Upcoming Family Court Event: Transforming Child Welfare and Children's Lives.

On December 13, the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy Policy Forum will present Transforming Child Welfare and Children's Lives:Proven Strategies that Strengthen Families.

The event is billed as "a conversation about 'What Works' with individuals touched by child welfare systems."

Participants will include: Anni Keane and Rose Williams from You Gotta Believe - a NYC organization that seeks to find permanent homes for older children in the foster care system; Sheila J. Poole, the Acting Commissioner from the New York State Office of Children and Family Services; Linda S. Spears, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families; Molly McGrath Tierney, the Director of the Baltimore City Department of Social Services; and Jeanette Vega from Rise - a parent support organization in NYC.

The event will run from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm in the Dora Maxwell Auditorium, 700 Patroon Creek Blvd, Albany, NY 12206.

Conservative Party joins fight for New York indigent defense funding

New York Daily News:

It isn't often that the state Conservative Party is in agreement with liberal groups, but that is the case when it comes to urging Gov. Cuomo to sign a bill that would gradually shift the funding of legal services for the poor from the localities on to the state.

The Conservative Party... said that a requirement that the state's counties, including the five boroughs, fund legal defense programs for the poor amounts to an unfunded mandate that is choking the finances of the localities.....

The bill has won the support across the political spectrum....The New York Civil Liberties Union, the state Catholic Conference, NAACP, Lambda Legal Defense Fund, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Innocence Project and the Brennan Center for Justice have also urged Cuomo to sign the bill.

Warning: Email Phishing Scam

The New York State Bar Association is aware of an email phishing scam that is targeted at attorneys.

The current email subject line says: "The Office of The State Attorney Complaint." No such office exists in New York.

If you received the email, please delete it immediately. Do not follow any links or open any attachments. If you do, your computer or cell phone could be exposed to a virus.

The Office of the New York State Attorney General has issued a press release about the scam. Link: http://www.ag.ny.gov/press-release/ag-schneiderman-issues-alert-phishing-scam-targeting-new-york-attorneys.

For more information about how the AG's office handles complaints against businesses, go to: http://www.ag.ny.gov/consumer-frauds/Filing-a-Consumer-Complaint.

Catholic, Civil Rights, leaders urge Cuomo to sign indigent defense bill

New York Law Journal:

New York state's Roman Catholic church leaders and a coalition of civil rights and legal groups are urging Gov. Andrew Cuomo to approve state takeover of local government costs of legal representation for indigent criminal defendants.

"The Catholic Conference believes a well-resourced indigent legal defense program is firmly in keeping with our long-standing advocacy of criminal justice reform and must be supported," the executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, Richard Barnes, said in a letter to the governor Nov. 23.

****

In a separate letter earlier this month, national NAACP President Cornell William Brooks told Cuomo that the faults of "New York's underfunded patchwork system are well-documented."

Brooks was joined by leaders of the Brennan Center for Justice, the Fund for Modern Courts, the Innocence Project, the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and 16 other groups.

Town of Ovid, Seneca County, New York: Planning Board Vacancy

The Ovid Town Board is undertaking a renewal of the Comprehensive Plan for the Town of Ovid.

The Town is accepting letters of interest with qualifications from town residents interested in being appointed to two positions on the Ovid Town Planning Board.

Letters of interest should be sent to Town Clerk James Vangalio at PO Box 452, Ovid, NY 14521. Letters should be received before December 12, 2016.

For more information, contract Supervisor Walt Prouty at 607.279.7170

Travel advisory issued for Seneca County

WHEC TV:

Seneca County Sheriff Tim Luce has issued a travel advisory for Seneca County.

deputies are currently responding to many calls of vehicles off the road. Sheriff Luce reports most roads are snow covered and slippery, and that many roads have not been plowed.

Sheriff Luce urges no unnecessary travel until further notice.

Schuyler County Passes 2017 Budget with 5% Tax Rate Reduction

WENY News:

Residents living in Schuyler County have something to look forward to for 2017. On Monday, Schuyler County officials held a public hearing on next year's budget.

The 2017 budget is just over $46 million, and calls for a tax rate reduction of %5. This means, for every $1,000 assessed property value, homeowners will see about $50 a year in savings.

During the public hearing, one audience member asked if there would be any staff cuts. County Administrator and Budget Office Tim O'Hearn said no. Legislators then passed the budget, unanimously.

The department of largest growth is public safety - something O'Hearn explains is due to increased trends of higher drug activity and arrests.

This is the fifth straight year Schuyler County had a reduction in the tax rate.

Finger Lakes election results to be available online

Typically, many of the local boards of election will post their unofficial results online.

The websites for some local boards of election can be found below:

• Cayuga County
• Chemung County
• Ontario County
• Seneca County
• Schuyler County
• Steuben County
• Tompkins County
• Wayne County
• Yates County

Results usually start coming in shortly after the polls close at 9:00 pm and they are updated as new totals are calculated.

These sites are often a good way to keep track of local election results (village, town, county) that otherwise might not be available in the media until the next day.

New Program to Promote Access to Justice for Domestic Violence Victims

New York State court officials have announced an initiative to allow domestic violence victims to obtain a temporary order of protection (TOP) via video-conference where traveling to or appearing in court would pose an undue hardship or risk of harm to victims.

As authorized by a recent amendment of New York’s Judiciary Law and Family Court Act, the Remote Access Temporary Order of Protection (TOP) Project will permit eligible applicants, with the assistance of a trained advocate, to e-file their TOP petition and appear before a judge via video-conference from a secure, remote site such as a local Family Justice Center, senior center, shelter, hospital or domestic violence advocacy agency.

The nation’s first remote TOP initiative to be implemented on a statewide scale, the program is being introduced in selected family courts in Broome, Chautauqua, Columbia, Erie, Monroe, New York (Manhattan), Suffolk and Westchester (White Plains and Yonkers) counties.

For more on this groundbreaking initiative, click here.

History in the Making: Cornell Perspectives on Election 2016

This evening at 7:00 p.m., Cornell University will broadcast History in the Making: Cornell Perspectives on Election 2016, an exclusive live panel discussion about the 2016 presidential election, available online to 1865 Society members only.

Gretchen Ritter, Harold Tanner Dean of Arts & Sciences, and members of the faculty will share insights and analysis, as well as respond to your questions.

Panelists are: Adam Seth Levine, Assistant Professor of Government, Bruce Lewenstein, Chair, Science & Technology Studies, Professor of Science Communication, Departments of Science & Technology Studies and Communication, Jamila Michener, Assistant Professor, Department of Government and Sergio Garcia-Rios, Assistant Professor Department of Government and Latina/o Studies.

This event is in collaboration with the College of Arts & Sciences and Cornell Annual Giving Programs.

The link to Livestream is here.