Police-Community Trust — Civil Society Issues — Galsworthy Criminal Justice Reform Program

Galsworthy Criminal Justice Reform Program

Civil Society Issues

Many issues that are primary drivers of mass incarceration cannot be remedied through government solutions alone. Issues such as broken families and mental health, both forever altered by over criminalization, cannot be simply be repaired through legislation. Civil Society has the unique capability to address certain social issues that government cannot, or to address them more effectively than government can. This section also addresses issues in which over-policing attempts to fix issues that should be handled through the community.

Posts in Police-Community Trust

Community Policing Is Not the Answer

“Proponents of community policing argue that embedding police, particularly in Black communities, can build trust and partnerships that would have changed my calculus, to call NYPD. But the strategy is flawed and has drawn resources away from communities that need it and instead directed them toward policing. Time has shown that community policing is merely an expensive attempt at public relations, after a long history of racialized police violence and injustice, and does little to reduce crime or police violence.“

The Appeal

December 2, 2019

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesDecember 2, 2019The Appeal, Community PolicingComment

There's a Pattern of Police Unions Attacking People Who Call for Criminal Justice Reform, Especially When They Are Black

“Nationally, the FOP represents 330,000 members across 2,200 lodges. Local unions often make political endorsements of elected officials, as the South Bend, Indiana, FOP did in 2011 with then mayoral candidate and now Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg. But most candidates in the Democratic field have released criminal justice reform plans than include proposals to strengthen police accountability for misconduct. In 2016, the national FOP endorsed President Trump, who has championed federal prison and sentencing reforms, but has also advocated for nationwide expansion of stop-and-frisk policing. The tactic led to disproportionate stops and arrests of Black and Latinx people in Trump’s hometown of New York City.“

The Appeal

November 27, 2019

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesNovember 27, 2019The Appeal, Fraternal Order of Police, Malcolm JenkinsComment

We found 85,000 cops who’ve been investigated for misconduct. Now you can read their records.

“Obtained from thousands of state agencies, prosecutors, police departments and sheriffs, the records detail at least 200,000 incidents of alleged misconduct, much of it previously unreported. The records obtained include more than 110,000 internal affairs investigations by hundreds of individual departments and more than 30,000 officers who were decertified by 44 state oversight agencies. “

USA Today

May 23, 2019

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesMay 23, 2019USA TodayComment

NYPD Commander's Text Messages Show how the Quota Systems Persists

“But six NYPD officers who reviewed the messages told The Appeal that such language is typical of the new, less explicit methods supervisors use to enforce an unofficial quota system today. “

The Appeal

December 12, 2018

Police-Community Trust, PersonalismPhillip ReevesDecember 12, 2018The Appeal, NYPD, New York CityComment

Kentucky Is Turning to Drones to Fix Its Unsolved-Murder Crisis

“Ralph Clark is an Oakland native and the CEO of ShotSpotter, a gunshot-detection-technology company. He believes that unreported gunshots don’t act just as symptoms of community mistrust of police—they reinforce it. “When communities see police not responding to these [gunshot] events,” he said over the phone, ‘but at the same time have the resources to respond to low-level arrests and intercepts for marijuana and stop-and-frisk, that’s a pretty cynical situation’.“

The Atlantic

November 6, 2018

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesNovember 6, 2018The Atlantic, KentuckyComment

Documentary 'Crime + Punishment' Exposes Abuse Of Power In The NYPD

“The film focuses on the so-called NYPD 12, a group of 12 police officers who in 2016 publicly accused the NYPD of continuing to demand arrest quotas despite a state-wide law that made them illegal in 2010, and further for pressuring cops to arbitrarily target black and Latino men ages 14 to 21, solely to keep their arrest numbers high.“

Forbes

October 31, 2018

Civil Society Solutions, Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesOctober 31, 2018Forbes, NYPDComment

Why Police Should Embrace Communities—Not Shut Them Out

“Fast forward to 2015. As a member of President Obama’s Task Force on 21st-Century Policing, I listened when Camden County, New Jersey, Police Chief J. Scott Thomson explained that ‘community policing starts on the street corner, with respectful interaction between a police officer and a local resident.’ That interaction is missing from Manasseh’s video.“

The Marshall Project

October 30, 2018

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesOctober 30, 2018The Marshall ProjectComment

A Law Intended to Protect Crime Victims Is Being Used to Shield the Identities of Police Officers

“What on earth does a victim's rights law have to do with a police officer demanding to conceal his identity from the public? According to the Rapid City Journal, the officer in question shot 21-year-old Kuong Gatlauk following a confrontation during a traffic stop. According to the police report, Gatlauk made statements intending some sort of self-harm and fled from a police vehicle. In a confrontation, he apparently threw a beer can at the trooper and then tackled the trooper and tried to steal the trooper's gun, according to this report. The trooper was able to keep his gun and shot the suspect twice.“

Reason Magazine

October 22, 2018

Police-Community Trust, Police ViolencePhillip ReevesOctober 22, 2018Reason Magazine, South Dakota, Marsy's LawComment

Your next NJ traffic stop could leave you face-to-face with a troubled cop

“New Jersey is one of just four states that does not license police officers, a basic safeguard used nationwide to ensure bad cops don’t skirt the rules or move from town to town. Licensing is a practice common to dozens of other professions, from doctors to massage therapists, and even other public employees, such as municipal finance officers. Licensing helps ensure professional standards are uniform, upheld and bad actors are banned.“

Asbury Park Press

September 21, 2018

Police Violence, Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesSeptember 24, 2018Asbury Park Press, New JerseyComment

Justice Department Honors Law Enforcement Officers and Deputies in Second Annual Attorney General’s Award For Distinguished Service in Policing

“Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Justice Department leadership today announced the recipients of the Second Annual Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Policing, recognizing the exceptional work of 25 law enforcement officers and deputies from 12 jurisdictions across the country.“

U.S. Department of Justice

September 19, 2018

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesSeptember 19, 2018Department of JusticeComment

The Need to Balance Police Effectiveness and Fairness

“The NAS report offers powerful confirmation that police departments around the country have discovered techniques that have significantly reduced crime. The impact of these efforts has been felt most profoundly in urban communities, most notably in New York City, where the murder rate has declined by 82 percent over the past 20 years.“

Governing Institute

September 17, 2018

Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesSeptember 19, 2018Governing InstituteComment

When Trying to Help Gets You Fired

“When backup arrived, Williams raised his gun in their direction and the officers fired, killing him. A few weeks later, Mader was ousted by the police department of Weirton, West Virginia, for failing to eliminate a threat. Mader is not alone. Across the country, police officers have been disciplined for doing what they believe is the right thing.“

The Marshall Project

September 17, 2018

Police Violence, Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesSeptember 18, 2018The Marshall Project, West VirginiaComment

Spider-Man's Take On Police Feels Out Of Touch

“Instead of being part of the complex life of the city, this latest Spider-Man sees a black-and-white world of cops and robbers. He aids in state surveillance, standing unquestioningly alongside an overly idealized caricature of the police. He’s still friendly, but I don’t know if he’s part of the neighborhood now. “

Kotaku

September 12, 2018

Police Violence, Police-Community TrustPhillip ReevesSeptember 15, 2018Spiderman, Video GamesComment

What the Trial of Laquan McDonald’s Killer Means for the Future of Chicago

“But, ultimately, this trial—regardless of the outcome—underscores a narrative that is central to life in Chicago today, and in most American cities: the broadening gap between those who have and those who have not. Acree has taken to calling Chicago “a tale of two cities,” a shorthand description that has become so prevalent when people talk about the city’s trajectory that the mayor pointedly dismissed the characterization this summer. “

The New Yorker

September 11, 2018

Police-Community Trust, Police ViolencePhillip ReevesSeptember 11, 2018The New Yorker, Chicago, Laquan McDonaldComment

How Robert Bentley turned Alabama's top cop into a puppet

"The Bentley administration politicized Alabama law enforcement and turned it into a weapon against the only person who dared tell the truth about the governor. They tried to make an example out of Collier as a warning to others."

Birmingham News

August 21, 2018

Police-Community TrustAnthony BradleyAugust 22, 2018Birmingham News, Alabama, Robert Bentley

Police militarization fails to protect officers and targets black communities, study finds

"The study found that merely seeing militarized units can erode public confidence in law enforcement and give off the impression that a police department is overfunded."

PBS News Hour

August 21, 2018

Police Violence, Police-Community TrustAnthony BradleyAugust 22, 2018PBS News Hour, Maryland

Teaching police to holster their emotions

"When Washington trains police, it teaches them not to see their role only as 'warriors,' but as 'guardians.' That's just one change, along with de-escalation training, to help police more safely interact with people exhibiting signs of mental illness. 'They’re going into communities, not war zones,' says the director."

Christian Science Monitor

August 16, 2018

Police-Community Trust, Police Violence, Mental HealthAnthony BradleyAugust 22, 2018Christian Science Monitor, Washington DC

Defund the Baltimore Police

"A former Baltimore cop questions how a department with a nearly half-billion-dollar budget that is riven by rampant corruption and brutality, bloated overtime spending, and unaccounted for patrol officers can continue to justify its existence"

The Appeal

August 15, 2018

Police Violence, Police-Community TrustAnthony BradleyAugust 16, 2018The Appeal, Baltimore

Police Unions’ Opposition to Prison Reform Is About More Than Jobs — It’s About Racism

"When prisons close, prison guards lose jobs. Law enforcement unions have for decades weaponized consistently racist narratives of criminal threats — threats that require management and punishment — to support policies that uphold mass incarceration."

The Intercept

August 14, 2018

Police-Community Trust, Mass IncarcerationAnthony BradleyAugust 15, 2018The Intercept, Police Unions

Unsolved murders: Chicago, other big cities struggle; murder rate a 'national disaster'

"The national murder clearance rate – the calculation of cases that end with an arrest or identification of a suspect who can’t be apprehended – fell to 59.4 percent in 2016, the lowest since the FBI has tracked the issue."

USA Today

August 10, 2018

Police-Community TrustAnthony BradleyAugust 13, 2018USA Today, Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans