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R&B star Ne-Yo is sponsoring a software coding camp at San Francisco's Holberton School of Software Engineering this summer.

The program is part of Holberton's mission to find and train minorities in software programming skills that are in high demand in the city and surrounding areas.

The camp is born out of Ne-Yo's previously announced investment in Holbertonhe participated in a $2.3 million round announced in February , and he has since joined the Holberton board of trustees .

Related; Techie School Scores $2.3 Million in Funding

Ne-Yo, born Shaffer C. Smith, has won three Grammy awards and sold more than 10 million albums worldwide. He has also composed and produced songs performed by Rihanna, Beyonc, Jennifer Hudson, Usher, and Carrie Underwood.

The Holberton School was founded two years ago by Sylvain Kalache and Julien Barbier to help fill the tech skills gap using non-traditional learning techniques. The school is free to qualifying students who then learn software skills via non-traditional project-based coursework. It is basically a learn-by-doing approach.

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The goal is to recruit and train promising students from all parts of society for hard-to-fill technology jobs in the San Francisco and Silicon Valley area. As of now, Holberton claims t hat 40% of its current students are women and more than half (53%) are people of color. It uses an automated selection process designed to reduce bias in admissions.

Related: New Age Tech School Taps Old-School Mentors

Eight students will be picked for the free, three-week camp that starts June 26, and they will work with industry mentors , including Ne-Yo himself, who has agreed to chat with students via Skype during their term.

Read more:
Grammy Winner Ne-Yo Backs Summer Software Camp for Kids - Fortune

By Brendan Farrington, The Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. Lucy McBath is afraid many more people will die if Florida Gov. Rick Scott signs a bill making it harder to prosecute when people claim they commit violence in self-defense.

She already lost her son, an unarmed black teenager, when a white man angry over loud music and claiming self-defense fired 10 times at an SUV filled with teenagers.

The measure before Scott would effectively require a trial-before-a-trial whenever someone invokes self-defense, making prosecutors prove the suspect doesnt deserve immunity.

Scott hasnt revealed his intentions, but hes a National Rifle Association supporter, and this is an NRA priority.

If it passes in Florida, then they take that same legislation and they push it on the legislative floors across the country, said McBath, whose 17-year-old son Jordan Davis was killed by Michael Dunn outside a Jacksonville convenience store in 2012.

Many states have long invoked the castle doctrine, allowing people to use even deadly force to defend themselves in their own homes.

Florida changed that in 2005, so that even outside a home, a person has no duty to retreat and can stand his or her ground anywhere they are legally allowed to be. Other states followed suit, and stand your ground defenses became much more common in pre-trial immunity hearings and during trials.

The 2012 killing of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman opened a debate about the limits of self-defense, and it hasnt let up since Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder after jurors received instructions on Floridas stand your ground law.

Florida Republicans made this bill a priority after the state Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that the defendant has the burden of proof before trial. If Florida starts a national trend to shift that burden to prosecutors, itll be just fine with Republican Rep. Bobby Payne, who sponsored the bill.

Only four of the 22 or more state stand your ground laws mention this burden of proof in Alabama, Colorado, Georgia and South Carolina and all place it on defendants.

Its about following our right of innocent until proven guilty, Payne said. Its about Fifth Amendment rights, its about due process, its about having a true immunity, for when folks really believe theyre in imminent threat of great bodily harm or death, to defend themselves properly.

Senators originally wanted prosecutors to prove beyond a reasonable doubt before trial that self-defense didnt justify a violent crime. The final legislation lowered the threshold to clear and convincing evidence.

Either way, it makes prosecuting violent crimes more difficult, experts say.

I think there will be more false stand your ground claims, said former Broward County prosecutor Gregg Rossman, who has tried 65 murder cases. The pre-trial hearings are very much going to be like a mini-trial.

Proving a killer didnt act in self-defense when there are no living witnesses would be particularly hard, he said: I worry the most about the one-on-one cases. You and I get into an argument and I shoot you. Who speaks for you?

But public defenders say it should help people who were simply trying to defend themselves. Prosecutors often use the threat of minimum mandatory sentences to coerce people into accepting a plea deal even if their use of force was justified, said Stacy Scott, a public defender in Gainesville.

Its going to force them to deal more fairly with citizens who are charged with crimes, and will help our clients either get better plea offers or exonerate themselves earlier in the process so they dont have to wait until a jury trial and risk everything they have in order to litigate their case, Scott said.

McBath, who lives in Marietta, Georgia, believes the guilty will more likely escape convictions. It took two trials to convict her sons killer of murder.

Were just one out of so many, she said. Because we won our case, I honestly, honestly believe thats the reason why theyre putting these additional measures into stand your ground.

Justifiable homicide claims have doubled on average in states that have passed stand your ground laws, said John Roman of the independent research organization NORC at the University of Chicago.

Also, whites who kill black people are 10 times more likely to win a stand your ground claim than blacks who kill whites, said Roman, who analyzed these cases while at the Urban Institute think tank.

Studies also show that white people are more likely to feel threatened by black people than the other way around, and if you then add onto implicit bias the ability to use lethal force, its reasonable then to expect that lethal force will be disproportionately applied to minorities, he said.

Read the original here:
Florida could pave new changes in 'stand your ground' laws The ... - The Denver Post

(Photo: Bill Day/Cagle Cartoons)

Critics of a defendant-friendly proposal say dust off the GunshineState moniker:Florida is blazing new legal territory in a quest to expand Stand Your Ground rights.

SB 128, which has yet to be delivered to Gov. Rick Scott for a final signature, establishes a new threshold for a homicide charge in pre-trial hearings when a defendant uses deadly force.

"If the governor signs it then every other state will be looking to Florida for all the wrong reasons," said Sen. Perry Thurston, D-Ft. Lauderdale. "There is a reason why every state attorney in Florida is against this. There is a reason why no other state has a law like this. It ties the prosecutor's hands. It's not just bad. It's bad-bad bad."

Second Amendment advocates, the NRA, and the Florida Public Defenders Association say state attorneys have routinely abused their prosecutorial authority in cases where citizens have defended themselves against an attack. They say SB 128 reins them in and protects the constitutional rights of people under investigation following a violent encounter.

"They ( prosecutors) are able to extract pleas from innocent people because ... in some cases you have to turn down a favorable plea offer and face life in prison if you even want to take a deposition in a case to find out what witnesses will say under oath," said Stacy Scott, public defender in Gainesville, which is part of the 8th Judicial Circuit.

Hiaasen opinion: New stand your ground rules offer creative opportunities for defendants

Victims mother: Stand Your Ground law emboldens shooters

The bill is in response to a 2015Supreme Court ruling that found a defendant must prove deadly force was allowed under the Stand Your Ground law - a 2005 measure that says one does not have to retreat when threatened.

Florida's Stand Your Groundlaw was the first in the nation about two dozen other states have followed suit. A 2016 study found the state's monthly homicide rate has increased 24 percent since. Critics faulted the AMA study for flawed methodology, pointing out that the data conflated justifiablehomicides and murder rendering the results misleading.

Lawyers in the Florida Senate where a third of the 39 members have law degrees, overwhelmingly sided with the defendants voting 10-3 in favor of SB 128. Senate President Joe Negron argued if the state wants to deprive someone of their freedom then it must prove guilt at every step of the proceedings.

"The highest legal standard in the world has served us well," Negron explained. "If the government wants to send you to prison, it has the burden beyond and to the exclusion of every reasonable doubt."

Scott has said the court ruling had tilted the scales of justice against domestic violence and battery victims;often citizens with low incomes are unable to match the state's resources.

"This bill by forcing the state to have the burden of proof at the immunity hearing, it gives meaning to the hearing," said Scott. "It gives teeth to the hearing and it gives the citizen a fair opportunity to negotiate with the state."

Prosecutors say Negron and Scott's defense is inaccurate and misleading to those unfamiliar with how the judicial system works. PhilArcher, Brevard state attorney, said the burden is often on the defendant in pre-trial hearings such as one claiming a violation of rights or to plead insanity.

Archer said SB 128 mandates such an extraordinary standard of proof that it creates a huge loophole for defense attorneys to exploit.

"Last year in my jurisdiction of a million citizens, we had four Stand Your Ground hearings," Archer told lawmakers during a committee hearing. "With this bill, I expect that to rise to more than 6,000."

Archer predicted every battery case, every one-on-one confrontation, every violent crime potentially will include an immunity hearing.

The measure cleared both the House and Senate along mostly party-line votes. Thurston, a defense attorney by trade, led the Democratic opposition and tried to killthe bill during four separate committee and Senate floor meetings. His best shot was that the proposed legislation fosters a"shoot to kill" mentality because "dead men tell no tales."

"This is simply kowtowing to the NRA," said Thurston, the lawmaker.

Thurston the defense attorney though has a different take. If the governor signs the bill, he said he will use it every chance he gets.

"I see an avalanche of motions; domestic battery, aggravated battery, homicide. Every violent crime, you name it," Thurston said. "It would be malpractice for a criminal defense attorney not to. It would be ineffective legal assistance not to file that motion in every case I can think of."

The bill has yet to be sent to the governor. When asked the governor's intentions a spokesman said the bill will be givena thorough review once it arrives.When it makes it to his desk, Gov. Scott will have15 days to decide whether to allow it to become law.

Reporter James Call can be reached at jcall@tallahassee.com. Follow on Twitter @CallTallahassee.

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Lawmaker plans to use "shoot to kill" bill every chance he gets - if Governor signs it - Tallahassee.com

Gun rally promoted changes to Pennsylvanias concealed carry laws of gun ownership.

Hundreds of gun owners and gun right advocates were joined by a large bipartisan group of lawmakers in the state Capitol rotunda just one week ago to voice their support for the second amendment rights of Pennsylvania citizens. This was the twelfth annual second amendment rights rally to be held in Harrisburg. A number of nationally noted speakers shared their perspectives on legislative and judicial efforts to protect and preserve the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.

House Speaker Mike Turzai (R-Allegheny) addressed those attending the rally and voiced support for moving municipal preemption legislation that will prevent local governments from regulating the ownership, possession or transportation of firearms and ammunition, on to become law in Pennsylvania.

The founders knew what they were doing when they made sure they were protecting our rights to bear arms, Turzai told those in attendance last Monday. This team in the Capitol, Republicans and Democrats who recognize the right to bear arms, we have held off all of those attacks of those who want to take away those rights. Secondly, the team who make sure we protect second amendment rights on a local level is also here. We find that municipalities keep trying to take away those rights which is why we sent the pre-emption bill to the Senate. Were going to get it back on the Governors desk.

Representative Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler) also spoke to reporters at the rally and told them he was pleased with the turnout.

We had a lot of law-abiding citizens that traveled to the Capitol to stand up for their right to keep and bear arms, to protect themselves, their families, their properties, their neighbors, (and) to protect our state and nation, Metcalfe said. This is an important event every year to bring citizen activists into the Capitol to lobby through the halls, to talk to their legislators, to make sure they are holding their legislator accountable to defending the Constitution.

Representative Rick Saccone (R-Allegheny & Washington) was a prime sponsor of a bill that would amend the current conceal gun-carry law.

You know we are an open-carry state. We dont need the governments permission to carry around openly. I carry everywhere. I carry in the banks. I carry in the grocery store. I carry everywhere I go. But we need the governments permission to put my coat over my weapon. That doesnt make any sense. I think its a fair bill. When you are walking through these hallowed halls today, make sure you tug every legislators sleeve and tell them we want Constitutional Carry. Its sweeping the nation! Every other state is passing it. Why cant we pass it here?

Saccone introduced the bill in January, but it has yet to come to the floor for a vote.

If adopted, Pennsylvania would join Alaska, Arizona, Wyoming, and Vermont that have adopted constitutional-carry rules.

There was no confirmation that either local representatives Jeff Pyle (R-Armstrong/Indiana/Butler) or Representative Donna Oberlander (R-Clarion/Armstrong/Forrest) participated in the rally.

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Gun Owners Attend Second Amendment Rights Rally - The Kittanning Paper

TAORMINA, ITALY

Italy chose to host a Group of Seven summit of wealthy nations on a hilltop overlooking the Mediterranean, looking to draw attention to the migrant crisis that has seen hundreds of thousands of people set sail from Africa in search of a better life in Europe.

But world leaders on Saturday said little that will help Italy manage the steady flow of migrants to its shores or enable it to cope with the growing number of new arrivals.

"Even though this summit took place in Sicily, a stone's throw from where so many migrants have died, it produced no concrete steps to protect vulnerable migrants or to address the root causes of displacement and migration," said Roberto Barbieri, the local director of humanitarian group Oxfam.

Food security

Rome had hoped to persuade other major industrialized nations to open more legal channels for migration and to focus attention on food security -- policies which were meant to lower the number of people who set off for Europe.

But the plan was scrapped before the two-day summit even started, with the United States, Britain and Japan unwilling to commit to major new immigration initiatives.

The final communique outlined medium-term commitments to bolster African economies and promote sustainable agriculture, but it focused more on the need for each country to guarantee national security than on how to limit migration.

Countries "reaffirm the sovereign rights of states to control their own borders and set clear limits on net migration levels," said the communique.

'Desperate measures'

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said the language was decided "weeks ago" by diplomats from G7 nations -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and the United States.

"It wasn't an issue that was the focus of debate, other than recognising the humanitarian importance of taking people in as this region has done," Gentiloni said of Sicily, which has seen hundreds of thousands of migrants arrive since 2014.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there had been "excellent" discussion on the need boost economic opportunity, in particular during outreach sessions with five African leaders on Saturday, so that people "are not driven to take desperate measures to improve their lot".

Both the United States and Britain opposed the Italian pre-summit initiative to draft a stand-alone G-7 statement entitled "G7 Vision on Human Mobility", an Italian official said.

Open, safe, legal paths

That document included language on the need for open, safe and legal paths for migrants and refugees, according to excerpts seen by Reuters.

Italy has been put under increasing pressure as EU partners have refused to relocate large numbers of asylum seekers, and some have closed their southern borders to keep migrants out of their own countries, effectively sealing them in Italy.

More than 175,000 asylum seekers live in Italian shelters. With sea arrivals at a record pace this year, the issue is hotly debated by politicians facing a general election within a year.

Over the past 10 days, almost 10,000 migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya, where people smugglers cram them onto unsafe boats. Dozens died, including many children.

"We know that the deadliest season is upon us. It starts pretty much now, at least it has for the last few years," Joel Millman, spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, said on Friday. "We expect these coming weeks to be much worse."

Originally posted here:
Italy Still Isolated in Shouldering Migration Crisis After G-7 - Voice of America