“Bank robbery suspect named - Public Opinion” plus 4 more

Bank robbery suspect named - Public Opinion
Spreading Knowledge On Hiv/Aids For Dental Services Dept - BruDirect
People in Business - Nashville Tennessean
Slow-to-no mortgage fixes - Herald Tribune
Police identify F&M bank robber - Public Opinion

Bank robbery suspect named - Public Opinion

Posted: 08 Aug 2009 11:02 PM PDT

Chambersburg police have recovered some of the money stolen from the Wayne Avenue F&M Bank branch Friday and have a teenage girl they identified as the robber's accomplice in custody. The suspected robber, identified as Charles B. McNeal, 24, is still at large, however.

McNeal has been charged with one count of robbery, one count of criminal conspiracy and one count of theft. An arrest warrant has been issued for him, but police believe he may have already fled the area.

He does not have a fixed address, according to a news release issued Saturday morning. Police said they believe he might be in Maryland.

He has a prior criminal history that includes drug charges in both 2004 and 2007 in Franklin County. In January, he was sentenced to time served on the 2007 charges and paroled.

Police took the 17-year-old girl they say was an accomplice in Friday's robbery into custody early Saturday morning. She has been placed in the custody of Franklin County Juvenile Probation.

Anyone with information about McNeal's whereabouts is asked to contact their local police agency or 911 emergency services center.

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Spreading Knowledge On Hiv/Aids For Dental Services Dept - BruDirect

Posted: 08 Aug 2009 04:07 PM PDT

The HIV virus

Bandar Seri Begawan - Young adults are the most vulnerable to HIV, with 15 to 24-year-olds accounting for 45% of new HIV infections globally. This fact and other statistics were shared during a recent HIV education session conducted by Standard Chartered Bank's HIV Champions at the bank's training premises.

The education session was attended by a group of dental assistants from the Department of Dental Services, Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha Hospital. Leading the group was Awg Hj Mazlan bin Hj Ahmad who said, "The session opens up our mind in gaining better understanding on the facts of HIV/AIDS. We would like to congratulate Standard Chartered Bank for courageously sharing this session with us. What we have learnt today will go a long way towards protecting ourselves and our loved ones from the HIV virus as well as help us be more aware of what we need to be more careful about at work when treating patients." This is the fifth group from the same department to attend the bank's programme.

Standard Chartered Bank is committed to raising awareness on HIV and AIDS through peer to peer education sessions such as these, wit a global target to educate one million people on the debilitating virus by March 2010 through the Clinton Global Initiative. By doing this, Standard Chartered promotes a healthier lifestyle among the community by encouraging preventative behaviours.

The bank also enforces a policy of non-discrimination in the workplace whereby all people regardless of their HIV status, should be afforded the same level of respect, courtesy and treatment.

Standard Chartered Bank conducts HIV education sessions run by its employees who volunteer to be HIV Champions to organisations free-of-charge. Other organisations and institutions that are interested in HIV/AIDS education sessions can approach Standard Chartered Bank through its Corporate Affairs Department at 2366055 or 2366024. Alternatively, visit the bank's HIV education site at www.vir.us- SCB Press Release -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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People in Business - Nashville Tennessean

Posted: 09 Aug 2009 12:07 AM PDT

Associations

Larry McElroy is serving a three-year term on the board of the National Rural Water Association starting in October. McElroy is general manager of the Consolidated Utility District of Rutherford County.

The American Heart Association announced the following people are on its Greater Southeast Affiliate Board of Directors:

Joey Barnett is vice president of the board. Barnett, Ph.D., is a professor of pharmacology, medicine, pediatrics and microbiology and immunology at Vanderbilt University.

Brian Callahan is a member of the board. Callahan is chief financial officer of Spheris.

Dr. Steven Manoukian is a member of the board. Manoukian is director of cardiovascular research for the Sarah Cannon Research Institute.

The Nashville Chapter of Tax Executive Institute announced its 2009-10 board of directors:

Richard L. Wise is president. Wise is vice president of tax at Emdeon Inc.

Matthew Musso is vice president. Musso is vice president of tax services at Symbion Inc.

Ed Curvin is secretary. Curvin is senior manager, IRS examinations and litigations for HCA Inc.

Stephen Miller is treasurer. Miller is senior manager, tax for Nissan North America Inc.

Glenn Mortensen is chapter representative. Mortensen is director, tax research and planning for HCA Inc.

Lloyd Grogan is a director. Grogan is senior director, tax for Ingram Book Co.

Sarah Hoover is a director. Hoover is senior manager, tax planning for Nissan North America Inc.

Terry Harness is a director. Harness is senior manager, tax for Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores Inc.

Stephanie Marshall is a director. Marshall is tax manager for Ardent Health Services LLC.

Kelvin Ault is a director. Ault is vice president of tax for Vanguard Health Systems.

Dave Courtney is a director. Courtney is vice president of tax for Ardent Health Services LLC.

Awards

Thomas J. Stickrath and Albert R. Murray received the E.R. Cass Correctional Achievement Award from the American Correctional Association for their dedication to the field of corrections.

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Slow-to-no mortgage fixes - Herald Tribune

Posted: 08 Aug 2009 09:58 PM PDT

Obama administration officials recently gave the lenders until November to record 500,000 mortgage loan modifications under a voluntary federal program designed to avoid foreclosures.

The administration did not cite consequences for the lenders' continued failure, but Congress should be prepared to impose strong, mandatory measures to make sure that borrowers who want to save their homes have every opportunity to do so. For homeowners who are unable to avoid foreclosure, steps should be taken to ensure a quick and fair disposition of their loans.

So far, the results of the federal program, called Making Home Affordable, are not encouraging. A report issued Tuesday by the Treasury Department showed that only 9 percent of the 2.7 million delinquent borrowers eligible for loan modifications have received help. Those homeowners have missed at least two mortgage payments.

Meanwhile, the number of foreclosures continues to rise. More than 1.5 million foreclosures have occurred since January, according to RealtyTrac, an online database. At that rate, foreclosures could top 3 million this year, up from 2.3 million in 2008.

The danger is that, without an effective foreclosure-prevention program, the number of homeowners who fail to make payments -- or who just walk away from mortgages -- will rise, and perhaps accelerate.

Disparities in performance

The government is partly to blame for the slow start of Making Home Affordable, The Associated Press reported on Tuesday. Although the program was launched in March, the administration put out its guidelines gradually. Much of the program was not completed until mid-May, the AP said, and then guidelines were updated in early July.

Yet, the delays do not explain the wide disparities in the performance of different lenders participating in the program.

The Treasury report showed that JPMorgan Chase, for example, had modified the loans of 20 percent, or 79,304, of its eligible borrowers. Saxon Mortgage Services, which is owned by Morgan Stanley, had modified 25 percent. Citigroup modified 15 percent.

Yet, Bank of America -- which has by far the most eligible loans outstanding at 794,000 -- had modified only 4 percent under the program. Wells Fargo, another major lender, had modified only 6 percent.

Confusion over the guidelines may play a role. The Washington Post recounted the story of a borrower who requested a mortgage modification from Bank of America earlier this year. The bank offered a modification outside the federal program that would cut her payments by about $250 a month.

She instead asked for a modification under the federal program that would lower her payments by about $1,000 a month. The bank refused, saying that her loan was ineligible and that the bank "is not actively participating in the program."

A Bank of America spokesperson later told the Post that the bank's earlier statement was mistaken and that the borrower would qualify under the federal program.

More troubling are reports that some lenders and mortgage servicers -- companies that collect monthly payments from homeowners and send the money to banks and investors who hold the loans -- are deliberately putting off modifications in order to collect lucrative fees on delinquent loans.

"Even when borrowers stop paying," Peter S. Goodman reported in the July 30 New York Times, "mortgage companies that service the loans collect fees out of the proceeds when homes are ultimately sold in foreclosure.

"So the longer borrowers remain delinquent, the greater the opportunities for these mortgage companies to extract revenue -- fees for insurance, appraisals, title searches and legal services."

Worse, The Associated Press reported Thursday, at least 30 mortgage servicers -- some of which are owned by major banks -- "have been accused in lawsuits of harassing borrowers, imposing illegal fees and charging for unnecessary insurance policies."

Congress weighs options

The poor performance by the lending industry under the federal program has led some members of Congress to propose reviving foreclosure-prevention legislation that failed earlier this year.

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin sponsored the bill, which would have empowered bankruptcy judges to modify primary home mortgages. "The industry engaged in one of its heaviest lobbying battles this year to beat back the policy," according to The Hill, a Washington newspaper.

Durbin said he may reintroduce the so-called cramdown legislation and also is considering other options. One is a bill mandating arbitration between borrowers and servicers before foreclosure could take place. Another would let borrowers remain in their homes and pay fair-market rent.

"Americans don't have time for any more voluntary half-measures that fail to significantly reduce avoidable foreclosures," Dur-bin said Monday at a forum at the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank.

Durbin is right. If the nation's lending institutions fail to meet the White House deadline to significantly increase the number of loan modifications, Congress should step in.

And the Obama administration, which did not back Durbin's earlier effort, should insist on mandatory measures.

Major lenders have had plenty of time to make good on promised mortgage modifications. That payment is overdue.

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Police identify F&M bank robber - Public Opinion

Posted: 08 Aug 2009 03:38 PM PDT

CHAMBERSBURG, Aug. 8 -- Chambersburg police have recovered some of the money stolen from the Wayne Avenue F&M Bank branch Friday and have a teenage girl they identified as the robber's accomplice in custody. The robber, identified as Charles B. McNeal, 24, is still at large, however.

McNeal has been charged with one count of robbery, one count of criminal conspiracy and one count of theft. An arrest warrant has been issued for him, but police believe he might have already fled the area.

He does not have a fixed address, according to an updated news release issued this morning. Police said they believe he might be in Maryland, however. His information has been entered into the National Crime Information Center, police said.

Police describe McNeal as five foot, nine inches tall, weighing 130 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes. He has a prior criminal history that includes drug charges in both 2004 and 2007 in Franklin County. In January, he was sentenced to time served on the 2007 charges and paroled.

Police took the 17-year-old girl they say was an accomplice in Friday's robbery into custody early this morning. She has been placed in the custody of Franklin County Juvenile Probation.

Anyone with information about McNeal's whereabouts is asked to contact their local police agency or 911 emergency services center. Chambersburg police can be reached by calling 264-4131.