Two quick notes on the comments made in this article. One is a comment about super predators. Wolfgang, a researcher, explains how 6% of a population commits the major majority of the crime. The 6% is called chronic offenders. So in some sense, there’s always existed a Super predator group in an age cohort and that’s the 6%ers that commit the most crime. The point of a super predator was that the 6% group was growing, so it was possible that there might have been more crime committed by a larger group of 6%ers.
My second comment pertains to Subway fare beating activities. Fare beaters are not poor people. Fare beaters are people who decide not to pay the subway fare because of lack of enforcement, because they know they can get away with it, or because they don’t care if they get caught because the punishment is so low. Fare beating enforcement is not an attack on people who do not have money. In fact, many people who do not have money receive subsidized cost savings on Subway fare payments. 
I wrote the book Copaganda based on my years of being a civil rights lawyer and public defender representing the most vulnerable people in our society. I watched as the police and the news media distorted how we think about our collective safety. Copaganda makes us afraid of the most powerless people, helps us ignore far greater harms committed by people with money and power, and always pushes on us the idea that our fears can be solved by more money for police, prosecution, and prisons. Based on the evidence, this idea of more investment in the punishment bureaucracy making us safer is like climate science denial.
— Read on www.teenvogue.com/story/copaganda-when-the-police-and-the-media-manipulate-our-news
Month: May 2025
Champaign’s police review board aims to improve policing, but some fear it lacks power to make change – IPM Newsroom
In 2021, shortly after she became the chair of Champaign’s civilian police review board, Alexandra Harmon-Threatt sat down to review records and video from investigations into civilian complaints that had been filed earlier that year.
In one case, a man had accused Champaign Police Officer Nicholas Krippel of being physically and verbally aggressive toward him and making physical contact without cause during a response to a verbal disagreement between a landlord and the man who filed the complaint.
“Officer Krippel got in my face, in my space,” the complainant said in an interview with Lt. Kevin Olmstead, who conducted the Champaign Police’s internal investigation. “His vest actually touched my skin, that’s how close he was to me.”
The man said Krippel had escalated the situation: “He only told me to stop talking and shut up, but he [said] nothing to the dude that threatened me.”
Harmon-Threatt’s review of Krippel’s bodycam video confirmed, in her mind, that both of these allegations had merit. But when she read Olmstead’s report, she found that it contradicted the video evidence.
— Read on ipmnewsroom.org/champaigns-police-review-board-aims-to-improve-policing-but-some-fear-it-lacks-power-to-make-change/
Department of Justice moves to end 10-year federal reform effort with Albuquerque police | News | abqjournal.com
A decade after the U.S. Department of Justice found Albuquerque police engaged in a “pattern or practice” of using excessive force — as high-profile police shootings mounted — the government
— Read on www.abqjournal.com/news/article_a70f7874-02e7-40bd-9e13-2eebaf2a0c24.html
Newsom to cities: Make certain homeless encampments illegal – CalMatters
In his latest push to crack down on encampments, Gov. Gavin Newsom wants cities to make homeless Californians move every three days.
— Read on calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/2025/05/newsom-encampment-sweep-ordinance/
Turning Death into a Commodity – Ed Vogel – Inquest
ShotSpotter has leveraged gun violence into a multimillion-dollar business that promises safety but delivers only increased policing and drain on the public’s resources.
— Read on inquest.org/turning-death-into-a-commodity/
Annual Probation Survey and Annual Parole Survey | Bureau of Justice Statistics
Collect administrative data from probation and parole agencies in the United States. Data collected include the total number of adults on state and federal probation and parole on January 1 and December 31 of each year, the number of adults entering and exiting probation and parole supervision each year, and the characteristics of adults under the supervision of probation and parole agencies. Published data include both national- and state-level data. The surveys cover all 50 states, the federal system, and the District of Columbia. They began in 1980 and are conducted annually.
— Read on bjs.ojp.gov/data-collection/annual-probation-survey-and-annual-parole-survey
Spotlight on Criminal Justice: Supporting Law Enforcement and Safer Communities – May – R Street Institute
Make sure to checkout the links in this article. Excellent resources.
Spotlight on Criminal Justice: Supporting Law Enforcement and Safer Communities – May – R Street Institute
— Read on www.rstreet.org/commentary/spotlight-on-criminal-justice-supporting-law-enforcement-and-safer-communities-may/
The Rising Cost of Ignoring Juvenile Justice Reform | Opinion – Newsweek
When encounters between police and youth go wrong, we all pay the price.
— Read on www.newsweek.com/rising-cost-ignoring-juvenile-justice-reform-opinion-2069232
BCSP OWHR 0003: Birmingham City Council, incident of June 2023 – GOV.UK
Interesting UK version of a homicide review. Might be a useful training tool.
Offensive weapons homicide review conducted by West Midlands Police, Birmingham City Council and NHS Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board.
— Read on www.gov.uk/government/publications/bcsp-owhr-0003-birmingham-city-council-incident-of-june-2023
California sheriff slams student lawsuit against police who shut down protests | Fox News
Sheriff Chad Bianco provides excellent reasoning on why it is important for police intervention during campus takeovers. Sheriff Bianco make the point why it’s important for police to intervene early.
UCLA students and Los Angeles community members have filed a lawsuit against local police, alleging they ‘attacked’ campus protesters in May 2024. A police union is firing back.
— Read on www.foxnews.com/us/california-sheriff-slams-meritless-ucla-student-lawsuit-against-police-who-dismantled-anti-israel-encampment.amp