8 States Ask Myspace For Names Of Sex Offenders

STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL

A Communication From the Chief Legal Officers
Of the Following States: Connecticut – Georgia – Idaho – Mississippi – New Hampshire – North Carolina – Ohio – Pennsylvania

May 14, 2007
Mary Ellen Callahan
Hogan and Hartson, LLP
Columbia Square
555 Thirteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004

Dear Ms. Callahan:

As our states' chief legal officers, we are gravely concerned that sexual predators are using MySpace to lure children into face-to-face encounters and other dangerous activities.

We write to you regarding MySpace's December 2006 announcement with Sentinel Tech Holding regarding the identification of registered sex offenders on MySpace.

It is our understanding that the data from Sentinel reveals that thousands of known registered sexual offenders have been confirmed as MySpace members.

If true, this dramatically exceeds the report from Wired magazine, which found 744 registered sex offenders with MySpace profiles. Perhaps thousands more sexual predators - not registered or using fictitious names - are lurking on your web site.

We remain concerned about the design of your site, the failure to require parental permission, and the lack of safeguards necessary to protect our children.

We therefore request the following information:

First, how many registered sex offenders in the Sentinel database have been cross-referenced against MySpace's membership?

Second, what is the exact number of known registered sex offenders who have been identified as members of MySpace to date? Please forward a list of the names of the registered sex offenders that you have identified with profiles on MySpace and the states in which they reside.

Third, what steps has MySpace taken to alert law enforcement officials as well as MySpace users of such sex offenders? Finally, what steps has MySpace taken to remove sex offender profiles and how many have been removed?

We request a response by Tuesday, May 29, 2007. We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Roy Cooper
Attorney General North Carolina

Richard Blumenthal
Attorney General Connecticut

Thurbert Baker
Attorney General Georgia

Lawrence Wasden
Attorney General Idaho

Jim Hood
Attorney General Mississippi

Kelly A. Ayotte
Attorney General New Hampshire

Marc Dann
Attorney General Ohio

Tom Corbett
Attorney General Pennsylvania


Play Video
MySpace list

WHP CBS 21 Harrisburg - (WHP)

May. 15, 2007. 07:45 AM EST

The Attorney General of Pennsylvania, along with his counterparts in more than a half-dozen other states is, asking the popular networking website "myspace.com" for names of registered sex offenders who use the service.

U.S. Soldiers Banned From Myspace & YouTube

U.S. soldiers serving overseas will be banned from using many popular websites including YouTube and MySpace used to keep in touch with family and friends, a U.S. Army Commander said in a memo.

The Department of Defence "will block worldwide access" to YouTube, MySpace and 11 other popular websites on its computers and networks, according to the memo sent by General BB Bell, the US Forces Korea commander.

The policy is being implemented to protect information and reduce drag on the department's networks, Gen Bell said.

"This recreational traffic impacts our official DoD network and bandwidth ability, while posing a significant operational security challenge, " he wrote.

The new policy creates a blanket ban on several sites used by military personnel to exchange messages, pictures, video and audio with family and friends, while also viewing nude photos and strip teases done by love ones back home.

Members of the military can still access the sites on their own computers and networks, but Defence Department computers and networks are the only ones available to many soldiers and sailors in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The move is in addition to the general policy of banning members of the military from sharing information that could jeopardise their missions or safety.

You never know who you will meet on Myspace or see on YouTube.


Play Video
Military Bans MySpace

KLRT Fox 16 Little Rock - (KLRT)

May. 15, 2007. 10:03 AM EST

For soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, contacting family and friends back home, just got tougher. The Department of Defense is banning MySpace, PhotoBucket, YouTube and ten other popular websites.

Sentencing For Myspace Murderer

Sentencing begins this week for the so-called "MySpace killer."

Former UMBC student John Gaumer was convicted of killing a woman he met on the internet.

Last week a jury found Gaumer guilty of pre-meditated murder and first degree rape in the death of Josie Brown.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.


Play Video
Myspace Murderer/Rapist Gets Guilty Verdict




Update To Story 5-15-07

Play VideoEmotions Run High On The Myspace Murder Sentencing

WBFF FOX Baltimore - (WBFF)

May. 14, 2007. 10:00 PM EST

Convicted John Gaumer Was Brought To Tears During Sentencing

Greenhouse Warming Bring Dry Hot Summers To Eastern U.S. States In Future

NASA scientists have warned that greenhouse gas warming may raise average summer temperatures in the eastern part of United States by nearly 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the 2080s.

"There is the potential for extremely hot summertime temperatures in the future, especially during summers with less-than-average frequent rainfall," said lead author Barry Lynn of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Columbia University, New York.

The research found that eastern US summer daily high temperatures that currently average in the low-to-mid-80s (degrees Fahrenheit) (26 degrees Celsius) will most likely soar to the low-to-mid-90s (32 degrees Celsius) during summers by the 2080s.

In extreme seasons "when precipitation falls infrequently July and August daily high temperatures could average between 100 and 110 degrees Fahrenheit. And the cities that will be particularly affected will be Chicago, Washington, and Atlanta," he said.

To reach their conclusions, researchers analyzed nearly 30 years of observational temperature and precipitation data and also used computer model simulations that considered soil, atmospheric, and oceanic conditions and projected changes in greenhouse gases.

The simulations were produced using a widely-used weather prediction model coupled with a global model developed by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

"The weather prediction model used is advantageous because it assesses details about future climate at a smaller geographic scale than global models, providing reliable simulations not only on the amounts of summer precipitation, but also on its frequency and timing," a release from the institute said.

1. Most of the sun's energy reaches the Earth. (The ozone layer shields the Earth from the sun's harmful ultraviolet radiation.)
2. About 30 percent of the energy is reflected back into space.
3. Burning of fossil fuels and deforestation increase carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Added to this are chlorofluorocarbons (human-made gases used in spray cans, refrigerants and insulations) and methane (from landfills, farming and swamps).
4. Together, these gases form a "blanket" which traps energy, thus warming the Earth.

Source: World Resources Institute, Changing Climate: A Guide to the Greenhouse Effect (1989).