Baltimore Crime turned me on to this:
Spotcrime maps every shooting in Baltimore (City and County) for 2008. Hit ‘start’ at the top left. Whether you want Turning of the sound to hear the bang bangs is up to you. At the time of this writing, I’m still only in October.
I can’t tell if this is sick or genius. If I’m in doubt, I usually go for the latter.
When I was a cop in Baltimore, I kind of assumed I was the only active police officer going for a PhD at one fo them fancy graduate schools. I wasn’t.
I’ve also assumed I’m the only former Baltimore police officer to write a book based on time in the Eastern District. I’m not.
I’m not certain why I only heard about Daniel Shanahan’s Badges, Bullets, & Bars recently. Professor Edith Linn (retired NYPD) told me about it at the ASC conference in St. Louis. She’s written a great book herself, Arrest Decisions. In it, she quantifies many of the points about arrest discretion I make in my book.
I’ve ordered Badges, Bullets, and Bars and look forward to reading it. You can read the 1st chapter here. It seems pretty hard core.
The book is dedicated to:
“All the excellent Law Enforcement officers who shortened their careers by crossing the thin blue line and venturing into the wrong territory; sometimes into criminal territory. Therefore permanently tarnishing their badge, reputation, family, and all the good that badge stands for. This book is for the police officers that could not find their way back, wanted to make a difference, and unfortunately, could have.”
Yikes! I imagine most police stayed far away from Shanahan. The stories of mentally unstable cops are legendary and usually great for a laugh… until somebody gets hurt.
But I’ll withhold further judgment till I read his book. He certainly does not seem like a man you would want to cross.
You know, if you like police books, there’s a great web site: Police-writers.com. If I checked it more often, I would have know allthe books written by Baltimore police officers.
The Sunreportsthat the wounded officer arrested the same defendant in 2007.
That’s scary. It’s much harder for a police officer to remember everybody he’s arrested than it is for a criminal to remember the person who arrested him. It’s just a question of numbers, like it’s easier for students to remember their teacher’s name than vice versa.
It’s also why cops carry guns off duty. The last thing you want as a police officer out on a date is for somebody to come up to you and say, “You remember me?”
Here’s the latest form the Sun:
The officer was shot in the jaw and cheek when he tried to make an undercover purchase, Bealefeld said. His partner returned fire and hit at least one of the suspects, according to police. As the suspects fled, the second officer helped his wounded partner, who was conscious and speaking after the shooting. He was conscious until he was placed under anesthesia for treatment at Shock Trauma.
And don’t forget about every Baltimore City police officer who has to go right to work and do the job like it’s any other day. If yourcoworker got shot on the job, you might get a day off.
Not police.
Stay safe.
This terrible news just in at 10:30pm from the Sun:
A Baltimore police officer is in critical condition at a hospital tonight after being shot in the Seton Hill neighborhood, officials said.
The plainclothes officer was on duty in the 500 block of Orchard St. about 8 p.m. when he was shot in the face, said Nicole Monroe, a police spokeswoman. A police officer returned fire, she said, but it is not known whether the wounded officer, who was taken to Maryland Shock Trauma Center, was accompanied or alone.
Shortly after the shooting, a person with a gunshot wound went to a hospital, Monroe said. Police are investigating to see whether there is any connection with the police shooting.
[update, 10:42pm:I just spoke to a friend of mine. He said word from Shock Trauma is that the officer should live, but did take a bullet in the jaw.
Also, I don’t know the shot officer. Of course that shouldn’t really matter. But, of course, it doesmatter to me. Regardless, I wish him and his family the best in what will not be an easy road to come. I’m with you.]
Police raided a 62-year-old Baltimore man’s home who was suspected of selling prescription drugs. Along with drug (Percocet and Xanax) and money, 19 rifles and shotguns were seized. The Sun reports.
Here’s Peter Hermanm’s report in the Sun.
The short: Surveillance cameras are helpful, but video is no ‘slam dunk’
The Great Blacks in Wax Museum unveiled their Obama statue. Pictures in the Baltimore Sun.
That’s Rep. Elijah Cummings on the right. He’s flesh and blood.
Now you might think I’m writing The Great Black in Wax Museum because of some thinly veiled hipster irony in this supposed post-racial era.
Actually, no. I just like the museum. And yes, unlike anybody else I worked with, I’ve actually been there as a paying customer. Wax museums crack me up. I always roll my eyes thinking about them. Doesn’t everyone?
But then when I go to one, I find them very amusing and somewhat educational (for the record, I also like those old-fashioned behind-the-glass perspective-based panoramas museums used to be into).
Anyway, the Great Black in Wax Museum not only has a great name, but it’s also one of the only cultural institutions that actually is inthe Eastern District. 1601 E North Ave. It’s just across the street from the far better patronized 1400 E North Ave.
Is the neighborhood safe? Well. No. But that shouldn’t stop you. Just be careful. I’m not saying you’ll be shot. I’m just saying lots of other people have been shot very nearby. If you can’t park right in front on North Ave, I’d try the courthouse lot across the street.
I feel like it was just yesterday I wrote:
“If police think you might be armed and you won’t follow orders… well, it’s on you. Sorry. It may not be right, but that’s just the way it is.”
Here’s a Baltimore case in point.