A new law in the state of Alabama that strengthens the states position on illegal immigrants has set off a wave of fear around immigrant communities within the state. Known as HB56, the immigration bill that was signed into law by Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn allows law enforcement to legally ask anyone about their immigration status and also legally detain them before handing them over to the correct authorities.

A vast number of Alabama’s immigrant population is said to be living there illegally and this was evident in the alarming increase of children being absent from school on the days after the law was passed. 1,171 Hispanic students missed their classes on the days before HB56 was due to come into force and this increased to 1,988 on the day after; a quite dramatic increase in such a short space of time.

Many of Alabama’s immigrant population have raised fears about even leaving the house for fear of being apprehended and questioned over their status. Furthermore, the superintendent of the Alabama school system has stated that they will fully co-operate with the new laws and check each child’s status to comply with the new legal code further fuelling the feeling of panic that is spreading around the state.

A legal process is in motion to attempt to curb the power of the new laws, or at least curtail them until an appeal can be heard, however many in the immigrant communities, Hispanic ones especially, fear the worst for their future.

Conservative Republicans realized a victory with a 19 to 10 vote to pass what is misleading called the “Protecting Children From Internet Pornographers Act of 2011.” Hiding behind a guise to protect America’s children ISP providers will now be required to keep logs and store customer activities for one year. An amendment that would have only required ISP providers to store IP addresses was rejected by a vote of 7 to 16.

At the last minute, the bill was rewritten to expand the types of information that internet providers are required to log and store. Along with IP addresses, customers name, address and phone numbers will be logged as well. But, they will even be required to store every users credit card and bank account numbers. Some members even suggested storing any temporary IP addresses.

Democratic opposition leader Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California said this new bill represents “a data bank of every digital act by every American that would let us find out where every single American visited Web sites.” Lofgren also stated that the retention of data will be easy to avoid. Criminals will start to go to public areas such as libraries and WIFI hotspots to surf the web. In the meantime, law abiding citizens will have their every move recorded.

Supporters dubbed the bill as a tool that could be used by law enforcement agencies in investigating crimes over the internet. Rep. John Conyers from Michigan said that the bill is not to protect children on the internet. He said it is to create a massive database for everyone in America for a lot of other reasons. Currently, log files that are no longer required are discarded and data preservation is only conducted after an ISP provider has been contacted by law enforcement officials.

After it was learned the the ‘News Of The World,’ a popular tabloid newspaper in the UK, had been gaining information by way of illegal phone tap, two arrests and a media frenzy ensued. Rupert Murdoch, the owner of the newspaper, defected to his son for help. James Murdoch is the future heir of his father’s fortune, but he is viewed by many to be ill equipped to deal with the crisis.

Just days after the public learned that the ‘News Of The World’ had been intercepting phone calls and listening in on the voice mail messages of the royal family, politicians and other prominent figures, Scotland Yard became involved. Rupert Murdoch laid off more than 100 journalists, but many top level executives who would have had more information on the stories remain. The ‘News Of The World’ officially closed its stores on July 10th, however, Murdoch also owns other newspapers.

Investigators still have questions as to how employees from the ‘News Of The World’ were able to get access to the private lines of so many important people in the UK. Rumors of corruption have surrounded for several decades, with the last outward scandal occurring in 2007. It is clear that many former employees were aware of the fact that they were invading the privacy of their subjects, but it is not known if Rupert Murdoch himself played a hand in their crimes. The investigation will likely resort in more arrests and a possible forfeiture of assets in the future.

A loophole in Maryland in-state college tuition law has allowed illegal immigrants the opportunity to take advantage of the shortcomings. Now, residents of the state will have the chance to have their voices heard. College tuition discounts are funded by taxpayer dollars. Every time an illegal alien takes a discounted college course, the state deficit rises. Civil rights activists believe that all residents of the state have the right to further their education and benefit from current in-state tuition laws.

Delegate Neil C. Parrott wants Maryland voters to understand what will happen if they do not take action to prevent illegal immigrants from benefiting from the in-state tuition laws that are now on the books. Democrats are voting to keep in-state tuition laws in place, but they also know that costs will rise substantially.

Other states are currently working to revamp their in-state tuition and immigration laws. Because federal immigration laws do not take precedence over state statutes, lawmakers are permitted to change the rules as they see fit. Officials in Maryland believe that the new referendum will pass, simply because of the state of the economy. Although illegal immigrants regularly contribute by paying taxes, the money that state use to track their crimes and their burden on social services are also areas of contention. Individually, colleges in Maryland are not permitted to charge students different amounts for tuition unless they live under the poverty level. Some would like to see illegal immigrants banned from state run colleges altogether, but lawmakers have not yet addressed these issues.

In the US, citizens can retain attorneys in advance whether or not they believe that they will face charges in the future. Celebrities may hire lawyers that specialize in entertainment law, while nightclub owners might retain criminal attorneys. A new service which has been launched in four states named LawyerUp allows people to pay a small monthly fee in return for the services of an attorney in case of arrest.

When a US citizen is arrested, he or she may be interrogated. As most people aren’t legal experts, they may unwillingly incriminate themselves by making statements without the advice of an attorney. As a result, there are several legal services that provide people with low costs services. Some have been criticized as being scams, while other services only associate with attorneys that have been sternly reprimanded.

The owner of LawyerUp contends that his company pre-screens all attorneys that are involved in the business. In addition, all negotiations for attorney fees are completed solely between the attorney and the client. In essence, LawyerUp customers are only paying to have an attorney show up to the police station. There can be no client abuse if the client does not agree to be represented.

As the new company is still in its infancy, it will be some time before legal professionals are able to thoroughly review the services. In fact, only a small number of customers have actually needed the assistance of an attorney, and they are not required to report back on their experiences.