Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/813078
BySophiaBollag The Associated Press SACRAMENTO Califor- nia gives disabled park- ing permits to people who don't provide enough med- ical information to prove they need one, state audi- tor Elaine Howle said in a report released Tuesday. The report also says the Department of Motor Vehi- cles has not canceled per- mits for about 35,000 peo- ple who are probably dead. The state auditor re- viewed about 100 approved applications and found nearly three in four did not adequately describe the dis- ability. Nearly one in five in- cluded a medical provider's signature that didn't match the one on file with the li- censing health board. The DMV issues disabled permits in the form of plac- ards and license plates. They allow people to park in disabled spaces and for free in metered spaces. They also exempt people from time limits on spaces. The benefits of a dis- abled parking permit "cre- ate a significant incentive for misuse," Howle wrote in the report. The "DMV does not suffi- ciently ensure that applica- tions for placards or plates are legitimate," Howle wrote. "Consequently, DMV may be allowing people to fraudulently obtain plac- ards." Howle's office found that the name and date of birth for nearly 35,000 placard holders matched entries in federal death records. The office also found 26,000 ac- tive placard holders were 100 years old or older, but only about 8,000 people in that age group live in Cal- ifornia. The audit found that lo- cal entities issuing parking tickets don't have immedi- ate access to DMV placard information, limiting their ability to determine if plac- ards are valid. Lawmakers should re- quire the department to au- dit its approval process four times a year, the report said. The Legislature should also require the DMV to check federal death records and cancel permits for people who have died, according to the report. In a statement, a spokes- woman for the DMV said the department agrees with the audit's recommenda- tions. As a result, the DMV is stepping up its efforts to crack down on fraudulent use of disabled placards, the spokeswoman said. DMV California auditor: Disabled parking permits need scrutiny By Scott Sonner The Associated Press RENO, NEV. An ex-Lake Tahoe ski school instruc- tor facing federal child por- nography charges is not the predator prosecutors make him out to be and should be released from jail on house arrest pending his trial, his lawyer said in court docu- ments filed ahead of a bail hearing Tuesday for the suspect. Federal prosecutors counter that Stephan De- Graffenreid, 26, should re- main in jail without bail until his trial is set to be- gin in U.S. District Court in Reno June 13 on charges including sexual exploita- tion of a minor. DeGraffenreid, who was fired from his job as an as- sistant at the Heavenly Ski Resort's ski school, is ac- cused of photographing young children in a bath- room at a daycare center his mother manages in- side a church. He pleaded not guilty on April 6. Assistant U.S. Attor- ney Shannon Bryant said DeGraffenreid is an "ex- tremely dangerous pred- ator to our community's most vulnerable popula- tion group" who should not be released before his trial. "By his own admis- sion, (he) cannot control his child pornography ad- diction and attraction to children," Bryant wrote in court documents filed Monday. She said that dur- ing an interview with de- tectives he "equated his be- havior to having a 'demon inside me.'" His lawyer, David Hous- ton, said that contrary to prosecutors' claims, De- Graffenreid is not a pedo- phile or a predator. He took the photos from a distance outside an open bathroom door and never touched any of the children, Hous- ton wrote in a motion Mon- day seeking his release on strict conditions. Although DeGraffen- reid "may possess recur- rent sexual fantasies and urges involving prepubes- cent females, his alleged offense are non-contact sexual offenses," Houston wrote. "This is not a situa- tion where defendant was luring anyone into a spe- cific position in order to be photographed." A psychological risk as- sessment conducted by Dr. Earl Nielsen found De- Graffenreid to be "a low to moderate risk for future sex crimes and a very low risk for violent or hands-on sex crimes," Houston said. A bail hearing was set for 3 p.m. Tuesday. DeGraffenreid was ar- rested March 30 on a sin- gle count of sexual exploi- tation of a minor. A crim- inal complaint claims his cellphone found on the slopes at the Heavenly ski resort was filled with nude photos of prepubescent fe- males he apparently down- loaded from the internet. Two additional counts of sexual exploitation and one child pornography count was added after federal agents said a search of De- Graffenreid's home found additional images of the childrentakenatthechurch daycare center in the small town of Gardnerville. "Compared to the ex- tremely disturbing admis- sions the defendant makes about his criminal con- duct, his attraction to chil- dren, his desire to touch children and his uncon- trollable compulsions, Dr. Nielsen's so called 'risk' assessment is woefully in- sufficient evidence to es- tablish that the defendant does not present a risk of danger to the community," Bryant wrote. CRIME Bail hearing for ex-Tahoe ski teacher on child porn charges The Associated Press LOSANGELES Anewpolicy says Los Angeles police offi- cers will need to attempt to defuse tense situations be- fore using deadly force. The Los Angeles Police Commission voted Tues- day to amend the Police Department's use-of-force policy. The change requires officers to use tactics that avoid the use of deadly force whenever possible. The policy change means the civilian Police Commission can specifi- cally judge whether the of- ficers could have found a way to resolve a tense situ- ation without resorting to potentially deadly force. The five-member over- sight panel conducts a re- view every time an officer fires a weapon. It typically includes analyzing an offi- cer's tactics and whether it was appropriate to draw and fire the weapon. The commission can de- termine if an officer acted within department policy, but cannot discipline offi- cers. 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