“Hundreds of people in Mexico have blocked key crossings into the US in protests against the deployment of the army fighting drug traffickers.” Read the complete story in the BBC.
Another Officer Killed
Philadelphia has seen seven officer die in less than three years. That is seven too many. From an editorial in the Philadelphia Inquirer: The police say it’s not their fault that career criminals aren’t in prison; they keep arresting them, but judges’ sentences are too lenient. The judges say it’s not their fault; they follow proper sentencing guidelines, but the…
Sheriff Leon Lott is an Idiot
Lott is the guy who wants to lockup Michael Phelps, the Olympic swimmer, for smoking mari-ju-wana in his county. That at least made me suspectthat Lott is an idiot. But this picture, of Lott in front of his new “peacekeeper”, confirmed it. Talk about putting the war back in “war on drugs.” What a dope. Thinking that a tank is…
Award Winning Cop in the Hood
I was just informed that Cop in the Hood won an award. How exciting! I won the 2008 PROSE Award for best book in Sociology and Social Work. PROSE is the Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence. You know… PROSE… recognizing the best books for 33 years and, uh, er, well no, I actually hadn’t heard of them either.…
Kindle at last!
No doubt timed to sync with the release of the Kindle 2, Cop in the Hood is finally available via Kindle. Ten dolla. What a bargain! Buy it to-day!
Stop and Frisk
Officially, the NYPD stopped and frisked 531,000 people last year. That’s a lot. They resulted in 31,665 arrests and 34,081 summonses. Because of the 4th Amendment, you need “probable cause” for a search or arrest. A search happens once you go inside pockets or look for anything accept weapons (drugs do come to mind). Because of a Terry v. Ohio,…
Class cancelled
Fewer police is not a good option. If anything is “shovel ready,” the next NYPD academy class sure is! Too bad it’s not going to happen.
New Drug Czar
Do I have faith in any drug czar? No. But who knows. Maybe I’m wrong. This guy is interesting. Especially because of the “jaywalking incident” that got him a vote of no confidence from the police union.
Latin American Panel: Drug War Failing, Honest Debate Needed
The drug war has failed, and its repressive policies are having negative consequences in Latin America, a 17-member commission said today. The Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy, co- chaired by former presidents Fernando Henrique Cardoso of Brazil, Cesar Giviria of Colombia, and Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico called for an “open and honest debate” on the problem.