Category Archives: Expert Commentary

Times Herald-Record: Perception vs. reality: People don’t feel safer despite drop in crime

Major violent and property crime in the mid-Hudson region has declined 42 percent from 1990 to 2015 despite a growing population, mirroring a national trend. The question is: Do you feel safer? A recent national poll suggests people don’t. The Gallup poll done in October 2016 found that Americans’ direct experience with crime was atContinue reading “Times Herald-Record: Perception vs. reality: People don’t feel safer despite drop in crime”

Statescoop.com: Civil rights advocates: Texas’ new police body camera footage fee is “a shot” at poor communities

Police departments in Texas are now required to charge a set fee to release any body camera footage to the public, a change that civil rights advocates fear could severely restrict access to police video. Thanks to a new policy from Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office that took effect Nov. 24, every law enforcement agencyContinue reading “Statescoop.com: Civil rights advocates: Texas’ new police body camera footage fee is “a shot” at poor communities”

Statescoop.com: Judge strikes down Calif. City’s $3,000 bill for release of police body camera videos

A California judge just ruled that a city police department was out of line when it charged public records requesters thousands of dollars to get access to body camera footage, raising big questions about how agencies release police videos and other electronic records going forward. An Alameda County Superior Court judge recently decided that Hayward,Continue reading “Statescoop.com: Judge strikes down Calif. City’s $3,000 bill for release of police body camera videos”

International Business Review: Fighting crime with computers: Is predictive policing the future of law enforcement?

When it comes to predictive policing – using cutting-edge data algorithms and software to help fight crime – it’s easy to stumble into the realm of science-fiction. Minds will drift to Minority Report, the Tom Cruise action flick that centres on the notion of using ‘pre-crime’ systems to catch criminals before they act, and whileContinue reading “International Business Review: Fighting crime with computers: Is predictive policing the future of law enforcement?”

On Point , National Public Radio: Predicting murder in Chicago

Chicago’s murder rate – with gun deaths at the fore – is soaring again. Off the charts. Up another 50 percent from last year this time, and last year was already bad. Chicago police are desperate for an answer. What they’ve been trying is called “predictive policing.” Just 1,400 Chicagoans out of nearly three millionContinue reading “On Point , National Public Radio: Predicting murder in Chicago”

The Atlantic: Using a green light to bring crime to a stop

Detroit had a problem. Late at night, gas stations were the only businesses with open doors in many neighborhoods—and they were magnets for crime. In the first six months of 2015, about a quarter of violent crimes reported between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. happened within 500 feet of a gas station, according to theContinue reading “The Atlantic: Using a green light to bring crime to a stop”

Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel: Violence interrupted: Rochester, NY police keep one step ahead of street disputes

An argument between two Milwaukee neighbors over broken glass and garbage carts ends when a third man gets involved and fatally shoots one of the neighbors. Milwaukee looks to Rochester, N.Y., on violence prevention Milwaukee’s Homicide Review Commission has recommended that Milwaukee police examine how their peers in Rochester, N.Y., organize police work around theContinue reading “Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel: Violence interrupted: Rochester, NY police keep one step ahead of street disputes”