“A long-awaited study of San Francisco’s installation of surveillance cameras in high-crime areas shows that the effort fails in its primary goal of reducing homicide and other violent crime, but succeeds in reducing such offenses as burglary, pickpocketing and purse-snatching.” “The study found that the program, started by Mayor Gavin Newsom in 2005, is hampered…
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Hey, guys, check the violence at the door. Or at least don’t take it out on police. The story in the Times. And the Daily News.
A review written by me of The Thin Black Line: published in the Washington Post’s Book World. It’s a collection of stories told by black law-enforcement officers. Not a great book, unfortunately. But the review is well worth reading: THE THIN BLACK LINE: True Stories by Black Law Enforcement Officers Policing America’s Meanest Streets. By…
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Here’s a very nicely produced little video against the war on drugs:
A Sheriff in Alabama was jailed for “blatant” violation of past court agreements that prisoners be properly cared for. It seems he had been, legally mind you, profiting from the leftover money allocated for prisoners’ food (all of $1.75 per person per day!). Here’s the story in the Times.
Traffic tickets go up when local government revenue falls. Is that a surprise? Not really. Here’s the story in St. Louis Today. The study, by Thomas Garrett and Gary Wagner, quantifies it: “Controlling for other factors, a 1 percentage point drop in local government revenue leads to a roughly .32 percentage point increase in the…
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I think the most amazing thing is that he kept the cigarette in his mouth the whole time! Pictures are here.
After a pleasant tour of Santa Cruz, San Francisco, a long and nice train ride to Chicago. 55 hours, but in a sleeper car. After all, what could be finer than dinner in the diner (actually 2 dinners, 2 breakfasts, and 3 lunches)? The train through Colorado is beautiful. But rural Illinois makes me the…
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