Police Issues

Thought-provoking essays on crime, justice and policing
 

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The Fewer the Better
(5/29/26 #483)


Flack over D.C.'s 2023 crime
surge led police managers
to adopt an "easy" fix



Who's Minding
the Door?

(5/4/26 #482)


Protective assignments
aren't done until
the protectee's gone



Another
"Straw Purchase,"
Another Massacre

(4/29/26 #481)


A gun changes hands.
Eight children die.



Should Cops
Ever Chase?

(4/15/26 #480)


Risks to innocents
may be unmanageable



Justifiable? Excusable?
Criminal?

(3/16/26 #479)


A father guns down
his child's molester.
He then runs for Sheriff.



Must Impulse Rule?
(2/19/26 #478)


Hasty policing
yields tragic outcomes



What's Up in L.A.?
(1/30/26 #477)


Crime is reportedly down.
But police shootings
are (way) up.



Place Still Matters.
A Lot.

(12/11/25 #476)


A dispute between gangsters
devolves into the massacre
of children



L.A.P.D. Blues
(11/12/25 #475)


Is ideology driving
an ex-cop's prosecution?


Take Over? Take Care!
(Part II)

(10/23/25 #474)


San Francisco lands - for
a time - on the Prez's "hit list"


Take Over? Take Care!
(10/4/25 #473)


Invasions can't fix
what's really broken


Does "Why" Matter?
(8/21/25)


The causes of criminal
violence remain in dispute


A Money Pit
(7/28/25)


Feeding cops and lawyers
is very expensive


Post-Pandemic Blues
(7/7/25)


Thievery, some of it violent, besets our nation's recovery


More Poverty,
Less Trust

(6/23/25)


Citizens who most need the
cops trust them the least


Violence Isn't Down
for the Cops

(5/30/25)


More officers are being murdered. Mostly, with guns.


All in the Family
(5/12/25)


A foot pursuit of hit-and-run
suspects turns into a firefight
with an armed resident


Putting Things Off
(5/30/25)


Pursuits Kill Innocents.
What are the Options?


Gun Control?
What's That?

(4/1/25)


Ideological quarrels beset
gun laws, gun law-making,
and gun law-enforcing


Forewarned is Forearmed
(3/19/25)


Killings of police officers
seem inevitable.
What might help?


Who's Under the Gun?
The ATF

(3/6/25)


Going after gun controllers,
for the usual reasons


Point of View
(1/30/25)


Do scholars really "get"
The Craft of Policing?


All In the Family (II)
(1/6/25)


A decade after Part I,
domestic killings remain commonplace

 



 











 

 


6/19/26   In an unanimous decision, the Supreme Court invalidated the provision of 18 USC 922(g)(3) that prohibits gun possession by anyone "who is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance." That includes marijuana. But Justice J. Gorsuch, who authored the decision, emphasized that its reach "is narrow." It "does not address" whether a prosecution under the challenged law could be brought if there is "individualized proof that the defendant’s drug use renders him a danger to himself or others." Nor does it affect other gun laws, such as "the Federal ban on gun possession by felons." Related post

Earlier this year groups of Minnesotans massed at the Minneapolis Federal building, throwing objects at ICE officers and staging "hard and soft blockades." In response, DOJ just filed criminal charges against fifteen asserted "Antifa" activists for interfering with the Feds. DOJ has also sued the City of Philadelphia for passing a law that, among other things, prohibits Federal agents from wearing masks and using unmarked cars. Related post

6/18/26  Long Island's "Gilgo Beach" was where infamous New York man Rex Heuermann disposed of the bodies of the eight women whom he strangled to death a decade-plus ago. His arrest, thanks in part to DNA from a discarded pizza crust, came in 2023, and his guilty plea in exchange for eight consecutive life terms was recently accepted. Heuermann refused to speak at his sentencing, or to apologize to the families of his victims. So the judge berated the very large man for being "a small man, if you’re a man at all." And for being, in fact, a "coward". Related post

Florida's driver licenses just got a unique mission. Those issued to persons whom the state has designated "a habitual violent felony offender, a violent career criminal or a three-time violent felony offender" will bear the statute's number: 775.261. That will ostensibly alert peace officers to the nature of individuals with whom they may come into contact. Indeed, to anyone who might ask for a driver license. Other crime-related "toughenings," including expanding the criteria for who is designated a gang member, were also just signed into law. Related post

6/17/26  Distraught over their 19-year-old son's "homicidal ideations," an Ohio couple called in the cops. They found that Tycen Proper had amassed guns, ammo and survival gear and was chatting online with a cadre of like-minded types, whom he was set to meet. That was on June 10. So the cops took the lad to the hospital for mental-health reasons. On the next day the youth told the officers that he and his mates intended to stage a massacre at the forthcoming UFC event on the White House lawn. The Feds promptly charged Proper, two residents of California, and one each of Nebraska and Missouri with conspiracy to commit murder. Related posts 1   2

Nearly nine in ten mass shooters made their unseemly intentions known well ahead of time. That's the conclusion of an in-depth study by the Rockefeller Institution of a sample of 171 "mass public shootings" that took place between 1999 and 2024. Shooters usually spent months planning their attacks and communicated key aspects of their intentions to multiple persons within their "social circles." Warning signs were nearly always present well ahead of time. Related posts 1   2

After reportedly assaulting three women, a naked man was sitting on the sidewalk when then-Louisville cop Nathan A. Stotts came on the scene. Martin Nitzken Jr., 27, got up and started moving towards the officer. And when he refused to stop, the ex-cop shot him dead. That happened on May 30. Officer Stotts resigned last week, and he's just been indicted for manslaughter and reckless homicide. Chief Paul Humphrey said that non-lethal means should have been used. "Sometimes we have to make decisions to take people's lives, and this was not one of them." Related post

6/16/26  Senatobia, MS police claim that the officers fired because the alleged shoplifters' car was headed right at them. Whether that's true will be sorted out. But their bullets cost the life of a one-year old passenger and critically injured one of the vehicle's two other occupants, the child's aunt and his mother. Relatives deny that the diapers they carried away from the Walmart had been shoplifted. Related post

One convict was released from prison with an ankle monitor. But it wasn't tracked "in real time." Eight years later, another simply cut his off. Both went on to kill. Just passed 94-2, the Reagan Tokes & Patrick Heringer Act, an Ohio bill named after the victims, would provide "continuous real-time GPS monitoring" of all violent convicts upon release. Zone enforcement and curfew compliance are built-in. It's supposedly the most comprehensive such package - ever. Related post

Three 3-D printers, a "Ghost Gunner" milling machine and a drill press outfitted for gun-making graced his home-based shop. Harrisburg, PA man Yaroslav Vishnevski, 33, had long put these tools to use making machineguns, silencers, short-barreled rifles, and other illegal toys. But the Feds were eventually alerted to his doings, and a years-long investigation just led to the Air Force reservist's conviction on five counts of illegally making and possessing just such toys. Related post

6/15/26  "The police were creating crime in order to seize money." That's how a public defender described the practices of Hialeah police narcotics detectives, who gave real cocaine to drug suspects to entice them to...buy more! And that just led a Miami-Dade judge to dismiss the case against Jason Elysse. In 2020 the Boston man flew in, left with a sample, then returned to buy a kilogram. Naturally, he got busted, and his cash was seized. Indeed, over time, Hialeah cops seized lots and lots of cash. That helped lead to the downfall of former Hialeah police chief Sergio Velazquez, who was arrested last year for allegedly pocketing the proceeds of drug deals. Related post

In 2025 Springfield, OH enjoyed reductions in kidnappings and aggravated assaults. But rapes and homicides were up. With the help of Ohio State University, police have turned to "risk terrain modeling" to identify the city's geographic crime hot-spots. These will be addressed with more cops and with tailor-made intervention and prevention programs. Drones, which will operate under strict guidelines, will also be deployed. Related posts 1   2

FBI now has a "Most Wanted Fraudster" list. And a member of its pioneering group of eight, Said Abdullahi Ereg, just turned himself in. In cahoots with corrupt principals of nonprofit "Feeding Our Future," Ereg, who ran a grocery store in Minneapolis, is alleged to have fraudulently obtained $4 million in Federal child nutrition funds during the COVID-19 pandemic. Related post

When a San Angelo, TX cop tried to pull him over, 45-year-old Odessa resident Victor Villarreal opened fire. He abandoned his car and fled. Three days later, as police were looking for him on an attempted murder charge, Villareal barricaded himself in a Midland veterinary building. He unleashed a barrage of gunfire, killing one person and wounding nine others. Police SWAT officers found him dead an hour later. In 2009 Villareal was convicted of misdemeanor unlawful carry of a weapon in San Angelo. He was charged with like crimes in 2003 and 2004 but neither seemingly led to a conviction. Related posts 1   2

"Witness statements, social media and law enforcement photos" led to the arrest of the second person who opened fire at Toledo's "Old West End" festival a week ago. Eljay Crisp-Carr, 20, is said to have walked off when the other shooter opened fire, then turned around and "indiscriminately" unleashed his fusillade. Meanwhile Ka Nye Taylor, the alleged first shooter, remains on the loose. Twelve persons were wounded, but bystanders, medics and police helped them all survive. Related post

6/12/26  "Operation Speed Bump Enforcement" was brought on by social media posts that promoted a major street takeover event in New Orleans. And the cops turned out in force, making 14 traffic stops, engaging in one pursuit, issuing fifty-three traffic tickets and arresting a half-dozen persons, including (natch) one of the event's promoters. According to NOPD head Anne Kirkpatrick, New Orleans is indeed "a city of great tolerance." But it's "absolutely not a city of lawlessness.” Related post

Colorado, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Virginia and Washington enacted laws this year that strictly regulate home- made guns, either banishing 3-D printed guns or otherwise assuring that all guns have serial numbers. According to ATF, home-made guns are being far more frequently recovered. But gun-rights groups argue that such restrictions are unconstitutional, and that it would be far more effective to go after and imprison violent criminals. Related post

In the first trial under Texas' toughened retail theft laws, which make those over $2,500 a third- degree felony, a jury convicted 28-year-old Winston Love of committing dozens of thefts from Target stores after Sept. 1, 2025, the effective date of the enhancement. His loot included "more than 200 Lego sets," which he lifted along with "coffee makers, vacuum cleaners and PlayStation controllers." Love, who also happened to be armed while committing these heists, drew forty-five years. He still faces another felony theft case and numerous "under $2,500" (i.e., misdemeanor) charges. Related post

Five felony counts of involuntary manslaughter. That's what a 48-year-old New York City bus driver faces after his speeding, passenger-laden bus set off a series of collisions in a construction zone, killing five motorists and injuring 45 persons, including himself and many of his passengers. It's not Jing S. Dong's first tangle with traffic laws. Last year he was found guilty of speeding in Virginia and of failing to obey an officer's directions in New Jersey. This March he also pled guilty to driving a coach 72 mph in a 50 mph zone in Maryland. Related post

6/11/26  
Does Philadelphia P.D. "use a vague 'good cause' standard to cancel permits to carry legal firearms"? That's what DOJ wants to know. Its recent letter to the Mayor announced that it's opened an investigation into the city's use of allegedly subjective standards that can impinge on the Second-Amendment rights of legitimate gun owners to "keep and bear legal firearms, including the right to legally carry firearms where allowed." Letter   Related post

He had no known criminal record or mental health issues. Yet the 25-year-old man opened fire with a rifle in his family's Livonia, MI home, killing his 58-year-old father, 53-year-oled mother, 22-year-old brother, and his brother's 21-year-old girlfriend. The as-yet unnamed gunman then walked outside, threw up his hands, and surrendered to police. As for a motive, the killer was known to have a "contentious" relationship with his parents. He had also "abruptly shaved his head and beard within the last year." And for now, that's it. Related post

Westchester County's (NY) highways feed into New York City. Accordingly, its license-plate readers amassed over 1.6 billion plate scans since 2023. One motorist's plates got captured "1,134 times"; another's, "more than 2,400 times." What's more, the scans were allegedly shared with over fifty police agencies. Including ICE. Asserting that this "indiscriminate surveillance system" violates the State constitution, civil-rights groups are suing. Related post

A wild and bullet-riddled 2018 police pursuit of a desperate man who had shot his grandma ended with LAPD officers opening fire in an L.A. Trader Joe's. Their bullets missed Gene Atkins but fatally struck store manager Mely Corado. Atkins was just convicted on "dozens of counts" relating to the incident. But the jury acquitted him of murder. Both officers had been found to have acted appropriately; neither was charged or disciplined. A lawsuit filed by Ms. Corado's survivors was settled in 2024 for $9.5 million. Related post

6/10/26  Family massacres continue to beset Los Angeles. A 37-year-old man turned a gun on fellow celebrants at a birthday party for his children's grandma. He shot and killed his twin ten-year-old boys, then shot at (but missed) his wife. He then committed suicide. Two weeks earlier, a 30-year-old mother of three shot and killed her children, ages 2 and 6, and her 31-year-old husband. And yes, she also committed suicide. Related post

But will it be safe? A string of shootings over the weekend has celebrants worried as Kansas City prepares to host participants and visitors from around the globe at the World Cup. Early Saturday morning, June 6, nine persons were wounded when gunfire erupted at an "after-hours" club. That evening, two men were shot and killed inside a local business. And one day later, yet another shooting left a person wounded. So far, no arrests. And the games begin next week! Related post

Concerns that "excited delirium", the once-ready explanation for the condition afflicting combative subjects, justified forceful prone restraint by police led the medical community to disavow the term three years ago. Its place was taken, at first, by "hyperactive delirium." And now it's "irrational delirium." According to a new paper, vigorous resistance can be a sign of acute "physiological distress." That distress can, in turn, quickly create a "severe metabolic acidosis". And if force is used that restricts breathing, a cardiac arrest becomes likely. Related post

6/9/26  His long string of prior arrests includes a 2022 attempted aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. That earned him two years...of probation. Then in 2025 he was charged with assault and criminal mischief. This case was apparently pending when 51-year-old Hector Deleon went on a rampage with a knife on Sunday, June 7, in New York City's Penn Station. By the time transit police grabbed him he had wounded five fellow-travelers, one seriously. Deleon, who is homeless and, reportedly, seriously mentally ill, was also "high on drugs." Related posts 1   2

Both candidates for D.C. Mayor used to be prosecutors. Both are also committed "Blues" who have always favored prevention programs over the cops. But youth "takeovers" and a recent string of shootings have apparently led them to change their tune. Indeed, Kenyan R. McDuffie, a former Council member, is accusing his competitor, Councilperson Janeese Lewis George, of being "soft on crime." But she's walked back her support for "divesting" from police. Indeed, Ms. George now insists that hiring more cops would be a good thing. So there! Related post

6/8/26  On Feb. 27 Hartford, CT police officer Joseph Magnano had been on the job slightly over a year. That's the day when he and other officers confronted a large man waving a knife. And when Steven Jones stepped towards him, then-cop Magnano discharged a volley of shots, fatally wounding the 55-year-old, mentally ill man. Hartford's mayor quickly fired Magnano, and the state's AG promptly filed manslaughter charges. Magnano, who has drawn the support of Hartford's police union, has been released on bail. Related post

On May 5, 2015, ex-LAPD cop Clifford Proctor shot and killed a man who supposedly reached for his partner's gun. That, though, doesn't appear on surveillance footage. But although then-Chief Charlie Beck called the shooting "out of policy," then-D.A. Jackie Lacey refused to file charges. In 2024 (nine years later) new, liberally-inclined D.A. George Gascon got Proctor indicted. For murder. But Judge Ronald Coen just dismissed the case. In his view, the D.A. (he's since been replaced) didn't present potentially exculpatory evidence to the jurors. What's more, he's also viewed the video, and thinks that Proctor could have "reasonably" thought that the man was going for the gun. Related post

Unlike other homicides, domestic killings are not on a downtrend. That's what the Washington Post concludes as it sets out three family massacres that took place on the first two days of this month. On Monday, Iowa police came across the bodies of six persons. A father had shot five family members, including his wife and daughter, then turned the gun on himself. That same day, an upstate New York father gunned down his wife and their two young sons. And a day later, a Florida man fatally stabbed his wife and two young daughters, then committed suicide. Related post

Toledo's yearly "Old West End" street festival devolved into chaos on Saturday afternoon as a mass of gunfire broke out. Twelve attendees, ages 14 to 61, were wounded. Injuries to two were initially critical, but all have since been upgraded to stable. Police surmise that "at least" two persons had engaged in a shootout; no one has as yet been publicly identified or apprehended. Related post

According to DOJ, three twenty-somethings with Middle-Eastern surnames had spent the past year online, chatting up a plot to murder overseas U.S. servicemembers, and particularly members of the U.S. Special Forces. Their online conversations, which reflect a deep loyalty to ISIS, clearly drew official attention. One can surmise the true identity of the individual whom they offered $2,000 to, among other things, buy drones to help carry out their plans. And yes, the three have been arrested. Related post

6/5/26  Aaron Spencer can keep "running" for Lonoke County (AR) Sheriff. A police dash cam memory card that supposedly held the answer to the puzzle of whether Spencer maliciously killed his child's rapist went missing. (He admitted the shooting, but insisted it was in self-defense.) Accordingly, a judge just threw out the murder case against Spencer. And yes, he is expected to win the November contest. Related post

"A gun hunting competition." That's how officers in LAPD's Valley gang enforcement detail characterized their work. Making improper traffic stops and turning off their body cameras was part of the routine. A just-released Internal Affairs report described the unit as a "law enforcement gang" (that term is also used in California law.) That, though, was three years ago. But another LAPD anti-gang unit, this time in the crime-beset South Bureau, is currently under scrutiny, and for virtually the same conduct. And that "officer gang" moniker seems likely to fit. Related posts 1   2

According to an in-depth inquiry by Lawfare, "at least" ninety-seven of the 1,500-plus pardoned Capitol rioters have been charged with new crimes. Many of these offenses are serious, with "at least 14" being sex crimes, including sex crimes against children. One of those led to a life term. In all, forty-one were charged with or convicted of a crime of violence, and twenty-eight have been prosecuted for gun crimes. Lawfare points out that it only looked into the post-riot records of rioters who got nabbed. But many more took part in the affair. As for them, nothing is known. Related post

Seven years ago two Colorado paramedics helped Aurora police restrain a mentally distraught, combative man by injecting ketamine. But the dose proved fatal, and Elijah McClain's "I can't breathe" became lodged in our nation's memory. Paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec were found guilty of negligent homicide by a jury, and Cichuniec was also convicted of 2nd. degree assault. But a judge just ruled that the jury instructions for the negligent homicide charge was faulty, and those convictions were dismissed. A retrial is likely. Related post

6/4/26  So far this year Kimani Osayande Jones, 49, has called the FBI thirteeen times to complain about "being followed, sabotaged while he slept, coerced and having had his life threatened by people who could access his texts." And on May 30 he tried to board an evening flight from Sacramento to North Carolina. That's when TSA found "bladed weapons, zip ties, a butane torch lighter and a homemade explosive device" in his backpack. Jones also had five cellphones. One had a 15-minute timer that was ready to go; the other displayed the message: "we will be awaiting your call." Whether the FBI followed up on his calls is unknown. Related post

A Northern California man burst into a Bakersfield office building packing alleged explosive devices and took ten school employees hostage, tying several up with zip cords. A decade ago, after being dishonorably discharged from the Army, Anthony Scott Searles-Harris, 41, was convicted of a felony sex offense against a youth and became a registered sex offender. When contacted by police and FBI negotiators, Searles-Harris, who has been protesting his conviction, demanded that authorities furnish him documents in the case. He also warned about his "bombs." That night an FBI SWAT team shot him dead. Several "devices" were found, but it hasn't been said if they were functional. Related post

 

 



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