Deaf-Blind Man Facing Child Porn Charges

Someone passed this article on to me, Deaf, sight-impaired man not competent to face child porn charges, about a deaf-blind man who is accused of uploading child porn pics to a website. Another search found me this article, Attorney General Abbott's Investigators Arrest Waco Student Following Child Porn Indictments.

The major issue I see here is that when he uploaded the pics to the website, he had to have known where he was uploading it and what he was uploading. He had to have known that what he was doing was wrong, even with low english and/or communication skills. According to AG Abbott's site, Lopez was enrolled in Texas State Technical College's Computer Maintenance Technology program. At least some good English skills are needed to get on the internet and be enrolled in college classes.

However, we know how hackers can at times remotely take over or zombie a computer. Was Lopez knowledgeable enough with his computer to know something may be wrong with it? Did he notice anything amiss like unusual slowdowns or extra files? Did he use some sort of protection on it like a firewall or malware/virus checkers?

I wonder if they've tried to make him understand the charges by rephrasing things in a lower grade level.

My Duty as Potential Juror

Micah Brown's post, My Civic Duty, is a little different from my experience when I was called up some months ago for jury duty. Then again, it varies from locality to locality and state to state.

When I got the summons, I checked to see if it was a legal requirement, and it was. A little under two weeks before I was to show up, I called them to say I would need an interpreter. Unfortunately, they weren't able to get one in time, so they gave me an extension. Then they called me and said I had two interpreters.

I arrive on time that day at 7:45am as requested. I made the mistake of not calling the hotline the night before to see if my group was to show up. As it turns out, my group wasn't needed that day, but the front desk people told me I had to be there since I had interpreters and they were on the way.

I sat down with laptop and connected to the wireless access point. Not long afterwards, both interpreters arrived. Then about 8:30am, one of the people start a video telling about the jury selection process.

Within the time of 3 hours, they called two groups. A little later, a bailiff comes out to thank us for coming and that we are excused from jury duty for 3 years.

One of the interpreters mentions that they don't want to pay twice, that is, for me to come in, then return the next day, as it's so expensive. As it turns out, I was to be there for two mornings, but they excused us.

Has anyone had this kind of experience?

ADA Updates? Should I Hold My Breath?

I was reading the ADA Restoration Act of 2007 post by Roblog, Jamie Berke, and a couple other places. True, we can use today's technologies and devices to keep in touch with people, but we're still missing things in vocal/spoken communications, especially in some critical places like airports and other loudspeaker-using locations that don't use visual alerts as well. Is there anything out there that can turn the spoken word into the written readable word? Sure, there's plenty of them out there, but some have to be 'trained' to the voice(s) that will use it while others don't need that. Observe the many accents out there that people have and the various ways people will pronounce and/or sign a single sentence.

But what's troubled me is the erosion of the original ADA in the courts. We're quibbling over the legal definition of the words 'disabled' and 'functional' at the expense of those who need and want to have good employment, housing, and other things. Read the background section on this;

http://www.aapd-dc.org/News/legislature/070720aapd.htm

Sometimes I'm wondering if the courts and employers understand that for most of those with hearing losses out there, that hearing and understanding can be two different things. Just because something is heard, if at all, doesn't mean that it will be understood and known, if identified. Just because someone has hearing aids doesn't mean they can use the phone effectively.

Will this finally assist those who have been trying to find a good job despite a good college education? Will it help those on SSI to actually get off and stay off, even with that education? Will a job be guaranteed after college graduation?

Personally, I'm not holding my breath. Congress, employers, and the courts will be making that important first step, the step that will decide the direction of things.