How a Cincinnati domestic violence survivor got the help she needed to break the cycle

Cameron Knight

October 25, 2021 |

Cincinnati Enquirer |

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Response Location: United States, Cincinnati, Ohio

Dvert is a partnership between Cincinnati police and Women Helping Women, a social services agency that puts domestic-violence survivors in touch with an advocate from the moment they report abuse. Advocates can provide for survivors' immediate needs, including childcare and safe shelter. They provide counseling and support to survivors throughout the prosecution of a case, should the survivor choose to pursue that remedy. More women have found the strength to pursue prosecutions, which advocates hope will ultimately keep more women safer than if they drop a complaint and reconcile with an abusive partner.

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A ‘shoot to incapacitate' policy puts Georgia police chief and town in the spotlight

Jamie Thompson

October 24, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

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Response Location: United States, LaGrange, Georgia

The police chief in majority-Black LaGrange, Georgia, thinks the standard shoot-to-kill training police receive is unnecessarily lethal and lies at the heart of the breach in police-community trust. So he has trained his department's officers with a Shoot to Incapacitate strategy to give them an alternative when confronted by someone not armed with a gun. The department's skeptics were won over, and one managed to save the life of a machete-wielding man by the way he shot him. External critics say this approach is impractical, though it was copied from what's worked in other countries.

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Police Say Jiu-jitsu Can Make Them Less Violent During Arrests

Jamiles Lartey

October 22, 2021 |

The Marshall Project |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Marietta, Georgia

Police recruits in Marietta since 2019 have been required to be trained in the martial art of jiu-jitsu before they can go on patrol. Many officers stick with the training, and many other police departments are copying Marietta's policies. Supporters argue that jiu-jitsu, which involves no kicking or hitting, gives officers greater control and confidence in confrontations with potentially violent people. That, they claim, will lead to fewer uses of deadly force or Tasers. Marietta data shows that fewer officers have been injured, but members of the public get injured at about the same rate.

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Tool for police reform rarely used by local prosecutors

Martha Bellisle

October 21, 2021 |

Associated Press |

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Response Location: United States

A growing number of prosecutors compile lists of police officers deemed untrustworthy witnesses, information they disclose to defense lawyers to prevent unjust criminal convictions. Called "Brady lists" or "do not call" lists, the practice is arguably a constitutional requirement for a fair trial. Broad disclosure of such a list in Philadelphia led to the dismissal of more than 2,000 convictions. Yet many prosecutors fail to keep such lists or ignore categories of misconduct like the use of excessive force. Police unions and privacy laws have helped block the effective use of Brady lists in some places.

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Plagued by fighting and other disturbances, RCSD reconsiders police presence

Justin Murphy

October 19, 2021 |

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle |

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Response Location: United States, Rochester, New York

During the 2020 social justice protests, Rochester city school leaders quickly acted to remove police officers from the schools. A long-time goal of school-discipline reformers, ending the use of school resource officers was meant to create openings for responses to student violence other than arrest or suspension. Eighteen months later, the school superintendent sought to increase a police presence in schools in light of a rise in fights among students. Reform advocates accused the district of failing to follow through with effective alternatives to the punitive responses to discipline problems.

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Police face a 'crisis of trust' with Black motorists. One state's surprising policy may help.

Simone Weichselbaum Emily R. Siegel Andrew Blankstein

October 07, 2021 |

NBC News |

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Response Location: United States, Virginia

A new Virginia law restricts when the police can stop motorists, limiting the chances for inequitable law enforcement. Barred from stopping vehicles based on minor infractions like a broken taillight, police in the first four months under the new law sharply reduced their stops of Black motorists. Police say such stops are a key tactic for getting guns, drugs, and dangerous people off the streets. But they also can be racially motivated, disproportionately punish people of color, and lead to violent confrontations. Many states and cities are considering dialing back traffic enforcement for these reasons.

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Dozens of states have tried to end qualified immunity. Police officers and unions helped beat nearly every bill.

Kimberly Kindy

October 07, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

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Response Location: United States, Colorado

Fifteen months after Colorado became the first state to strip law enforcement officers of their legal immunity from civil lawsuits for misconduct on the job, only one lawsuit has been filed over a notorious incident and no real evidence has materialized that police department staffing will be gutted by resignations or recruiting problems. The 2020 social justice protest movement inspired dozens of proposed laws to end the practice called qualified immunity. All but Colorado's bill failed, based on dire warnings from police unions. The Colorado law exposes officers to damages up to $25,000.

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Dallas PD Expands Controversial, Though Successful, Mental Health Response Program

Hayley Zhao

October 06, 2021 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Dallas, Texas

Dallas' Rapid Integrated Group Healthcare Team dispatches clinicians and social workers with police to 911 calls for mental health crises. Within two days, the team follows up to make sure people received the services they need. In its first three years, the area of the city using the program saw 60% fewer arrests and 20% fewer emergency-room visits among people in mental health crises. Critics argue that the presence of police can needlessly escalate such crises, but the city is sticking with the co-responder model and spending millions to expand the program.

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Tucson police chief says mental health workers in 911 center would ensure callers get the right response

Caitlin Schmidt

October 05, 2021 |

Arizona Daily Star |

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Response Location: United States, Mesa, Arizona

In 2019, Mesa police began diverting calls about suicide threats to a crisis line, where trained mental health professionals could provide counseling or dispatch a mobile crisis unit. Then they placed mental health professionals side by side with police dispatchers to triage 911 calls on the spot. Police now handle many fewer suicide-related crises, saving the city money and giving people more appropriate care. In Tucson, a mobile crisis team operates more independently from police. After two social workers were abducted at gunpoint by a man in crisis, the police chief argued to adopt the Mesa model.

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Austin wants to be a model of modern policing, but the future remains unclear

Tony Plohetski

October 04, 2021 |

KVUE-TV |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Austin, Texas

After years of inaction on police reform measures, Austin city leaders raced to restructure and cut resources from the city's police department after the 2020 nationwide social justice protests followed close on the heels of another in a series of controversial police shootings in Austin. By freezing hiring of new officers and shifting $140 million to other agencies, the city was among the biggest cities making the earliest, boldest moves to reform policing. A year later, a severe shortage of patrol officers and rising violence has sparked a new round of debate about where the city goes from here.

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