The small, private school of Hofstra University is experiencing a loss after the death of a junior this past weekend. Andrea Rebello was accidently shot by a police officer after he was trying to free her from a hostage situation.

The story being reported is that a man broke into the home Andrea shared with her twin sister and two roommates. After a night of drinking, ex-con Dalton Smith allegedly entered the home demanding money from Andrea and one of her roommates. When they didn't have enough, Dalton held up his gun and demanded Andrea's roommate Shannon Thomas to go to an ATM. Instead of withdrawing money, Shannon called police who came to the home. Dalton used Andrea as a human sheild, but cops thought they had a clean shot. The police officer fired eight times: 7 shots struck and killed Dalton but one bullet hit and killed Andrea.

The police officer responsible for the shooting is currently on leave and the police have not released a statement regarding Andrea's death.

For those enrolled in the online criminal justice certificate program, do you think the police acted in the proper way?

Going to court for drug posession sounds like a stressful situation, but for Penelope Soto, her day in court got a lot worse thanks to some undignified behavior. Penelope came before a judge at her bail hearing for having unperscribed xanax in her posession. Because she had no prior arrests, the judge set bail at $5,000 and told her to go. Penelope responded with a sarcastic "adios" and the judge called her back to raise her bail to $10,000. Not happy with his decision, Ms. Soto flipped the judge her middle finger. Not surprisingly, the judge found her in contempt of court and ordered her to 30 days in jail.

Penelope only stayed in jail for five days before making a return appearance in front of the judge. This time, Penelope said her previous behavior was "irrational" and apologized to the court, the judge and her family. This time, the judge sentenced Ms.Soto to drug rehabilitation.

Since then, she has come back to court one more time. This time she faced a different judge who seemed impressed by her efforts. He applauded both her progress and her desire to go back to school.

For students earning their criminal justice associates degree online, like the program offered at Ashworth College, do you think the court handled this case properly? What other solutions could have been done?

Imagine you're driving down the road and you see a police car with it's lights flashing right behind you.  Unless we have been doing something we know to be wrong, we usually assume the police are after someone else.  Because Nyoka Patton hadn't gotten a ticket from a police officer in almost 30 years, it took her a minute to realize the cops were after her.

The police officer approached the car and issued Nyoka a ticket for going 56 mph in a 35.  Although Nyoka was upset, she wasn't prepared for what happened next.  The officer finished writing her ticket, he told her not to go anywhere because the officer behind him was issuing her another citation!  This time Nyoka was cited for going 62 in a 35.  It turns out, the police officers were stationed at different ends of the same road and they maintain Nyoka had sped up as she continued down the street.

Nyoka and her husband are willing to fight the officers on their readings. 

As a student in our online criminal justice program, what do you think?

In the criminal justice field, it's not uncommon for those who commit heinous crimes to claim a mental disorder was the true mastermind behind the crime.  For those who claim reason if insanity, their claim will be scrutinized and analyzed by members of both sides in court.  The newest headline grabbing case, the case of James Holmes who allegedly opened gunfire on a Colorado movie theater killing 12 and wounding 58. 

James, who appeared with fire engine red hair for his first time in court, alternated between looking bug-eyed and sleepy.  This detached appearance is very different than the James shown in videos from previous years.  This difference in personality has led some to wonder if he is mentally capable to stand trial.  Some psychologists say that he is exhibiting signs of schyzophrenia or bioplar disorder.  Others aren't so sure and say that because James was a graduate student studying neuroscience, he'd know exactly how to fake these illnesses.

Those in criminal justice careers will continue on with his trial, but do you think mental illness should be used as an excuse for crimes?

Back in August of 1980, Lindy Chamberlain and her (now ex) husband Michael took their three children camping in the Australian outback. Late one night, Lindy put her youngest child, 9-week-old Azaria in a bassinet and went to rejoin her friends and family for a barbecue.  It's been reported that soon after she went and joined the group, witnesses heard a menacing growl and a baby crying.  Lindy says she ran back to Azaria's crib to find the baby being dragged away by a dingo.

Dingoes, a wild dog from Australia, were believed to be relatively calm animals who don't attack without being provoked.  Lindy's claim earned scoffs and disbelief from fellow Australians who, for 32 years, have believed Lindy had something to do with her daughter's disappearance.  Azaria was never found but her bloody clothing was.  That seemed suspicious to many people. 

After recent attacks on children committed by dingoes, people in criminal justice careers reopened Azaria's disappearance case and looked at the evidence. Today a coroner announced that the child was snatched by the wild dog and issued a new birth certificate proclaiming this thereby releasing Lindy of any speculation of wrongdoing and finally allowing Azaria to rest in peace.

What do you think of this?

Working in criminal justice careers you see a lot of unexpected things.  This past week in Miami one of those unusual stories emerged and the nation is taking notice.  Larry Vega was walking when he saw what appeared to be naked man crouched over what appeared to be another man.  The naked man on top seemed to be ripping the flesh off of the man he had pinned down.  Larry yelled for the naked man to stop and when the man didn't, Larry went and got the police.

"When the officer approached him, told him to stop, pointed a gun at him, he turned around and growled like a wild animal and kept eating at the man's face," Fraternal Order of Police President Armando Aguilar told CNN. The police officer then shot the man and, when he continued chewing, the police shot him again killing him.

No details have been released yet but the police, and Larry, believe the attacker was on drugs.  They aren't specifying which ones, but they're guessing "bath salts," which apparently cause the user to become violent, insane, and take their clothing off.

What do you think of this case?

When it comes to people working in criminal justice careers, they must ensure the courts are as fair and balanced as possible.  This means jury selection needs to be unbiased and unfamiliar with the case and the families, both of the victim and of the defendant, need privacy.  When the victim is related to a celebrity, the challenge to keep the trial secret is even harder.  For this reason, there is currently an argument over whether or not social media should be allowed in the courts.

In 2008, Jennifer Hudson's family experienced a terrible loss.  Her ex-brother in law alledgedly shot and killed Hudson's mother, brother, and nephew.  Now that the trial is set to begin, reporters and judges are clashing over whether or not live tweeting should be allowed.  The judge says that it would be unfair to the Hudson family and is an invasion of privacy.  As it currently stands, social media of any kind is banned in the courtroom.

What do you think?

Children in Texas woke up yesterday morning with no way to get to school.  That's because 58 of the 70 school busses were found with slashed tires.  Instead of being able to pick up the local kids for school, the buses instead had to go to a repair shop to have new tires fitted.  Judging by a hole in a nearby chain link fence, the principal of the school assumes someone cut through the fence, then snuck in and slashed the tires.

The school officials are happy that just the stems of the tires were caught which is easier, and cheaper, to repair.  Parents are upset because they had to leave work, drive home, and take their kids to work.  Officials are also upset not only because of the cost for the tires, but also because the students ended up missing valuable class time.

Do you think this is a crime or a prank?