Crime & Consequences

Monthly Archive: August 2023

Defining “Violent”

by · Aug 31, 2023 3:44 pm

One would not think that defining “violent crime” is all that difficult. Yet in both federal law and California law, there are definitions of “violent” that are excessively narrow, excluding crimes that everyone with sense would consider violent. Dan Walters has this column at CalMatters, titled “California law treats some violent crimes as nonviolent, letting offenders off the hook.” He has an extended quote from this column by Emily Hoeven at the SF Chronicle (behind a paywall).

From Walters’ column:

Hoeven noted that earlier this year, the Assembly’s (perhaps misnamed) Public Safety Committee rejected a Republican bill to classify domestic violence as a violent crime, thereby making it easier to keep offenders behind bars.

This outrageous situation results from a 2016 ballot measure, sponsored principally by then-Gov. Jerry Brown and passed by voters, that purported to give those who commit nonviolent crimes chances to earn their way out of prison.

However, it was deceptive. Proposition 57’s indirect definition of a nonviolent crime was that it did not appear on a specific Penal Code list of 23 violent crimes.

That list only referred to particularly heinous crimes and omitted many offenses that ordinary folks would consider violent, including some forms of rape and domestic violence. The result is that those who commit some unspeakable crimes, including battering one’s spouse, are given kid gloves treatment in the penal system.

How did the definition get so screwed up? The problem in California is, in substantial part, the result of lazy drafting. (The federal problem is a topic for another post.) Continue reading . . .

Victims Pushing Back on Pro-Criminal Policies in Austin, Texas

by · Aug 31, 2023 2:54 pm

Austin, the capital of Texas, has become the San Francisco of the southwest.  In 2021 the city set an all-time record for homicides, had twice the national rate for burglary, and vehicle theft, and a third higher rate for robbery and assault.   NBC’s KNXN reports that the city is currently on track to meet or exceed last year’s second highest number of homicides.  Austin also rivals San Francisco on homelessness, with 10,000 people living in 168 different homeless camps according to the New York Post.  While the city passed an ordinance to prohibit camping on pubic property, it is not enforced.  In 2020, responding to the George Floyd riots, the progressive City Council cut the police budget by one-third.  That cut, and the city’s woke law enforcement policies have driven officers to take jobs in other counties or retire, leaving the force short by 400.  Austin’s progressive, Soros-bankrolled District Attorney Jose Garza, who has never prosecuted a criminal case, typically undercharges or plea bargains criminal cases, including those involving murder.

Continue reading . . .

SB 94 – Lies, Damn Lies, and Statistics – Murderers do not “Age Out”

by · Aug 30, 2023 4:35 pm

Steve Smith of Pacific Research Institute has this post on a bill that is exceptionally bad even by the California Legislature’s low standards. The bill  would make a large number of murderers sentenced to life without possibility for parole eligible for parole.  Smith notes:

SB 94 is based on the simplistic and poorly researched premise that, based on arrest statistics alone, criminals age out of crime. The bill’s author, Senator Dave Cortese, argues that “research overwhelmingly shows that people age out of violent crime….”

Both [Sen. Cortese’s] press release and the study [it cites] suffer from a glaring omission. Neither make the connection between age and the crimes for which the offender was sentenced. Continue reading . . .

Regrets of a Proposition 47 Supporter

by · Aug 30, 2023 1:38 pm

“I had supported Proposition 47, which basically said you wouldn’t prosecute —the crimes were much different at the level of up to $950. I thought it was a good idea at the time because I thought, we need to give people an opportunity, we need to give people a chance,” David Canepa said to CBS News Bay Area.  Canepa is a San Mateo County, California Democrat who sits on the  Board of Supervisors.  Kristine Parks of Fox News reports that in the wake of out-of-control theft in the Bay Area, Canepa has changed his mind about Proposition 47: “I made a mistake, it was a big mistake, and you have to acknowledge your mistake,” he confessed. “By doing this, what we’ve done is we’re letting people take thousands and thousands of dollars. And why should people be subjugated?”  With counties essentially helpless to crack down on thieves under Proposition 47, Camepa is now calling on the Governor and state Legislature to reduce the dollar amount of thefts that qualify as a felony.  Two bills to do this, one authored by a Democrat and the other by a Republican died in the legislature last year.

Under the Radar: How Gov. Newsom Uses Clemency to Engineer Parole for Recidivist Felons and Murderers

by · Aug 29, 2023 10:58 am

Ron Matthias has this op-ed in the California Globe with the above title. The subtitle is If it were up to Newsom, the public would learn nothing more about those prisoners and their claimed rehabilitation. Here is the first paragraph:

Gov. Gavin Newsom is big on demanding transparency and accountability from others, such as school officials and social media companies. But from himself, not so much—and especially not when it comes to using his clemency powers to engineer the future release of recidivist criminals, including some who’ve been convicted of murders so heinous they’re not even eligible for parole. Continue reading . . .

Mental Health Response: The Devil Is In the Details

by · Aug 25, 2023 10:51 am

Finding the best way to respond to mental health crises is a continuing search. One thing we can be sure of is that proposals under the “defund the police” banner are bad ideas. See Michael Rushford’s post yesterday. We need more police, not fewer, regardless of what we do about mental health calls. Beyond that, alternatives need to be well thought out and adequately funded and supported. Too often, they are not. Scott Calvert and Julie Wernau have this report in the WSJ, titled “‘No Hose, No Gun’: Police Alternatives for Mental-Health Crises Fall Short: New units designed to avoid violent and often deadly encounters lack both funding and institutional support.”

Dispatchers at the 911 center in Mesa, Ariz., have three levers to pull: fire/medical, police or mental health. The last one is a relatively new addition, adopted by dozens of police departments around the country and aimed at avoiding violent and often deadly confrontations between police officers and the mentally ill.

“No hose, no gun,” said Mayor John Giles. “Just somebody with a clipboard and an argyle sweater who wants to ask how your day is going.”

Now there’s a disaster waiting to happen, if the person is so far gone as to be a danger to himself or others. Continue reading . . .

Prop. 57 and Recidivism: Unveiling the Reality Behind CDCR Claims

by · Aug 24, 2023 2:53 pm

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) recently released a report revealing a 3% decrease in recidivism among inmates who were released the year following enactment of Proposition 57. This legislation, known as the Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2016, aimed to reduce sentences for inmates participating in rehabilitation programs. CDCR Secretary Jeff Macomber hailed the report as evidence of improved public safety, citing Prop 57 programs as the primary reason for the decrease. However, a closer examination by CJLF raises doubts about these claims. In our newly-released Research in Brief report, we note how the CDCR’s report lacks the necessary rigor to support Macomber’s claim.

Continue reading . . .

Seattle’s Alternative to Police

by · Aug 24, 2023 12:44 pm

With a murder rate comparable to Chicago and twice as much property crime, life in many parts of Seattle is far from safe.  But the defund-the-police movement is still strong in Seattle which is currently implementing “policing alternatives,” including having “crisis responders” rather than police respond to 911 calls, as reported by Lindsay Kornick of Fox News.  Seattle City Councilwoman Lisa Hebold who spearheaded the program announced last Friday that she is “really, really happy to report that the city is hiring for the six positions for its first pilot alternate response team. It’s going to be a way for 911 operators to dispatch calls to somebody other than police, somebody other than fire, a crisis responder who is unarmed.”

Continue reading . . .

Why aren’t office workers returning to Philadelphia?

by · Aug 24, 2023 10:28 am

“The City of Brotherly Love has a new reputation as one of the emptiest office districts in America, sparking a debate over what’s keeping Philadelphia workers at home,” Katie Mogg reports in the WSJ.

Philadelphia, like many U.S. cities, has gone full throttle on efforts to lure people back into downtown areas. But the combination of the office-worker exodus, taxes and crime has resulted in more empty office space on the market today than during the 2008 recession, theorize researchers, Philadelphia employees and real-estate professionals.

Continue reading . . .

New Haven Officials Angry About Reported Crime Statistics

by · Aug 23, 2023 2:38 pm

The Mayor of New Haven, Connecticut and the Police Chief of Yale are quite upset about a police union’s decision to let students know that crime is a problem in their city.  Audrey Cronklin of Fox News reports that last weekend members of the Yale Police Union distributed flyers indicating that “murders have doubled, burglaries are up 33% and motor vehicle thefts are up 56%” according to the New Haven Police Department.  The flyer also offers incoming students safety tips such as staying off the streets after 8 PM, avoid walking alone, avoid public transportation and stay on campus.  New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker called the flyers “childish” during a Tuesday press conference.  The campus Police Chief said that he was “disgusted” that the police union chose “to take this path.”  The chief added the most reported crimes at Yale involve stolen laptops and cell phones.  A union spokesperson responded;  “There’s no dispute on the facts,  So  I think they feel an obligation to make sure that students don’t fall victim to crimes while attending Yale University.”  Probably a good idea as Neighborhood Scout ranks New Haven as more dangerous that 94% of U.S. cities.