Killing of Corey Ruiz revives calls to shift power from police to communities

After bystander footage of police killing Corey Ruiz – a 38-year-old Black man in Madison, Wisconsin – spread online, many questioned why the officers were not wearing body cameras, a standard practice for more than 80% of police nationwide.

Police said Ruiz was wielding a knife and injured an officer; multiple bystander videos showed he was shot while already detained and on the ground. Ruiz’s family called for mandatory body cameras in the city, along with charges for the four officers involved. People across the political spectrum echoed the demand for cameras, including Madison’s police chief.

Within days, Madison’s mayor, Satya Rhodes-Conway, announced she would include funding for body cameras in the next city budget.

But local organizers say body cams are just one element of holding police accountable after harm has already been done; some would rather see community control over policing, and policies that reduce police interaction and address underlying issues, such as mental health services and homelessness support. (Ruiz was unhoused at the time of his death.)

Read on HERE

Agents of Chaos and Cruelty: How the Trump Administration’s National Deportation Policing Force Has Attacked American Communities | American Civil Liberties Union

This ACLU research report, Agents of Chaos and Cruelty, documents widespread civil rights violations carried out by immigration agents during the first year of President Trump’s second term. The report examines immigration enforcement incidents in eight states – representing a cross-section of the country and reflecting varying degrees of federal law enforcement presence and personnel surges – and found that over 400 of the more than 1,200 immigration enforcement incidents examined involved misconduct by immigration agents. The report ends with detailed recommendations urging policymakers to call for transformative change to our immigration system, in recognition that it is broken and dangerous to human rights.
— Read on www.aclu.org/publications/agents-of-chaos-and-cruelty-how-the-trump-administrations-national-deportation-policing-force-has-attacked-american-communities

Chicago Police Failed to Place Troubled Cop Under Strict Supervision Before He Fatally Shot Partner – Illinois Answers

Carlos Baker was referred to a program that subjects officers to intense oversight. But Baker wasn’t enrolled before he shot Officer Krystal Rivera because a supervisor didn’t respond to an email.
— Read on illinoisanswers.org/2026/07/17/chicago-police-carlos-baker-krystal-rivera-personnel-program/

Officers who killed Nickenley Turenne cleared after AG review | New Hampshire Public Radio

The N.H. Attorney General said officers were justified in shooting the 24-year-old in Manchester last December, after mistaking a flashlight he pointed at them for a firearm.
— Read on www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2026-07-01/officers-who-killed-nickenley-turenne-cleared-after-ag-review-manchester

Get the AG report HERE

Assessing “Reasonable” Police Uses of Force After Barnes v. Felix: How Time Framing Affects Public Perceptions – Scott M. Mourtgos, Ian T. Adams, Kyle McLean, Seth Stoughton, Geoffrey P. Alpert, 2026

Note at the time of this posting the article was available “open access”.

Assessing “Reasonable” Police Uses of Force After Barnes v. Felix: How Time Framing Affects Public Perceptions
— Read on journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/10986111261462411

Review of Akron Police – Department’s Use-of-Force Policies and Practices

Overview

Since 2019, Akron Police Department (APD) officers have been involved in seven fatal 1 and seven nonfatal 2 shootings. In response to these incidents, the City of Akron issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking an independent review of APD’s use of force (UOF) policies and procedures. After a competitive selection process, the City awarded the contract to the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF).

Get a PDF copy of the report HERE