The Tulsa County reserve deputy who shot and killed a man after saying he was going to use his taser is facing manslaughter charges. Also, California’s State Senate has approved a proposal that would replace a statue at the U.S. Capitol of Father Junipero Serra with one of the late Sally Ride, but not without some controversy. Then, what are the benefits and drawbacks to falling into the categories of a morning person or night owl?
Criminal charges difficult to prove against police officers, but moving forward in Tulsa
The Tulsa County reserve deputy who shot and killed a man after saying he was going to use his taser is facing manslaughter charges.
On Monday the Tulsa County District Attorney charged the 73-year-old Robert Bates with second-degree manslaughter involving culpable negligence for the April 2nd shooting of Eric Courtney Harris. Tulsa Police Sergeant Jim Clark says Bates was the victim of “slip and capture” when he announced he was going to tase Harris but then fired his gun.
The case is reminding some of the 2009 fatal shooting of Oscar Grant by BART officer Johannes Mehserle, who also warned he was going to tase Grant before shooting him. Mehserle was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter but not guilty of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. The bar for criminal charges against officers is complicated. What chance does this case have?
Guests:
Tim Williams, founder of TT Williams Investigations, a private investigation firm in Los Angeles; Retired LAPD Senior Detective Supervisor (Robbery-Homicide Division), 1974-2003; Expert on police procedure and use-of-force for state and federal court
Bill Lewinski, Executive Director of the Force Science Institute
Mike Rains, criminal defense attorney and founding member of the San Francisco-based law firm Rains Lucia Stern. He represented BART officer Johannes Mehserle who was found not guilty of second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter in the 2009 shooting of Oscar Grant
Jeff Philips, Executive Director of the Reserve Officers Association
Eugene O’Donnell, Professor of law and police science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice; former NYPD officer; former prosecutor in Kings County (Brooklyn)
Drought messaging: What works and what doesn’t?
How would Don Draper have tackled the drought? It’s something Governor Jerry Brown would probably like to know because, despite many iterations of messaging, Californians still aren’t saving enough water.
The latest heavy public ad campaign to“Save the Drop” implores residents to save every drop of water they can, but is that the most effective messaging when headlines are taking down almond farmers for using a gallon per nut? And then there’s the “Don’t Be a LawnSoaker Larry” ads running around Los Angeles and the social media blitz #dirtyforthedrought, one shaming, one championing frugality.
What have you seen that’s effective? What’s not?
Check out Denver Water's "Use Only What You Need" campaign to get an idea of a smart water conservation campaign
Guests:
Chuck Husak, partner at the Maryland-based advertising firm August, Lang & Husak, a firm that works with nonprofits and focuses on public advocacy messages
Jonathan Parfrey, executive director of the nonprofit Climate Resolve; former commissioner with LADWP, 2008-2013, and Senior Fellow at the USC Marshall School of Business
California’s influential Congressman Xavier Becerra on his future, POTUS hopefuls and more
Tomorrow is the deadline for potential federal candidates such as Rep. Xavier Becerra (D - CA) to file quarterly campaign finance statements, and it's anticipated Becerra has enough in the bank to be a viable candidate for California's junior Senate seat being vacated by Barbara Boxer (D).
The field could be crowded by California AG Kamala Harris, Asm. Rocky Chavez, and prospective candidates including Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D - CA) and Rep. Adam Schiff (D - CA). As a member of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, this week the Los Angeles-area Congressman is lobbying against a Republican proposal to repeal the estate tax and lobbying for updates to the Equal Pay Act. Additionally, Larry Mantle will ask for Becerra's thoughts on the latest presidential contenders, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Senator Marco Rubio.
Guest:
Rep. Xavier Becerra, Congressman for California’s 34th District including Downtown LA, Boyle Heights and more; Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus; Committee assignments include Ways and Means, Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security.
Calif. Senate passes proposal to launch Sally Ride statue to the nation’s capitol
California’s State Senate has approved narrowly a proposal that would replace a statue at the U.S. Capitol of Father Junipero Serra with one of the late Sally Ride, but not without some controversy.
Each state is allowed two statues in the Capitol’s Statuary Hall, and California currently has Father Serra and former President Ronald Reagan. Serra, an 18th century Franciscan monk who established the mission system in California, has had his likeness placed in the hall since 1931.
His would-be statuary replacement, Sally Ride, was America’s first and youngest woman astronaut. Ride, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2012, would have the distinction of being the first woman from California in the hall as well as its first member from the LGBT community.
Critics in the California Senate have fought the proposal on a number of grounds, including its lack of “mandatory” funding from private sources and the fact that Pope Francis, who has recently discussed canonizing Father Serra, would be visiting Washington D.C. in September. Proponents of the bill contend that it would take years for the statute replacement to occur. The proposal still needs to be passed by the Assembly and signed by Governor Brown.
How do you feel about California’s statuary representatives in the nation’s capitol?
Click Here for more on the story
Guest:
Chris Nichols, Sacramento reporter, U-T San Diego
The politics of reincarnation and its impact on the future of Tibet
As the Dalai Lama turns 80 this July, the question of who will succeed him has taken on renewed political relevance.
The Dalai Lama, the longest-living incumbent, recently intimated that he might not reincarnate. It’s a possibility that is fraught with implications for Tibetan Buddhism and for China, which hopes to have a hand in the process to ensure its continual influence over Tibet.
The Dalai Lama will be in Orange County to celebrate his 80th birthday in July. AirTalk looks at the politics of Tibetan reincarnation and its impact.
Guests:
Robert Barnett, Director, Modern Tibet Studies Program and Adjunct Professor of Contemporary Tibetan Studies at Columbia University
Rongdao Lai, Assistant Professor of Chinese religion at USC, whose research focuses on Buddhism. She is a Buddhist nun
Morning lark vs. night owl: The biology of early birds and midnight oil-burners
We all know that colleague who is lively and chipper first thing in the morning while the rest of the office is still bleary-eyed and sleepy. Conversely, we also probably all know someone who can stay up late into the evening and still function the next day. At some point, most of us have probably stopped to wonder what their secret is.
Are you a morning person or a night owl? What makes certain people function better in the morning and others function better at night? What are the benefits and drawbacks to falling into one of these categories?
Are you a morning lark or a night owl? Take our quiz and add up your score to find out!
1. How alert do you feel during the first half hour after you wake up in the morning?
a) Not at all alert [1 point]
b) Slightly alert [2 points]
c) Fairly alert [3 points]
d) Very alert [4 points]
2. How hungry do you feel during the first half hour after you wake up?
a) Not at all hungry [1 point]
b) Slightly hungry [2 points]
c) Fairly hungry [3 points]
d) Very hungry [4 points]
3. A friend wants to exercise with you during the week, and the best time for him is between 6 to 7 a.m. Bearing in mind nothing but your own internal "clock," how do you think you would perform?
a) Very poorly [1 point]
b) Poorly [2 points]
c) Reasonably [3 points]
d) Well [4 points]
4. You want to be at your peak performance for a test that you know is going to be mentally exhausting and will last two hours. You are entirely free to plan your day. Considering only your internal "clock," which one of the four testing times would you choose?
a) 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. [1 point]
b) 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. [2 points]
c) 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. [3 points]
d) 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. [4 points]
5. If you went to bed at 10 p.m. how tired would you be?
a) Not at all tired [1 point]
b) A little tired [2 points]
c) Fairly tired [3 points]
d) Very tired [4 points]
6. If there is a specific time at which you have to get up in the morning, to what extent are you dependent on being woken up by an alarm clock?
a) Very dependent [1 point]
b) Fairly dependent [2 points]
c) Slightly dependent [3 points]
d) Not at all dependent [4 points]
7. For some reason you have gone to bed several hours later than usual, but there is no need to get up at any particular time the next morning. Which one of the following events are you most likely to experience?
a) Wake up later than usual [1 point]
b) Wake up at the usual time and go back to sleep [2 points]
c) Wake up at the usual time and doze [3 points]
d) Wake up at the usual time and not go back to sleep [4 points]
8. Do you consider yourself to be a "morning" or "evening" type of person?
a) Evening [1 point]
b) More evening than morning [2 points]
c) More morning than evening [3 points]
d) Morning [4 points]
You're done! Now, add up your score!
4-9 points: YOU'RE AN EXTREME OWL
True Owls love to sleep late into the morning and have no trouble staying up late into the night. They’re most alert a few hours later than other people.
10-14 points: YOU'RE A SEMI-OWL.
You love the night life, and enjoy staying up late and sleeping late into the morning. But you can also be flexible and adapt when your sleep pattern is disrupted
15-22 points: YOU HAVE NO PARTICULAR SLEEPING TENDENCY.
On the whole you’re likely to be happy getting up between 6:00 and 7:00am and dropping off to sleep between 10:00pm and 11 p.m. You’re likely to be most alert in the morning and early evening and have a period of low alertness in the afternoon.
23-28 points: RISE AND SHINE.
You tend to be a morning person and like to rise relatively early and not stay up too late. You don’t cope very well when your sleep pattern is disrupted.
29-32 points: YOU'RE AN EXTREME LARK.
True Larks tend to jump out of bed as early as 4:00 or 5:00am and drop off to sleep by 9:00pm. They’re likely to be at their best in the morning, and do poorly when their sleep pattern is disrupted.
Source: “Sleepfaring: A Journey into the Science of Sleep,” (Oxford University Press) by Jim Horne, Loughborough University Sleep Research Center.
Guests:
Mareike Weith, associate professor of psychology at Albion College in Michigan. Her work focuses on how factors like time of day and incentives influence the cognitive process.
Dr. Jeffrey Ellenbogen, M.D, assistant professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and a researcher at Johns Hopkins’ Sleep Disorder Center