SpotCrime - The Public's Crime Map

Police leadership, police staffing, mental health calls, NCVS, FBI data, gun violence, EMS data used to identify violence, police use AI to write reports, AI detective, AI body cam review, police AI and ethics, license plate readers, police drones, the push for police transparency, cash bail, depression and anxiety and contact with the criminal justice system, and more... POLICE CONDUCT What do we know about police leadership? A review of the current status of police leadership research and practice, with suggestions for future research directions  (Taylor and Francis Online) NJ AG plans reforms following investigations into the state police  (NBC Philadelphia) Creating 21st-Century Campus Police  (Suffolk University) As Vallejo police force shrinks, 911 response times soar  (Open Vallejo) Presocialisation and police misconduct: Exploring new tools for predicting officer exposure to misconduct investigations  (Sage Journals) Ocean City Police Department provides...

AI chatbots in report writing, adopting police transparency reforms, fatal police encounters in Wisconsin, police radio encryption, AI deepfakes, link between local news and perceptions of crime, gun violence in the US, MD facial recognition policy, AI added to emergency communications, lack of transparency in police chief hiring, short term impacts of bail reform, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Police officers are starting to use AI chatbots to write crime reports. Will they hold up in court?  (Associated Press) NBPD has yet to adopt transparency reforms recommended one year ago Department falls short on openness, handling officer misconduct, and a new anti-discrimination policy.  (The New Bedford Light) ‘A shoot can be legal. That doesn’t mean it was necessary.’ Fatal police encounters rise in Wisconsin  (Wisconsin Watch) Over and out? Bronx police radios silenced in latest encryption rollout as local journalists fear apocalyptic end to NYC crime reporting  (AMNY) Dall...

Police conduct in Pittsburgh, US confidence in police up, releasing body cam footage, drug smuggling networks, mental health and 911, violent crime spike during COVID, facial recognition arrests, deepfake AI porn bill, gunshot detection, police algorithms, transparency advocates worry about access in TN, bail law changes, and more... POLICE CONDUCT After Jim Rogers' death, Pittsburgh got a close look at police conduct. It may not happen again  (WESA) U.S. Confidence in Institutions Mostly Flat, but Police Up  (Gallup) Anchorage police now have a 45-day deadline to release certain body camera footage  (Alaska Public Media) Crime Labs audit calls for faster processing times of forensic evidence  (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) Why LA is pulling the plug on a 911 pilot that sent mental health workers on some calls  (LAist) CRIME RATE ‘I want her to worry about who’s waiting on the corner’: How one man uses Facebook to frighten his children’s mother and why police do n...

Police misconduct and killings published in Louisiana, recruiting officers, 2023 gun violence trends, transit crime rates, schools and hate crimes, retail shrink and theft, Amazon revokes police access to Ring footage, halt funding to predictive policing, cyberattacks, RMS overhaul in Pennsylvania, broadcasting law enforcement frequencies, bail in Tennessee, and more... POLICE CONDUCT New data dashboard for police misconduct, killings in Louisiana  (BRProud) Alameda went far beyond what other cities were willing to pay to recruit officers. Did it pay off?  (The Mercury News) CRIME RATE In 2023, Gun Violence Trended Down Across the Country  (American Progress.org) Schools are 3rd-highest location for hate crimes: FBI  (ABC News) As some transit crime rates triple, FTA releases data, other resources  (Smart Cities Dive) Maryland crime trends show increase in unsolved violent crimes  (FOX45) 7 reasons why everyone’s confused about shrink and theft  (Retai...

Shielding police, lower murder rate with more cops, national crime data reporting needs improvement, ATF gun crime report, school shooting data, violent crime and youth, corporate white collar prosecutions at all time low, streamlining sharing of criminal justice data, impact of COVID on arrests, observing bail review hearings, and more...  POLICE CONDUCT In Shielded, Joanna Schwartz Dissects Policing’s Legal Environment  (TheCrimeReport.org) Study estimates 1 murder averted for every 11 cops hired: Report  (NOLA.com) Former police chief heading to trial in DUI, hit-and-run case  (York Dispatch) CRIME RATE New Crime Trends Working Group Aims to Improve National Crime Data Reporting  (TheCrimeReport.org) 6 major takeaways from the ATF's first report in 20 years on U.S. gun crime  (NPR) Elementary School. High School. Now College. Michigan State Students Are No Strangers to Mass Shootings.  (NYTimes) see also:  Nashville startup, nonprofit release s...

2022 deadliest year for mass shootings, police obtain location data without warrant, agencies fail to report FBI data, crime and American opinion, justice tech procurement, campus crimes, bail in Ohio, criminal codes changed in DC, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Denver city leaders launch “downtown action team” to address crime, drugs, homelessness  (Denver Post) Florida Law Enforcement Fails to Participate in FBI Annual Crime Report  (Miami New Times) see also:  Less than 25% of New York police submitted data to the FBI 2021 crime statistics  (WSHU) Police Quietly Obtain Private Location Data with a Checkbook and not a Warrant  (POGO.org) CRIME RATE In wake of Colorado Springs massacre, 2022 is deadliest year for mass shootings, Northeastern expert says  (Northeastern.edu) Virginia youth from areas with high rates of crime and economic disadvantage are at the highest risk of recidivism, VCU study finds  (VCU.edu) Crime, American Public Opinion and the Ele...

FBI crime data collection still stymied, calls mount to block warrantless data collection by police, FBI failed to complete 1M gun background checks, 'systemic failures' in Uvalde, looking at the crime wave, mental health may not prevent mass shootings, kids and guns, ShotSpotter tech under fire, predicting crime with AI, Marsy's Law in FL, commercial bail industry, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Boulder police chief recognized for evidence-based policing  (Daily Camera) FBI’s Crime Data Collection Still Being Stymied By Major Police Departments Not Reporting Crime Stats  (TechDirt) Calls Mount for Blocking Warrantless Mass Data Collection  (GovTech) see also:  Amazon Ring Records Given Directly to Police in Emergencies  (Bloomberg Law) How to Defuse Police-Civilian Encounters  (TheCrimeReport.org) FBI Failed to Complete Nearly 1M Gun Background Checks in 2020-2021  (TheCrimeReport.org) Report finds 'systemic failures,' poor leadership in response to Uvald...

Cities implementing different forms of police reform, AI tech ban, news deserts allow for corruption in SC, dropping crime rates in some cities, drones for deescalation, ending cash bail, COVID as a case for open data, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Consultant finds Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office ‘data rich, information poor’  (Santa Maria Times) South Bend Board of Public Safety approves use of force guidelines but demands more changes  (South Bend Tribune) Can a New, Open-Source Police Brutality Database Help to Hold Police Departments Accountable?  (Time.com) see also:  Civil Rights Groups Launch National Database on Police Use of Force  (CivilRights.org) Do as I Say! Or, Do as I Say, Not as I Have Done! County Sheriffs’ Self-Reported Accountability Priorities for Themselves and Their Subordinates  (Academia.edu) Black people make up most arrests for low-level crimes in Dallas, report finds Dallas Police Chief Eddie García said he wants to better unde...

AMA aims at gun violence, how crime affects income inequality and housing prices, police partner with mental health, mass incarceration stats, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Columbus police testing new partnership with mental health experts  (10TV) As Cities Struggle To Solve Homicides, Louisville Looks To Atlanta  (WFPL) FBI busts international email fraud ring that stole millions  (CNET) Indy Officials Update Efforts On Targeted Crime Prevention  (WFYI) CRIME RATE Scammers create a new form of theft: 'Synthetic-identity fraud'  (CNBC) The stark relationship between income inequality and crime  (The Economist) Do Crime Declines Produce Higher Housing Prices?  (Mother Jones) Study: Watching televised sports reduces crime  (AOL) In hopes of stopping bloodshed, a multimillion-dollar effort is providing jobs, therapy to city's most violent  (Chicago Tribune) Chicago and other major US cities saw drops in crime and murder in 201...

Body-worn camera programs, face recognition tech fail, rural crime growing, jails replace visits with video chat, bail sentencing in NOLA,  red flag laws, and more... POLICE CONDUCT The Milwaukee Police Department’s Body-Worn Camera Program Evaluation Findings and Key Takeaways  (The Urban Institute) Wyandotte County D.A.'s BOLDD approach to fighting crime  (KSHB) Baltimore Police Commissioner De Sousa resigns amid federal tax charges  (Baltimore Sun) CRIME RATE Vacant homes have increased by 2.1 million since 2005 A new Lincoln Institute of Land Policy report offers solutions to the high crime rates and property devaluation that accompany abandoned homes  (Inman) Food bank study suggests positive effects on local economy, crime rates  (GoSkagit.com) Violent Crime in Rural Areas Rises Above U.S. Average  (TheCrimeReport.org) See also:  ‘Nothing But You and the Cows and the Sirens’ — Crime Tests Sheriffs Who Police Small Towns Drugs ...

WHAT IS AI AND MACHINE LEARNING? Artificial intelligence and machine learning are hot topic terms that are sometimes used interchangeably. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. Machine learning is the field of computer science and application of AI that gives computers the ability to learn without being explicitly programmed through access to data.  Google’s DeepMind lab project ‘AlphaZero’ recently learned chess in four hours. It’s being labeled a ‘superhuman performance’ because not only did AlphaZero learn chess, it absorbed all data on the entire history of chess and then figured out how to beat anyone or anything in the game in one-sixth of a day. This type of technological advancement not only changes the way chess will be played, but it creates endless possibilities for technology that can be applied to other aspects of everyday human life. THE BIG DA...

Over policing in Durham, precision policing, blockchain and machine learning is future of crim-tech, Baylor crime reporting investigation, Google Docs phishing scam, police shootings, Harris County cash bail system unconstitutional, and more... POLICE CONDUCT Watch: Norfolk Police dance the night away at ‘Cops and Curls’ event (WTKR) Protesters seek end to 'over-policing' in Durham as chief delivers crime report (WRAL) What is Precision Policing? (SpotCrime) Officers Won’t Be Charged in Black Man’s Shooting Death in Louisiana (NYTimes) Balch Springs police fire Officer Roy Oliver, who fatally shot Jordan Edwards with rifle (Dallasnews.com) Ex-Officer Who Shot Walter Scott Pleads Guilty in Charleston (NYTimes) Law Enforcement Agencies' Requests for Facebook Data Continue to Rise (GovTech) CRIME RATE Protesters throw Pepsi cans at police during May Day demonstrations (TheGuardian.com) Half of Immigrants Arrested in ICE Raids Had Traffic ...