Crime and Punishment

It’s interesting to browse this page.

Based on a very casual and unsystematic perusal of the data, and even allowing for variabilities in reporting, I note some striking differences between cities. For example, in 2003:

-There were no murders in Fargo, ND;

-The murder rate in Gary, IN was almost 9 times the national average;

-NYC looks very good, though it’s not broken down into sub-regions — I suspect that there are big differences in crime rates between different parts of NYC;

-The murder rate in Buffalo, NY is almost 3 times the national average;

-Many cities with high murder rates, like Gary, do not have exceptionally high rates of other violent crimes or property crimes;

-In general, the South, and big cities with big ex-southern populations, have much higher rates of violent crime than do cities in the Midwest;

-I think they are cooking the books in some of these places, e.g., Gary, IN — I’ll bet that the murder rate is generally the most accurate statistic, since it’s probably the most difficult statistic to misreport;

-In general it appears that demography predicts crime rates, except that good or bad local government (e.g., NYC vs. Chicago) make a big difference.

There is nothing new in any of this but it’s nice to refresh one’s memory.

(Thanks to commenter Tex for the link to CityRating.com.)

A breath of fresh air from the former chief of police of Seattle.

(Via The Corner)

The arrogant southern sheriff who holds himself and his men above the law is an old cliche’. Maybe it’s time to update the stereotype.

(Background: Here, Here and Here)

UPDATE: In the comments, Mitch points out that cops are known to break speed limits. I should point out that the officers in this case were not merely speeding but were driving in ways that endangered other motorists. They were also abusive to local police who, in response to numerous complaints, stopped them and asked them to slow down. One thing that stands out in the first discussion that I linked to, in which many of the participants are police, is how some police officers expect other police to tolerate their reckless or illegal behavior on grounds of “professional courtesy.” That even a few officers believe this — and I am sure that it’s much more than a few in many police agencies — IMO is evidence of systematic flaws in training, supervision and values. It is to these officers’ credit that they were returning from post-Katrina duty in New Orleans, which must have been no picnic. But lots of other people, including police officers from other States, also worked in New Orleans after the hurricane, didn’t drive like maniacs on their way back North, and didn’t treat the laws and citizens of jurisdictions other than their own with contempt.

According to WWL TV in New Orleans, the hurricane has brought out looters.
“With much of the city emptied by Hurricane Katrina, some opportunists took advantage of the situation by looting stores. At a Walgreen’s drug store in the French Quarter, people were running out with grocery baskets and coolers full of soft drinks, chips and diapers.

When police finally showed up, a young boy stood in the door screaming, “86! 86!” — the radio code for police — and the crowd scattered. “

An August 11 2005 USA Today article noted the passage of an anti-price gouging law and stiffened penalties for looting.
“Civil action can be taken against price-gougers, including fines and restitution. Criminal penalties range up to six months in jail and $500 in fines for each violation.
Also, looting during states of emergency starts carrying heavier penalties on Monday: a three-year minimum prison sentence and up to 15 years. Backers of that bill said fear of being looted was a hindrance to getting storm-threatened residents to evacuate.”

One man watching the looters said.”To be honest with you, people who are oppressed all their lives, man, it’s an opportunity to get back at society.”

It is a surely measure of the character of a people what their thoughts turn to in a disaster. That ‘looting’ was foremost on their minds is reprehensible, to be sure. But it speaks volumes for the type of people they are, none of it good.

Get back at society?
I fervently hope this is an isolated incident.

Exactly why was my tax money spent funding a junket suggested by the spouse (a government employee)? Transparency and some objectivity might, indeed, see “Karl Rove, Whistleblower.” I suspect that many in Washington do not see it that way not just because of political leanings or blood-in-the-water triumphalism, but because such arrangements are so common (& interwoven) in the media, the bureaucracy, and politics.