Sep 25, 2006 — A report published this morning in the New York Times alleges widespread incompetence and abuse of power in New York's system of town and village courts. The article, based on a year-long investigation by the Times, focuses on six local courts in the North Country. Brian Mann has details.  Go to full article

Aug 15, 2006 — A new education program will teach communities how to protect themselves from sex offenders. The St. Lawrence County Sex Offender Management Program is spearheading the effort, along with other county agencies. County Probation Director Francine Peretta says there's no program so comprehensive in New York State. The "No More Victims" campaign will feature radio ads and billboards. Next month they'll schedule community education meetings around the county. As Peretta told Gregory Warner, the goal is to root out some of the deep myths and fears around the subject.  Go to full article

Jul 14, 2006 — A drug sweep across St. Lawrence County Wednesday turned up the first meth lab found in the Town of Canton. Martha Foley has more.  Go to full article

Jun 26, 2006 — Ogdensburg's Town Council will consider a law tonight that would bar sex offenders from living within 800 feet of any school, park or playground. Gregory Warner has more.  Go to full article

Jun 21, 2006 — Yesterday on the 8 O'clock Hour we reported that a group of residents in Potsdam had started a leaflet campaign to try to evict a level 3 sex offender who just moved to the neighborhood. They put up posters of Ed Remington's name and face.

His landlady, Eileen Sullers, now says she's given the convicted sex offender notice and he'll likely leave by the end of July. She said she relies on boarders for her income and that the posters would make it difficult for her to rent other rooms. This has happened to Ed Remington before. Last year he was targeted by hand-painted signs in Parishville. He eventually moved out. He's moved several times in the past year. Martha Foley has more on the story.  Go to full article

Jun 21, 2006 — Ed Remington's case in St. Lawrence County highlights a gray area of the consequences of New York's Megan's Law. Gregory Warner went to Chestnut Street. He found two houses with posters on them. Posters had also been hung on 10 Chestnut St. in Potsdam, where Remington is now living. His landlady, Eileen Sellers, says she's felt like an innocent bystander, caught in the crossfire. She's today's Heard Up North.  Go to full article

Jun 20, 2006 — A level 3 sex offender has moved to Potsdam but he may soon be moving on. Ed Remington has been targeted by a poster and leaflet campaign to get him to leave. Gregory Warner has more.  Go to full article

May 16, 2006 — Governor Pataki and leaders of the legislature are moving toward expanding the state's DNA crime database to include all crimes, even misdemeanors. But a Democratic Senator says there are too many unanswered questions about people's privacy and their innocence. Karen DeWitt reports.  Go to full article

May 02, 2006 — Hundreds of family-members make the pilgrimage north every weekend to visit incarcerated men. Jack Beck, with the Correctional Association of New York says it's a burden, especially for poor working families.  Go to full article

Apr 27, 2006 — Franklin County District Attorney Derek Champagne says it's too late to file criminal charges against a Vermontville man videotaped while hitting and slapping his 15-year-old daughter. But Champagne says state and local officials are reviewing whether three children still living in the home of Joe and Lynn Nelson are receiving proper care. Last Friday, the ABC news magazine "Primetime" broadcast footage of the Nelson home that included scenes of physical and emotional violence. The footage aired as part of a documentary on stepfamilies struggling with children from separate marriages. The broadcast prompted a public outcry. As Brian Mann reports, it has also triggered a new debate over the ethics of journalism.

A warning: Some of the sounds in this story are violent and disturbing.  Go to full article