Quality Policing Podcast and Blog

3 Pittsburgh Police Officers Killed

Three officers killed. Two wounded. This is too soon after Oakland. 22-year-old man with bulletproof vest and assault riffle kills officers responding to a domestic call at 7:30am. The wounded cop killer surrendered to police at 11am. Some of the wounded officers remained for a time where they fell because other officers could not reach…
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Indictments in Baltimore

Three officers, two retired, one of whom I know and like, are indicted five years after an incident. Gimme a break.

Coming home to roost

Seems like the drug war is now chipping away at the freedom and privacy of police officers. In L.A., gang and narcotic officers will have to turn over detailed personal financial information. The story.

Dangerous Drug Raids?

Not for police. Here’s the story from Drug War Chronicle. I’m quoted in it.

Police Helicopters Cramp My Style

When I was in Baltimore, Foxtrot was down. Foxtrot was the police helicopter. It had crashed. Since then, they got another up in the air. I just stumbled across an old email I wrote my brother back in July, 2002, after a trip to L.A. I was in LA for 2 days…. We went to…
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Everybody’s doing it

So it looks like Ashley Biden, Joe’s daughter, has been filmed snorting coke. So what? Our last three presidents snorted coke! It’s a pretty impressive membership list: Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton [correction: Er, maybe not. See comments below]. Didn’t seem to ruin their lives.

Memories

This is a story from way back when. I’ve never found a way to work it into anything I’ve written, but it’s too good to go to waste: Two cuffed men were seated on the curb on Bradford St. in front of their Lexus. We were all waiting for a wagon. I was helping guard…
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Shot in Drug Raid

Copp was unarmed when a deputy shot him in the chest at his off-campus apartment more than two weeks ago. West Michigan Enforcement Team officers entered the residence on a search warrant. Copp’s attorney has said “a few tablespoonfuls” of marijuana were found in the apartment. Police have not released any details on what was…
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Broken Windows, Subways, and Crime

The danger in New York City of subway cuts and transit fare hikes looms. Keeping the transit system in decent shape affects more than your commute to work. It’s a public safety issue. The proposed MTA “doomsday” service cuts puts the past 15 years of public-safety gains in jeopardy. Many factors contributing to New York…
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Hellhole

Is solitary confinement torture? I think so. The New Yorkerhas a story by Atul Gawande.