On Q Professional Investigations

“Canadians may soon be able to refill their prescriptions for medical marijuana at the pharmacy counter. Shoppers Drug Mart, the largest pharmacy chain in Canada, has applied for a license to distribute marijuana.
“We have applied to be a licensed producer strictly for the purposes of distributing medical marijuana,” Tammy Smitham, the vice president of external communication for Loblaw and Shoppers Drug Mart, said in a statement Tuesday. “We have no intention of producing medical marijuana but we do want the ability to dispense medical marijuana to our patients in conjunction with counselling from a pharmacist and we are hopeful that the Government of Canada will embrace that opportunity for enhanced patient care.”
Stocking medical marijuana at Shoppers Drug Mart’s 1,700 locations would have a significant impact on the culture surrounding medical marijuana in Canada.
Spokesperson Smitham believes that the Government of Canada is ready to revise the current set of regulations that prevent marijuana from being dispensed at a pharmacy. “We believe that allowing medical marijuana to be dispensed through pharmacy would increase access, safety, quality and security for the thousands of Canadians who use the drug as part of their medication therapy,” she told Huffington Post Canada.
Obtaining the coveted status of licensed producer in Canada is no easy feat. The long list of expensive requirements is only financially possible for major Canadian companies. Multiple screenings, inspections and security clearances are the only way to achieve a license to distribute and/or produce marijuana.
Canadian patients can currently only legally obtain their medical marijuana via the mail.
Over 75,000 Canadian patients participate in the nation’s medical marijuana program.
If Health Canada approves the application for Shoppers Drug Mart, it could become Canada’s first coast-to-coast dispensary chain. Canada’s Liberal party plans on introducing the groundwork for cannabis legalization by the spring of 2017.”

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“Brian Leslie is essentially saying the same thing your mother did— “don’t jump to conclusions.” But the forensic deception expert is saying it to cops as a potential way to reduce wrongful convictions and instances of profiling—a number he thinks can be improved by at least 30 percent.

Leslie, who works with Criminal Case Consultants analyzing witness testimony in wrongful conviction cases, says the difference lies in the predisposition of the police officer, which subsequently affects how s/he vets witnesses and the information they provide.

A “predisposed officer” who has formed an opinion based on emotion is more likely to disallow or overlook information that is averse to the officer’s initial, kneejerk theory of the perpetrator. According to Leslie, this predisposition is the main reason officers both subconsciously and consciously profile specific groups of people.

To rectify this, Leslie suggests using a different type of investigational method.

Traditional police criminal investigations use a deductive method, in which an initial theory is formed based on information provided by witnesses and/or confidential informants. However, Leslie says by using an inductive method of investigation, it detaches the officer from the emotional elements of a case, allowing a more analytical vetting process.

Simply put, this means the officer analyzes witness credibility first, and then the information provided. This inductive process forces the officer to accept all information by all sources, then categorize it by relevance and credibility. It’s this small investigational difference Leslie points to as being the culprit behind wrongful convictions that can, literally, destroy lives.

The variance between deductive and inductive investigations is part of what Leslie calls the “Mr. X Theory,” which he expands upon in his new book, “Visual Liar.”

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Starting January, you may have a little trouble getting into a federal building – and you may eventually face some added headaches at airport security.

That’s because effective Jan. 30, 2017, Pennsylvania-issued driver’s licenses and IDs will be out of compliance with new federal requirements.

The federal Department of Homeland Security has notified Pennsylvania that state residents will face new restrictions when they attempt to enter federal facilities in January as a result of the failure of those state-issued documents to meet federal so-called REAL ID requirements.

Effective Jan. 30, Pennsylvania residents will need an alternative, secure form of identification to gain admittance to all federal facilities, military bases and nuclear power plants. The only exception is admittance to federal facilities for the purpose of applying for or receiving federal benefits. Each federal agency determines which secure identification it will accept.

Pennsylvania is prohibited from developing new identification by the state’s 2012 Act 38, which restricts the commonwealth from participation in the Real ID Act. Pennsylvania is one of about two dozen states that haven’t complied with the federal guideline.

The Real ID Act, passed in 2013, is intended to improve accuracy of state-issued identification documents to help inhibit terrorists’ ability to evade detection by using fraudulent identification.

The law has been phased in over three years. The last phase, which applies to boarding federally regulated commercial aircraft, is supposed to be enforced “no sooner than 2016,” according to the Department of Homeland Security’s web site.

The Department of Homeland Security had been granting states not in compliance a series of extensions. In a letter dated Oct. 11, the department informed PennDOT that no further extensions will be granted unless there are new developments or information provided on why standards remain unmet and the reasons for continued noncompliance.

DHS also pointed out that if Pennsylvania does not come into compliance by Jan. 22, 2018 (or is not granted an extension), Pennsylvania residents will need to present an alternative form of identification acceptable to the Transportation Security Administration to board a commercial flight.

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Data breaches resulting in the compromise of personally identifiable information of thousands of Americans.

Intrusions into financial, corporate, and government networks.

Complex financial schemes committed by sophisticated cyber criminals against businesses and the public in general.

These are just a few examples of crimes perpetrated online over the past year or so, and part of the reason why Director James Comey, testifying before Congress last week, said that “the pervasiveness of the cyber threat is such that the FBI and other intelligence, military, homeland security, and law enforcement agencies across the government view cyber security and cyber attacks as a top priority.”

The FBI, according to Comey, targets the most dangerous malicious cyber activity—high-level intrusions by state-sponsored hackers and global cyber syndicates, and the most prolific botnets. And in doing so, we work collaboratively with our domestic and international partners and the private sector.

But it’s important for individuals, businesses, and others to be involved in their own cyber security. And National Cyber Security Awareness Month—a Department of Homeland Security-administered campaign held every October—is perhaps the most appropriate time to reflect on the universe of cyber threats and on doing your part to secure your own devices, networks, and data.

What are some of the more prolific cyber threats we’re currently facing?

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco prosecutors have charged 16 people in a retail theft ring that stole more than $200,000 worth of clothing, purses and other merchandise from high-end stores such as Louis Vuitton and Salvatore Ferragamo, the district attorney’s office said Monday.

Ten more people have been charged in other Western U.S. cities where the group stole an additional $200,000 worth of merchandise, including Honolulu and Seattle, prosecutors said. The group is accused in dozens of thefts dating back to 2015.

“We’re taking something that on its face might have been a single or maybe two or three events, and we have been able to connect this to many other events,” San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said at a news conference announcing the charges.

Linking the defendants to multiple thefts increases the potential sentences they face, he said.

The group in some cases sent as many as 10 or 12 people into a store with bags to grab as much merchandise as possible before running out the door, Assistant District Attorney Frank Carrubba said.

Some of the thefts became violent, with the thieves using pepper spray on store employees or brandishing knives, Carrubba said. There were often getaway drivers.

The charges filed include robbery, grand theft and commercial burglary.

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