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There’s a lot of talk in this thread of whether Jones is a data scientist or not, but that talk is missing something crucial - it doesn’t take a data scientist to assemble basic reports about infection rates and mortality. Little to none of what differentiates “data scientist” from “data analyst” or “statistician” is involved in these reports. There is no massive data, no black-box modeling, really no new statistics at all - this stuff is well defined, except for the data itself.
The main choice points are around specific decisions with regards to how interpret messy data. Those decisions require domain expertise and a deep familiarity with how various public agencies in Florida work. Perhaps Jones has that expertise, perhaps she doesn’t. A title of “data scientists” doesn’t change that.
Excellent point. And important to remember that her claims really circle around interpretation.
Measuring her claims really requires knowledges of how the state made its interpretation. If those interpretations don't correspond to how most other data outside of Florida is counted, then there is a problem.
This is why data transparency is so important: Accurately understanding regional and nation trends can help inform where resources are dedicated and how the virus spreads.
Right now, she is apparently an activist. There is nothing wrong with being an activist. However, IMHO, being a "data scientist" is inherently incompatible with being an activist. No matter how qualified you were, once you became a passionate activist, you are no longer a "data scientist" or a "data analyst" or a "statistician" on the topic. Again, there is nothing wrong with being an activist, but you can't be both. I feel this is so obvious that requires no further explanation, but I might get massive downvotes for saying this.
>After she was fired, Jones started her own online COVID-19 dashboard. But she said Saturday that she may no longer be allowed access to computers, the internet or other electronic devices as a condition of her release from jail pending trial.
In the modern day, with so much that is online or involving computers, this should be considered unjust punishment, the likes of which should be reserved only for child molesters.
Not speaking to the rest of the story. However, this by itself troubles me.
I'd draw the line at supervised access to conversation with normal people at: if someone is in jail maybe (this is a DIFFERENT debatable topic, beyond this context) their other rights are also suspended during the sentence.
Someone whom is not in jail, who is otherwise allowed to participate in society; abridging their rights of freedom of speech, expression, and discourse with others? That seems over-broad.
It is curious that this sort of restriction is possible. I don't think I could pay most of my monthly bills without the internet, for example. I assume there's also many jobs that require home internet.
As a condition of pretrial release for a presumed innocent party, even _accused_ child molesters should have access to a computer.
IOT - so if she uses some chipped sneaker to count steps, she is in violation. Now that is a law that nobody can follow in modern times.
Ring a door bell at a neighbour - you are in violation.
If she were providing a bogus view of the pandemic, there could be consequences for public health. That doesn't seem to actually be the case as far as I can tell, but the magnitude of the punishment seems about right for the alleged crime.
yeah what is the concern that she's going to hack the president's phone and steal the launch codes? /s
How about blacklisting people from monetary/financial services such as banks and credit card co's based on their political views? That goes even further.
https://spectator.us/topic/financial-blacklisting-sargon-akk...
https://www.breitbart.com/tech/2019/02/27/financial-blacklis...
What a weird story that keeps getting weirder.
I am a data scientist who spent June in Tallahassee helping coordinate state-wide COVID testing with FDEM (Florida Department of Emergency Management) and state health officials.
Everyone I worked with was pretty dedicated to getting the roll out right (including the governor and his appointees too..)
My data & work was spread far and wide with no issue - but just a personal anecdote
Agreed--as a Florida resident, I have heard a variety of highly-charged opinions on this story from many of my fellow residents, but very few hard facts to confirm or deny any particular narrative.
I think the raid on Ms. Jones home was a grotesque and unwarranted use of police force, but I also think her "whistle-blowing" story is highly questionable based on the facts available.
It is a weird story. I do not think she is being targeted for speaking her mind or advocating a particular view of the COVID, the charges almost certainly are for accessing the non-public data she should not have accessed.
And some data is sensitive. For example, if someone was pulling private medical records and harassing or blackmailing another person with that information it would, to me, justify both the search and the potential arrest. It should not be the statistics about COVID -- that data is usually available to the public after some aggregation.
That said, the state response and the arrest warrant look very strange in this case; so strange that it smells of a personal vendetta (e.g., find a potential HIPAA violation and throw a book at her). I hope the state will clearly identify what the heck she is accused of accessing and why it is so damaging that the state resorted to its recent actions. My 2c.
Your chosen terminology is a little strange to me(weird); would you by chance be an American?
This is a textbook example of the Government(State of Florida) targeting an individual for their speech.
But then again, Do-Nothing DeSantis is the successor to Senator Red Tide Rick. Par for the course with Florida, sadly.
Anyone has the facts, that are out about this, subject noted to share? Too much speculations and armchair opinions re floating around.
The previous allegation against her was something that would make her the hero even if she was guilty. It was a charge of "making good trouble", albeit one that would put her away for a long time under the CFAA.
How many other instances are out there where authorities "can't say what someone is charged with" until they're in custody. This smells like a CYA deal with DeSantis and his partisan bungling of the COVID crisis.
Probably millions of instances. I think I'd prefer the state not announce what it is charging people with. Once she's charged, she should be able to say so. But consider the possibility one is falsely accused of rape. In my case, I'd want the charge kept private until the courts sorted things out. Or until I was falsely imprisoned at least.
Having cops invade her home and hold her children at gunpoint didn’t scare her into becoming his scapegoat, so it’s important to escalate the campaign of violence against her.
What does CYA mean in this context? Sorry about the ignorance.
It does, but it’s also SOP with the police, if someone speaks out against them or if they come up empty handed charge them with something so as to not look stupid.
Please define "partisan bungling" given that Florida has a lower death rate(1) and faster vaccine rollout(2) than the US average, while keeping schools open in accordance with expert recommendations.
(1): https://91-divoc.com/pages/covid-visualization/?chart=states...
(2): https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/covid-vaccine-tracker-glo...
AFAIK, an arrest warrant isn't required for felonies. It's required for misdemeanors unless the crime is witnessed by an officer. That may point towards this not being a major infraction to begin with. Either way, it really is looking more & more like harassment
Is there any way in which people can help her here?
She does appear to have legal representation with the right kind of experience. Stephen Dobson, from this firm https://www.ddslaw.net/Attorneys/ will be her criminal defense lawyer. She's also already filed a civil case.
A sibling comment is linked to her GoFundMe, which appears to be about halfway to it's 500k goal.
I believe this is her gofundme
CBS includes an additional detail:
"Florida Department of Law Enforcement officials said Rebekah Jones has been under investigation since early November after someone illegally accessed the state’s emergency alert health system...."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/e2-80-98censored-by-the...
What is the law that sending an anonymous messages saying "be a hero" breaks? It seems at worst to be spam and a raid for spamming a small number of people seems very heavy handed...
She's been released it seems, but has been "Censored by the state of Florida until further notice." according to her twitter feed.
They have her ip address [1]. It is super easy to prosecute with her ip address marked on the sent message. I feel bad for her, but, why hand the prosecution so much (use a vpn)? This is like driving drunk with your headlights off. At this point, she will have to plead out.
"An affidavit for the warrant claims that an unauthorized message sent from a state emergency management account on Nov. 10 was traced to an IP address associated with Jones."
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/12/09/raid-f...
Some more details on the system she is alleged to have accessed: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/12/florida-posted-t...
This is an obviously politically motivated use of state violence, and I hope this case goes in her favor.
DeSantis couldn't do a better job of turning her into a hero and himself into a villain.
What do you think will come next? I see her winning a lawsuit against him or some part of the state.
Political persecution of public interest dissidents at its finest.
This weekend I heard directly from a current DOT employee, formerly Dept Of Health, in the FL capitol:
"We were just following the WHO recommendations."
"She's just a web developer and doesn't understand anything about the numbers."
I’m seeing a lot of people posting conspiracy theories here and on social media. I wonder what makes this instance exceptional...
Does this news makes you nervous about moving to Florida?
This comment thread is an example of social media at its absolute worst. Have an opinion? Big deal, everyone has an opinion. My advice is to keep it to yourself.
If a judge issued a warrant for her arrest there must be something there. So idk. Suppose it could still be selective enforcement.
From the gofundme:
“ Lawyer's fees, private investigators, an armed security guard for my home since the police published my home address and contact information online, moving expenses so my family can get out of the Governor's reach, and any costs associated with this fight that I may not be anticipating. My family and I will need to move and get set up in a new place.”
Holy hell it’s like she pulled a Snowden or something. All she did was be good at her job and tell the truth. Just another reason for me to never live in Florida.
While the State has handled this case wrong, she is not innocent in this. She made a bunch of drama about her interpretation of the data, which was, at best, no better than the State's method, and more likely, she was flat-out wrong. She is mostly a drama queen making a crazy mess.