Homeless Woman Arrested For Sending Son To School Using Babysitter's Address
18th April 2011
huffingtonpost.com
A homeless mother has been arrested for sending her child to a public school in an area where they didn't live. Tonya McDowell is being charged with first-degree larceny for stealing $15,686 in education funds from the Norwalk, Conn. school district, the Stamford Advocate reports. McDowell and her 6-year-old son don't have a permanent address, but split their time between a homeless shelter and a friend's apartment in Bridgeport. McDowell, however, used her son's babysitter's address to falsely register him for a Norwalk elementary school.
McDowell's arrest is a startlingly severe punishment for her crime. Most families caught sending children to schools in areas where they don't live are allowed to pull the students from the school without consequence. The babysitter, Ana Rebecca Marques, is also being punished. She has been evicted from public housing for her role in helping McDowell get her son into the school. The case is likely being used as an example to deter others from committing the same crime.
According to the Stamford Advocate, Mayor Richard Moccia said of the case, "This now sends a message to other parents that may have been living in other towns and registering their kids with phony addresses."
Earlier this year, Ohio mother Kelley Williams-Bolar faced similar charges and was convicted of a felony for falsifying records to send her children to a better school. The two cases highlight the rising trend of school officials trying to weed out students who don't live in their districts.
According to the Associated Press: Education officials say cases tend to surface more when budgets are tight and in areas where there are significant disparities between districts such as in academic success or local income level -- particularly in wealthier districts near urban areas. That often means the districts in question also have racial disparities.
I understand the school's concern about districts, etc. but seriously, there has to be some sort of allowances for situations like this............ so what was she to do? Not send her child to school and get charged with truancy? Seems like a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation.
Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:15 am Post subject: Scumbag Jeff Williams abusing Homeless people
It appears that some business people in St. Petersburg, Florida have reached a new low in making money to the detriment of homeless people in the city. A business is making videos of female fighters beating the crap out of homeless men and are then selling the videos online for a profit.
The idea is simple: offer a homeless guy $50 for less than an hour of their time. Then go to an undisclosed location in town and subject them to a brutal beat down for 12 minutes (or longer).
Now, before you say, “Those men know what they are in for.” or “Serves them right.” or “Well, they’re probably going to spend the money on drugs and booze anyways.”, think about what it’s like to be homeless without a job, in a city that is very difficult to be homeless in.
Oh, and perhaps I should mention that often the men who go the first time do not know what is about to happen. Of course, they do know after they’ve done it once, but the money seems too good to pass up.
I have personally met some of the men who are being taken advantage of. They have teeth knocked out, broken ribs, concussions, and just about anything else you can think of. I have spoken with women who know these men and have heard their cries of concern.
I even asked one woman if she would tell me where it was being filmed, so I could personally testify to the abuse being committed in the name of good old American profit.
She wouldn’t tell me, for fear of her man not being able to go back and make some more money. Also, she was concerned I might get hurt if they knew I was there to disclose their location to people who might be able to stop it.
Oh, and of course, don’t worry. If some one gets seriously injured, then they are driven to the local hospital, dumped on the curb near the emergency room entrance…and left there, alone....[/quote]
updated...
Thankfully thanks to the efforts of International Homeless Activists and supporters… Mr. Williams is beginning to understand what pain feels like… although he does appear in some of his videos on the recieving end!!!
Since we and Gene broke the story, there are now 386 international news articles covering this travesty….
It appears Jeff Williams is being rather shy at the moment:
From the Shefights.net site:
Special News Update from the Owner (jeff williams)
Many of you have come here in response to inaccurate and libelous stories about us in the media. We have chosen not to comment in the media because, unlike our accusers, our case is solid and we prefer to prosecute this in the courts where we have the advantage of law and facts. I will just say that there is no truth to the allegations, the testimony is perjured and paid for by the organizer of the suit, and the attempt right now is to harass us in the media in an attempt to shake us down before this goes to trial. We won’t be intimidated, and these allegations against us will be disproved.
From Genes blog A valued member of WHAD 10-10 :
I am a co-worker with G.W. Rolle. He is an excellent advocate for not only our homeless neighbors and citizens of Saint Petersburg, but for homeless people everywhere.
He is also a co-pastor at The Missio Dei, a vibrant emergent church community, a community I am blessed to be a part of, here in Saint Petersburg.
We are dedicated to serving the homeless and “the least of these” in the larger community we are a part of. G.W. Rolle is our co-pastor for social justice ministries and our “Love the Poor” ministry.
Don’t let Jeff Williams fool you…G.W. Rolle is a good man.
The Southern Legal Counsel, Inc. knows this. That’s why they are providing legal services for the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, who by the way, are homeless here in Saint Petersburg.
The National Coalition for the Homeless knows this. That’s why they have a distinct interest in the outcome of this situation and are in the process of providing encouragement and support.
Saint Petersburg, Florida is one of the toughest cities in the United States of America to be homeless in.
An article, dated July 14, 2009 in The Huffington Post ranked Saint Petersburg, FL as the 2nd worst place for homeless people to live in the United States of America.
Joined: 24 Jun 2006 Location: Lost Londoner ..Nr Philly. PA
Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 12:34 am Post subject:
This Shite really does happen !!! Last year my daughter had to temp move out of the area for 9 months !!! I live in the same school District so we were just gonna use my address and get the kids dropped off here after school ! That is untill I got all the forms to fill in ....That stated if we were caught in a lie and the kids did not live here I would be liable for all school charges (which were a few more grand than I have ) also Abbi and kira could not keep a secret lol ....They really do not mess around ....and they are so strict on boarder lines ....when Anissa moved to her new house a couple of weeks a go she was 1 house a way from them going back to there old school....They would not allow it ....They had to go to another school (same district ) But different school !!!!! America !!!! I tell Ya!!!
“Well, they’re probably going to spend the money on drugs and booze anyways.”
Always gets me this one, why is it that some - most - people think that it's only those who pay rent or a mortgage that deserve the pleasures of drink and drugs. It doesn't make sense now, never made it in the past.
picture of Jeff Williams from his myspace page - please share but retain the file name so that it can be googled
I was just looking at the site - how fucking amateurish it is. It's as if whoever made it first saw a website in 1996 and thought that was the zenith of design.
This Jeff Williams, the town prick of St Petersburg, Florida, seems the sort who's been desperately scratching at the doors of media success for a long time and finally thinks he's succeeding simply by getting coverage.
Housing charity accused of exploiting Roma
24th June 2011
thelocal.de/society/20110624-35867.html
A Berlin charity has been accused of housing Roma families in filthy flats and making a hefty profit from over-charging them for the accommodation – tax free, while speaking about them with a shocking lack of respect.
Investigative reporter Hans-Martin Tillack reported in this week’s Stern magazine that the Humanitas Kinderhilfe Berlin-Brandenburg has been making significant profit from renting sub-standard flats to Roma families. The charity’s manager Lutz Thinius, who has faced bankruptcy several times according to Tillack, told the journalist, “As a public charity we were asked to take on these people in order that they no longer spend the night in neighbouring parks.”
But the flats he is housing the Roma in leave much to be desired, with one of the organisation’s flats in Berlin's Tiergarten district having “massive water damage stretched across the ceiling, and stinking of mould.” The official business register shows that another flat in the district was bought in 2009 for €22,500 by property company ISB Immoservice, which belongs to a man named by Stern only as Thomas K., an acquaintance of Thinius.
The magazine said Humanitas rented it for a monthly inclusive rent of €410 from ISB and rented it on to Roma for €600 –at what it called, “an unusually high profit of nearly 50 percent.” Humanitas argued that it was completely responsible for any potential non-payment of rent.
The magazine said that ISB profited from the deal as its contract with Humanitas included an up to 10 percent additional charge because the flat was being rented to third parties, a practice which the Berlin Renter Association said was not allowed. Yet the magazine said ISB owner Thomas K. is likely to be more concerned with an investigation by Berlin’s state prosecutor into possible fraud and embezzlement, allegations he denies.
Humanitas said it worked with other charities in the city working with the Roma, but the Hilfsverein Amaro Drom group, which helps ensure Roma children attend school denied any connection. “We do not cooperate in any fashion with Humanitas,” it said. The Berlin authorities seem to be so happy that Humanitas seems to get Roma off the streets and out of the parks, that little attention is paid to how this is done, the magazine said. “One can actually be happy that there is Humanitas,” said one official.
Thinius seemed to play on good connections when writing to one Berliner who had complained about over-crowding of flats in his neighbourhood. “You can assume that associated groups which are on our side, also have contact to influential political levels,” said the Humanitas letter, which also warned that the, “exclusion intended by yourself of the Romanian families (EU citizens),” would be poorly received in public.
Yet Thinius himself said in several emails that his Roma tenants behave, “more like animals.” He also complained that his charity was largely abandoned by the authorities in its work conducting what he called, “Romanian disposal.”
Food Not Bombs Members Arrested in Orlando for Serving Meals Without a Permit
The City of Orlando, the home of Disney World in Florida, is being sued in court today over a city law that has effectively made it illegal for any group to feed more than 25 people at a time in downtown parks without a permit. It also limits groups to no more than two permits per park, per year. The group Food Not Bombs has refused to obey the new law—saying food is a right, not a privilege—and has continued to serve free meals to the poor and homeless. However, over the past month more than 20 members of the organization have been arrested. Keith McHenry, who helped found Food Not Bombs over 30 years ago, was arrested Wednesday and remains in jail. We speak with Benjamin Markeson, an activist involved with Food Not Bombs for several years who was arrested earlier this month, and the group’s attorney, Shayan Elah
----------------
Coverage of the "Food not Bombs" group in Florida. (They're the ones being arrested for giving food to homeless people in public parks.)
Last night the weather in the west country was dreadful but how much more if you were living in a tent by a main road. The 21 year old who was living in the tent for some time was killed when a tree crushed her in Exeter.
Volunteer of the year award for former rough sleeper Howard Garrick
PETER GRUNER
30 November, 2012
islingtontribune.com
A FORMER drug addict and heavy drinker who spent years living rough on the streets of north London, as well as a period in prison, has been crowned Islington’s Volunteer of the Year. Howard Garrick, 39, spoke about his remarkable transformation from rough sleeper to homeless support worker following the presentation of the award at the King’s Cross offices of Voluntary Action Islington.
Mr Garrick, now a father of one, talked of his past life, when he was estranged from his parents and living a life hell-bent on self-destruction. “The worst part was feeling utterly alone,” he said. “I would wake up on the streets withdrawing from drugs or drink. I would be virtually screaming for alcohol to numb the pain.”
Mr Garrick, born and brought up in Guildford, Surrey, said that the downward slide began more than 20 years ago after he moved out of the family home aged 15 following rows with his parents. But it was his dependence on booze and drugs that was his downfall. Eventually he ended up in Pentonville prison, but it was then that his life started to change for the better.
In prison he got support and began to reappraise his life. When he got out he received help from Islington’s young people’s homeless charity, the Pillion Trust, who run a night shelter. He’s particularly grateful to the charity’s chief executive Savvas Panas for “not giving up on me and encouraging me to make a break with my past life”.
Pillion provided Mr Garrick with accommodation and treatment for his addictions and then encouraged him to go to college. “I did an NVQ course related to homelessness issues at the City Lit in Holborn. And I came back to Pillion as a volunteer as part of my college placement.” Today he is a homeless project co-coordinator with the Trust, organising support and therapy for young homeless people.
Mike Sherriff, chief executive of Voluntary Action Islington, said Mr Garrick was an inspirational figure. “His is a shining example of what can be achieved and a perfect role model for young people who end up with nowhere to go and no direction.”
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