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Happy Holidays!
Updates continue
(see lower right)
Our next essay posts
January 6th.
Acting...or Re-acting?
(#459, 12/8/24)
An urgent response
proves tragically imprecise
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...
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12/20/24 Hadi Abuatelah,
a 17-year old Illinois youth, had a gun in his bag. But the Oak Lawn officers who stopped his car in July 2022
because it missed a license plate didn’t know that. When Abuatelah ran off, the officers chased him down. And as
they piled on, officer Patrick O’Donnell repeatedly struck the teen in the head. That got him charged with
aggravated battery and official misconduct. But yesterday, one day before trial, the Cook County Attorney dismissed
the case. In its opinion, there’s simply not enough to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. And the protests
are on.
Related post
12/19/24 Police investigating the December 16th. gun deaths of five members of a West Valley City, Utah
family, and the critical wounding of their teen son, revealed that a handgun was found underneath the adult
male’s body. They believe that the 42-year old husband and father set out to annihilate his family, then
committed suicide.
Related post
An official review of more than 500
traffic stops by New Jersey State Police that ended without a ticket or any other enforcement action revealed that
over 25 percent were tinged by apparent favoritism. In many cases motorists presented “courtesy cards”
given them by troopers. In others they spoke of being personally acquainted with an officer. And some drivers even
“flashed a badge.” Overall, reviewers found a “two-tiered system” where motorists with even
“tenuous” ties to law enforcement were apt to get a pass.
Related post
Los Angeles-area substitute teacher Emmett Brock was having “a miserable day” in
August 2023. So as Sheriff’s deputy Joseph Benza III drove by, he flipped the cop off. Deputy Benza followed the
transgender man into a parking lot, pulled him from his car and “violently body slammed” him to the ground.
He handcuffed Brock and booked him on a felony. Benza had his colleagues lie about what happened, and Brock lost his
job over the encounter. Local prosecutors refused to charge Benza, so the Feds stepped in. Benza just agreed to plead
guilty to a felony civil rights violation. He faces up to ten years in prison.
Related post
12/18/24
Long Island’s “Gilgo Beach” killings took the lives of eight women, a man and a two-year old girl
between 1993-2010. In July 2023 DNA found on “pizza crust, bottles and human hairs” and cell-site
information placing him at critical locations led to the arrest of a Long Island, N.Y. architect for the sex-related
murders of three of the women. Rex Heuermann, 59, has since been charged with the deaths of four additional women. Among
them is his earliest known victim, Sandra Costilla, who disappeared in 1993. And only days ago he was charged with
killing his seventh victim, Valerie Mack. Her remains were discovered in 2000; genetic testing identified her in 2020.
Heuermann protests his innocence.
Wikipedia entry
Related post
In West Valley,
Utah, a concerned relative who couldn’t get in touch with a 38-year old woman found her 17-year old son in
the home’s garage, suffering from a gunshot wound. Police then discovered the woman, her husband, and three
children, ages 2, 9 and 11, dead inside the home. All were dead. Police plan to question the youth when he has
sufficiently recovered. No one else is being sought.
Related post
A new report by the
Council on Criminal Justice reveals that juvenile offending generally decreased during 2016-2022. Crime
incidents dropped about 14%, and the number of offenders declined about 18%. Burglaries, larcenies and
robberies also fell substantially. But the news isn’t all positive. Assaults, and particularly aggravated
assaults, are somewhat up. Worse still, homicides increased a steep 65%, and the criminal misuse of firearms went up
21%. And when guns are used, the injuries they inflict have become worse.
Related post
12/17/24 A 15-year old
female student opened fire with a 9mm. pistol at a Christian K-12 school in Madison, Wisconsin. A teacher and a
student were killed and six other students were wounded, two critically. The shooter then committed suicide.
Authorities indicate that the shooting at “Abundant Life” was pre-planned, but no information about a
motive has yet been released. Her parents have not yet claimed ownership of the gun and Federal agents are tracing
it to determine its origin.
Related post
In January 2019
Zephen Xaver, 21, entered a Florida bank, ordered four employees and a customer to lie on the floor, then shot them
in the head. Xaver had frequently messaged and spoken about going on a killing spree, and his mental problems led to his
discharge from the Army after only three months. He was then hired as a prison guard trainee, but he quit that position
in two months, one day after buying his gun. Two weeks later came the massacre. Jurors in his recent penalty trial
recommended the death penalty, and that’s what a judge just imposed.
Related post
12/16/24 Consumer protection laws are the basis of a lawsuit filed by New Jersey and Minnesota that
accuses Glock of knowingly (purposefully?) manufacturing pistols that can be quickly converted to full-auto fire with
simple, readily available “Glock switches.” According to the plaintiffs, Glock has long known that
“anyone with a screwdriver and a YouTube video” can quickly turn their pistols into machineguns. But it
allegedly profits from this vulnerability, so it’s done nothing. A handgun converted to full-auto fire was recently used to murder Chicago police officer Enrique Martinez. Related posts
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At her 2002 murder trial,
Las Vegas resident Kirstin Lobato testified that, as she told a detective, she had once used a knife to defend from a
sexual attack. But that was weeks before her alleged victim’s killing. Then, she insisted, she was visiting her
hometown, far away. Prosecution experts, though, placed the time of death so that she could have been present. That, and
the cop’s testimony, led to her conviction. But the case was beset with evidentiary issues, and four years later
innocence advocates got her a retrial. She was convicted of manslaughter and drew 13-45 years. Defense efforts
continued, and in 2017 a judge vacated the conviction. Ms. Lobato was released, and prosecutors dismissed the case. A
Federal civil jury just awarded her $34 million.
Related post
In July, LAPD officers working a drug-beset downtown area arrested a
vendor who was hawking drugs from a booth. He also had a 9mm. “ghost gun.” LAPD officers arrested him again
in September, and again in October, for the same thing. San Francisco cops then nabbed him twice in November - again,
with drugs and a ghost gun. And except for his very last arrest, when he was held to answer for one of his L.A. cases,
the vendor was always promptly released. Cops call it “B.R.” - “book and release”.;
Related post
During the early morning hours of Saturday, December 14 an “extremely intoxicated” New Mexico
youth called 9-1-1 to report that he had just massacred his family. When deputies arrived they discovered the bodies of
his mother, father and two teen-age brothers. Each had been shot dead. Diego Leyva, 16 surrendered. Officers found a
handgun on the kitchen table.
Related post
Grocery stores
in Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama and Colorado now feature vending machines that sell ammunition. American Rounds, a Federally
-licensed distributor, stocks them with a variety of brands. Buyers have to scan their I.D.’s to confirm they are
of age
(18 for long-gun ammo; 21 for handgun.) But the process is quick and simple. “We’re super excited”
glowed Fresh Value executive Terry Stanley. “There is no doubt that foot traffic will increase based on the
feedback that we’ve gotten.”
Related post
12/13/24 Shortly before Thanksgiving, a California judge released
56-year old Glenn Litton with orders to return on December 4th. for arraignment on a 4-year old burglary charge.
Litton’s extensive criminal history includes a felony conviction that prohibits him from having guns. On the date
of his arraignment, Litton instead showed up at a tiny religious school, ostensibly to enroll a family member.
That’s where he opened fire with a homemade “ghost gun,” wounding two kindergartners. He had written
about doing so to protest America’s involvement in Middle-East violence. Litton then committed suicide.
Related posts
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According to DOJ, it presently oversees about two dozen pattern-or-practice investigations of local
police. Its most recent findings allege that Mount Vernon, New York police officers use excessive force, needlessly
escalate encounters, abuse tasers and fist strikes, and make arrests that lack probable cause. Meanwhile its most recent
consent decree, just entered with Louisville Metropolitan Police, comes nearly five years after its
officers wrongfully shot and killed Breonna Taylor in her own residence.
Related post
Roger Golubski, a 72-year old former Kansas City Police detective, recently committed suicide as he was to go on
trial for sexually assaulting Black women during his decades as a cop. (Golubski is White.) That was soon followed by
the release of Dominique Moore and Cedric Warren, who were imprisoned for a 2009 double murder investigated by the now-
discredited cop. But Judge Aaron Roberts denied that the dismissal of charges was about Golubski. Instead, it was based
on prosecutors’ concealment of the fact that a key witness against Moore and Warren was schizophrenic, and that
his accounts of what took place had shifted. Related posts
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12/12/24 Two-and-one-half-years ago, Springfield, Massachusetts voluntarily accepted Federal monitoring of
its police to remedy abusive use-of-force practices. And now it’s Worcester’s turn. DOJ just
issued a pattern-or-practice report that blasts Worcester cops for “unjustified uses of tasers, police dogs and
strikes to the head.” And that’s not all. Officers also reportedly violated the civil rights of sex workers
“by engaging in sexual contact while undercover.” But a lawyer for the police called the report
“unfair, inaccurate and biased.” So whether Worcester will voluntarily cave to the Feds seems uncertain.
Related post
Phillipsburg, New Jersey (pop.
15,000) reportedly suffered five shootings in the last decade where someone was wounded or killed. But last year it used
$297,000 in COVID-19 funds to install ShotSpotter. Many other small cities with few shootings have done likewise. As
criticisms of ShotSpotter’s effectiveness has moved large cities to question its use, ShotSpotter has been
aggressively marketed to small places. And their assessment of its usefulness has been largely positive.
Related post
12/11/24
In February the Supreme Court struck down an ATF rule that defined bump-stock equipped weapons, which it once green-
lit, as machineguns (Garland v. Cargill.) Its
decision placed another ATF rule, that weapons with forced-reset triggers are also machineguns, in jeopardy. And in July
a Texas Federal judge ruled that, as with bump stocks, firearms so equipped do not meet the
legal definition of a machinegun. Federal lawyers have appealed the ruling to the Fifth Circuit, but its justices seem
skeptical.
Related post
According to DOJ, violent crime is on a favorable track. Data from 85 cities indicates that it continues to decline in
2024, with year-thru-third quarter drops of 17.5% for murder, 7.1% for rape, 3.6% for aggravated assault, and 7.8% for
robbery. Substantial improvements are being reported by authorities in Los Angeles and the District of Columbia. In the latter, credit is
given, in part, to a stiffening of penalties, more aggressive prosecution, and a comprehensive gun-violence prevention
program. Within-city differences, though, receive no mention.
Related post
12/10/24
An Indianapolis jury acquitted police officers Adam Ahmad and Steven Sanchez of all charges, including involuntary
manslaughter, reckless homicide and battery, in the April 2022 death of Herman Whitfield III. During an encounter instigated by
his mother’s 9-1-1 call that her son was in a “mental health crisis,” the officers Tased Mr. Whitfield,
applied handcuffs, and held him face down until paramedics arrived and began CPR. Cause of death was “heart failure
during restraint”, made worse by “morbid obesity” and hypertension. Defense experts testified
this was not a case of positional asphyxia. Police insist the officers acted correctly and will be returned to duty.
Related posts
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On July 4th. Louisiana enacted a law allowing permitless concealed gun carry. Minimum age is 21. New Orleans officials
are now upset about a surge of shootings, which most recently left two adults and a child dead and injured six during a
single-day span. Violence is reportedly otherwise down, and observers comment that ill-intending persons will get guns
one way or another. According to a business owner, “We haven’t seen where innocent people who are allowed to
carry weapons are involved in things that are illegal. If somebody chooses to go out and commit an act of violence,
it's going to be hard to stop that no matter what city you’re in.” Related posts
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Does getting cops off school campuses reduce racial and
ethnic disparities in the criminal justice system? A new study revealed that ridding schools of police did reduce the
reporting of school-based crimes. But the reduction wasn’t affected by a school’s racial or ethnic
composition. By and large, neither were the school-based crime referrals and arrests that did take place. If there is
bias in school crime reporting, simply removing cops isn’t a solution.
Related post
Luigi Mangione, a 26-year old U of Penn. computer science graduate, was caught with a 9mm.
“ghost gun” that he is thought to have used in the notorious recent ambush slaying of health care executive
Brian Thompson. This unserialized pistol, which he likely made on a 3-D printer, was equipped with a
“suppressor” that muffles the sound of its firing. Recovered shells bore the logo
“deny,” “defend” and “depose,” which supposedly refers to maneuvers used by insurance
companies to dodge paying claims. Mangione had fake ID’s and a handwritten three-page document professing
“ill will toward corporate America.” Related posts
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12/9/24 A 35-year old Chicago man with a CCW
is charged with murder for fatally shooting an erratically-behaving transient. When a black-clad homeless man approached
and did an “air kick,” John Conway pulled a handgun and shot him dead. Officers searching Conway’s
residence found a sniper-type rifle and other guns, a city map festooned with X’s, a State map with colleges
circled, and an elaborate written plan for harming a third party that included escape routes. Conway was ordered detained.
Related post
An analysis of traffic stops
by New Jersey State Troopers between 2009-2021 concluded that members of racial minorities were far more likely to
be stopped, cited, searched, subjected to the use of force, and arrested. According to the New York Times, this finding, which was made
public in July 2023, caused traffic enforcement to plummet by 81 percent during the following eight months, and
“coincided with an almost immediate uptick in motor vehicle crashes.”
Related post
According to
the incoming Administration, the emphasis will be on removing unauthorized immigrants who have committed crimes and
those who have been ordered deported. Problem is, about half of the 1.4 million in the latter group can’t
presently be returned. Some countries refuse to take them back. Immigration courts have also granted many a supposedly
temporary “pass” for medical reasons or because they face persecution in their homelands. And some
unauthorized immigrants are imprisoned.
Immigration updates
12/6/24 Three and-one
-half million bucks. That’s what a civil jury just awarded ex-LAPD SWAT Sergeant Tim Colomey, who alleged that
opposing the unit’s “culture of violence” led to his forced removal from SWAT and ruined his career. A
key witness, Lt. Jennifer Grasso, testified that she was passed over to lead SWAT after agreeing to testify on his
behalf. Colomey, who is on leave awaiting retirement, said that his troubles wrecked his sleep and forced him to take
meds for panic attacks.
Related post
12/6/24 Terroristic-style attacks by lone souls struck both coasts.
In Northern
California, a man who showed up for an appointment at a tiny religious school, ostensibly to enroll a family member,
shot and critically wounded two kindergartners. Glenn Litton had written about doing so to protest America’s
involvement in Middle-East violence. He then committed suicide. And in tony Manhattan, a
masked man used a silencer-equipped pistol to shoot and kill the C.E.O. of a major health insurance carrier. Recovered
shells bore the logo “deny,” “defend” and “depose,” which supposedly refers to
maneuvers used by insurance companies to dodge paying claims. The attacker remains unidentified.
Related post
12/5/24 In January 2023 Memphis PD’s “Scorpion” unit savagely beat Tyre Nichols. And now,
nearly two years later, DOJ issued a “blistering” 73-page report that accuses Memphis cops of routinely using
excessive force and discriminating against Black persons and the disabled. Officers are faulted for misusing traffic
stops, and are allegedly seldom held accountable for misconduct. But Memphis refuses to voluntarily enter into a consent
decree and place its cops under DOJ supervision. So a legal battle looms. DOJ announcement
Related post
Elected on a promise to cast aside his predecessor’s permissive agenda, Los Angeles D.A. Nathan Hochman got
promptly to work. At his swearing in (by former Calif. Guv Arnold Schwarzenegger, no less) he announced a reversal of
policies that had been reviled by progressive D.A. George Gascon’s own staff. Assistant D.A.’s will now be
allowed to seek the death penalty and to prosecute low-level misdemeanors and drug crimes. Hochman reinstituted the use
of sentence enhancements for gang and gun crimes, and prosecutors will once again be allowed to accompany crime victims
to parole hearings.
Related post
12/4/24 Bemoaning the recent murders of Chicago police officer Enrique Martinez and Oak Park detective Allan
Reddins, newly-elected Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen Burke pledged to help restore a sense of safety to a
metropolis whose attributes are “overshadowed by crime.” Among her first moves will be to seek the detention
of armed domestic abusers, sex offenders, and those who commit crimes on public transit, and armed persons who are caught
with unserialized (“ghost”) guns, firearms with extended magazines, and weapons modified to enable full-auto
fire. A few hours later, Chicago police came across the body of a 15-year old boy, who had been shot dead by as-yet unknown assailants in the
city’s troubled Englewood neighborhood.
Related post
Predictive policing strategies have garnered
opposition because of their tendency to concentrate policing in minority neighborhoods. While police overreach remains a
concern, a two-day workshop hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine explored how person-
based and place-based predictive strategies can be tailored to respond to and help prevent crime in highly impacted areas
without leading to abuses. According to NIJ Director Nancy La Vigne, “predictive policing is not just about the
prediction but about the type of policing that happens after the prediction.”
Related post
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