Citizen Misbehavior
Breeds Voter Discontent
(#458, 11/20/24)

Progressive agendas
face rebuke in even
the "Bluest" of places

A Matter of Facts
(#457, 11/3/24)

Did flawed science place
an innocent man
on death row?

Want Brotherly Love?
Don't be Poor!
(#456, 10/12/24)

Violence is down in Philly,
L.A. and D.C.
Have their poor noticed?

Prevention Through Preemption
(#455, 9/16/24)

Expanding the scope of
policing beyond
making arrests

Switching Sides
(#454, 8/30/24)

St. Louis’ D.A. argues that
a condemned man
is in fact innocent

"Distraction Strike"?
Angry Punch? Both?
(#453, 8/11/24)

When cops get rattled,
the distinction may
ring hollow

Bringing a Gun
To a Knife Fight
(#452, 7/30/24)

Cops carry guns.
Some citizens flaunt knives.
Are poor outcomes inevitable?

"Numbers" Rule –
Everywhere
(#451, 7/2/24)

Production pressures
degrade what's "produced" –
and not just in policing

Is Crime Really Down?
It Depends...
(#450, 6/20/24)

Even when citywide
numbers improve, place
really, really matters

Kids With Guns
(#449, 6/3/24)

Ready access
and permissive laws
create a daunting problem

De-Prosecution?
What's That?
(#448, 4/27/24)

Philadelphia's D.A.
eased up on lawbreakers.
Did it increase crime?

Ideology (Still)
Trumps Reason
(#447, 4/9/24)

When it comes to gun laws,
“Red” and “Blue” remain
in the driver’s seat

Shutting the Barn Door
(#446, 3/19/24)

Oregon moves to
re-criminalize hard drugs

Houston, We Have
(Another) Problem
(#445, 2/28/24)

Fueled by assault rifles, murders plague the land

Wrong Place, Wrong
Time, Wrong Cop
(#444, 2/8/24)

Recent exonerees set "records"
for wrongful imprisonment

America's Violence-
Beset Capital City
(#443, 1/20/24)

Our Nation's capital
is plagued by murder

Are Civilians Too Easy
on the Police? (II)
(#442, 12/18/23)

Exonerated of murder,
but not yet done

Warning: (Frail)
Humans at Work
(#441, 11/29/23)

The presence of a gun
can prove lethal

See No Evil - Hear No
Evil - Speak No Evil
(#440, 11/14/23)

Is the violent crime problem
really all in our heads?

Policing Can't Fix
What Really Ails
(#439, 10/18/23)

California's posturing
overlooks a chronic issue

Confirmation Bias
Can be Lethal
(#438, 9/21/23)

Why did a "routine" stop
cost a man's life?

When (Very) Hard
Heads Collide (II)
(#437, 9/5/23)

What should cops do when
miscreants refuse to comply?
Refuse to comply?

Keep going...

11/20/24 Loudly tooting its own horn, Homeland Security announced its third “removal flight” of unauthorized immigrants to the People’s Republic of China in less than six months. According to DHS, the President’s June decision (it limited how many illegal border-crossers can apply for asylum) reduced Border Patrol encounters over 52 percent. Since then, DHS has operated over 640 removal flights to more than 155 countries, returning more unauthorized immigrants to their homelands than any year since 2010. Immigration updates Related post

A new report by the National Academies, “Cannabis Policy Impacts Public Health and Health Equity,” urges the Government to implement a research agenda and adopt regulatory policies that would lessen the “public health harms” of cannabis use. According to the report, in 2022 more persons reported frequent cannabis use than frequent alcohol use. Meanwhile the THC concentrations of cannabis products “has markedly increased.” Drug Legalization updates   Related post

11/19/24 On Sunday, November 17, an annual New Orleans parade and celebration sponsored by the Nine Times Social Aid Pleasure Club was marred by two episodes of gunfire. In the first incident, at about 3:30 p.m., nine persons were wounded in the St. Roch neighborhood, near the French Quarter. One-half hour later, two persons were killed and one was wounded at the Almonaster Avenue Bridge, about a half-mile away. No arrests have yet been made. Related post

A recent IACP survey of 1,100 U.S. police agencies reveals that, in comparison to a 2019 survey, seventy percent are finding it more difficult to recruit officers, that the problem besets both small and large departments, and that it’s especially pronounced in the Midwest and Northeast. Resignations are also substantially up. To meet these challenges agencies have taken steps including raising entrance pay and loosening grooming standards, but the results have been mixed. Related posts 1   2

11/18/24 Ex-Memphis cops Tadarrius Bean, Justin Smith and Demetrius Haley were recently convicted on assorted Federal civil rights charges for the January 2023 beating death of Tyre Nichols.  Their sentencing is scheduled for January 2025. And in April they will go on State trial for murder. Two other officers that were members of the “Scorpion” team, Emmitt Martin and Desmond Mills Jr., pled guilty to the Federal charges and testified against their colleagues. Their State cases are pending. Related post

After “considering the merits of the issue,” the Texas Supreme Court took back its recent setting aside of the execution date for convicted murdered Robert Roberson. According to the Justices, a correct interpretation of “separation of powers” means that if legislators wish to have Roberson testify, they must schedule his appearance so that it does not conflict with a properly set execution date. As of yet, Roberson has not testified, and no new date has been set for his execution. Related post

A recent Federal criminal complaint alleges that Adam Iza, a Los Angeles-based cryptocurrency trader, engaged in a years-long scheme to evade taxes and extort payments from his clients. To carry it out he allegedly enlisted the services of six Los Angeles County deputy sheriffs, who intimidated and silenced “the Godfather’s” victims by performing illegal searches and making illegal arrests. Several deputies were recently relieved of duty. Federal complaint   Related post

The needless beating of a homeless man landed a former L.A.-area Veterans Affairs police officer in prison. Ex-cop Juan Anthony Carrillo, 46, had pled guilty to needlessly whaling on a trespasser whom his colleague caught wandering around Federal property, toking on a pipe. Carrillo’s admitted misuse of a baton, which caused his victim to suffer cuts and a broken bone, just led a Federal judge to impose the maximum term for misdemeanor assault - one year in prison. DOJ news release   Related post

11/15/24 Businesses located by the intersection where officers encountered George Floyd had sued Minneapolis for violating the City charter by no longer policing the place that's now called “George Floyd Square.” Crime allegedly surged, devastating profits. But a Minneapolis judge threw out the lawsuit two months ago. Tailoring their response to the judge’s reasoning, the businesses just filed an eminent domain action, which would have the city pay them for essentially "taking" their property without compensation. Related post

With the trial about to start, current and former LAPD officers are lining up to testify against the City of L.A. in the lawsuit by former SWAT Sergeant Tim Colomey, who claims that opposing the unit’s “culture of violence” led to blowback from superiors and wrecked his career. Among the expected witnesses is Lt. Jennifer Grasso, who was allegedly passed over to lead the group when it became known that she had agreed to “blow the whistle” on its needlessly violent bent. Related post

11/14/24 In November 2017 U.S. Park Police officers Lucas Vinyard and Alejandro Amaya shot and killed Bijan Ghaisar when he nearly struck one of them with his car while trying to flee from a car stop. They were charged with manslaughter, but a Federal judge dismissed the case. And an attempt to fire them was just turned away by the Interior Dept.’s Inspector General, who ruled the shooting justified. Last year the Government settled the family’s suit for $5 million; both officers remain on paid leave. Related post

Caribbean nations are beset by gangs. And some of the worst murder rates in the world, as well. The primary instruments of death are semi-automatic pistols smuggled from the U.S., mostly from Florida, Georgia and Texas. Disassembled and hidden in shipping containers, they’ve been found in everything from cars to washing machines. 3-D printers are also used to assemble rifles, and conversion devices that turn them into machineguns are commonplace. Related post

11/13/24 A newly-published study evaluates the effects of gunshot detection technology (ShotSpotter) in Kansas City between its implementation in 2012 and September 2019. Comparing ShotSpotter and non-ShotSpotter areas, it concludes that ShotSpotter significantly increased the number of gun recoveries and decreased “shots fired calls for service.” However, ShotSpotter had no observable effects  on the frequency of fatal and non-fatal shootings, or on the number of assaults or robberies committed with a firearm. It concludes that given its considerable costs, ShotSpotter’s benefits were questionable. Related post

Forty-two million dollars. That’s what a Federal civil jury just awarded three Iraqi men who were subjected to beatings and unimaginable cruelty while detained at notorious Abu Ghraib prison during America’s post-9/11 occupation of Iraq. That money will come from CACI, a Virginia-based firm whose civilian interrogators worked alongside the Army MP’s who carried out the abuses to “soften” prisoners for questioning. Related post

11/12/24 A Washington state bill would have made confessions inadmissible if extracted through police lying. Ted Bradford, whose wrongful conviction to rape was obtained by Yakima detectives who falsely claimed his DNA matched, served ten years before he was exonerated. Innocence projects are all for the measure. Lying to suspects, though, is legal throughout the U.S., and opposition from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs helped kill the bill. But legislators vow to try again. Related post

Dispatched on a domestic assault, Maryland deputies found an arsenal of 80 handguns and rifles “in plain view” inside the residence to which they had been called. Returning with a search warrant, they uncovered a stash that included body armor, “multiple 3D-printed ghost guns,” 74 devices that convert guns into machineguns, and 1,300 rounds of ammunition. The suspect fled before the deputies’ initial visit and remains on the lam. Related post

11/11/24 Gunfire broke out during a late-evening “unauthorized” homecoming party in an apartment on the campus of Alabama’s Tuskegee University. An 18-year old non-student was shot dead and twelve other persons were wounded. No one has yet been arrested for the shooting. Montgomery resident Jaquez Myrick, 25, was arrested on Federal charges of having a handgun that was illegally modified to enable full auto fire, i.e., a machinegun. Related post

Sixteen “Red-leaning” States sued to revoke a recent Biden administration rule that allowed undocumented family members of U.S. citizens to remain in the U.S. while their applications for permanent residency are processed. And a Federal judge in “deep-Red” Texas just ruled that the “Keeping Families Together” program lacks the legal authority to proceed. In his view, immigrants can only be legally paroled to enter the U.S., not after the fact. So the program remains on hold. Immigration updates Related post

Remember the Capitol assault? It’s still generating Federal cases. Most recently, against suburban Chicagoans Emil Kozeluh, 41, and Michael Mollo Jr., 44. Both are charged, among other things,  with felony disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds. Kozeluh (he recently served prison time for burglary) and Mollo, a retired heavyweight boxer, were caught on video inside the Capitol, yelling and pushing their way around. Mollo bumped one officer “and grabbed another officer’s baton.” Kozeluh is out on bond; Mollo’s status is presently unknown. Capitol updates   Related post

Jurors took two hours to find Hinds Co. (Jackson, MS) interim Sheriff Marshand Crisler guilty of taking $9,500 in bribes and giving a felon bullets he couldn’t legally possess. That felon, though, was surreptitiously recording their calls for his FBI handlers. Crisler, who had used the bribe to fund a prior run for Sheriff, promised to keep the felon informed about cases against him, and to give him a job and a gun once he was elected in his new bid for Sheriff. “How he did it shows why he did it,” said the prosecutor. Related posts 1   2

Shot-spotter and license plate readers helped lead Berkeley, Calif. police to San Francisco resident Jeffrey Darren Hue. According to police, Hue staged a series of shootings near the UC Berkeley campus during the late evening hours of October 26. A search warrant at his residence uncovered a veritable arsenal of assault weapons, handguns, magazines and ammunition. Arrested for a string of felonies, Hue is being held on $80,000 bond. BPD news release  Related posts 1   2

Will 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and two accomplices actually serve the life terms to which they and prosecutors agreed? Eager to see the trio executed, Defense Sec. Lloyd J. Austin recently voided the agreement. But Air Force Judge Col. Matthew McCall ruled that the Defense Secretary lacked the legal standing to intervene. So he just voided Sec. Austin’s voiding. Whether the two- decades-plus that the trio has already served will stretch indefinitely remains up in the air. Related post

Enacted in January, Illinois’ assault-weapons ban survived a cursory glance by the Supreme Court. But East St. Louis-based Federal judge Stephen McGlynn just issued a “168-page opinion” that concludes it violates the 2nd. and 14th. Amendments. “What is particularly disturbing is that the prohibition of weapons that are commonly owned and used by citizens are now banned, depriving citizens of a principal means to defend themselves and their property in situations where a handgun or shotgun alone would not be the citizen's preferred arm.” He stayed his decision for 30 days. And the fight is on. Related posts 1   2

11/8/24 Darion C. McMillian, 23, was recently released from parole after being imprisoned for a 2019 shooting. And on November 4 he was on electronic monitoring for a pending drug case when Chicago police officers approached the double-parked car that he occupied. McMillian opened fire with a pistol converted by a “switch” to full-auto, killing Officer Enrique Martinez and, apparently by accident, the driver of his own vehicle. McMillian fled but was soon arrested. Officer Martinez, himself a young person, had less than three years on the job. Related posts 1   2

In 2010 Arizona empowered State and local officers to inquire about immigration status while enforcing other laws and to hold illegal migrants for the Border Patrol. Just passed by voters, Proposition 314 takes it a big step further, making illegal immigration a State crime and empowering cops to arrest violators and State judges to deport them. But these provisions won’t go into effect unless and until Texas’ similar , precedent-setting immigration law survives its ongoing round of Federal appeals. Immigration updates Related post

Voters in Florida, North Dakota and South Dakota failed to approve ballot measures to legalize recreational marijuana. (Florida’s got a majority, but it fell short of the required 60% supermajority.) While pot for pleasure remains legal in twenty-four States, advocates feel that this number is unlikely to substantially increase as most of the twenty-six holdout States forbid enacting such laws through citizen initiatives. As for medical pot, depending on what happens in Nebraska legal-wise, it has either 38 or 39 States on board. Drug legalization updates Related post

11/7/24 Elected officials in the “Bluest” of areas may have met their match. Progressive Los Angeles D.A. George Gascon, who was blasted by his staff for going easy on the accused and hard on cops, was ousted by former Federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman, who blamed his rival for the waves of theft and misbehavior that haunt L.A. And in California’s violence- and homelessness-beset Bay Area, voters booted two other progressives: Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and Alameda County D.A. Pamela Price. Their preference for pulling back the throttle on policing and punishment seems no longer in favor. Related posts 1   2   3

11/6/24 Proposition 47, which California voters enacted ten years ago, reflected progressive priorities to reduce punishment and incarceration. But waves of shoplifting and burglary eroded its support. Voters have just passed Proposition 36, which restores the “felony” designation to thefts under $950 for those with two or more prior convictions for stealing. Group thefts, which have come to beset retailers, are now felonies punishable by lengthy terms. Penalties have also substantially stiffened for drug dealing. Related post

Sheriff’s officials in two Ohio counties are under the gun for election-related comments on social media that seem glaringly hostile to those of the “Blue” persuasion. Long-serving Clark County (Springfield) patrol commander John Rodgers attributed his “if you support the Democrat party I will not help you” posts to the side effects of medication. Meanwhile in Portage County (Kent), Sheriff Bruce D. Zuchowski, who’s been in office since 2021, wrote that if “the laughing hyena” wins, her supporters’ homes will be where to look for the “illegal human locusts” (i.e., immigrants) who are certain to come. Related post

11/5/24 Many “Proud Boys” were imprisoned for their violent roles in the Capitol assault. Their leader, Enrique Tarrio, was convicted of seditious conspiracy and is serving a 22-year sentence. But online messaging reveals that many Proud Boys chapters have regrouped and formulated plans in case the “Reds” lose the Presidential election. Its North Phoenix chapter posted a photo of a gun stockpile accompanied by “Proud Boys stocking up getting ready for Nov…It’s going to be biggley!!” Capitol updates   Related post

In 1995 Humberto Duran was sentenced to life for shooting and killing an East L.A. gang member. He denied having been present, and his testimony was supported by his girlfriend and her mother. But deputies pressured the sole eyewitness to identify Duran, and she did so at his trial. Within several years, though, the woman recanted and said she had lied. It also turned out that deputies had withheld information about the identity of the allegedly real shooter. Duran’s lawyer was also thoroughly incompetent. Last month a judge vacated the conviction. After thirty years, Duran was released. D.A. letter   Related post

Jurors convicted former Columbus police officer Adam Coy of murder for the 2020 shooting death of Andre Hill. Officer Coy was responding to a non-emergency call about a running vehicle and saw Mr. Hill inside his neighbor’s garage. Thinking him suspicious he ordered Mr. Hill to come out, and when the man complied officer Coy saw what he thought was a gun in his hand. He instantly opened fire. It turned out that the object was a cellphone, and that Mr. Hill had done nothing wrong. Officer Coy had accumulated numerous citizen complaints during his nearly 20 years on the job. He was promptly fired. Related posts 1   2

As an angry man drove off with his kidnapped ex-girlfriend in the car, she dialed a friend. And that woman used her IPhone’s “Find My” app to track the vehicle and alert police of its whereabouts. A Sheriff’s helicopter soon spotted the car, and the chase was on. Officers eventually ended it using spike strips. And the former boyfriend is now in jail on $100,000 bond. Related post

11/4/24 Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend opened fire when Louisville officers burst into her residence four years ago. Then-Louisville cop Brett Hankinson, who was outside the apartment, responded with a fusillade that pierced walls and windows but struck no one. Hankinson was charged with violating the civil rights of Taylor and residents of another apartment. His first trial produced a hung jury, and he was just convicted on one count of violating Ms. Taylor's civil rights at a retrial. Hankinson faces up to twenty years. DOJ Press Release   Related post

Nineteen-year old Nhazel Warren had recent arrests for gun possession and fleeing when officers caught him illegally packing a pistol in July. He was released with an ankle monitor. Warren then committed a home invasion. He was arrested and released on bond and, again, with an ankle monitor. He went on to commit several more armed robberies; his most recent arrest was a week ago. Again, he was released on bond. And again, with a monitor. All along, Warren was supposedly being monitored by the Probation Dept. But there’s no record that they ever put his “tracking” devices to work. Related post

Anderson Blanco Diaz supposedly hung with the MS-13 gang. That’s the capacity in which Maryland prosecutors say he executed Antoine Dorsey, with a bullet to the head. Jurors convicted Blanco Diaz of 1st. degree murder. And as the law requires, he was sentenced to life. But Judge Darren Johnson suspended all of his term but ten years. “The court can consider things that the jury could not,” he said. Prosecutors and Dorsey’s family were enraged. But Blanco Diaz’s lawyer applauded the judge’s decision. After all, the shooting was an “accident,” and ten years is the penalty for manslaughter. Related post

Released last April after serving 24 years for kidnapping, Ohio man Frank Tyson had failed to report to his parole officer. Less than two weeks later he crashed his car into a pole and was arrested.  Canton police officers Beau Schoenegge and Camden Burch handcuffed him. They pinned him to the ground, face-down, and ignored his complaints that he couldn’t breathe. Soon it was too late, and he died. Heart issues and cocaine and alcohol were listed as contributing factors. A grand jury just indicted both officers for reckless homicide. Related post