fw: Crime & Justice News: Minneapolis Changes 911 Call Response After Emergency Callers Hang Up
Dianne Tramutola-Lawson
From: "Ted Gest" <tg...@jjay.cuny.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, October 10, 2012 9:40 AM
Subject: Crime & Justice News: Minneapolis Changes 911 Call Response After Emergency Callers Hang Up
Today's Stories
-- Minneapolis Changes 911 Call Response After Emergency Callers Hang Up
-- Will California Voters Buck History and Ease Tough-on-Crime Laws?
-- In CA Inmate Realignment, Can Counties Deal With the Disabled?
-- Alderman Says Chicago Needs to Hire 1,000 Cops, Double the Current Plan
-- Sandusky to Prison for Life, Fallout From Case Will Last For Years
-- U.S. Charged 530 People In Last Year In Mortgage Fraud Cases, Holder Says
-- Critic Outraged At MN's Virtual Life Sentences for 52 Juvenile Sex Offenders
-- Obama Administration Not Speaking Out On Pot-Legalization Measures
-- Justice Department Agencies Don't Compile Data On Informants' Breaking The Law
-- White Male Phoenix Officers Say Only Women, Minorities Picked for Inaugural
-- How New Las Vegas Diversion Court Helps At Risk-Minority Teens
-- Memphis Area Using 2 Million Federal Dollars for Kids Exposed to Violence
On every business day, Criminal Justice Journalists (CJJ) provides a summary of the nation's top crime and justice news stories with Internet links, if any. Crime & Justice News is being provided by CJJ with the support of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, its Center on Media, Crime and Justice, the Ford Foundation, and the National Criminal Justice Association. The news digest is edited by Ted Gest and David Krajicek. You may go to TheCrimeReport.org to search all archived CJN stories. Please e-mail Ted Gest at CJJ with concerns about the editorial content of our news items, to suggest news stories, or with general comments. |
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Minneapolis Changes 911 Call Response After Emergency Callers Hang Up ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Minneapolis altered the way it handles emergency calls after up to six people who called 911 during last month's shooting rampage at a small business didn't reach operators, says the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The city knows of at least four people and possibly as many as six who called 911 during the incident but hung up when no one answered, said Heather Hunt, director of emergency communications. Starting this week, callers to 911 who do not get an operator within 10 seconds will hear a recorded message telling them to stay on the line until an operator is available. The message is repeated in Spanish.
No one has faulted the police for its response to the Sept. 27 shootings by Andrew Engeldinger, who responded to his termination from a sign factory by killing five people, wounding three and taking his own life. Sixteen calls about the shooting came into the 911 center, and police were on the scene 5 1/2 minutes after the first call, Hunt said. That compares with an average response time of 8 minutes 13 seconds for the highest-priority calls in 2011. The window of 4 to 5 p.m. is typically the busiest for Minneapolis 911, receiving an average of 100 calls, she said, and that Thursday was no different. Minneapolis Star Tribune |
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Will California Voters Buck History and Ease Tough-on-Crime Laws? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For a state long considered what the San Jose Mercury News calls loosey-goosey liberal, California has been rock-ribbed conservative on crime. Only four times in the past century have the state's voters supported ballot measures designed to ease the state's tough-on-crime laws. On Nov. 6, voters have the rare option of changing that pattern. For the first time in state history, two major crime-related initiatives that would soften the toughest laws on the books will appear on the same ballot.
Proposition 34 would repeal the death penalty, while Proposition 36 would ease the nation's harshest Three Strikes sentencing law. Experts say Proposition 34 will face a tougher go. It requires voters to do an about-face and reject their historical embrace of capital punishment. In contrast, Proposition 36 asks voters to change the Three Strikes Law by reserving life sentences for the baddest of the bad -- while leaving many of its central features intact for violent, repeat criminals. But with crime rates relatively low statewide, proponents say there has never been a better time to test whether voters in this blue state are in the mood to be less red on public safety. "Criminal offenders have not been terribly attractive in the politics of California initiatives," said Franklin Zimring, a UC Berkeley law professor. "But it's not inevitable they all get turned down." San Jose Mercury News/Contra Costa Times |
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In CA Inmate Realignment, Can Counties Deal With the Disabled? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A blind parole violator was assigned to an upper bunk in a San Bernardino County, Ca., jail cell at the top of a tall staircase. One day, he missed a step and, flailing for a handrail, tumbled down the steel staircase. When he returned from the hospital in a wheelchair, deputies confiscated it. California Watch says the blind prisoner's account is one of dozens of complaints cited in a federal lawsuit alleging that the state violated the rights of disabled prisoners by not ensuring they would receive adequate care in county jails.
The debate over the state's responsibility for disabled prisoners has taken on increasing importance as the state shifts the burden of housing many thousands of inmates onto the counties in a policy euphemistically known as "realignment." For county governments reeling from budget cutbacks, the cost of upgrading jails and caring for disabled prisoners could be huge. "I'm crossing my fingers that we can accommodate some of those needs here in our county," said Undersheriff Dahl Cleek, of Tulare County. "But it's not like we have a built-in hospital inside these jails. Those could bankrupt a county pretty quick." California Watch |
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Alderman Says Chicago Needs to Hire 1,000 Cops, Double the Current Plan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Chicago Police Department will hire 500 police officers in 2013, aldermen were told yesterday, reports the Chicago Sun-Times. Mayor Rahm Emanuel's plan to hire 125 officers per quarter was not enough to satisfy aldermen convinced Chicago needs at least 1,000 new officers to ease a manpower shortage they contend has hamstrung the city's ability to stop a 25 percent surge in homicides and a nine percent increase in shootings. They were not appeased by the argument made by the mayor's budget team that Chicago already has more police officers-per-capita than any other major city and that it's the first time since 2006 that the city has hired enough officers to keep pace with retirements for two straight years. Alderman Bob Fioretti noted that Emanuel balanced his first budget - and saved $82 million - by eliminating more than 1,400 police vacancies.
"We have an over-arching gang problem that keeps expanding every time we turn around. The murder rate is going up. Auto theft and bank robberies are going up. Police officers are being reactive. They don't even have enough time to fill out the paperwork. They need additional help. If you're only keeping pace with retirements, that's not additional help," he said. Asked where he would find the $100 million needed to hire 1,000 more police officers, Fioretti said, "There's a move toward privatization and cutting. We've got to find innovative ways to pay for the appropriate city services." Chicago Sun-Times |
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Sandusky to Prison for Life, Fallout From Case Will Last For Years ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky starting a 30-to-60-year prison term, the equivalent of a life sentence for the 68-year-old, fallout from the Sandusky child sex abuse scandal will take years to sort out, reports the Harrisburg Patriot-News. In January, Athletic Director-on-leave Tim Curley and retired senior vice president Gary Schultz are scheduled to stand trial on charges that they lied to the grand jury investigating Sandusky. Mike McQueary, ex-assistant football coach who said saw Sandusky in a shower sexually assaulting a boy in 2001, is suing Penn State for $4 million, saying he was essentially fired for truthfully about how he told his superiors about the incident.
A high school student who charges that Sandusky abused him also has sued Penn State. He has a book scheduled for release this month. Other victims are expected to sue the university. State House Democrats are seeking a vote on a resolution to urge the U.S. Attorney General to investigate the handling of the Sandusky investigation. Democratic state attorney general candidate Kathleen Kane wants to know whether politics played a role in why the investigation went on for three years before charges were filed in 2011. Some have questioned whether Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican, made sure while serving as attorney general that the investigation didn't interfere with his 2010 gubernatorial campaign. Harrisburg Patriot-News |
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U.S. Charged 530 People In Last Year In Mortgage Fraud Cases, Holder Says ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Federal investigators brought charges against 530 people over the past year as part of a nationwide effort to crack down on mortgage rescue scams, reports the Washington Post. The cases, spearheaded by members of the federal Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, involved a broad array of schemes that victimized more than 73,000 homeowners and caused more than $1 billion in losses, Attorney General Eric Holder said yesterday. The announcement marks the latest effort on behalf of state and federal officials to demonstrate their eagerness to crack down on the range of fraud and mortgage-related misdeeds that proliferated during the housing boom and the bust that followed.
At a news conference, FBI associate director Kevin Perkins said that the focus on scams targeting ordinary homeowners has expanded in the wake of the housing bust. He said authorities often went to great lengths in investigating scams, using electronic intercepts and confidential informants, as well as establishing a "mortgage strike force" in Los Angeles, where fraud has proven particularly rampant. Reporters noted that there was no public announcement of the effort last year and asked whether the news conference was politically motivated, by touting the administration's crackdown on fraud weeks before the November election. "We're reporting on what happened over the past fiscal year," Holder said. "That's what this was about." Washington Post |
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Critic Outraged At MN's Virtual Life Sentences for 52 Juvenile Sex Offenders ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Minnesota Sex Offender Program has been widely criticized for inconsistent management and clinical treatment. Politics in Minnesota says that legislators, clinicians, and others have begun to focus on the program's practices as they relate to juveniles who are referred to the program-and end up with a virtual "life sentence" with little examination of the possibilities for rehabilitation.
There are 52 people in the program, 8 percent of its population, who potentially facing a de facto life sentence despite never having been convicted of a crime as an adult. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down mandatory life sentences without the possibility of parole for juvenile offenders on the grounds that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment. The treatment of juveniles civilly committed as sexual deviants in Minnesota seems to raise similar constitutional and moral concerns. "It is an outrage," said Eric Janus, dean of the William Mitchell College of Law and an expert on the civil commitment of sex offenders. "The problem with it is that we know that civil commitment is, at this stage, tantamount to life imprisonment. So these are people who, based on behavior that they exhibited as adolescents, are most likely going to be locked up for life. And that's unconscionable." Politics in Minnesota/The Crime Report |
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Obama Administration Not Speaking Out On Pot-Legalization Measures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Advocates of legalizing marijuana for recreational use may be closing in on their first statewide victory, says Fox News. Voter initiatives that would legalize up to an ounce of pot will be on the November ballot in Oregon, Colorado, and Washington State. Polling shows the measures leading in Washington and Colorado with at least 50 percent support. "If Washington or Colorado wins in November, and both of them have a good chance to do so, it is going to be transformative in the way we think about marijuana policy in this country and even outside," says legalization advocate Ethan Nadelmann of the Drug Policy Alliance.
Opponents of the Washington measure have raised only $6,000 compared to supporters, who have collected more than $4 million. The single biggest contributor has been Peter Lewis, chairman of Progressive Insurance and a mega donor to liberal causes. Nine ex-U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration directors have had no response to a request that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder speak out against legalization. President Obama and drug czar Gil Kerlikowske have been mum even though the government's website is full of warnings. President George W. Bush's drug czar, John Walters, can't understand why President Obama is not using his bully pulpit. "I think it's shocking that Attorney General Holder, [ ] Kerlikowske, but most of all the president of the United States, can't talk about this," says Walters. "It's about health, it's about safety, it's about the future of the country." Fox News |
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Justice Department Agencies Don't Compile Data On Informants' Breaking The Law ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The nation's top drug and gun enforcement agencies do not track how often they give their informants permission to break the law on the government's behalf, reports USA Today. U.S. Justice Department rules put strict limits on when and how agents at the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives can authorize their informants to commit a crime. Both ATF and DEA acknowledge that they do not track how often such permission is given. That routine, if controversial, tactic has come under renewed scrutiny in the wake of the bungled "Fast and Furious" gun-trafficking investigation, which allowed 2,000 weapons to fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels and other criminals.
"The way we use confidential informants is a huge aspect of the daily operation and also the legitimacy of the criminal justice system," said law Prof. Alexandra Natapoff of Loyola Law School Los Angeles. "It's insane that even the law enforcement agencies that actually carry out this policy may not always know how their operatives are doing it." The FBI is required to collect information on how often each of the bureau's 56 field offices allows informants to break the law, though the bureau would not release those figures. "There has to be some new accountability," said Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA), who introduced a bill to force federal law enforcement agencies to tell Congress about crimes by their informants. USA Today |
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White Male Phoenix Officers Say Only Women, Minorities Picked for Inaugural ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Three white Phoenix police officers are complaining that their superiors disregarded their seniority and instead picked women and minorities to work the plum assignment of the presidential inauguration in January, reports the Arizona Republic. The three officers, each with 20 or more years of service, were not chosen for the 40-member security detail, which will travel to Washington, D.C., for four days to do such tasks as traffic control.
Officers Barry Jacobs, Harold Ivey and Mike Jessie say the Phoenix Police Department violated the union contract that states that seniority must be the factor to make assignments. "Everybody that is going is either female or a minority," said Will Buividas, treasurer and chief contract negotiator with the Phoenix Law Enforcement Association that represents police officers. The officers were selected by seniority in each ethnic and gender category proportional to the department's makeup, said Commander Geary Brase of the department's Homeland Defense Bureau. Arizona Republic |
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How New Las Vegas Diversion Court Helps At Risk-Minority Teens ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Las Vegas' year-old "diversion court" is not a true courtroom, aside from its location. It's an environment where community agencies, treatment providers, and mentors come together to support at-risk teens, particularly minorities who enter the justice system in disproportionate numbers, says the Las Vegas Sun. "This is a global-village type of thing," says Judge Stephen Compan. Teenagers enter voluntarily, or at least at the direction of their parents who accompany them. The teens aren't hardened criminals, but that's why they're here: They've received a few citations - maybe for alcohol or drugs, petty larceny or a curfew violation - enough to spark concern. If the pattern continues, there's a good chance an arrest will follow and, with it, a formal charge, said Family Court Judge William Voy.
When that happens, officials know there's a greater likelihood it will be a minority entering the juvenile detention center. Last year, about 41 percent of juveniles arrested in Clark County were Hispanic and 26 percent were black. Compare that with the demographics of the school system: Only 12 percent of the student population is black, while 43 percent is Hispanic. "They're coming to us in disproportionate numbers," Voy said. "We're in the hole to begin with." The program emphasizes an honest, open environment, where the teens can share their difficulties and Compan and mentors can offer guidance. "It's kind of a soft, cuddly approach in there, but it's really working," said Compan, who runs diversion court. Las Vegas Sun |
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Memphis Area Using 2 Million Federal Dollars for Kids Exposed to Violence ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shelby County, Tn., Mayor Mark Luttrell says a network of agencies will use a $2 million U.S. Justice Department grant to help children exposed to violence in high-crime areas, reports the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Three apartment complexes have been assigned "family service providers" to identify children in violent home situations or those who have been victims or witnesses of crimes.
In the past year, the county has organized more than 24 agencies that work with traumatized children and their parents. The agencies will work under the name NOVA, an acronym for Network for Overcoming Violence and Abuse. More than a third of children from infancy to age 17 face possible exposure to an act of violence in Memphis and Shelby County during a year's time, the county estimates. Almost as many - 31.9 percent - face possible domestic violence, including aggravated assaults, in the home each year. While other crimes go down, the numbers of domestic violence cases continue to grow. Memphis Commercial Appeal |
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