The Supreme Court Monday denied EchoStar's appeal of a lower court decision preventing the company from offering distant network TV station signals to its subscribers. That December 1 cut-off came after a years-long legal tussle with broadcasters over EchoStar's ability to determine with subs were and weren't eligible to recieve the signals. The decision does not affect the ability of EchoStar subs to receive distant signals via outside company National Programming Service. After a federal appeals court mandated the cut-off and NPS was recruited to provide EchoStar subs with distant signals, broadcasters went to court to try to block the move, but were rebuffed.

Illegal immigrants in the US who have been arrested and released within US borders appear to exhibit a markedly high rate of reincarceration, according to a report released by the US Department of Justice on Monday.

The report...judgmentally selected a sample of 100 criminal histories, which we reviewed for evidence of arrests of criminal aliens subsequent to June 30, 2003. The criminal histories for 73 of the 100 individuals documented at least one arrest after that date. Those 73 individuals accounted for a total of 429 arrests, with 878 charges and 241 convictions. These figures represent an average of nearly six arrests per individual. The charges for the 73 individuals ranged from traffic violations and trespassing to more serious crimes, such as burglary or assault....If this data is indicative of the full population of 262,105 criminal histories, the rate at which released criminal aliens are rearrested is extremely high.

The report also found that "most incarcerated aliens are being released into the U.S. at the conclusion of their respective sentences because of a lack of resources to identify, detain, and remove these aliens."

Diederich won't be in Washington tomorrow, but has submitted two briefs on behalf of the Rockland Coalition for Democracy and Freedom, the Rockland County Conservation Association and the Federation of New York Solid Waste Associations.

Christopher St. Lawrence, in his capacity as chairman of the Rockland Solid Waste Management Authority, and the authority's legal counsel, Bridget Gauntlett, will both attend the court session tomorrow.

The Rockland Solid Waste Management Authority has also filed a brief allowing it to weigh in on the case, United Haulers Association Inc., etc., v. Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Management Authority, and Oneida and Herkimer counties.

St. Lawrence, who is also supervisor of the town of Ramapo, said Friday that communities have the right to manage their waste and to require that it be sent to a specific location for transfer or landfill burial.

He said the health and safety of residents and the environment depended on a community's ability to manage its waste, without having a garbage hauler deciding where it would go.

Diederich represented the New York State Association for Solid Waste Management when United Haulers first sued Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Management Authority, and Oneida and Herkimer counties, which are located in upstate New York.

United Haulers argued that requiring garbage collectors to bring their trash to a specific location violated the U.S. Constitution's Interstate Commerce Clause.

The clause empowers the U.S. Congress "to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes." The interpretation of the clause has evolved over the years, but it has been used to prevent and break up monopolies.

The haulers argued that the counties and solid waste authority they sued were creating a monopoly in violation of the clause by requiring use of specific disposal facilities.

Diederich successfully argued that waste itself was not an article of commerce, whereas the management of that waste was. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled on the case in 2001.

A similar case then made its way through the Sixth Circuit Court, which is based in Ohio. In that case, National Solid Waste Management Association v. Daviss County, the court ruled last year that so-called "flow control" of trash did violate the Commerce Clause.

The U.S. Supreme Court will now attempt to rectify the differing views of the circuit courts, Diederich said.

He also said local residents should be allowed to democratically choose and decide whether their locally generated trash should go to a publicly managed local facility.

"I view this as a worldwide environmental issue," Diederich said. "If you view waste as valuable, you're encouraging more of it."

Instead, he said, it was the management of that waste that should be valued. That management, he said, should include both reducing waste and recycling what had to be collected.

In one labor-related case, BCI Coca-Cola Co. of Los Angeles v. EEOC (06-341), the Court will determine whether an employer may be held liable for a subordinate worker's alleged bias where the worker did not make the employment decision at issue. In a second labor-related case, Long Island Care at Home v. Coke (06-593), the Court will decide whether home care workers employed by outside agencies, not directly by families, should receive overtime pay. In other cases, the Court will examine federal law liability for lost or damaged freight, whether private prep schools can talk to prospective student athletes despite their voluntary agreement to obey a no-recruiting rule, and whether courts may consider inferences of innocence when deciding whether someone sued for federal securities violations has a guilty state of mind.

A total of 53 executions were carried out in 2006, down from 60 in 2005. Executions over the past three decades peaked at 98 in 1999. Among the many causes given by prosecutors, lawyers and death penalty critics: the passage of more state laws that allow juries to impose life without parole; an overall drop in violent crime; and a reluctance among some authorities to pursue the death penalty because of the high costs of prosecuting a capital case.

On Tuesday, a New Jersey State commission recommended that the state abolish the death penalty completely, replacing it with a life sentence without the possibility of parole. If the commission's report makes its way into law New Jersey will become the first US jurisdiction to ban capital punishment in over 35 years. In December, Florida Governor Jeb Bush suspended all executions in that state after a lethal injection execution there was botched, and a federal judge in California effectively suspended capital punishment there by ruling that that state's lethal injection procedure creates "an undue and unnecessary risk" of cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution.

The dawning of a new year for many is an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and resolve to do more in the months ahead—lose more weight, be more generous, and, of course, make more money. Unfortunately scammers of all stripes will be seeking their own fortunes in 2007, often by preying on the public's general affinity to get something for nothing.

Fraud appears in many ways and robs innocent victims of billions of dollars every year. Mortgage fraud alone is estimated to have cost $1 billion in 2005 and is expected to be a continuing problem in 2007—a recent analysis shows mortgage loan fraud reports rose 35 percent in the past year. Internet fraud last year cost victims $183 million, much of it through bogus online auctions and the non-delivery of goods.

As the new year emerges with its infinite possibilities, add another resolution to the mix-resolve not to be a victim. Don't fall for scams designed to steal your identity or your money. Be vigilant with your personal data, know what scams are lurking, and be mindful of the golden rule "If it looks too good to be true…," which happens to have its own website: lookstoogoodtobetrue.

Here is a short list of scams to be aware of. It is by no means complete, but offers a glimpse of ways scammers try to take what is yours. More information can be found on our Common Fraud Schemes page and at LooksTooGoodToBeTrue. Meanwhile the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) keeps a running list of emerging Internet scams.

The links below describe different types of fraud and offer tips on how to protect yourself:

Telemarketing Fraud: When you give personal or financial information to unknown callers, you increase your chances of becoming a victim of fraud.

Nigerian Letters or "419" Fraud: A letter, often mailed from Nigeria, offers the recipient the "opportunity" to share in a percentage of millions of dollars.

Identity Fraud: The sources of information about you are so numerous that you cannot prevent the theft of your identity. But you can minimize your risk of loss by following a few simple hints.

"Ponzi" Scheme: A Ponzi scheme is essentially an investment fraud wherein the operator promises high financial returns or dividends not available through traditional investments.

Internet Auction Fraud: Understand as much as possible about how an auction works, what your obligations are as a buyer, and what the seller's obligations are before you bid.

Scams Targeting Senior Citizens: The elderly are targeted for fraud for several reasons: they are more likely to have a "nest egg," they are typically more trusting, and they are less likely to report-or realize-they have been scammed.

Mortgage Fraud: It's one of the fastest growing white-collar crimes in the U.S. We list seven common mortgage loan fraud schemes, including "flipping," when property is purchased, falsely appraised at a higher value, and then quickly sold.

Combating major white-collar crime is one of the FBI's top priorities. You can learn more about our efforts on our White-Collar Crime page. And you can do your part to help us by being vigilant and not falling for promises of quick riches in 2007.