The Freedom Bulletin

This is sad news – Wonderland Greyhound Park, the 75-year-old racetrack in Revere, closed today. The voters of Massachusetts chose to ban greyhound racing in a 2008 ballot initiative, and Governor Deval Patrick and the state legislature recently failed to come to an agreement to allow casinos or slot machines at racetracks, something that Wonderland was hoping for.

In addition to 100 employees losing their jobs, Massachusetts is also deprived of a landmark that, although not the most upscale place to say the least, is a unique part of our state’s culture and character. The voters made the wrong decision to ban greyhound racing, which is not in itself harmful to dogs. The governor and the legislature failed to agree on a bill authorizing casinos or racetrack slots, which is kind of pathetic since they are both in favor of allowing some number of casinos.

The loss of Wonderland leaves Massachusetts a little bit worse off, and it is the decisions of our voters, governor, and legislature that caused this. Massachusetts needs some new leaders (and a change in the anti-liberty attitudes of many voters) who will make the state a better place instead of a worse one.

Photo courtesy of Zchangu @ Wikipedia, CCASA 2.5

Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley held a press conference today about Philip Markoff’s suicide, and he also e-mailed out the following press release (I bolded the most important parts):

“At 10:06 am this past Sunday, Aug. 15, a corrections officer making routine rounds at the Nashua Street Jail discovered Phillip Markoff unresponsive in his jail cell.  Staff at Nashua Street immediately administered CPR and notified 911.  Within minutes, members of Boston Emergency Medical Services responded to Mr. Markoff’s cell.  Efforts to revive Mr. Markoff were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 10:17 am.  Mr. Markoff died at his own hand.

“This death should not divert attention from what really happened here. It should not obscure the overwhelming evidence against Mr. Markoff or the brutality of his crimes. It is, in no small way, the ultimate indicator of consciousness of guilt.

“As the District Attorney, I am designated by statute to direct all death investigations within Suffolk County.  Mr. Markoff’s death is no different.  I have assigned Assistant District Attorney Mark Lee, deputy chief of our Homicide Unit, to lead this investigation with the Boston Police Homicide Unit squad led by Sgt. Det. Mark Sullivan.

“The investigation into Mr. Markoff’s death has been active since the moment of its discovery.  It remains active even at this hour and as a result there are still some pieces of information that cannot yet be released.  Nonetheless, the public deserves updated and accurate information about Mr. Markoff’s death.

“The following information is based on the recovery of physical evidence, key witness interviews, examination of video surveillance footage, an autopsy of Mr. Markoff’s body by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and initial observations of the condition of Mr. Markoff’s body and his cell at the time he was discovered. 

“Mr. Markoff was the sole occupant of cell #24 at Nashua Street Jail.

“At 1:59 am on Sunday, August 15, he was alone in his locked cell and turned out his light.

“A review of surveillance footage reveals that no one entered Mr. Markoff’s cell until the time he was discovered some eight hours later at 10:06 a.m.

“Mr. Markoff took several measures to harm himself and ensure his own death.  Using a primitive scalpel made from a pen and a sharp piece of metal, he inflicted a series of small punctures and incisions on his body, including his neck, arms, wrists, and ankles.  He hit several veins and the carotid artery in his neck.  All of the wounds were consistent with suicide.

“Mr. Markoff fastened a plastic bag around his head with a length of gauze. He fastened a second plastic bag around his feet.  These were large, clear bags available to inmates at the jail.

“After autopsy, the Medical Examiner determined that this series of actions resulted in air loss and blood loss and combined to cause his death.  We’re currently awaiting toxicology reports to determine what medications, if any, were in his system and whether they contributed to his death.

“Many of you are also curious as to what effect Mr. Markoff’s death has on the criminal case against him.  His death effectively terminates our pending prosecution, and we will file a nolle prosequi closing the case at the next scheduled court date of Sept. 16.

“The evidence assembled against this defendant was overwhelming in quantity and substance.  All of it was developed by the men and women of the Suffolk DA’s office and the Boston Police Homicide Unit who left no stone unturned in their efforts to bring Philip Markoff to justice for the murder of Julissa Brisman.

“With Philip Markoff’s final actions, the Brisman family has been deprived of an opportunity to hear a verdict rendered, to see justice pronounced, and even the chance to tell the court and Mr. Markoff – face to face – what Julissa meant to them and the immeasurable pain and loss he inflicted upon them.  These are important moments for victims of this type of violence and, as we did from the very beginning, I ask you all again to keep Julissa Brisman and her family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.

“I want to extend a final word of thanks to Comissioner Ed Davis for his leadership throughout this case and to the men and women of the Boston Police Homicide, Special Investigations and Fugitive Units.  I also want to recognize the Massachusetts State Police, the FBI, Secret Service, Warwick , Rhode Island police department, the Rhose Island Attorney General’s Office, and the New York City Police Department for their outstanding contributions into the investigation of Philip Markoff’s crimes.”

For more details about Markoff’s dramatic death, see the following news articles:

• Boston Globe – Craigslist suspect Markoff scrawled messages in blood
• Boston Globe – ‘Nothing remarkable’ about Markoff while he awaited trial
• Boston Globe – Markoff fashioned ‘primitive scalpel’ to kill himself
• Boston Globe – James Fox: Denied justice or just us?
• Boston Herald – Suicide dashes hopes for truth
• Boston Herald – Markoff was ‘hell bent’ on killing self
• Boston Herald – NH gun shop cleared in sale of gun to Markoff
• Boston Herald – Margery Eagan: Cowardly act spared Brismans lifetime of pain
• Boston Herald – Autopsy results show Markoff bled, suffocated to death
• ABC – ‘Craigslist Killer’ Philip Markoff died among his fiancee’s photos
• Right Juris – Accused ‘Craigslist Killer’ committed suicide
• New York Post: Final Craigslist chiller

Update as of August 18: Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea Cabral gave a press conference, where she defended the jail’s policies and said that it is impossible to prevent 100% of suicides. She also said that Markoff had been dead for some time before he was found at 10:06 a.m. Additionally, Fox 25 obtained a few exclusive pictures of the bloody words Markoff wrote on the wall of his cell and the makeshift scalpel and plastic bag that he allegedly used.

Photo courtesy of Bizuayehu Tesfaye/AP

Philip Markoff, the 24-year-old former Boston University medical student accused of being the “Craigslist Killer,” was found dead today at 10:17 a.m. in his cell at the Nashua Street Jail. He had a plastic bag tied around his head, and according to some sources also cut an artery in his leg. All signs indicate that he killed himself. It was a year and a day after he would have married his ex-fiancee, Megan McAllister. His trial was set to begin in March.

Markoff has been considered a suicide risk in the past, but this news is still shocking. The Massachusetts prison system has been criticized recently for a relatively high number of inmate suicides, but this is certainly the highest profile one in a long time. I wonder how he got hold of a plastic bag.

Although he is an accused murderer, I still find Markoff’s death sad. He must have decided that death was better than facing a trial and most likely life in prison. It was his life and his right to end it, as he apparently chose to do.

RIP Philip Haynes Markoff, February 12, 1986 – August 15, 2010.

Statement by the Suffolk County D.A.’s Office and Boston Police Department:

The Suffolk County District Attorney’s office and Boston Police Department Homicide Unit, with the assistance of the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department, are investigating the apparent suicide of Philip Markoff at the Nashua Street Jail this morning. Markoff was found unresponsive inside his cell and pronounced dead at 10:17 a.m.

The investigative steps currently under way are taken in all unattended or unnatural deaths within the City of Boston. Markoff was alone in his cell and all evidence collected thus far indicates that he took his own life. Nonetheless, as with all such cases, a comprehensive investigation will be conducted to determine the facts and circumstances surrounding his death.

Various news articles:

• Fox 25 – Accused ‘Craigslist Killer’ Philip Markoff commits suicide in jail
• Boston Globe – Accused ‘Craigslist killer’ Philip Markoff commits suicide in Boston jail
• Boston Globe – Two other suicides at Suffolk County jails in last decade
• Boston Globe – Family of victim reacts to Markoff suicide
• Boston Globe – James Fox: Markoff’s suicide no surprise
• Boston Herald – Sources say accused Craigslist Killer suffocated in apparent jail suicide
• NECN – Craigslist killing suspect Philip Markoff commits suicide in jail
• WCBV – Accused Craigslist Killer Commits Suicide
• Yahoo/AP – Craigslist killing suspect dead in Mass. suicide
• CNN – Police: Accused Craigslist killer dead of apparent suicide
• Fox News – Official: ‘Craigslist Killer’ Commits Suicide in Jail Cell
• Sentencing Law and Policy – Should we be pleased or frustrated?
• New York Daily News – Alleged ‘Craigslist Killer’ Philip Markoff found dead in jail
• ABC – ‘Craigslist Killer’ Philip Markoff commits suicide
• Boston Herald – Sources: Suspected Craigslist killer used bag, pen in suicide
• Boston Herald – Sheriff: Markoff showed no signs of being suicidal
• CNN – Cause of death for alleged Craigslist killer withheld

Update as of August 16: An autopsy was conducted on Markoff’s body, according to the Suffolk County D.A.’s office, but the medical examiner is not yet releasing the cause of death. Depending on the source (see links above), in addition to suffocating himself with a bag, Markoff used either a pen or a razor blade to cut his femoral artery in his leg and possibly his neck and wrists . It seems like he died a painful death but knew what he was doing, not surprising given his medical training. Also, according to the Herald, no one checked on Markoff all night, and Boston City Councillor Stephen J. Murphy is calling for an independent investigation into his death.

Second update as of August 16: WCVB is reporting that Markoff wrote his ex-fiancee’s name, Megan, in blood on the wall of his cell (according to Michele McPhee, who cites unnamed sources). She also says that guards checked on him twice before knowing (or caring) that anything was wrong, and that he wrapped his wounds in plastic bags so that no one would see the blood until it was too late. Wow, you just can’t make this stuff up.

The Massachusetts Bureau of Health Care Safety and Quality recently approved a system that increases doctors’ ability to monitor people’s prescription history. Previously, the Department of Public Health monitored a database tracking prescriptions for only a few drugs, but doctors did not have the ability to view the database. Now, even more medications are included in the database, pharmacists are required to update it, and doctors have full access to it.

Needless to say, paternalistic and anti-liberty people fully support this attempt to fight “doctor shopping” – going to more than one doctor to get prescriptions for the same drug. But I see it as the government stamping out the last tiny, pathetic remnants of freedom that are left in the American medical system.

It is bad enough that people are required by law to have a doctor’s permission to have medications. To give doctors access to people’s prescription history, making it even harder to obtain medications, just violates people’s rights even more. As I recently explained, people have the right to control what happens to their own bodies. Doctors have no right to deny people medications that they want and are willing to pay for, and they have no right to know anything about our medical history unless we want to tell it to them.

Here’s a radical idea: Why not repeal the Durham-Humphrey Amendment and the paternalistic medical culture that goes with it? Why not have all medications available in stores and allow people (with or without a doctor’s advice) to decide for themselves what to purchase? Then we wouldn’t have to worry about “doctor shopping.” People would have no need to lie to doctors or beg for their permission for the medications that they want. We could independently and autonomously make our own decisions and would have the final say over what happens to our bodies.

People have the right to do anything, as long as it does not violate the rights of others. The fact that an action is risky or unhealthy does not change this. The new prescription monitoring system might improve people’s health, but more importantly, it decreases our liberty.

It just keeps getting better! Not only is Virginia suing against the federal requirement to have health insurance, but a man named Michael Merlina is suing the Massachusetts Health Connector Authority, the entity in charge of implementing the state’s health insurance mandate. He was fined $2000 for failing to have insurance, and the Connector denied his appeal.

It’s awesome that someone is challenging the state’s individual mandate in the court system, but even better that three of out the four gubernatorial candidates (at least to some extent) support Merlina and criticize the individual mandate.

Republican Charlie Baker isn’t explicitly anti-mandate, but he makes a good point about Massachusetts’s long list of benefits that all insurance plans must cover:

“The whole plan was for people to have more affordable options, and Gov. Patrick eliminated them. Michael Merlina is arguing that the price of health insurance has become unaffordable, and he’s right.”

Said Independent Tim Cahill (I’m pleasantly surprised to learn that he’s against the mandate):

“He’s not asking for a handout – he just wants to be left alone. I feel for him. I hope he wins, and throws the whole insurance mandate up in the air.”

And Green-Rainbow candidate Jill Stein is surprisingly anti-mandate as well:

“All health-care nonreform did was created a windfall for insurance and pharmaceutical companies that are in bed with Beacon Hill.”

Health-care nonreform…what a great name! I might have to start using it.

A couple of years ago, the individual mandate was considered a moderate measure, supported by Democrats and Republicans alike and only opposed by the “far right.” In the early stages of the federal health-care nonreform debate, the individual mandate was considered a given and was rarely mentioned. All of the debate focused on the public option, Medicare cuts, abortion funding, and other things that, although important, are not as important as the mandate from a pro-liberty point of view. Now almost every time federal health-care nonreform is mentioned in the news, the individual mandate is mentioned, and usually called unpopular and/or controversial. How awesome that three out of four gubernatorial candidates in Massachusetts, where the individual mandate was first enacted in 2006, disapprove of the mandate to some extent. People are finally realizing what freedom truly is and how severely the individual mandate violates it.

By now you have probably heard of Steven Slater, the JetBlue flight attendant who was so fed up with his job, and a particularly nasty passenger, that he yelled at her over the intercom, grabbed beer from the refreshments cart, and slid down the emergency inflatable slide.

Altlhough many people consider Slater a hero, there has been a backlash against his dramatic exit, with at least one person (Dr. Keith Ablow) saying that he needs a mental evaluation.

Overall, I am more sympathetic to Slater’s defenders. First of all, by all accounts, it seems that the passenger was abusive, swearing at him and either letting her luggage fall on his head or hitting him with it deliberately. Flight attendants are paid to help passengers, but no one is obligated to put up with abuse.

Second, Slater’s act of rebellion did not hurt anyone. He is charged with criminal mischief and reckless endangerment, felony charges that could get him up to 7 years in prison. This is excessive, especially considering that some people avoid jail for crimes as serious as sexual assault. If you really hate swear words or are easily scared, Slater’s profanity-laced rant or his deployment of the emergency slide might be a little upsetting…but he did not violate anyone’s rights or jeopardize anyone’s safety, since the plane was taxiing on the runway when he made his exit.

In this dismal economy, with many workers being subjected to more stress than ever before, Slater is easy to relate to. In my opinion, the sympathy for him is justified, as were his actions. He does not need to go to therapy or jail; he just acted the way that people have a right to act when faced wtih unreasonable situations.

On Tuesday Lakeisha Gadson, a mom from Roxbury, MA, was convicted of misleading police officers but acquitted of involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment of a child, improper firearm storage, and illegal possession of a firearm.

According to the Suffolk County D.A.’s Office, Gadson’s teenage son, Jayquan McConnico, kept a firearm, loaded and unlocked, in a drawer in his bedroom. On June 24, 2007, her other son, 8-year-old Liquarry Jefferson, was playing with his 7-year-old cousin. The boys entered Jayquan’s room, opened his dresser drawer, took his gun, and started playing a game of some sort with it, during which the cousin somehow pointed the gun at Liquarry and fired. Tragically, Liquarry died of his injuries.

Acquitting Lakeisha, the boys’ mom, of these charges was the right verdict (she was only convicted of lying to the police about how her son died). To argue that Gadson is responsible for Liquarry’s death because she failed to ensure that Jayquan kept his gun out of the reach of children is excessive. Each person is responsible for their own actions – Gadson is not responsible for the fact that her teenage son had a gun without a license, which he kept loaded and unlocked.

But furthermore, Jayquan McConnico, who pleaded guilty to similar charges in 2008, should not be held responsible for Liquarry’s death, either. Storing a loaded gun in an unlocked drawer might not be the wisest thing to do, it is illegal, and if he hadn’t done it, Liquarry would be alive today…but that does not mean that he caused his death. McConnico is not responsible for the fact that two young boys decided to go into his room, open his drawer, and take his gun.

The cause of Liquarry’s death was his 7-year-old cousin’s decision to fool around with a gun and fire it at him. It may sound mean to pick on a 7-year-old, but seven is old enough to know what a gun is, what it looks like, and that you shouldn’t fire it at someone unless you have made sure it isn’t loaded. Everyone involved in this case has suffered tremendously, and I don’t think it is appropriate to punish anyone further for this horrible accident. But if anyone is responsible for Liquarry’s death, it is either the boy who chose to play with a loaded gun, or his mother (Liquarry’s aunt), who failed to teach her son that guns are dangerous and should be handled with caution.

Although Liquarry’s death was a tragedy, as anyone’s death is, neither Gadson nor McConnico caused it, and it only compounds the tragedy to hold innocent people responsible for things they did not do. The jury in Gadson’s case made the right decision.