How 9/11 Concerns Have Reshaped Local Policing Coast to Coast ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Terrorism concerns have reshaped local policing in the decade since 9/11, says the Los Angeles Times. From the New York Police Department to small rural sheriff's departments, agencies have added counter-terrorism to their traditional crime-fighting duties - a shift that has cost billions of dollars and changed not just the equipment police use, but the way they approach law enforcement. Police officers monitor extremist chat rooms, study the tactics and weaponry of the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, and travel to Muslim countries to develop their own intelligence. New York has more than 1,000 officers engaged in counter-terrorism, including a dozen based overseas. It recruits foreign-born New Yorkers and trains them in secret for undercover work. In Los Angeles, 700 police officers work in the Counter-Terrorism and Special Operations Bureau, including some who speak Urdu and Arabic. That's more than twice as many officers as are assigned to any police station in the city, even those in the highest-crime areas. Local police team up with federal authorities at 72 "fusion centers" around the U.S., where experts from an alphabet soup of agencies work in adjoining cubicles to analyze "suspicious activity reports." They look for unusual trends, unexpected behaviors, and other potential clues that deserve further investigation. "I would sum it up in one quick sentence, and that is: Traditionally law enforcement has not had any direct responsibility for national security, and now we do," said Michael Grossman, chief of the homeland security division for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. |
How to Sustain Long-Term Juvenile Justice Reform ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Nationwide, the number of incarcerated kids has fallen since 1995. A new report examines the reform models that made this possible, and judges their future usefulness. Resolution, Reinvestment, and Realignment: Three Strategies for Changing Juvenile Justice, by Jeffrey Butts and Douglas Evans of the Research and Evaluation Center at John Jay College of Justice, looks at various models of reform and finds that the realignment model, which involves altering and reorganizing juvenile justice systems, may be the best choice for sustaining long-term reform. |
Miami Chief Exposito Suspended For Failing to Obey Orders ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ After 17 tumultuous months of fighting the mayor and a commissioner and attempting to quell angry voices from the inner city seared over a series of police shooting deaths of black men, Miami Police Chief Miguel Exposito has been suspended, paving the way for his removal from the city he's worked in for 37 years. "I have taken this action because you have failed to obey my orders and have taken other actions that indicate just and reasonable cause to demonstrate that you cannot properly perform your duties as chief of police," City Manager Johnny Martinez told Exposito, according to the Miami Herald. The city commission now has five days to meet and determine if Martinez has cause to warrant Exposito's departure, loosely defined in the city charter as anything from intoxication to insubordination. If they don't override the manager's decision - or if the chief does not fight the suspension - Exposito is gone. Anticipating his suspension, Exposito requested whistleblower protection from Martinez late last week - the first step in a possible lawsuit. Martinez named 31-year veteran Maj. Manual Orosa as acting police chief. Orosa's first action was to remove Maj. Alfredo Alvarez from his post as head of internal affairs. Alvarez was one of the most visible members of Exposito's administration. |
More Young, White Atlanta Men Drive In from Suburbs to Get Heroin ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A U.S. Department of Justice analysis of Atlanta's drug market last year found that more young Caucasians are traveling from suburban counties into the city to buy heroin, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. They buy a gram for about $160 and return home to abuse the drug and sell the leftovers. This year, three young men from the northern suburbs died within a month of each other from heroin overdoses. Those deaths affirm research that shows a new type of heroin user is emerging across the nation - one that is more likely to be young, white, suburban, and male. Often the users are transitioning to heroin as a cheaper alternative to prescription painkillers, the abuse of which has exploded among teenagers. "When these kids drive into this community, many of them find a spot where they feel safe, they go in and use drugs," said Jeff McDowell of the Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition. "That's where a lot of 'em OD at. It's also where they get HIV or hepatitis. So now he's taken what was given to him in this neighborhood back out to the suburbs to perpetuate hepatitis and HIV in those communities." |
23 D.C. Cops Arrested in '11; Expert Calls Rate One of U.S. Highest ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Twenty-three Washington, D.C., police officers have been arrested this year on charges ranging from sexual assault to killing a mother and her 1-year-old daughter, a rate of alleged abuse by city cops that one expert places on par with the worst-run city police departments, reports the Washington Examiner. In the last week, an off-duty police officer with a history of alcohol problems allegedly was drunk and jumped on the hood of a vehicle and shot at transgendered people inside, striking at least one. The department has 3,818 officers. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said the acts of some of them were "despicable and dishonor the uniform that we wear. She said the public should be encouraged that some the misconduct was discovered internally. Criminologist Samuel Walker of the University of Nebraska, who specializes in police accountability, said he was astonished by the sheer numbers of D.C. police officers arrested and the level of criminality. "This might even exceed New Orleans, probably everybody's candidate for worst police department in the country," he said. The arrests raise questions about the recruiting, the screening, and the disciplinary process, he added. |
CA Auditor Seeks Halt to Testing Inmates on Rehabilitation Needs ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ California's state auditor is recommending that the state corrections system halt tests that determine what rehabilitation prisoners need, calling the tools unproved and little used, reports California Watch. Since 2006, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has developed and revised the assessments, called Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS). It is composed of two tests. The first is given to incoming inmates, gauging levels of criminal thinking, violence, substance abuse, and educational needs. The other, for prisoners about to go on parole, measures housing and employment prospects on the outside. Auditors found many shortcomings in how prisons have used assessment scores. Rank-and-file officers within the corrections system show "a lack of buy-in on COMPAS" and doubt the tests are useful, the report says. The department often fails to use the scores when deciding where to place inmates, and few inmates even receive the exams. State prison officials acknowledge problems cited by the auditor, but strongly disagree with the conclusion. The department plans to continue, upgrade and expand the assessments. "We refuse to return to the method of simply placing an offender in the next slot available - regardless of their criminogenic needs," said Corrections Undersecretary Scott Kernan. The tests represent a major culture shift for California's prison system, said Lee Seale, internal oversight and research director for the department. |
Crime Reduction Potential In New Orleans Housing Fix Backed in Study ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As New Orleans hastens work on its latest public housing redevelopment, the Iberville complex near the French Quarter, a new report from the Urban Institute suggests that public housing redevelopments benefit surrounding neighborhoods through reductions in crime, reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune. The Iberville is the linchpin of a $589 million plan to create nearly 2,500 new apartments and many ground-floor commercial spaces within a 300-square block area of downtown New Orleans. The Iberville has had a reputation as both a springboard for criminals who prey on tourists and a sleazy destination for tourists hoping to indulge an appetite for illicit drugs or sex. The area's sporadic gun violence and blatant drug-slinging have made it feel unsafe for other residents, many of whom work in the Quarter or at nearby hospitals. That's been the case at many severely rundown public housing complexes across the nation. Researchers have found that crime may be even higher within 100 yards of public housing, because criminals from other parts of town seek out public housing areas to traffic drugs and commit violent crime. The Urban Institute's "Movin' Out: Crime Displacement and HUD's Hope VI Initiative" showed that the redevelopments studied "had significantly positive effects on crime." |
Texas, Like Other States, Scaling Back Prison Industries Programs ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When the local soap factory in Sugar Land, Tx., closed last month after more than 45 years, 95 workers were without a job and a thriving business with as much as $4 million in sales left town, says the Austin American-Statesman. The factory was located inside a state prison, one of six prison factories in Texas that have closed in recent months because of the struggling economy. In the case of the soap factory, the prison that housed it closed as well. The closures are part of a national trend, as agencies that run prison industry programs experience budget cuts and government agencies that buy prison-made goods scale back purchases, also to cope with tighter budgets. "The question is how do you keep convicts busy if the plant closes," said Tony Fabelo, an Austin-based expert who tracks criminal justice trends. "This has implications for prison management, beyond just the closing of a plant here and there." Texas' prison-industry program is among the nation's largest, where convicts make everything ranging from furniture, highway signs and soap to garments, license plates, and shoes at 41 plants. Now some officials worry that increasing numbers of idled convicts could lead to new disciplinary and security problems inside Texas' sprawling system of 111 state prisons. |
Jail Official Calls High Web Mugshot Removal Fees "Heartbreaking" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Phillip Cabibi, who was arrested in Florida for driving under the influence four years ago, tells the Salt Lake Tribune how he was trapped in an emerging Internet niche that's akin to the modern-day scarlet letter: websites that post jail mugshots of people in local towns. At least one site charges to take your photo off. Another has made a deal with a separate website that charges to remove them. He pleaded no contest but four years later, his mugshot was on Florida.Arrests.org. Some sites offer to remove the mugshots for a price. MugShotsList.com says it will delete a booking photo for a $12.95 "processing fee." The Florida.Arrests.org webmaster is paid $9.95 when another site, RemoveSlander.com, purges a customer's arrest mug for $399. Cabibi says he "found out how big of a scam this was. And it's legal. It boggles my mind that it's allowed to go on." Salt Lake County Jail commander Rollin Cook said that because of public information laws, there's nothing jails can do about it. He said, "It's heartbreaking for us because our intent is not to humiliate but to provide information. But there are people who are doing it to extort or humiliate." |
Police In New Jersey Town Embroiled In Accusations From Website ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Police officer Joseph McNally of Waterford Township, N.J., is pursuing a court case to shut down a web site called WaterfordTwpTeaParty.com, which primarily targets a cadre of local police officers, accusing them of everything from abusing steroids to harassing residents, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. It even posts photos of police out drinking. McNally contends that the site has posted accusations that are both false and damaging to his credibility as a law enforcement official. McNally says former Mayor Maryann Merlino prompted another resident to create the website. Merlino, who won the June Democratic primary for the Township Council and could be back on it in January, would not comment. The Inquirer says there has long been a "hardball side" to the town of 10,500. In the 1980s, three police officers were convicted of framing a former chief over a stolen shotgun. In the 2000s, elected officials launched a probe into police officers' having sex on the job and tipping off drug dealers about a pending raid. Mayor Ralph Condo said much of the current rash of accusations stems from long-established personal grievances. The town was settled in the early 20th century by a handful of Italian families, and feuds were common. "I don't want to call it Mayberry RFD. But one family would get mad at one another, and that would extend into politics," he said. "But it's gotten better recently. We don't need any more bad press." |
Chicago Police Seek to Fire 14 Officers for Sick Leave Abuse ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One Chicago Police officer went shopping at a suburban mall, another grabbed some food at a restaurant, and a third took a trip to the Caribbean. the problem, says the Chicago Sun-Times, is that they were all on sick leave. They were required to stay home to recuperate unless they called a supervisor first to say where they were going. Police investigators conducted surveillance and documented them leaving their homes. Those cases are among 1,800 that have been investigated by the department's Medical Integrity Unit, which was formed in 2009. The department is seeking to fire 14 officers for alleged violations of the medical policy. Another 19 face possible suspensions and about 70 have received lesser forms of discipline. "The overwhelming number of officers on medical are on it for legitimate reasons," says former Police Superintendent Jody Weis, who started the crackdown. "However, I am pleased that for those who chose to abuse the system, justice was served." Chicago cops have a generous medical-leave policy of 365 days of sick leave every two years. In 2009, officers took about 150,000 sick days for an average of 11.6 per officer. |
In Case of Career Criminal, Illinois Records Called Deficient ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Wisconsin prosecutor says Illinois criminal records are seriously deficient, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He cites the case of Michael Tolbert, 47, who raped two women - five days apart - in Chicago in 1980 and shot his second victim and her two children who witnessed the crime, but 30 years later was living freely in Wisconsin armed with guns in an apartment full of children. Now he is charged with failing to register as a sex offender and being a felon in possession of a gun. Because of Illinois' arcane criminal justice record-keeping practices, it took Kenosha prosecutor Richard Ginkowski hours on the phone with counterparts in Illinois to build a case. Ginkowski, a 30-year veteran prosecutor, had to call sources in law enforcement and prosecutor's offices, asking for favors to get records. "This is an extremely dangerous person who committed heinous crimes," he said. He said it is common to get reports from Illinois showing arrests but not whether there was a conviction. Other states have such information readily accessible online. "That is a serious problem getting reliable information out of Illinois," Ginkowski said. |
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Wednesday, September 7, 2011
7 Sept 2011
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