Edward Anderton, a 2005 Penn alumnus, was arrested on Friday for allegedly stealing his neighbors' identities and establishing lines of credit in his neighbors' names, Division of Public Safety officials said.
Anderton, 25, and Drexel University student Jocelyn Kirsch, 22, burglarized at least two of their neighbors' apartments and created fake Georgia driver's licenses in order to open credit card accounts, the Philadelphia Daily News, reported yesterday.
The pair has been charged with identity theft, conspiracy, unlawful use of a computer, forgery and other related offenses.
According to the Daily News, police obtained a search warrant and confiscated $18,000 in cash, a Rolex watch, counterfeit Georgia driver's licenses, credit cards in the names of their neighbors and a 2005 Daily Pennsylvanian article on "How to Spot Fake IDs" from the duo's apartment.
Police also found old billing statements for one neighbor and the passport of another.
Kirsch's father arrived from Winston-Salem, N.C., to post her $25,000 bail Sunday. Anderton posted bail yesterday, the Associated Press reported.
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[QUOTE id="fbd4e3ec-7770-46ae-86b0-58ccad3de921"].......does the DP hate Penn completely. Some stories need to lead with the paper every day (murders/violent crimes maybe?). Is there a reason why a lead story couldn't be about a Rhodes Scholar as we recently had? Could the headline of this said "Drexel student accused of ID thefts"? (you could reference a "Penn Alum" within the story). I agree you need to report crimes in and around Penn as they happen, bur geeeshh, mix it up a little depending upon the crime. I know its not the safest place in the world, but if bad stuff is ALL your ever going to lead with I guess I'll just stop reading altogether....its like watching bad news over and over on the TV - I turn that off too.[/QUOTE] a) The DP doesn't make news, it reports news. Crime on the Penn campus is clearly important news that needs to be reported, not swept under the bed. b) Your suggestion that the headline read "Drexel student accused of ID thefts" is somewhat scary. Not only are you suggesting that the DP report facts in a convenient way, but that it should bias its news reporting against Drexel. Do you know what responsible investigative journalism is?
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The DP is a newspaper - not a newsletter. If you are looking for happy-talk stories meant to garner alumni support, then read your Pennsylvania Gazette. As a newspaper, it is the DP's responsibility to report on events that affect the Penn community. Further, I found this brief article to be the least damning and biased of all the press on this case.
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Dave, I think youre right in that it is symptomatic, but i dont think its a reaction to some moral purity we've been subjected to. I think it stinks more of corruption and looking out for numero uno constantly. How many scandals have we seen befall those who were trying to pull the moral wool over our eyes, only to be picking our pockets at the same time? Maybe we deserve our leaders, or maybe this current effed up generation is a reflection of the stupid, shortsighted and selfish choices we've made over the past 20 some odd years. As for the complainer, wake up you idiot. There are more important things in the world then spin.
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[QUOTE id="2b8f1302-8139-40c1-b836-e61cdbe6bcca"]Dave, I think youre right in that it is symptomatic, but i dont think its a reaction to some moral purity we've been subjected to. I think it stinks more of corruption and looking out for numero uno constantly. How many scandals have we seen befall those who were trying to pull the moral wool over our eyes, only to be picking our pockets at the same time? Maybe we deserve our leaders, or maybe this current effed up generation is a reflection of the stupid, shortsighted and selfish choices we've made over the past 20 some odd years. As for the complainer, wake up you idiot. There are more important things in the world then spin.[/QUOTE]......bad news always seems to trump good news regardless of importance.....
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[QUOTE id="fbd4e3ec-7770-46ae-86b0-58ccad3de921"].......does the DP hate Penn completely. Some stories need to lead with the paper every day (murders/violent crimes maybe?). Is there a reason why a lead story couldn't be about a Rhodes Scholar as we recently had? Could the headline of this said "Drexel student accused of ID thefts"? (you could reference a "Penn Alum" within the story). I agree you need to report crimes in and around Penn as they happen, bur geeeshh, mix it up a little depending upon the crime. I know its not the safest place in the world, but if bad stuff is ALL your ever going to lead with I guess I'll just stop reading altogether....its like watching bad news over and over on the TV - I turn that off too.[/QUOTE]....... just that a rhodes scholar is as important as a non-violent crime as far as a lead goes.....did not say not to report the crime. never said that. It IS Drexel student currently that committed the crime..why shouldn't the most recent status of the student be the lead?
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The headline did not read "Drexel alum" because the article appeared in a Penn-based newspaper; the most pertinent news to this community (a Penn alum in a Penn newspaper) should lead. In a Drexel paper, the fact that a Drexel student was arrested would lead. In a general Philadelphia paper, neither would be highlighted over the other except for a specific purpose. That's how a story is localized and made relevant to its readers-- a basic tenant of responsible journalism.
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They both seem to be a perfect extension of that part of our culture which tolerates and in some respects almosts commends the more cruel and self-centered activities of persons looking to enrich and/or aggrandize themselves needlessly even when it means becoming criminals. The fact that they both had grown up with a good deal of privilege and financial stability makes their acts even more egregious. The two had opportunities and hope for their futures that sadly, alot of folks their age will never have. Yet they saw fit to inflict a great deal of injury upon countless innocent individuals, some of whom were neighbors. Kirsch's 2005 guilty pleas to retail theft in Lower Merion would suggest a certain way of life for her. Hopefully their parents' money can't buy them out of what they richly deserve, namely, lengthy terms of incarceration and onerous restitution orders.
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[QUOTE id="50bd70ab-fec0-4bfc-9f29-cdfffae88665"]They both seem to be a perfect extension of that part of our culture which tolerates and in some respects almosts commends the more cruel and self-centered activities of persons looking to enrich and/or aggrandize themselves needlessly even when it means becoming criminals. The fact that they both had grown up with a good deal of privilege and financial stability makes their acts even more egregious. The two had opportunities and hope for their futures that sadly, alot of folks their age will never have. Yet they saw fit to inflict a great deal of injury upon countless innocent individuals, some of whom were neighbors. Kirsch's 2005 guilty pleas to retail theft in Lower Merion would suggest a certain way of life for her. Hopefully their parents' money can't buy them out of what they richly deserve, namely, lengthy terms of incarceration and onerous restitution orders.[/QUOTE] Totally agree. As further evidence- this is why most people (especially the younger generations) remember, quote, impersonate, and generally revere the character Gordon Gecko but forget about Bud Fox. A fictional example I know, but telling nonetheless.
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.......does the DP hate Penn completely. Some stories need to lead with the paper every day (murders/violent crimes maybe?). Is there a reason why a lead story couldn't be about a Rhodes Scholar as we recently had? Could the headline of this said "Drexel student accused of ID thefts"? (you could reference a "Penn Alum" within the story). I agree you need to report crimes in and around Penn as they happen, bur geeeshh, mix it up a little depending upon the crime. I know its not the safest place in the world, but if bad stuff is ALL your ever going to lead with I guess I'll just stop reading altogether....its like watching bad news over and over on the TV - I turn that off too.
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Classic, let's showcase the Drexel student instead of the Penn one. Really classy. Penn students do bad things too and that information should be on the front page of the paper, just as it is when anyone who lives in the community surrounding Penn does something bad. Maybe instead of blaming the paper for reporting facts, you should blame the Penn kids who do illegal activities and give Penn a bad name.
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Penn's spactacular recent crime wave is probably symptomatic of some wierd "enough with this bullshit" reaction to the sanctimonious right wing cultural regime we have been living with for the last 20 years. After all, the blissful stupidity which the right wing cultural police wishes us to adopt invites a reaction. A well-educated Bonnie and Clyde team should not come as a shock to a culture which insists upon political correctness and moral purity. Not that they don't deserve to go to jail, but the enemy is partly us.