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Junk Science And Bad Policing: The Homicide Prediction Project

The law enforcement breed can be a pretty dark lot. To be paid to think suspiciously leaves its mark, fostering an incentive to identify crimes and misdemeanours with instinctive compulsion. Historically, this saw the emergence of quackery and bogus attempts to identify criminal tendencies. Craniometry and skull size was, for a time, an attractive pursuit for the aspiring crime hunter and lunatic sleuth. The crime fit the skull. With the onset of facial recognition technologies, we are seeing the same old habits appear, with their human creators struggling to identify the best means of eliminating compromising biases.

10 Years Ago, Baltimore Cops Killed Freddie Gray

In the 10 years since Baltimore police officers killed Gray, roughly 3,100 people — mainly Black men — have been murdered in Baltimore; more than twice that many have suffered fatal overdoses; one mayor, one state’s attorney and one police commissioner have been convicted on federal charges; more than 15 police officers have been implicated in the Gun Trace Task Force RICO case, where officers conspired to illegally detain and rob Baltimore residents; more than $70 million has been paid out in settlements relating to police misconduct; the Baltimore Police Department’s (BPD) budget has increased by nearly $150 million...

After Years Of Injustice, A Day Of Empathy

Minneapolis, MN – On Saturday, April 5, organizers, family members and individuals impacted by wrongful incarceration and over-sentencing came together in North Minneapolis for A Day of Empathy – a powerful gathering focused on the stories of those whose lives have been upended by wrongful incarceration, over-sentencing, mass incarceration, police violence and racial injustice. Event organizer Alissa Washington, founder of the Wrongfully Incarcerated & Over-Sentenced Families Council-MN, told the story of her fiancé, Cornelius Jackson, who was stolen from his loved ones 19 years ago and still remains behind bars to this day.

Quakers Descend On Metropolitan Police Headquarters

A silent Quaker Meeting was held outside New Scotland Yard on Thursday 3 April, to bear witness to the police raid on Westminster Meeting House last week in which six Youth Demand activists were arrested. Since the raid, Youth Demand have also remained resilient, holding an open-air meeting which was disrupted by the far right. Hundreds of Quakers, politicians, and others stood in silence for forty minutes as traffic rattled past on busy Victoria Embankment, with 25 other silent meetings held nationwide and online. The move sparked widespread criticism, with constituents expressing concerns about heavy-handed policing to their MPs.

DOJ Knew About and Used Notorious Homan Square ‘Black Site’

Scandals don’t get much more disturbing than that of Homan Square. In 2015, the Guardian revealed Chicago Police had allegedly employed torture and days-long unlawful detention at the secretive “black site”-like Homan Square facility, a nondescript warehouse located in Chicago’s west-side Garfield Park neighborhood. Outraged and alarmed by these revelations, politicians and activists clamored for the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate human rights abuses at the facility, which still operates today. Despite the pleading, the DOJ elected not to investigate Homan Square, and instead conducted a broad investigation of Chicago Police Department use of force practices.

In Maryland, Cracking Down On A Crime Wave That Doesn’t Exist

Here in this deep blue state, a coalition of judges, attorneys, youth advocates, civil liberties and racial justice organizations are trying to persuade Maryland lawmakers to amend Draconian legislation that requires prosecutors to charge children as young as 10 in adult criminal court for a wide range of felony offenses. At issue is Senate Bill 422 , which, if passed by Maryland’s General Assembly in this legislative session, would reduce by nearly two-thirds the 33 criminal offenses for which juveniles in Maryland are automatically charged as adults.

Police Diversion Programs Face Uncertain Future

Atlanta, Georgia, is one city that has gone back and forth about whether to continue funding its Policing Alternatives and Diversion Initiative. At the start of 2025, the PAD program suspended its services because of contract negotiations with city officials. PAD responds to calls through Atlanta’s 3-1-1 municipal services line and offers services like legal support, shelter and housing placements, and outreach. In 2024, the program fielded more than 1,800 service requests with an average response time of 19 minutes, according to its annual report. Nearly half of the calls PAD responded to were to help people meet their basic needs.

The Global Spread Of Palestine’s Agony

The recent announcement by U.S. President Donald Trump that he wanted to take over the Gaza Strip, remove its Palestinian citizens and establish a “Riviera for the Middle East” has been rightly condemned as “ethnic cleansing” by sane voices around the world. Standing alongside a smirking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a man with a long history of crushing any hope of Palestinian self-determination, Trump expressed a long-held dream of the Israeli Right, emptying Palestinians from Palestine. It’s a position that’s supported today by a majority of Israel’s Jewish population.

Defend Lisa Davis

The attacks on the Uhuru Movement Continue. On March 31st, 2024, Lisa Davis, vice chair of the Black Is Back Coalition for Social Justice, Peace, and Reparations, was attending a pro Palestine weekly vigil in South Orange, New Jersey, when a disturbed zionist aggressively ran towards the protestors, verbally assaulted her and aggressively got into her face. The crowd had to intervene to make him back off. It is clear from the videos that it is the zionist who was the aggressor against Lisa and the demonstrators. But New Jersey is protecting him and is falsely charging Lisa Davis with organizing a special event without a permit and for making excessive noise while using an amplification device.

Super Bowl Protest In New Orleans Rejects Trump Agenda

New Orleans, LA – On February 9, roughly 200 people took to the streets in downtown New Orleans for a rally and march against President Donald Trump’s visit to the Super Bowl LIX at the Superdome. The protest was called by New Orleans for Community Oversight of Police, alongside a broad coalition of organizations. After Trump’s recent attacks on the most oppressed, protestors came out to demand Trump end ICE raids and deportations, stop attacks on trans people, and keep out of Gaza. The rally began at Armstrong Park around 4:30, with speakers. The crowd chanted, “Donald Trump has got to go!” and “Un pueblo unido, hamas sera vencido! The people united, will never be defeated!”

Kenya Deploys 200 More Police Officers To Haiti As Crisis Escalates

Kenya has deployed another batch of 217 police officers to Haiti, adding to the 400 sent last year as part of a “multinational mission” aimed at addressing the country’s deepening crisis of gang violence. The intervention aims to protect critical infrastructure and conduct “targeted operations” alongside the Haitian National Police, however, there are significant doubts about its effectiveness in resolving the systemic challenges plaguing Haiti. On October 2, 2024, the United Nations Security Council authorized this year-long, Kenyan-led security intervention to purportedly combat gang violence and restore stability to territories controlled by armed groups.

Youth Demand Made It To The BBC At Saturday’s Palestine March

Three Youth Demand supporters defied Met Police restrictions on the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (PSC) demonstration on Saturday 18 January by standing outside the BBC with signs. Youth Demand are calling for a two-way arms embargo on Israel and for the new UK government to halt all new oil and gas licences granted since 2021. Youth Demand: not letting the BBC get away with it At around 4:00pm, the three were arrested under Section 14 of the Public Order Act after marching to the BBC and standing on the pavement with signs, defying the conditions imposed on the protest by the Met. One Youth Demand supporter was holding a sign saying “Can I protest here?”, another held a completely blank sign.

London’s Met Police Arrest Organiser Of National Gaza Rally

The London Metropolitan Police arrested one of the organisers of the pro-Palestine rally on Saturday in central London after imposing restrictions banning protesters from marching towards the headquarters of the BBC. Organisers denied claims made by the Met that protesters had forced their way through a police cordon to march towards the BBC after ending their protest in Whitehall. The police said 77 arrests were made during Saturday’s protest, which organisers estimated drew 100,000 people. Among those arrested was Chris Nineham, the vice-chair of the Stop the War Coalition, who served as the chief steward for the national protest for Palestine.

The DC Bus Fare Evasion Crackdown

To make good on the promise implicit in the "Secure DC Omnibus Crime Bill ,” to intensify its war on the Black working class, the DC government is now targeting anyone who can’t afford to pay for public transportation. In December 2024, a new enforcement campaign was launched called “Operation Fare Pays for Your Service” professing an intention to decrease fare evasion on DC’s Metrobus system. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) argues that increased fare enforcement is necessary after reporting that more than 70% of metrobus riders do not pay their fare, and claiming a $50 million dollar loss in annual revenue.

#WeWillMarch Groups Challenge Police Over Palestine Demo Permit

A new year has begun, yet Israel’s atrocities in Palestine persist. In Gaza, the situation is more dire than ever. Health workers are stretched to breaking point, particularly in northern Gaza, where not a single hospital remains functional. Their resilience in the face of unimaginable suffering is nothing short of heroic, but they cannot do it alone. On Monday 7 January, health workers and supporters gathered outside parliament to demand urgent action. Jeremy Corbyn addressed the crowd calling for IDF troops to withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank, as well as from southern Lebanon and Syria; and for the British government to stop supplying arms to Israel.