The Crime Report (https://thecrimereport.org/category/tcr-special-report/)
Stories by The Crime Report staff and nationwide network of contributors.
The campaign to remove District Attorney George Gascón in the nation’s largest prosecutorial office failed to get enough signatures to place a vote on the ballot the first time around, but supporters worry that it has added to the growing pains of a city that voted for an overhaul in its legal system last December.
Hailed as alternatives to police, crisis counselors have struggled and triumphed over the past year. A year after nationwide protests against police violence, a TCR Special Report examines how crisis centers have changed, and their evolving relationship with law enforcement.
The pandemic shut down prison visiting rooms across the country, robbing inmates of the few hours of “PG-13 intimacy” that kept family relationships alive, and forcing many of them to communicate with video calls. Some families fear that it may become the new normal.
Police officers have a responsibility to report what happens when interactions with civilians involve the use of deadly force. However, what they document and what they leave out, accidentally or purposely, is often ignored as a contributing factor to the loss of trust with communities.
A collection of 13 essays published by the Brennan Center at NYU School of Law probes the relationship between guns and race, policing, domestic violence, and democracy. Three of the authors spoke recently with The Crime Report about their conclusions.
Facing a monumental case backlog, attorneys say virtual proceedings might ease the accumulation of civil cases. But the convenient and cost-saving appeal of remote appearances can’t replicate key aspects of the courtroom, others say.
Can U.S. prisons be more than violent warehouses? A pilot program launched in 2019 in Miami proves it’s possible, writes a resident who says being treated “humanely” has given him the confidence and skills he needs to rejoin civilian society.
Less than a decade ago, selling pot was a risky business, largely under the control of criminal cartels. Today it’s a multibillion-dollar industry. Part of the reason: the new marketplace created by the pandemic.
There’s a new and impatient tone to the debate over the future of American policing. The Crime Report interviewed academics, police chiefs and activists and found some encouraging signs of agreement, but also deep uncertainty about whether current law enforcement structures can meet the challenges of a deeply polarized society.
On Jan. 21, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order mandating masks on all forms of transit. But there’s little muscle behind the change, putting transit employees who report violators at physical risk. Other countries are faring no better, as reports of violence against transit workers increase.