SpotCrime

Week of November 2, 2020

Feds warn about extremist groups harboring violence over elections, communities vote for change in policing, police make plans for homelessness, police reach breaking point, police live stream Amazon Ring cameras, AI helps 911 dispatchers, NYPD using robot dog, and more… POLICE CONDUCT COVID Biggest Cause of Police Deaths This Year (WebMD) Police reach breaking point amidContinue reading “Week of November 2, 2020”

Week of October 26, 2020

Defunding the police…or not, Indianapolis Metro police struggle with conduct and crime rate, white supremacists behind most US domestic terror attacks in 2020, sanctuary cities do not increase crime, looking at police data to make policing better, and more… POLICE CONDUCT Defund Your Local Sheriff? Police Reform on Ballots Nationwide (Governing) see also: The Misunderstood Math ofContinue reading “Week of October 26, 2020”

Week of October 19, 2020

Federal crime fighting programs Project Safeguard and Operation Legend, sending mental health professionals to answer mental health related police calls, community service officers, figuring out what’s causing the violent crime spike, and more… POLICE CONDUCT New Pilot Program Will Pair Mental Health Experts With Police on Certain Crisis Calls (WTTW) see also: Removing Cops From Behavioral CrisisContinue reading “Week of October 19, 2020”

Week of October 12, 2020

Finding police chiefs is not easy, community response groups and oversight committees formed, media coverage of police, sharing data reduces crime, sensor that activates body cams, addressing violence, and more… POLICE CONDUCT Why Finding a Police Chief Just Got a Lot More Complicated (USNews) see also: Running the police department isn’t an easy job (LocalMemphis.com) Michigan law enforcementContinue reading “Week of October 12, 2020”

Week of October 5, 2020

Reimagining 911 calls for service responses, community police relationships, crime rates vary in cities, preventing police brutality with body cams, how local news affects clearance rates, human trafficking detection by banks, and more… POLICE CONDUCT Opelika police announce community relations program (AONow) see also: Ask the Undersheriff: Neighborhood watch groups help reduce crime (GoSkagit.com) and also: Community-Based Crime ReductionContinue reading “Week of October 5, 2020”

Week of September 28, 2020

FBI 2019 crime stats released, police reassess handling some 911 calls, social media brews violence, looking at Palantir surveillance used by LAPD, more police agencies nationwide share crime data on transparency portals, bail reform, and more… POLICE CONDUCT LA County Moves Closer To Redirecting Some Emergency Response Away From Law Enforcement (Witness LA) see also: Austin cityContinue reading “Week of September 28, 2020”

SpotCrime Transparency Ranking 2020 Update

The SpotCrime Crime Data Transparency Ranking was created in 2013 and ranks cities on how open they are with crime data. Periodically, we update the ranking to reflect the ever-changing landscape of open crime data. This year we have decided to make a few changes in regard to our ranking procedures, all which are outlined below. TheContinue reading “SpotCrime Transparency Ranking 2020 Update”

Week of September 21, 2020

This week features mental health, social workers added to police forces, white supremacists and anarchists biggest domestic terrorist threats, police and justice system algorithms get a second look, crime data transparency ranking, and more… POLICE CONDUCT Pinellas County sheriff to announce changes to Mental Health Unit, response to calls for service (WFLA) see also: Northern Kentucky police departmentsContinue reading “Week of September 21, 2020”

A Call for Researchers to Embrace Robust, Open Crime Data

Below is the paper I authored that was published in The American Society of Criminology’s newsletter The Criminologist. The American Society of Criminology (ASC) is an international organization whose members pursue scholarly, scientific and professional knowledge concerning the measurement, etiology, consequences, prevention, control, and treatment of crime and delinquency. ASC publications consist of the following: the journals, Criminology and Criminology & PublicContinue reading “A Call for Researchers to Embrace Robust, Open Crime Data”

Without a trace: How a misfired Florida law makes crimes disappear

This blog post appeared as a guest column on the blog of The Brechner Center for Freedom of Information at the University of Florida. Florida’s Chapter 119, the Public Records Act, is seen as one of the strongest transparency laws in the country when it comes to accessing public crime information. Chapter 119 has allowed websitesContinue reading “Without a trace: How a misfired Florida law makes crimes disappear”