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Melt Thy Rifles Into Garden Tools

Patricia Leigh Brown

November 06, 2018 |

The New York Times |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Raw Tools, is a nonprofit that converts guns into garden tools. The organization was created by Michael Martin, a pastor who wanted to do something after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School that resulted in the death 20 children and six educators. “You’re taking a weapon of death and turning it into the complete opposite, which is life.”

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Emergency Preparedness for Prisons Isn't Just Sandbags and Non-perishables

Emma Coleman

November 02, 2018 |

New America Weekly |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New Orleans, Louisiana

After Hurricane Katrina in 2005 stranded people incarcerated in the New Orleans jail without food or water, the city used the experience not to question its disaster preparedness but instead to rethink who needs to be incarcerated in the first place. By easing policies in cash bail and arrests for petty offenses, the city cut its jail population by two-thirds and replaced its flooded jail with one less than one-quarter the original size. The new policies helped inspire Louisiana to revise its sentencing standards in an effort to end its distinction for having the world's highest incarceration rate.

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In Chula Vista, Calif., Drones Now Respond to 911 Calls

Gustavo Solis

October 29, 2018 |

San Diego Union-Tribune |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Chula Vista

Police in Chula Vista, Calif., are using drones to respond to some emergency calls as part of a pilot program between the Federal Aviation Administration, Chula Vista and the city of San Diego. It’s an idea from Ensenada, Mexico, where use of drones prompted a 10 percent drop in crime, and on its first day in Chula Vista drones responded to 30 emergency calls that led to three arrests. The FAA is working with police to rewrite regulations as the program evolves to adapt to police needs.

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Police are using artificial intelligence to spot written lies

Olivia Goldhill

October 28, 2018 |

Quartz |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Spain

A tool is helping police across Spain identify false robbery reports. VeriPol uses textual analysis and machine learning to find suspicious reports. During the pilot project, the tool helped detect 64 false reports in one week, far more than usually detected.

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Glasgow was once the ‘murder capital of Europe.' Now it's a model for cutting crime.

Karla Adam

October 27, 2018 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: Scotland, Glasgow

Glasgow used to be known as the murder capital of Europe. But police began tackling crime as a public health issue and partnered with doctors, social workers and educators, while also increasing stops and searches of potential offenders and getting harsher sentences passd for carrying knives. Perpetrators get help with education and jobs and the city has seen a 60 percent drop in homicides, but some experts caution that other factors could contribute to that decline.

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How Sex Workers Made San Francisco Safer for Everyone

Hannah Albarazi

October 25, 2018 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

In San Francisco, a law that offers amnesty to sex workers who report violent crimes to police is designed to save lives and reduce crime overall in the city. It comes as the city’s police department faces a massive police sex scandal over officers abusing an underaged sex worker, something advocates say is all too common and leaves crimes women might report uninvestigated. Advocates applaud the new law, say it doesn’t go far enough and they worry new federal laws could undermine it.

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11 questions that could save a woman's life

Jen Zettel

October 25, 2018 |

Appleton Post-Crescent |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Wisconsin

The murder of a woman in Wisconsin highlights a lethality assessment tool for law enforcement to use that’s designed to help domestic victims and authorities understand how much danger victims might be in and help police connect them with services. It’s proven effective at helping those facing domestic violence take steps to reduce the chances they might be murdered by their partners. But getting it implemented, especially in rural areas where there may not be many resources for victims, has proven challenging with less than half of Wisconsin’s counties using it.

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A movement for police accountability is on Nashville's November ballot

Margaret Littman

October 22, 2018 |

Scalawag |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Nashville, Tennessee

The killing of Jocques Clemmons, an unarmed black man that was shot by a white officer in Tennessee, became the catalyst that spurred a community to action. A community oversight board would be in charge of investigating police misconduct by the MNPD. Grassroots organizers, activists, and residents fulfilled the 4,000 signatures needed for a referendum vote on the board, and if approved would join a growing movement that is trying to address police shootings of unarmed black men. “More than 200 cities already have boards in place with varying degrees of success.”

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Offering Care Before Cuffs

Katelyn Newman

October 19, 2018 |

U.S. News & World Report |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Miami, Florida

The Miami Police Department has joined efforts with health care and social services partners to offer an alternative to prison for opioid users. The Collaborative Law Enforcement Addiction Recovery (CLEAR) program consists of participants signing a binding agreement and entering treatment that lasts for 12 months, all while also helping to build trust between officers and their communities.

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The Crime Machine, Part II

PJ Vogt

October 12, 2018 |

Gimlet Media |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

CompStat seemed like a miracle of technology and data when it was rolled out in New York City in the 1990s. Crime dropped as police leadership demanded precincts report every crime and what they were doing about it at weekly meetings where they were pressured to conform to this new system. But this also resulted in police distorting actual crime data to avoid reporting crimes in their districts and the push for increased police activity resulted in cops targeting minorities for minor offenses.

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