22 Dec 2011

Theft Trend: MA Police See Uptick in Xmas Gift Porch-Pickers




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Police in the Boston area say that thefts of Christmas gift parcels from stoops seem to be a growing trend this year, reports the Boston Globe. Cases have been reported in Somerville, Wellesley, Medford and Quincy. A father-daughter duo and a part-time UPS worker were also arraigned yesterday in Quincy District Court on separate larceny charges. The dismal state of the economy - and the uptick in online shopping and shipping - seems to be making conditions ripe for porch-picking.



"There seems to be more of a rash this year,'' said Quincy Police Capt. John Dougan. An October consumer survey found that nearly 47 percent of consumers intended to do at least some of their shopping online, up from 44 percent last year, the National Retail Federation reported. That makes for plenty of deliveries. The United Parcel Service alone expects to deliver some 120 million packages this week. Somerville Police Capt. Charles J. Femino said, "This type of crime at this time of year is not unique to Somerville, but I can't say that I've seen it on this scale before."



Boston Globe







AP: California Peace Officers Have Bought 7,600 Assault Weapons




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California law enforcers have bought more than 7,600 assault weapons that are outlawed for civilians in the decade since state lawmakers allowed the practice, reports the Associated Press. Federal authorities are investigating illegal gun sales by law enforcement. The information was obtained through a California Public Records Act request filed after federal authorities served search warrants in November as part of an investigation into allegations of illegal weapons sales by several Sacramento-area law enforcement officers.



The AP's findings and the federal probe have prompted one state lawmaker to revisit the law to ensure that the guns can be bought only for police purposes. "I think it's much more questionable whether we should allow peace officers to have access to weapons or firearms that a private citizen wouldn't have access to if the use is strictly personal," said Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, a Democrat who represents the Sacramento region. The inquiry has raised questions about the kinds of restricted weapons that the more than 87,000 peace officers in the state are entitled to purchase and about a 2001 law that allows them to buy assault weapons "for law enforcement purposes, whether on or off duty."



Associated Press







Ambush Attacks Drive Increase in Law Enforcers Killed on the Job




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A spike in ambush-style attacks is a factor in this year's second consecutive increase in the number of police officers killed in the line of duty, reports USA Today. Firearms-related fatalities of law enforcers are up 23% so far in 2011, even though violent crime has declined in much of the country, according to preliminary statistics. The Justice Department says about three-quarters of the shootings were ambush or surprise attacks.



Although the pace of overall shooting deaths has slowed since midyear, the numbers continue to frustrate law enforcement officials who earlier this year convened a national review of officer safety. Less than two weeks until the end of the year, the total number of officer deaths from all causes-174 -already marks the third largest death toll in the past decade.



USA Today







After 4 Years, Missouri Committee Suggests Criminal Code Updates




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After four years of work, a committee set up by the Missouri Bar is ready to ask lawmakers to update the state's criminal code for the first time since 1979, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The most significant change would be the addition of a fifth felony class that would close a gap for sentencing standards between Class B and Class C felonies. A new Class C felony, with a sentencing range of three to 10 years, would be created, and each crime would be assigned a new designation to reflect the change.



The Bar is also suggesting updates to the amount of fines for certain offenses, which have not been changed in 30 years. The Bar committee consisted of prosecutors, defense attorneys and representatives from the judiciary and the Legislature.



St. Louis Today







ACLU Sees Good News and Bad News in Criminal Justice in 2011




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It was a bad news/good news year for criminal justice in America, according to an end-of-year account by the ACLU. The good news included these points: the number of adults behind bars, on probation, or on parole in the U.S. declined 1.3% in 2010, the second consecutive year of decline; half of all state departments of corrections reported decreases in their prison population during 2010; budget shortfalls prompted many states to realize that alternatives to incarceration can make us safer, cost less money, and keep communities more whole, and the Fair Sentencing Act gave relief to many of those convicted under racially slanted laws governing crack cocaine offenses.



The bad news: One in 33 American adults is under correctional supervision in the U.S.; President Nixon's War on Drugs rages on, 40 years alter; some state prison populations continue to increase, including Texas and Arkansas; racial disparities in the justice system remain staggering, with one in every 15 African-American males over 18 incarcerated, and states are increasingly looking to the private firms to run their prisons as a way to cut costs and cut corners, even though private prisons serve only their own interests.



ACLU Blog of Rights







Routine Traffic Stop Leads to Huge Drug Seizures in Arizona




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A simple traffic stop touched off the largest drug investigation in Tempe police history, making in-roads into a Sinaloan cartel that distributed drugs in several Western and Midwestern states, reports the Arizona Republic. The case began when Tempe police found a small quantity of drugs during a traffic stop That led detectives up the distribution ladder to dealers in a number of Arizona cities and eventually to the cartel connection.



Following a 15-month investigation, a task force of police agencies made 203 arrests and seized $7.8 million in cash, 650 pounds of marijuana, 435 pounds of methamphetamine, 123 pounds of cocaine and 4.5 pounds of heroin. The haul included the removal of $1.1million in cash and 156 pounds of methamphetamine from a south Phoenix home.



Arizona Republic







Stop-Gap Funding Again Heads Off Court Furlough in Arkansas




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For the second month in a row, Gov. Mike Beebe has released $40,000 from his emergency fund to keep 125 Arkansas trial court assistants from taking unpaid furloughs because of a court funding crunch caused by declining revenues, reports the Arkansas News Bureau. Declining revenues from fewer civil case filings, among other problems, have resulted in cash-flow problems that jeopardized pay for trial court personnel.



In November, the governor released $40,000 from his emergency funds to prevent layoffs and furloughs this month. Chief Justice Jim Hannah recently recommended in an e-mail to the state's circuit and district judges that trial court assistants take at least three furlough days in January because of the financial problem. Hannah also has created a committee of judges and lawmakers to look at the declining revenue and develop a long-term solution. If that panel does come up with a possible solution, it might be something the Legislature will consider during the fiscal session that begins Feb. 13.



Arkansas News Bureau







Feds Accuse Police in East Haven, Conn., of Bias Against Latinos




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The East Haven, Conn., Police Department is "profoundly broken" with a pattern of discrimination, particularly against Latinos, so deeply rooted that it will take years to change, according to a scathing Justice Department report. It said that Latinos were the target of half the traffic stops of some officers, in a town with a Latino population of 10 percent, reports the Hartford Courant. Latino drivers are subject to much harsher treatment once they are stopped for a traffic violation, the report said.



In announcing the results of a probe into civil rights complaints, the Justice Department left unanswered the questions of whether East Haven officials will make changes voluntarily and also whether any officers will face criminal charges. A grand jury has been hearing evidence for nearly a year on allegations stemming from the civil rights investigation. Sources have said that six to 15 officers could face federal criminal charges. Deputy U.S. Attorney General Roy Austin Jr. said federal authorities hope to work with East Haven officials but will go to federal court to force changes if necessary.



Hartford Courant







L.A. Times: FBI's New Definition of Rape Is 'Not Just Symbolic'




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In an editorial, the Los Angeles Times commends the FBI for its proposal to expand its definition of rape. The FBI definition, more than 80 years old, defines rape to include only incidents that involve "carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will." This is so outdated that many of the cases that local law enforcement authorities categorize as rape never get listed in the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Reports. A new definition, expected to be adopted by spring, defines rape as a crime against a woman or man that involves any vaginal or anal penetration by any object or body part. It also includes oral sexual penetration as a rape act. It drops the word "forcibly," and states that these acts are a crime if they occur without consent.



The Times says, "This overdue change is not just symbolic. Academics, legislators and public officials rely on the statistics when crafting laws and setting policy. What's more, understating rape's occurrence, women's advocates say, not only misleads the public about the prevalence of the crime, but also hinders funding for enforcement and treatment programs...A new definition also would trigger a change in public reporting by those local law enforcement agencies that have not modernized their own descriptions of rape." That includes the L.A. police department.



Los Angeles Times







In Media Spotlight, Sheriff Arpaio's Minions Surrender ICE Credentials




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Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Wednesday made a show of his detention officers turning in their federal credentials to conduct immigration screenings in Maricopa County, Ariz., jails, reports the Arizona Republic. Ninety-two detention officers joined Arpaio at a news conference where they turned in their ICE credentials. But federal officials say immigration enforcement at the jails will not change following a decision to revoke the authorization and take over the duties themselves.



The Sheriff's Office has had an agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement since 2007 that authorized detention officers to conduct immigration screenings on every inmate booked. Arpaio's officers screened nearly 475,000 inmates since the agreement took effect, placing immigration detainers on about 44,000 inmates that prevent them from leaving jail until federal officials have reviewed their files. Federal officials removed that authority last week in the wake of a Justice Department report that accused the Sheriff's Office of violating civil rights and discriminating against Latino residents and inmates.



Arizona Republic







Second Acting Chief Named for Troubled California Police Department




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Fullerton, Calif., has appointed a new acting chief to head up its troubled Police Department while Chief Michael Sellers remains on medical leave, reports the Los Angeles Times. Sellers went on medical leave in August as some were calling for his resignation over the beating death of a homeless man, Kelly Thomas, in an incident that involved six Fullerton police officers. Two of the officers face criminal charges.



Capt. Kevin Hamilton, head of the department's detective division, was initially appointed as acting chief. City officials announced this week that Hamilton will be replaced in the acting role by Capt. Dan Hughes, commander of the department's patrol division, effective Jan. 3. City Manager Joe Felz said in a statement that the decision to appoint Hughes to replace Hamilton was driven by Hamilton's desire to retire soon, a plan that he had put on hold to accept the acting chief position. Hughes is a 28-year veteran of the department who grew up in Fullerton.



Los Angeles Times







Charles Samuels Named to Lead U.S. Bureau of Prisons




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Charles E. Samuels Jr. was named director of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons Wednesday by Attorney General Eric Holder. The appointment of Samuels, a 23-year veteran of the agency, means that Holder rejected calls for leadership of the bureau, one of the largest Justice Department units, by an outsider. Holder said Samuels "will provide the kind of effective and innovative leadership that will increase efficiency, further expand prisoner development and reentry programs, and allow for transparency and accountability at the Federal Bureau of Prisons - while remaining true to the BOP's core mission of protecting public safety."



Samuels currently serves as assistant director of the bureau's Correctional Programs Division, overseeing all inmate management functions. He started as a federal corrections officer in 1988. Among several positions, he has been a warden of federal prisons in Manchester, Ky. and Ft. Dix, N.J. Last spring, the American Bar Association suggested that Holder name a director with a broad range of experience to head the bureau, noting that it always had named a director from within its ranks. Later, two dozen criminal justice groups called for a reformer to head what it called a "bloated" agency that "functions at nearly 140% capacity where prisoners are warehoused, rather than rehabilitated," Samuels succeeds Harley Lappin, who retired in May after he was arrested for drunk driving.



Crime & Justice News