The state Supreme Court ruled that a person’s race should be taken into consideration when determining the legality of police seizures. The Court also changed the rules for excluding a potential juror based on race.
The state has been under total Democratic control for four years, but a tumultuous two years with law enforcement, workforce development and the pandemic has some predicting that Republicans could regain control in November.
City councilors and members of the public have expressed concern that the purchase of a drone could negatively impact the homeless population. The city manager holds the purchasing power over the police drone.
Four cities in the region have proposed using millions of pandemic relief funds for surveillance cameras to aid law enforcement and increase public safety. But there are concerns about the privacy risks.
AI can map fire perimeters in minutes, rather than hours, and can predict a wildfire’s speed and direction. But emphasis on preventative instead of reactive efforts would be more impactful, say fire experts.
The Louisiana city’s police department wants to deploy nine license plate readers to help identify stolen cars and drivers with outstanding warrants. But critics worry about the tech’s infringement on privacy rights.
Failing to invest in the emergency response communication workforce and infrastructure is taking a toll. One important way to bolster call center employee morale and retention is to reclassify these professionals as first responders.
New Jersey became the 14th state to legalize recreational marijuana use on Thursday, though public smoking is still banned. Now local police, who will provide security for the dispensaries, must adjust for the new law.
Earlier this month, the California city launched its Mobile Assistance Community Responders program, which sends trained civilians to respond to emergency mental health crises, allowing police to focus on violent crime response.
Jocelyn Benson’s office retracted its previous statement about no longer releasing driving records of “victims of violence,” like that of Patrick Lyoya, to the media after the policy sparked transparency concerns.
To help address hiring and retention issues, the city police plan to hire 35 civilians this year to investigate low-level crimes, internal affairs complaints and cold cases. The department currently has 519 civilian employees.
The city has become the state’s most watched police department with both a federal monitor and strong civilian oversight. After a scandal exposed abuses, Oakland’s civilians have the power to overrule the police department.
Without any documented potential crime or policies with instructions, officers collected and stored personal data and social media posts about demonstrators who participated in the 2020 racial justice protests.
Despite medical risks and a department policy that requires officers to assist injured people, Los Angeles police officers will often wait several minutes before approaching a person they’ve just shot.
Eight jurisdictions say they have either approved or installed automatic license plate readers, nine reported having no plans to consider the devices and three are still undecided.
Mayor Ted Wheeler suggested that the Committee on Community-Engaged Policing “take a breather” to allow the city to hire more support staff, provide more training and find facilitators. The group only has seven of 13 seats filled.
