SpotCrime Weekly Reads: Use of force, crime rate, AI

Use of force rules, fatal police shootings and training, encrypting scanners, anti-crime laws, state crime victims funds, 911 calls surge, deadly shootings involving 18-20 year olds, taking on rising car thefts, big data surveillance tech, school crimes, AI and body cam footage, discrepancies in crime data, loopholes in police transparency laws, rehabilitative services in prison, and more...

POLICE CONDUCT

Police in this Pennsylvania county slow to adopt new use-of-force rules, study finds (The Morning Call)

After fatal shootings, Rantoul police recommended more training. They just sent one officer to a gun range (IPM News)

Des Moines seeks to hire dispatchers as 911 calls surge to decade-high record (Des Moines Register)

Head of police oversight in Phoenix questions office's independence in resignation letter (KJZZ)

Many cities have anti-crime laws. The DOJ says one in Minnesota harmed people with mental illness (MPR News)

Justice Department proposes major changes to address disparities in state crime victim funds (AP News)

CRIME RATE

Kansas City, Kansas, recorded its least deadly year in a decade. Police watchdogs are taking notice (KCUR) see also: City of Pueblo saw 27 murders in 2023. It's the third straight year with at least that amount (The Pueblo Chieftain)

North Carolina’s public schools see uptick in crimes, violence and suspensions (NC Newsline)

BPD implements new ceasefire model to tackle gun violence issues (ABC 23)

How one city took on rising car thefts — and brought the numbers down (OPB)

Sexual assaults rose on cruise ships last year, according to federal data (USA Today)

What does the data show on deadly shootings by 18-to-20-year-olds? (Poynter)

CRIM-TECH

Berkeley picks 6 new locations for surveillance cameras to address crime (Berkeleyside)

Bellevue Police Dept. adding body cameras for first time, and upgrading Taser technology (Geekwire)

Police Departments Are Turning to AI to Sift Through Millions of Hours of Unreviewed Body-Cam Footage (ProPublica)

DOJ funding pipeline subsidizes questionable big data surveillance technologies (The Conversation)

Tyler and Amazon Expand Public-Sector Cloud Partnership (GovTech)

POLICE TRANSPARENCY

Loopholes in California’s police transparency law leave public in the dark (KTVU)

City and MPD data shows discrepancies about Interim Chief CJ Davis's claim that crime was cut in half (LocalMemphis)

Police are encrypting scanners across the country. Here's why (WGLT)

THE PRISON SYSTEM

Approaches to Successfully Delivering Rehabilitative Services in Prison: Perspectives from Non-Uniform Correctional Staff in Eight States (Sage Journals)

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