SpotCrime Weekly Reads: body cam, transparency, facial recognition

Body cams, records transparency, mental health, police conduct, murders rose in 2020, white supremacy highest level in 25 years, false facial recognition, potential AI and mass surveillance ban in EU, crime data, and more...

POLICE CONDUCT

Biden White House puts its police oversight commission on ice (Politico)

Former Buffalo officer who stopped fellow cop's chokehold on suspect will get pension after winning lawsuit (CBS News)

Officer Kim Potter arrested, charged with manslaughter in Daunte Wright's death (Axios) see also: ‘I can’t breathe:’ Video shows Akron police officer repeatedly shoving snow in man’s face during arrest (Cleveland.com) and also: North Carolina police chief resigns amid investigation (MYFox8)

Maryland becomes first state to repeal police bill of rights, overriding Hogan veto (Politico)

JSO assistant chief becomes first Black woman to run for Jacksonville sheriff (First Coast News)

Police Chief recognizes work of local mental health experts, mayor (Fort Bragg Advocate News)

Boston Police kept child sexual abuse allegations against union president secret: report (The Hill)

CRIME RATE

‘2020 was a tinderbox’: murders rose in US neighborhoods of color last year (The Guardian)

Fort Myers Police Department says statistics becoming key in the war on crime (News-Press.com)

White supremacists drive US domestic terrorist attacks to highest level in 25 years Domestic terrorist attacks have risen to historic levels, a new study shows. (The Hill)

Bexar County misdemeanor marijuana prosecutions down drastically due to cite-and-release (FOX29)

Army didn’t prosecute NCO accused of rape. So he did it again. And again (Army Times)

CRIM-TECH

Wrongfully arrested man sues Detroit police over false facial recognition match (Washington Post) see also: The EU is considering a ban on AI for mass surveillance and social credit scores (The Verge)

Every N.J. cop must wear body cams by June. Here’s the plan to cover the costs. (NJ.com)

Body-worn cameras ‘on the move’: exploring the contextual, technical and ethical challenges in policing practice (Taylor and Francis Online)

POLICE TRANSPARENCY

Santa Clara police department to encrypt its radio communication system later this month (KTVU)

BPD looks to build ambitious public visualization site for crime data, but first it hopes to restore a simpler spreadsheet-like feed of the information (Universal Hub)

Release of Adam Toledo police body-cam video necessary but painful - The Civilian Office of Police Accountability’s decision to release the body-cam video is a bold step toward police reform. (Chicago Sun Times)

Despite Mobile expanding police body cam use, public likely won't see video (NBC15 news)

Court Rules Norman Violated FOIA When Approving Budget The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled that the city of Norman violated the state's Open Meeting Act when it approved a city budget that cut the police budget by $865,000. (US News)

The flip side of FOIA: Mountains of paper, small government staffs and — for some — an attitude problem (Chicago Tribune)

THE PRISON SYSTEM

Can Michigan Point the Way to Nationwide Jail Reform? (TheCrimeReport.org)

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