoke the drug. On another occasion, he hit her all over her body with a wooden flute. Other times, he hit her on her head with his hands.
The victim suspected that defendant had cheated on her, but she "couldn't question what he was doing." Talking back to defendant or not wanting to do what he asked would "set him off." In order to start a conversation about infidelity, she told him, untruthfully, that she had cheated on him. He was angry and talked about punishing her. He said there were "consequences." On other occasions, defendant would handcuff her to the bed frame and make her lie on the floor. They had occasionally used the handcuffs during sex, for "fun purposes," but after that, it "wasn't fun anymore." Defendant would sometimes leave her handcuffed to the bed for hours or days at a time. While she was handcuffed, she was not able to eat or drink water. Defendant would "sometimes" allow her to go to the bathroom, but sometimes she was forced to "go" on herself. The handcuffs sometimes cut or bruised her wrists.
At some point, defendant began to video record their sexual activity. The victim could not remember why it started, but it was after defendant lost his job. She was "kind of okay" with it in the beginning, but sometimes she would get embarrassed and push the cell phone or camera away. At the beginning, there were no handcuffs or abuse, other than defendant "being mean" and telling her what to do. Defendant became increasing abusive, hitting her, using a Taser on her, keeping her from her children and handcuffing her. She had "too many [Taser] marks to count" on her chest and stomach. He "tased" her once while she was tied to a chair.
Defendant taped her to a chair with duct tape and put duct tape over her mouth, making it hard to breathe. On one occasion, she was bent across the chair on her stomach, with her head on the floor. Defendant had intercourse with her while she was bound. She shook her head to indicate that she did not want to, but she could not otherwise protest. He also engaged in anal intercourse with her on some occasions, even though she said she did not want to, because it hurt. Although she sometimes engaged willingly in oral sex, there were times when she did not want to do it, but did anyway so that defendant would not hit her or handcuff her. Defendant would sometimes force her. On one occasion, he sodomized her with a socket wrench.
At one point, defendant cleared the victim's clothes out of the bedroom closet and put a baby mattress on the floor. He would lock her in the closet with a bucket and told her to stay there and not move. He said he was going to have other men come to the house and force her to orally copulate them. He also threatened to sell the videos on YouTube. He threatened to wrap her in a rug and set her on fire. He once threw gasoline on her while she was in the closet. Then he shut her in the closet and left her there for hours. On one occasion, he cut the side of her thigh with a small screwdriver.
At one point, the victim asked defendant to let her kill herself. He tied a rope around her neck and had her stand on a bucket. He kicked the bucket away and let her hang while he was holding the rope. The rope cut her neck.
The victim did not have a key to the couple's apartment. Defendant screwed the front door closed to keep people from coming in. He also added locks to the door. There was also a surveillance camera in the living room.
At least once, defendant hit the victim so hard that she lost consciousness. He revived her by throwing ice on her. On one occasion, he put duct tape on her face, put a wet towel on her face and over her nose, and poured water on her. She could not breathe. Defendant had a device he said was used to strangle a person and threatened to use it on her, to frighten her. He never used it, however.
On August 21, 2013, the victim was late getting the oldest child ready for school. Defendant smacked her with his hand on the back of her head. She then got the middle child ready for school. The defendant took that child to school; the oldest one stayed home. Before defendant left, he hit the victim on the back of the head again and said he would "beat the shit" out of her. However, when he left, he left the door unlocked. She ran to a neighbor's apartment with the two children and called the police. The neighbor said that the victim appeared "petrified." While she was on the phone with the police, she could hear defendant shouting because he could not find her. She had multiple bruises on her face from prior incidents.
The police officer who responded first spoke to the victim and observed her injuries, including burn marks on her stomach. He then entered the couple's apartment. He found a Taser in a drawer in the bedroom, a baggie of methamphetamine in a tool box and handcuffs on the bedroom floor. He also observed a live feed from a camera in the living room, being shown on a television screen. He saw a toddler bed in the closet and observed that the closet locked from the outside.
Detectives who arrived later spoke to the victim and observed that she was extremely thin 2 and had multiple cuts, bruises and abrasions in various stages of healing, and Taser marks on her stomach. In the couple's apartment, the detectives found a strangulation device and handcuffs in the bedroom, a bag of methamphetamine and a methamphetamine pipe, a rope and a gasoline can. They also found several digital flash drives containing videos of various sexual acts.
Thirteen videos were played for the jury. A transcript of the conversations heard on the videos was provided to the jury and admitted into evidence.
In one of the videos, defendant said to the camera, "The reality of it is, is yes, if she does anything stupid I will kill her. Number two, she thinks that camera's a joke. [Its purpose] is to show you, when you fuck with the wrong person, husband, wife, child ․ you do the wrong things, there's a consequence sooner or later in life."
At another point, he said, "[I]t was her choice. She chose this okay um ․ she has bruises all over her legs. I did that. I did that because I tied her ass up, I beat the shit out of her, I tased her. I fucked her in the ass and I did everything I fuckin' wanted to do and I could have done more because she's a bitch." He told the victim that he was recording the session for YouTube, but "[n]ot the rape, not any of that." He told his "audience" that the victim "may not die" that day, "but you will see what a hostage can and will go through. There's torture, pain, tape, chains, uh knives, needles, water ․ a lot of things that ․ a person can use to start getting to somebody." He later told her that if she continued to lie to him, he would put her murder on YouTube.
1.THE COURT WAS NOT REQUIRED TO HOLD A MARSDEN HEARING BASED ON STATEMENTS DEFENDANT MADE DURING A FARETTA 3 HEARING
A court is required to hold a hearing into a defendant's complaint that his court-appointed attorney is not providing competent representation whenever the defendant clearly indicates that he is seeking substitution of counsel. (Marsden, supra, 2 Cal.3d at p. 123; People v. Valdez (2004) 32 Cal.4th 73, 97; People v. Lucky (1988) 45 Cal.3d 259, 281 & fn. 8.) Defendant contends that because he expressed dissatisfaction with his attorney during a hearing on his request to represent himself, the trial court was obliged to conduct a Marsden hearing. As we discuss, however, defendant made it clear during that hearing that he was not seeking substitution of counsel but wanted to represent himself. Accordingly, the court had no duty to conduct a Marsden hearing.
The issue arose as follows: On April 10, 2014, the trial court commenced a Marsden hearing based on its understanding that defendant wanted a new attorney. However, defendant explained to the court that he was not seeking a new attorney. What he wanted was to have his "conflict answered." He did not elaborate as to what that meant. Because defendant stated unequivocally that he did not want a new attorney, the court concluded the hearing.
On November 21, 2014, the court again convened a Marsden hearing. The court stated that it had received a "conflict of interest and complaint letter." In the letter, defendant stated that he wanted his public defender, Michael Mendoza, dismissed for incompetence. Defendant stated that Mr. Mendoza was not communicating with him, that he had breached defendant's direction not to negotiate with the district attorney, that he had failed to retrieve evidence defendant wanted him to obtain, that he had failed to file a Pitchess 4 motion, and that he had failed to ensure a hearing on the record of a motion, filed by defendant personally, seeking to set aside the information pursuant to section 995. The court listened to defendant's grievances, obtained counsel's explanations for his actions and inactions, and determined that defendant had failed to show incompetence by Mr. Mendoza. Accordingly, it denied the motion.
On December 5, 2014, defendant made a request to represent himself, pursuant to Faretta, supra, 422 U.S. 806. After the court explained to defendant the pitfalls of self-representation, the court asked defendant if he still wanted to represent himself. Defendant replied, "I do, but it's not willingly." He explained that he felt compelled to represent himself because he was being held against his will and because "the representation that I've been receiving from Mendoza is from the state, who is also prosecuting me." The court agreed to let defendant represent himself if he signed a waiver. Defendant refused to do so. After a consultation with Mr. Mendoza, defendant was given permission to address the court. This was done off the record.
The following court day, the court revisited defendant's request for self-representation and explained again that the court could not allow him to do so unless defendant gave an unequivocal waiver. The court explained various reasons, apart from lack of an unequivocal waiver, that would justify denial of the motion. The court then asked defendant if he was satisfied with having counsel represent him. Defendant replied, "Absolutely not." He explained again that he was forced to represent himself because he was being held against his will. He said that he was dissatisfied with Mr. Mendoza's representation, but that he had "already had [a] Marsden hearing trying to fire him and that hasn't solved nothing." He said, "I feel I'm forced when I do not wish to participate in what's taking place in this courtroom, which I feel is fraud under Article 3, Section 2, 1217 [sic] of the constitution where only common law or military tribunal venue is allowed in this courtroom. I do not want to participate in the fraud, at all. I understand what's taking place in this courtroom and I do not accept it whatsoever. And there is no one on my side and understanding what's going on in this courtroom but me. I'm sure you may understand what's taking place, which is why I asked the District Attorney to provide some form of jurisdiction to show that she has the right to bring this claim to this courtroom and to continue to proceed in this process."5
After further discussion, during which the court suggested that an evaluation of defendant's competency to represent himself might be in order, the court again found that defendant had not unequivocally asked to represent himself and had not waived his right to counsel. The court asked defense counsel to look into the possibility of requesting the evaluation and continued the proceeding to the following day.
The next day, defendant reiterated his concern about the court's legitimacy "consistent with the constitution of the Supreme Court ruling" that he had referred to previously, i.e., "Article 1, section 8, clause 17."6 He asked, "What's taking place in this courtroom, common law or admiralty military tribunal venue? And I would like to be told which is taking place." The court asked counsel if he understood what defendant was talking about. Counsel explained that defendant doubted the trial court's jurisdiction and the district attorney's authority to represent the People of the State of California. The court responded that it had already ruled on that issue when defendant raised it in his section 995 motion, and informed defendant that he could raise the issue by writ or on appeal, but that the issue was decided for purposes of his trial.
The court then returned to the question of self-representation. The court stated that the only issue defendant had mentioned with respect to his attorney was that Mr. Mendoza refused to make certain statements when defendant wanted him to. The court had previously explained to defendant that counsel knew when a particular statement was or was not appropriate, depending upon the specific issue the court was dealing with at any particular time. Defense counsel explained that the statements defendant wanted him to make were the ones defendant had just made, i.e., concerning the court's authority under Article III of the United States Constitution and concerning the district attorney's authority to try him, and that if he did not make those statements when defendant wanted him to, defendant would just make them on his own. Defendant had been removed from a prior hearing for doing so. After discussion of the limitations on an incarcerated self-represented defendant's ability to prepare for trial and the court's refusal to release him on his own recognizance, defendant concluded that it would be in his best interest to have Mr. Mendoza represent him. It was against his will, he said, but he had no choice. Based on those statements, the court concluded that defendant was not seeking self-representation.
Nowhere in any of these hearings on self-representation did defendant ask for another attorney to replace Mr. Mendoza or clearly indicate that he wanted a new attorney. The mere mention of dissatisfaction with current counsel during a Faretta hearing is not sufficient to trigger the court's duty to hold a Marsden hearing. (People v. Mendoza (2000) 24 Cal.4th 130, 156-157.) Accordingly, we reject defendant's contention.
DEFENDANT DID NOT OBJECT TO EVIDENCE ON THE GROUNDS HE ASSERTS ON APPEAL
The victim's sister and father both testified for the prosecution regarding their observations of defendant's relationship with the victim. Defendant now contends that their testimony was inadmissible on several grounds: That it was improper evidence of prior crimes; that it was irrelevant; that it was improper character evidence and not admissible as evidence of propensity to commit acts of domestic violence as provided by Evidence Code section 1109; and that it should have been excluded under Evidence Code section 352 as more prejudicial than probative.7
In order to preserve issues pertaining to the admissibility of evidence for appellate review, the party must make a timely and specific objection on the particular ground he seeks to raise on appeal. (People v. Farnam (2002) 28 Cal.4th 107, 153; see also Evid. Code, § 353.)8 Here, defendant did not make a pretrial motion to exclude evidence of prior acts of domestic abuse on the grounds he asserts on appeal.9 Rather, he objected as the evidence came up during the trial. We will examine each objection cited by defendant in turn.
At reporter's transcript page 352, the victim's sister, Josephine, was asked if she had ever seen defendant become violent with the victim. Defense counsel did not object. Josephine answered that on one occasion, defendant became angry with the victim and pulled her off the bed by her feet, causing the victim to fall on the floor. After that question, the court summoned counsel to the bench on a related topic. Defense counsel then said that he had been about to make an objection because it "[s]ounds like we are getting into character evidence, like prior bad acts that [defendant] did." The court agreed that the prosecutor appeared to be getting into character evidence. The prosecutor replied, "I plan to move on." The court responded, "Okay." Defendant did not seek to have the witness's prior answer stricken, nor did he interpose another objection when the prosecutor resumed questioning the witness. Accordingly, defendant's objection on grounds of character evidence was essentially sustained, and no evidentiary error was preserved for appeal.
At reporter's transcript page 361, defense counsel asked for an offer of proof as to what the victim's father, Dwight, would testify to. He alluded to Dwight's potential testimony generally as not relevant, but did not give a reason that he considered it irrelevant. The prosecutor responded that Dwight would testify about his diminishing relationship with the victim because of defendant's interference, and about his observations that the victim's health appeared to be deteriorating during the relevant period of time. The court overruled the objection. Defense counsel did not interpose any objection to the testimony as described in the offer of proof. Accordingly, no evidentiary issue was preserved for review.
At reporter's transcript page 364, defense counsel objected to Dwight's testimony that one of his daughters had told him that she thought defendant was abusing the victim. The ground for objection was hearsay. The court sustained the objection and ordered the answer stricken. At reporter's transcript page 365, cited by defendant in his opening brief, there is no objection.
Because no timely objection to evidence was made and overruled by the court on the grounds defendant asserts on appeal, we need not address his contentions.
DEFENDANT'S CLAIM OF PROSECUTORIAL ERROR OR MISCONDUCT DURING CLOSING ARGUMENT WAS NOT PRESERVED FOR REVIEW
During her closing argument, the prosecutor stated to the jury that torture is "almost like an umbrella-like crime. It's not necessarily something that happens with one punch, or something that happens with one strangulation, or something that happens with one rape, or one sodomy or one of something. Torture is kind of all-encompassing. And [the victim] talked about it and you see some of the behavior on the videos as well. But it's stuff like when [the victim] describes how the defendant would kind of C-clamp her throat with his hand and hold her up until she got to the point of unconsciousness and he had to splash water on her face to wake her up, coupled with being punched, being kicked, being tased, not having food, being left locked in a closet. It's all of those things, along with the rapes and the sodomy and all of the forcible crimes. It's an umbrella over all of those things." Defendant contends that this is a misstatement of the law and constituted prosecutorial misconduct. Trial counsel did not object, however, apparently preferring to address the prosecutor's remarks in his own argument.
Acknowledging that claims of prosecutorial misconduct are not, as a general rule, preserved for appellate review unless trial counsel makes a contemporaneous objection on the same ground and requests that the jury be admonished to disregard the impropriety (People v. Samayoa (1997) 15 Cal.4th 795, 841), defendant contends that the failure to object should be excused because the record demonstrates that an objection would have been futile. He points out that trial counsel lodged at least nine objections during the prosecutor's rebuttal argument and that the trial court overruled all of them.
We disagree that this shows that an objection to a misstatement of the law, if such it was, would have been futile. Defense counsel's first objection was that the prosecutor had misstated the evidence. The trial court implicitly overruled it, saying, "This is argument." However, the court went on to admonish the jury that arguments of counsel are not evidence, thus achieving the objective of the objection. The rest of defense counsel's objections during rebuttal were based on the contention that the prosecutor's rebuttal exceeded the scope of his closing argument and therefore constituted improper rebuttal. The court overruled them based on the court's recollection that in his argument, defense counsel had touched on the matters the prosecutor raised during her rebuttal. This in no way suggests that the court would not have sustained an objection to a misstatement of the law. Accordingly, we reject the contention that the prosecutor's alleged misstatement of the law was preserved for review despite trial counsel's failure to object.
We also reject defendant's alternative claim that the failure to object constituted ineffective assistance of trial counsel, in violation of his constitutional trial rights. We cannot address such a claim on direct appeal unless the reasons for the challenged act or omission appear on the record or there simply could be no rational tactical basis for counsel's conduct. (People v. Pope (1979) 23 Cal.3d 412, 422.) Defendant argues that counsel could not have had a rational tactical reason for failing to object. We disagree. If counsel had objected and the court had sustained his objection, at most the court would have referred the jurors to the instruction and told them that they must follow the court's instructions on the law rather than any conflicting argument by counsel. Instead, counsel countered the prosecutor's description of the law of torture by discussing the instruction defining torture and explaining to the jury why the prosecutor was incorrect. Indeed, he argued that the prosecutor was trying to "bamboozle" them with her argument. We cannot say as a matter of law that this was not a rational tactical choice. Accordingly, the claim of ineffective assistance of counsel fails.
SECTION 654 PRECLUDES IMPOSITION OF AN UNSTAYED SENTENCE ON COUNT 3
Defendant contends that section 654 precludes imposition of sentence on both count 1 and count 3, for torture and corporal injury to a spouse, respectively.
Section 654 provides, in pertinent part: "An act or omission that is punishable in different ways by different provisions of law shall be punished under the provision that provides for the longest potential term of imprisonment, but in no case shall the act or omission be punished under more than one provision. An acquittal or conviction and sentence under any one bars a prosecution for the same act or omission under any other." (§ 654, subd. (a).) Section 654 precludes imposition of an unstayed sentence on the count subject to the lesser punishment. (People v. Mesa (2012) 54 Cal.4th 191, 195.)
This section has long been interpreted to preclude multiple punishments not only for a single act that violates more than one statute, but for an indivisible course of conduct. (People v. Beamon (1973) 8 Cal.3d 625, 639.) "The key inquiry is whether the objective and intent attending more than one crime committed during a continuous course of conduct was the same. [Citation.]" (People v. Meeks (2004) 123 Cal.App.4th 695, 704.) "[I]f all of the offenses were merely incident to, or were the means of accomplishing or facilitating one objective, defendant may be found to have harbored a single intent and therefore may be punished only once. [Citation.] [¶] If, on the other hand, defendant harbored 'multiple criminal objectives,' which were independent of and not merely incidental to each other, he may be punished for each statutory violation committed in pursuit of each objective, 'even though the violations shared common acts or were parts of an otherwise indivisible course of conduct.' [Citation.]" (People v. Harrison (1989) 48 Cal.3d 321, 335.) Defendant contends that the sentence on count 3 must be stayed because throughout the three-month period in which he inflicted injuries on the victim, he harbored a single intent, i.e., to cause injury to her. Therefore, he reasons, the acts alleged were part of an indivisible course of conduct.
The Attorney General, on the other hand, likens this case to People v. Perez (1979) 23 Cal.3d 545 (Perez). In that case, the defendant was charged with multiple discrete sexual offenses committed during a single 45- to 60-minute episode. (Id. at p. 549.) The California Supreme Court held that it is simplistic to say that the defendant acted with the single intent and objective of achieving sexual pleasure and that to do so would preclude punishment commensurate with the defendant's actual culpability, in that a person who commits an assault consisting of a single sexual offense is less culpable than a person who commits multiple such acts within the course of a single episode. Moreover, each act was separate and distinct and none of the acts was "incidental to or the means by which" another act was committed, nor did any act facilitate the commission of any other act. (Id. at pp. 552-554.) Accordingly, the court held, section 654 did not preclude imposition of separate punishments for each sexual act. (Perez, at pp. 553-554.) In People v. Nubla (1999) 74 Cal.App.4th 719, the Court of Appeal applied Perez to multiple acts of violence against a single victim, committed in a single incident. The court held that the defendant could be punished for each count. (Nubla, at pp. 730-731.) Based on those two cases, the Attorney General argues that each act of infliction of injury on the victim in this case should be separately punishable under a similar analysis. We disagree that Perez and Nubla govern this case.
Torture can be committed either by a single act or by a course of conduct. (People v. Hamlin (2009) 170 Cal.App.4th 1412, 1429.) Where torture is tried as a course of conduct crime, it is not necessary that any single act in the course of conduct results in great bodily injury. Rather, if the requisite intent exists and the cumulative result of the course of conduct is great bodily injury, the crime of torture has been committed. (Ibid.) This is the theory the prosecutor relied upon in this case.10 She argued that torture is not necessarily "something that happens with one punch or ․ one strangulation, or ․ one rape, or one sodomy or one of something." She argued that in this case, the torture consisted of the acts shown on the videos, as well as "how the defendant would kind of C-clamp her throat with his hand and hold her up until she got to the point of unconsciousness and he had to splash water on her face to wake her up, coupled with being punched, being kicked, being tased, not having food, being left locked in a closet. It's all of those things, along with the rapes and the sodomy and all of the forcible crimes. It's an umbrella over all of those things." Because, as the prosecutor argued, the offense of torture by course of conduct consists of multiple discrete acts, all of those acts are the means by which the charged offense was committed. This is different from cases such as Perez, supra, 23 Cal.3d 545, in which each act, despite being part of a single episode, was separately punishable in part because none of the acts was the means of committing or facilitated the commission of any other offense. (Id. at pp. 553-554.) The court also held that this treatment was necessary in order to ensure that the defendant's punishment was commensurate with his actual culpability, i.e., that a person who commits multiple sexual assaults in a single episode is more culpable than a person who commits a single such act. (Id. at p. 553.) Here, in contrast, the individual acts, taken all together, were the means of committing the charged offense. And, because a conviction for torture results in a term of life imprisonment (§ 206.1), the additional four-year term for corporal injury to a spouse is not necessary to provide punishment commensurate with the defendant's culpability. Accordingly, section 654 precludes imposition of separate sentences on any of the acts that were the components of the course of conduct that constituted torture.11
The question, then, becomes whether there is any basis for concluding that the offense charged in count 3 was not a component of the torture course of conduct. Whether a particular offense is part of a course of conduct for purposes of section 654 is a question of fact. (People v. Coleman (1989) 48 Cal.3d 112, 162.) In the absence of an explicit ruling by the trial court at sentencing, we infer that the court made the finding appropriate to the sentence it imposed, i.e., either applying section 654 or not applying it. (People v. Tarris (2009) 180 Cal.App.4th 612, 626-627.) Here, there was no discussion at sentencing as to whether section 654 applied to count 3. Accordingly, we must affirm the sentence if an implied finding that section 654 does not apply is supported by substantial evidence. (Tarris, at pp. 626-627.)
As the basis for count 3, the prosecutor apparently relied on the incident on August 21, 2013, the day the victim finally fled. In that incident, defendant "smacked" the victim on the back of her head because she was late getting one of the children ready for school. Examining the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court's ruling (People v. Tarris, supra, 180 Cal.App.4th at p. 627), we see no basis for concluding that the final assault was either separated in time from the rest of the acts that constituted torture or was in some other manner distinct from those acts. The victim testified to a lengthy series of physical assaults, and there was no evidence that these assaults had ended before August 21. The victim testified that over several months, defendant hit her for many reasons, including not doing what he wanted her to do. On August 21, the victim still had healing injuries on her face from prior beatings. And, the prosecutor specifically argued that the torture consisted of the more serious acts "coupled with" such acts as defendant hitting and punching the victim. Thus, the record supports only the conclusion that this final act of violence was part of the entire course of conduct that constituted torture.
Moreover, as defendant points out, the jury was instructed that as to counts 2, 3, and 4, the prosecution had presented evidence of more than one act that could constitute the offense and that the jury must either unanimously agree as to the specific act that constituted each offense or must unanimously agree that defendant committed all of the acts alleged to have occurred during the relevant time period. The prosecutor's argument was somewhat ambiguous as to whether count 3 was based on the head slap on August 21. She argued as follows:
"Count 3, corporal injury. The defendant willfully inflicted a physical injury on his spouse; the injury inflicted on the defendant [sic] resulted in a traumatic condition.
"So what we're talking about there is a punch to the back of the head ․ You punch someone in the face, now you've got a black eye. That's the traumatic condition or wound that we're talking about. You stab someone in the leg with a screwdriver, now you've got a hole in your leg. It's any one of those things that she talked about. The way that it's charged, that corporal injury is specifically going to the date of August 21st when she talked about how he was mad at her because she was not getting the kids ready on time and he hit her in the back of the head, told her he was gonna beat her ass when he got back and she had a big bump on the back of her head on the day that she was beat." (Italics added.)
The final sentence indicates that the prosecutor was relying on the August 21 assault as the basis of count 3. Nevertheless, taken all together, the argument is ambiguous as to whether the jury was required to base its verdict on that act. Based on the prosecutor's argument and the unanimity instruction, the jury could have relied on literally any of the acts the victim described as part of the torture course of conduct to find defendant guilty on count 3. Accordingly, the evidence does not support a finding that the act underlying count 3 was in any manner distinguishable from the acts underlying count 1.
The cause is remanded with directions to modify the sentence to stay imposition of sentence on count 3 pursuant to Penal Code section 654. The judgment is otherwise affirmed.
CERTIFIED FOR PARTIAL PUBLICATION
1. All further statutory citations refer to the Penal Code, unless another code is specified.
2. On August 21, 2013, the victim weighed 82 pounds.
3. Faretta v. California (1975) 422 U.S. 806 (Faretta).
4. Pitchess v. Superior Court (1974) 11 Cal.3d 531, superseded by Penal Code section 832.5 et seq. and Evidence Code sections 1043 and 1045, as stated in Long Beach Police Officers Assn. v. City of Long Beach (2014) 59 Cal.4th 59, 67-68.
5. We infer that defendant was referring to Article III, section 2, of the United States Constitution. Article III, in pertinent part, provides:"Section 1. The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office."Section 2. The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;—to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;—to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;—to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;—to Controversies between two or more States;—between a State and Citizens of another State,—between Citizens of different States,—between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects."In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make."The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed."
6. Defendant previously referred to Article III, section 2, of the United States Constitution.Article I of the United States Constitution enumerates the powers of Congress; section 8, clause 17 authorizes Congress to exercise exclusive legislation over the seat of government of the United States, i.e., Washington, D.C., and to exercise like authority over all places purchased for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards and other needful buildings.Article I, section 8 of the California Constitution provides: "A person may not be disqualified from entering or pursuing a business, profession, vocation, or employment because of sex, race, creed, color, or national or ethnic origin." It does not have a clause 17. Accordingly, we do not know what defendant meant by this statement.
7. As pertinent here, Evidence Code section 1109, subdivision (a)(1) provides: "(a)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (e) or (f), in a criminal action in which the defendant is accused of an offense involving domestic violence, evidence of the defendant's commission of other domestic violence is not made inadmissible by Section 1101 if the evidence is not inadmissible pursuant to Section 352."Evidence Code section 352 provides: "The court in its discretion may exclude evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the probability that its admission will (a) necessitate undue consumption of time or (b) create substantial danger of undue prejudice, of confusing the issues, or of misleading the jury."
8. Evidence Code section 353 provides in pertinent part: "A verdict or finding shall not be set aside, nor shall the judgment or decision based thereon be reversed, by reason of the erroneous admission of evidence unless: [¶] (a) There appears of record an objection to or a motion to exclude or to strike the evidence that was timely made and so stated as to make clear the specific ground of the objection or motion."
9. Defendant did seek exclusion of his prior conviction for domestic violence. The court overruled his objection. Neither of the two witnesses was asked about the prior conviction.
10. The information alleged that both count 1 and count 3 took place "on or about August 21, 2013." Nevertheless, the prosecutor made it clear that her theory was that the torture was a three-month course of conduct consisting of multiple acts.
11. We have found no cases addressing this issue. In People v. Martinez (2005) 125 Cal.App.4th 1035, the court held that the individual offenses committed during a course of conduct torture, including infliction of corporal injury on a spouse in violation of section 273.5, subdivision (a), were not necessarily included offenses of the torture count, either by the elements test or the pleading test. Accordingly, the court held, the defendant could be convicted both of torture and of the individual offenses that made up the course of conduct. (Martinez, at pp. 1041-1046.) The court did not, however, address a contention that section 654 precluded imposition of unstayed sentences on any of the constituent offenses.
McKINSTER J.
We concur: HOLLENHORST Acting P. J. SLOUGH J.


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Бетта́нж () — коммуна во французском департаменте Мозель региона Лотарингия. Относится к кантону Булеи-Мозель.

Географическое положение
Беттанж расположен в 26 км к юго-востоку от Меца. Соседние коммуны: Оллен и Ремельфан на севере, Вальмэнстер и Вельвен на востоке, Оттонвиль на юго-востоке, Эбланж и Рупельданж на юге, Меганж и Бюртонкур на юго-западе, Пибланж, Эстроф, Анзелен и Гомланж на северо-западе.

История
 Бывшая деревня сеньората де Берю в составе герцогства Лотарингия.
 Зависела от аббатства Бузонвиль, начиная с XIII века, в 1472 году коммуна была разделена между сеньорами д'Эльтц и де Коэлер.

Демография
По переписи 2008 года в коммуне проживало 212 человек.

Достопримечательности
 Церковь святых Петра и Павла: хоры XV века.

Ссылки
 Национальный институт статистики

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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text:
Votel: success depends on total force readiness
By Claudette Roulo, DoD News, Defense Media ActivityMarch 30, 2015
1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Commanding General of U.S. Special Operations Command Gen. Joseph Votel provides his testimony in front of Congress. The testimony on U.S. Central Command, U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Special Operations Command programs and budget in review of the D... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
WASHINGTON, (March 26, 2015) -- The commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, also known as SOCOM, told Congress he is "profoundly concerned" about sequestration's impact on the military as a whole.
Speaking to the Senate Armed Services Committee, March 26, Army Gen. Joseph L. Votel said that while SOCOM has been well-supported in recent years, it is "absolutely dependent" on the military services as a whole for mission support.
In addition to the fiscal challenges facing his command, Votel told the committee, the variety of physical threats to national security is on the rise.
"The spread of technology and the diffusion of power are not only being used by responsible leaders to better societies, but unfortunately, by wicked actors to orchestrate terror and violence, regionally and globally," he said.
SPECIAL OPERATIONS PROVIDES 'COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE'
State and non-state actors alike exert significant influence over the strategic environment in which special operations forces operate, the general said.
"And we are equally affected by the growing use of cyber capabilities and social media, which make it easy for our adversaries to coordinate, execute and inspire their actions," Votel said.
SOCOM delivers options to the nation's leaders and to geographic combatant commanders, he said.
"Through small-footprint operations and by relying on a network of purposeful partnerships, [special operations forces provide] a comparative advantage through persistent engagement, partner enablement, network focus and discreet rapid response to crisis situations," Votel said.
Special operations forces are uniquely suited "to operate and succeed in the gray zone between normal international competition and open conflict," Votel said. "And it is in this area that we see our very best opportunities to help shape the future environment."
FIVE PRIORITIES
Votel told the committee that he has established five command priorities designed to support SOCOM's singular abilities.
"First, we must ensure [special operations forces'] readiness by developing the right people, skills and capabilities to meet current and future requirements," he said.
"… Second, we must help our nation win by addressing today's security challenges.
"… Third, we must build purposeful relationships to improve global understanding and awareness to create options for our leaders," the general said. "We don't own the network, but we are an important part of it, and working with our partners will always produce the best options for our nation."
Fourth, he said, "we have to prepare for the future security environment to ensure that [special operations] is ready to win in an increasingly complex world."
And, "we must preserve our force and families to ensure their long-term well-being," Votel said.
SOCOM leaders "are specifically focused on a holistic approach to address the invisible challenges of stress and suicide that are affecting our Service members, civilians and their family members," he said.
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March 23, 2022Army Combat Fitness Test Media Round Table March 21, 2021
March 18, 2022U.S. Army STAND-TO! | U.S. Army March to Service Campaign
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August 26, 2016New Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army invested
February 2, 2016Army Leaders Testify on Ground Combat Specialties Integration Plan
Screenshot of Gen. Joseph Votel's testimony


Gallup, A., J. Tomasson, and V. Svihla. "Empowerment and Constraint: Design of a Homecare Worker Training Program". International Journal of Designs for Learning, Vol. 9, no. 1, May 2018, pp. 149-57, doi:10.14434/ijdl.v9i1.23459.


text:
Q: Flex 4 vs JavaScript Options (Cappuccino, JQuery, etc.) Rehashing an older post:
JQuery VS Flex - Choosing a Platform for SAAS
We are preparing to develop an application that is exceptionally dynamic and interactive.  It's particularly heavy on the graphics side.
We are 85% convinced that Adobe Flash built atop Flex is the right path to take, however Cappuccino is quite nice and seems as though it may be able to nearly fit the bill.
The only pause we have right now is portability for the iPhone.  With the lack of blessings from Apple we will most certainly have to create a 2nd interface for the iPhone for the site, however... Having two interfaces may not be bad as it will likely have to be custom anyway to take advantage of the differences that it affords.
Any further thoughts or reevaluations of points enumerated in the noted article?  Further, Flex 4 adds a lot of strength to the position mentioned previously regarding UI development.  Fx4 is very nice vs Fx3 and shaves 90% from the development time when coupled with Flash Catalyst, which is not really always fully appropriate, but with some round trip tricks it seems as though it can cut through things rather well...

A: HTML and Flash they both have limitation. You have to choose the right tool depends your project need.
HTML limitation

*

*Not all browser will render the same. The more complex you get the more difference you will see. Try ie6,7,8,9

*Some new HTML5 feature are browser specific. Don't expect Chrome experiment to run on all browser.

*Rapidly changing with new feature, may need to upgrade and refactor code more regularly

Flash limitation

*

*more CPU/memory intensive.

*need Flash plugin.

*Don't expect to run on iphone, ipad.

So if you have a simple UI project and only need to support 2 browser, you probably want to use HTML. If you need to support most browser out there and you don't care about the iphone, ipad. Flash is the right tool.
I have seen company actually have both engine to support every single platform. HTML and FLash is just a different tool. One cannot replace the other as of now.

A: IMO, it's a choice between a proprietary technology (Flash/Flex) and standards-based technology (Javascript/DHTML). If you're concerned about your web app running on as many platforms as possible, the choice is crystal clear.
Flash is dying (but that's just my personal opinion). Not because Apple doesn't want it, but because it hasn't evolved like the other web technologies. It's slow, big, eats up CPU and memory, and above all, it requires that the user installs a plugin built by one single company.

A: I would always go with javascript over Flash, simply because it performs better. Flash in Internet Explorer on Windows performs well. Flash in Firefox is quite a bit worse, and Flash in Firefox in OS X is just pathetic. This is especially an issue on laptops as Flash is quite CPU intensive. So you might have a fancy webpage, but the computer sounds like an airplane because the CPU is overheating.
While Flash can do some really fancy effects, jquery and similar frameworks has moderately fancy animation effects, which is usually enough for web applications.

A: HTML 5 and javascript would be the way to go imho. Restrict the browsers to the latest and greatest if you have to.
EDIT: I guess the js frameworks are not quite there, but are probably very close. You would be on the bleeding edge which is not always good for project deadlines. I think people feel that the effort is worth it because of duplicated effort for iphone/ipad and that it is a solid foundation for the future. Look at libraries like http://raphaeljs.com/ and sites like  http://www.chromeexperiments.com/ before making a decision

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The objective of this case study is to describe a specific approach to establishing an exploration strategy at the initial stage on the basis of not only uncertainty reduction, but also early business-case development and maximization of future economic value.
This paper presents an unbiased stochastic data-driven work flow in which surface and subsurface uncertainties are accounted for and their effects on facilities design and operational decisions are quantified.
This paper focuses on compressor systems associated with major production deferments. An advanced machine-learning approach is presented for determining anomalous behavior to predict a potential trip and probable root cause with sufficient warning to allow for intervention.
The Constitution spar in the Gulf of Mexico has an original nameplate separation capacity of 70,000 BOPD and 200 MMscf/D of gas. Production potential from future developments is expected to exceed this limit.
Welcome to the Offshore Facilities feature in this month's JPT. The three papers featured in this section were selected out of 141 submitted to SPE covering various elements of offshore facilities design, construction, installation, operation, and inspection.
Noble Energy's latest planned gas development offshore Israel will not only have a major positive impact on the host country but could transform energy sourcing for the region, Project Manager Brian Hogan told the SPE Gulf Coast Section International Study Group recently.
The digitalization of oil and gas facilities is becoming a new technical arena. Effective solutions can be used to convert data into information and knowledge, which can then be used to improve maintenance operations.
Intel and Cyberhawk released a case study outlining the successful inspection of a gas terminal near the coast of Scotland using commercially available drone technology.
No longer considered a buzz phrase, cloud computing has made converts of the largest oil companies, and now the smaller ones are next.
The new US sanctions against Russia will place added restrictions on international companies taking part in oil development projects with Russian companies and raise doubts about Russia's plans to expand pipeline exports.
Renewable energy is often framed as being at odds with the oil and gas industry, but new price developments in the wind and solar sectors may be changing this paradigm, according to one US energy expert.
Current methods for external inspection of floating assets on station use divers or remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), but these methods incur high safety, people-on-board (POB), and cost penalties. New methods to eliminate diving are being developed.
This month's feature on Offshore Facilities is drawn from more than 200 papers presented at SPE events over the past year.
Visualization technology has played a key role in reducing operational expenditure (OPEX) and improving collaboration, thus maximizing uptime across the industry throughout the asset life cycle.
Reducing the complexity and controlling the cost of major offshore projects are together one of the biggest challenges facing the oil and gas industry.
Field-development projects need to include and consider not only a static or dynamic subsurface characterization but also the production-systems and facilities options, to trigger profitability and establish clear breakeven thresholds.
Optimization of maintenance costs is among operators' main concerns in the search for operational efficiency, safety, and asset availability. The ability to predict critical failures emerges as a key factor, especially when reducing logistics costs is mandatory.
Iraq is producing oil at record levels this year but low oil prices have cast doubts on the economic feasibility of its licensing contracts, which some analysts and policy advisers say are holding back higher output.
The deepwater industry uses technology qualification (TQ) as a tool to determine which safety barriers are needed, and what level of testing is required. Even without failure data from the field, a method has been developed to quantify the integrity of various components.
A data-driven approach to successfully analyze and evaluate production-fluid impact during facility system divert events is presented. The work flow effectively identifies opportunities for prompt event mitigation and system optimization.
The drilling-systems-automation roadmap (DSA-R) initiative is a cross-industry effort launched in June 2013 to help accelerate the adoption of advancements in drilling-systems automation (DSA) for both onshore and offshore wells.
The Mars-B project is the operator's sixth Gulf of Mexico (GOM) tension-leg-platform (TLP) development.
This paper describes the measures put in place so that the mooring system of the Gryphon Alpha FPSO could be replaced and reconnected on an efficient schedule.
Downhole instrumentation of the Khazzan tight gas appraisal wells provides a rare opportunity to quantify reservoir pressure and temperature dynamics.
In the northeastern desert of Utah, a new type of oil sands extraction technology has been born. The company behind it claims the process is the most cost-effective and environmentally sound way to develop oil sands.


text:
IONISx – spółka edukacyjna udostępniająca masowe otwarte kursy online prowadzone przez uniwersytety i instytuty naukowe z całego świata. Utworzona przez Marc Sellam oraz Fabrice ze IONIS Education Group.

Uczestnictwo w kursach oferowanych przez Coursera jest bezpłatne, płatne jest natomiast uzyskanie zweryfikowanych certyfikatów informujących o ukończeniu kursu i niektóre inne usługi.

Na stronie znajdują się kursy prowadzone m.in. przez Institut supérieur de gestion, École pour l'informatique et les techniques avancées, École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies, Institut polytechnique des sciences avancées, Sup'Biotech, École des technologies numériques appliquées, ISEFAC Bachelor. Większość kursów jest prowadzona w języku francuskim.

Przypisy

Linki zewnętrzne
 ionisx.com

Strony internetowe
Edukacja online
Szkolnictwo wyższe
Otwarte zasoby edukacyjne


text:
Dewey Donald Smalling, 92
Published: Monday, March 17,2008
Dewey Donald Smalling, of Lafayette, died at the age of 92 on Friday, March 14, 2008 at The Palace Care & Rehab.
Funeral services for Dewey Donald Smalling were conducted from the Alexander Funeral Home Chapel on Sunday, March 16, 2008 at 2 p.m. with Elder Jackie Wakefield and Elder DeWayne Gregory officiating. Corey Halliburton, Troy Smalling, Lee Smalling, Jason Smalling, Andrew Lewis, and Jeff Lambert served as pallbearers. Burial followed in Pony McDonald Cemetery.
Born in Macon County, Tenn., on Friday, July 23, 1915, Dewey Donald Smalling was one of four siblings born to the late Genie and Ellie (McDonald) Smalling. He married his first wife, the former Wilma Lee Swindle, and his second wife, the former Hontas Stubblefield, who both preceded him in death. Besides his wives and parents, daughter, Jeanette Wood, grandchild, Timothy Vaughn, brother, L.D. Smalling, half brother, Paul Patterson, and sister, Margaret Miller preceded him in death.
He was self-employed, working in floor finishing; he was a veteran of the Army, serving in World War II and a member of the Sycamore Valley Missionary Baptist Church.
He is survived by; sons, Rabon (Reba) Smalling of Old Hickory Tenn., Donald (Eunice) Smalling of White House of Tenn., daughter, Penne (James) West of Lafayette, fourteen grandchildren, twenty-four great-grandchildren, and five great-great-grandchildren.
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If an employee disagrees with you, hear them out. Give them your full attention. You may learn something useful from them. You will certainly get a different perspective on the subject.
If you have found this information helpful, please feel free to forward an email to your friends and business associates using our with a link to this page.
You are welcome to link your web site to our page "Employer Etiquette" if it helps to reassure your employees of their employer's policies (smile).
Together we can build better harmony and cooperation in the workplace.


NEW to the setting is our Mud Kitchen. What's a mud kitchen I hear you ask? Well it's just as it suggests. A mud kitchen is designed as an outdoor kitchen but the children use mud, leaves, twigs and foliage to make their pies and creations. It's fantastically messy fun for all! All of our Caterpillar's, Butterfly's, Snails and Ladybird's have access to the mud kitchen so everyone gets to enjoy the fun!
Ofsted Says: "The mud kitchen allows the children the freedom to play, explore and learn to their full potential. It is really important that children are encouraged to feel the different textures of materials with their fingers, transfer liquids from one container to another, to splash, slop, stir and whizz. We encourage the children to create sticky mud and explore its adaptations.
Children express their creativity, enhance their fine motor skills and practice literacy, science and maths while using the mud centre. The mud is an art medium that children mold and decorate in unique, creative ways. They have many opportunities to practice emergent science and math skills, such as making before-and-after comparisons; investigating solids, solvents, and solutions; examining components of various soils; exploring changes due to freezing and melting; measuring; investigating volume; practicing one-to-one correspondence; investigating questions; solving problems; and testing hypotheses.
So there you go, Mud really is quite glorious. So next time Peppa Pig jumps in muddy puddles, you will look at it in a whole new light!
If you would like to see the mud kitchen for yourself please contact us. Call Jessica on 01582 840586 to arrange a viewing or email Jessica@appletreeschildcare.co.uk.


text:
Michelle Obama Says Eldest Daughter Malia Obama Was There To Send Younger Sister Sasha Off to College
Although Michelle Obama spoke about what it was like dropping her youngest daughter Sasha off at college. Michelle talked about how the whole family, Barack and her eldest daughter Malia were tearing up when she drove off.
A post shared by Michelle Obama (@michelleobama) on May 10, 2019 at 9:23am PDT
The former first lady explained on the Today Show, how she, Barack, and Malia all went to say their last goodbye to Sasha before she moved in for her freshman year. "After lunch, when we said that final goodbye, when we got into a car — me and Barack and Malia, who was there with us — and then Sasha drove off on her own and said that last goodbye, that's when we were like [crying noises]," Michelle said.
Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images/ Getty Images News)
Besides tearing up that Sasha is moving on to the next chapter of her life, Michelle said she feels "excited" for her and Malia. "I'm excited for my girls to grow up and to become independent," she said. However, the mom of two did relent it can become a little sad knowing you can't get the old times back.
"You feel a little melancholy that they will never be the little ones that sit on your lap and listen to your every word and look at you adoringly. Those days are over," Michelle said.
Malia is currently studying at Harvard University just like her parents, however, the Obama's have asked that Sasha's university remain private. "Time just goes so fast. But like so many experiences in the last 10 years, we wanted to make it feel as normal as possible, given our family's circumstances," she told People magazine.
A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama) on Oct 29, 2019 at 7:44am PDT
With her girls being gone, Michelle has realized that she and Barack now have ample time to spend together. "We've rediscovered all these little pockets of time, just me and Barack, that for a couple of decades have been filled with school events or sports practices," she told People.
"We're taking full advantage of this new normal, simply spending time with each other and remembering what brought us together in the first place. Sometimes I'll get a glimpse of him and just go, 'Hey you! Where have you been for 21 years?'"
What do you think of Michelle's comments on her kids leaving the nest? Tell us your thoughts below. Pass this article on to your friends and family to see what they think.