All about Policing with a sprinkle of Criminal Justice – written by a Secret Contrarian
The movie is about Harith Augustus, a 37-year-old barber who was shot and killed by police in South Shore in July 2018. The shooting sparked immediate public outcry and legal fights for full access to police body camera video.
— Read on news.wttw.com/2025/02/19/documentary-uses-body-cam-footage-examine-fatal-2018-chicago-police-shooting
See the documentary here
In December, Macy’s reported the shoplifting of merchandise worth at least $200 to Philadelphia police 37 times, records show.
— Read on whyy.org/articles/macys-philadelphia-shoplifters-theft/
This report seeks to add much-needed perspective to America’s debate over criminal rehabilitation policies. Crucially, we document what is known and not known about the efficacy of rehabilitation programs in curtailing recidivism. We start by highlighting the psychological challenge of altering criminal behavior. We then review U.S. efforts to develop and deliver rehabilitation programs over […]
— Read on manhattan.institute/article/why-rehabilitating-repeat-criminal-offenders-often-fails
A guide to help advocates contend with efforts to derail reforms that are based on recidivism stories and statistics.
— Read on www.prisonpolicy.org/trainings/recidivism.html
During the past six years taxpayers have spent at least $472.4 million to resolve police misconduct lawsuits, setting a new record, according to a WTTW News analysis.
— Read on news.wttw.com/2025/02/10/final-tally-chicago-taxpayers-spent-least-1075m-resolve-police-misconduct-lawsuits-2024
Several videos in this series.
“[E]ffective law enforcement requires the support of the community. Such support will not be present when a substantial segment of the community feels threatened by the police and regards the police as an occupying force.”
The Kerner Commission Report, 1968.
— Read on policinginamerica.law.harvard.edu/
Documentary Premiere: Racially Charged: America’s Misdemeanor Problem
— Read on policinginamerica.law.harvard.edu/documentary-premiere-racially-charged/
Overview
In the United States, the federal government and every state enforces sentencing laws that incarcerate people for lengths that will exceed, or likely exceed, the span of a person’s natural life. In 2024, almost 200,000 people, or one in six people in prison, were serving life sentences.1 The criminal legal system’s dependence on life sentences disregards research showing that extreme sentences are not an effective public safety solution.
This report represents The Sentencing Project’s sixth national census of people serving life sentences, which includes life with the possibility of parole; life without the possibility of parole; and virtual life sentences (sentences reaching 50 years or longer). The report finds more people were serving life without parole (LWOP) in 2024 than ever before: 56,245 people were serving this “death by incarceration” sentence, a 68% increase since 2003. While the total number of people serving life sentences decreased 4% from 2020 to 2024, this decline trails the 13% downsizing of the total prison population. Moreover, nearly half the states had more people serving a life sentence in 2024 than in 2020.
— Read on www.sentencingproject.org/reports/a-matter-of-life-the-scope-and-impact-of-life-and-long-term-imprisonment-in-the-united-states/
This is an interesting podcast interview of Peter Moskos by Glenn Loury. A lot of the interview is based on the research of Moskos’ book which will be released early 2025. Moskos is a pro-policing academic.
Key Takeaways
This study updates and supplements previous U.S. crime trends reports by the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) with data through December 2024. It examines yearly and monthly rates of reported crime for 13 violent, property, and drug offenses in 40 American cities that have consistently reported monthly data over the past six years. The 40 cities are not necessarily representative of all jurisdictions in the United States. Not all cities published data for each offense (see the Appendix for which cities reported which offenses); trends in offenses with fewer reporting cities should be viewed with caution. Not all crimes are reported to law enforcement. In addition, the data collected for this report are subject to revision by local jurisdictions.
Reported levels of 12 of the 13 offenses covered in this report were lower in 2024 than in 2023; shoplifting was the only offense higher in 2024 compared to 2023.
— Read on counciloncj.org/crime-trends-in-u-s-cities-year-end-2024-update/
All about Policing with a sprinkle of Criminal Justice - written by a Secret Contrarian
News and professional developments from the world of policing
A veteran police chief committed to improving police leadership, trust, effectiveness, and officer safety.
