By: Lorraine Green Mazerolle & William Terrill

Finding effective methods for controlling crime and disorder problems in public housing has been a principal concern for policy makers, researchers, and local agency representatives for many years. Nonetheless, research continues to show that rates of drug and non-drug crime are considerably higher in public housing sites than in other areas of a city (Dunworth and Saiger, 1994; Weisburd and Green, 1995). In Jersey City, for example, public housing sites are chronically identified as being the worse drug markets (Weisburd and Green, 1994, 1995; Weisburd, Green and Ross, 1994) and having the highest levels of violent crime problems in the city (see Center for Crime Prevention Studies, 1994).

Efforts to make public housing safer places to live date back to the 1960s when policy makers found that high-rise public housing projects built in the late 1950s were social and security disasters (see Annan and Skogan, 1992). Since this time, a wide variety of strategies have been implemented to target the persistent crime and social problems that characterize public housing sites. These strategies have included traditional enforcement tactics (Skogan and Annan, 1994; Weisel, 1990a) and changing the physical design of public housing with security issues in mind (Newman, 1973). More recently local police departments, in partnership with local housing authorities, have started to implement problem-oriented policing programs to reduce drug and crime problems (see Dunworth and Saiger, 1994; Gajewski, Green, and Weisburd, 1993; Weisel, 1990b).

Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, Vol. 20 No. 2, 1997, pp. 235-255.

United States. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency; United States. Federal Bureau Of Investigation; United States. Election Assistance Commission; United States. Department Of Homeland Security

From the document: "The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) prepared this overview to help partners defend against insider threat concerns that could materialize during the 2024 election cycle. For years, federal, state, local, and private sector partners nationwide have worked closely together to support state and local officials in safeguarding election infrastructure from cyber, physical, and insider threats. Because of these efforts, there is no evidence that malicious actors changed, altered, or deleted votes or had any impact on the outcome of elections. Over the past several years, the election infrastructure community has experienced multiple instances of election system access control compromises conducted by insider threats. While there is no evidence that malicious actors impacted election outcomes, it is important that election stakeholders at all levels are aware of the risks posed by insider threats and the steps that they can take to identify and mitigate these threats. This document outlines several recent examples of election security-related insider threats, discusses potential scenarios that could arise during the 2024 election cycle, and provides recommendations for how to mitigate the risk posed by insider threats."

United States. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency; , et al. 2024. 9p

By Brian D. Graves  and Michael Fendrich 

Introduction: For adults involved with the criminal justice system who are reentering their communities post-incarceration, there is a large need for community-based substance use treatment. Little is known, however, about the types, availability, and benefits of programs targeting the reentry population in community settings that operate independently from the criminal justice system. Methods: We conducted a scoping review of community-based treatment programs for substance use among reentering justice-involved adults to examine the contemporary state of literature and identify research gaps. We searched four databases for peer-reviewed articles conducted in the United States and published between 2017 and 2021. Results: The final sample included 58 articles. Interventions varied, but the two most prominent were medications for opioid use disorder (35%) and peer support or social support interventions (22.4%). Studies were more likely to show positive impact on substance use outcomes than criminal justice outcomes. Themes were identified around participant characteristics, treatment delivery, and treatment benefits. Conclusions: Findings from this scoping review suggest that the range of evidence-based strategies for substance use treatment targeting the reentry population is growing, but there is a need for additional research that examines implementation, cost effectiveness, and racial/ethnic disparities.

Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports, 2024. 14p.

NOWRASTEH, ALEX

From the document: "This policy analysis is an update and simplification of three previous Cato policy analyses on the same topic that were published in 2016, 2019, and 2023. It differs from the 2016 and 2019 editions because it does not include the total number of visas issued during the years analyzed, does not include a cost-benefit analysis of different immigration policies intended to reduce the threat of foreign-born terrorism, and it further differs from the 2019 version because it does not include native-born terrorists. The risks of foreign-born terrorists on US soil are quantified by evaluating how many people they murdered and injured in attacks, the ideologies of the attackers, the visas on which the foreign-born terrorists entered the country, their countries of origin, and the costs of their terrorist attacks."

CATO INSTITUTE. 9 APR, 2024. 28p.

UNITED STATES. SPACE FORCE

From the document: "The threats the United States faces from its strategic competitors have grown substantially. At the same time, the environment is being shaped by a rapidly growing commercial space sector, which is cultivating an ecosystem of innovation and reducing barriers to entry to deliver new, operationally relevant capabilities. This has extraordinary implications for global security and stability. The United States Space Force (USSF) will be more resilient and capable if it combines organic capabilities with the capabilities from other providers. Therefore, the USSF will integrate a mix of organic, allied, and commercial space solutions into hybrid architectures where the nation's space capabilities truly are greater than the sum of the parts. The USSF will leverage the commercial sector's innovative capabilities, scalable production, and rapid technology refresh rates to enhance the resilience of national security space architectures, strengthen deterrence, and support Combatant Commander objectives in times of peace, competition, crisis, conflict, and post-conflict."

UNITED STATES. DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE. 8 APR, 2024. 19p.

DELFORGE, DAMIEN; BELOW, REGINA; WATHELET, VALENTIN; LOENHOUT, JORIS VAN; SPEYBROECK, NIKO

From the document: "In 2023, the Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT) recorded a total of 399 disasters related to natural hazards. These events resulted in 86,473 fatalities and affected 93.1 million people. The economic losses amounted to US$202.7 billion. The 2023 earthquake in Türkiye and the Syrian Arab Republic was the most catastrophic event of the year in terms of mortality and economic damage, with 56,683 reported deaths and damage worth US$42.9 billion damage. This earthquake impacted an estimated 18 million people, a total for both countries, making it the second most impactful event in terms of affected individuals. The first was the 2023 Indonesian Drought, which affected 18.8 million people from June to September 2023. In the year under review there was a high level of disaster mortality, with a total of 86,473 deaths, exceeding the 20-year average of 64,148 deaths and the median value of 19,290 deaths for the same period, mainly due to the dramatic earthquake in Türkiye and Syria in February 2023, counting for two-thirds of the EM-DAT total deaths. The number of individuals affected by disasters, 93.1 million, is below the 2003-2022 annual average of 175.5 million."

CENTRE FOR RESEARCH ON THE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF DISASTERS; CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF LOUVAIN (1970- : FRENCH-SPEAKING); UNITED STATES. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 3 APR, 2024.

By Geoffrey Carney-Knisely , Marquianna Griffin , Alaxandria Crawford , Kamesha Spates and Parvati Singh

The suicide rate for Black youth has increased by 60% between 2007 and 2020. Direct or vicarious racial trauma experienced through exposure to police brutality may underlie these concerning trends.MethodsWe obtained nationally aggregated monthly counts of suicides for non-Hispanic Black and White youth (age ≤ 24 years) and adults (age > 24 years) from the National Mortality Vital Statistics restricted-use data files provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from 2013 to 2019. Monthly counts of Black youth suicides constituted our main outcome. We defined our exposure as the monthly counts of police killings of unarmed Black persons over 84 months (2013 to 2019), retrieved from the Mapping Police Violence database. We used ARIMA (AutoRegressive Integrated Moving Average) time-series analyses to examine whether Black youth suicides increased within 0 to 3 months following police killings of unarmed Black persons, controlling for autocorrelation and corresponding series of white youth suicides.ResultsSuicides among Black youth increase by ~1 count within three months following an increase in police killings of unarmed Black persons (coefficient=0.95,p<0.05), which approximates to about 267 suicides among Black youth over our study period. The observed increase in suicides concentrates among Black male youth.

Annals of Epidemiology. Volume 94, June 2024, Pages 91-99. June 2024.

By Christopher M. Sun, James R. “Chip” Coldren, Jr.Keri RichardsonEmma Wohl

Law enforcement agencies continue to develop new and innovative strategies to better support and police the communities they serve, from integrating gunshot detection technologies into dispatch systems to improve response times during shootings, to collaborating with local health and social service organizations to address issues such as homelessness or substance abuse in comprehensively ways. Over the past 10 years, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), in partnership with the CNA Institute for Public Research (IPR), has supported law enforcement agencies across the country in implementing innovative policing approaches through the Strategies for Policing Innovation Initiative (SPI, formerly the Smart Policing Initiative). SPI supports not only the development and implementation of innovative policing strategies, but also the research partnerships that result in in-depth analyses and rigorous evaluations of these strategies to advance what is known about effective and efficient policing practices. This report examines SPI’s accomplishments since its inception in 2009 and explores some of the major themes across SPI initiatives in both policing and policing research, including the following:

• Reductions in violent crime

• Improved crime analysis capabilities in police agencies

• Evolution of research partnerships with SPI sites

• Collaborative partnerships with agencies, organizations, and community stakeholders

• Integration of technology into policing

Arlington, VA: CNA, 2019. 20p.

By Anthony Morgan,  Timothy Cubitt,  Isabella Voce

• Using data from a large national survey of online Australians, we examined the presence of risk and protective factors for cognitive and behavioural radicalisation among individuals who participated in an anti-authority protest since early 2020.

• Anti-authority protesters exhibited more risk factors and fewer protective factors for cognitive and behavioural radicalisation than other respondents, including people who had protested in support of other issues or movements. They were also more likely to justify violence in support of their cause and willing to support or participate in violent or unlawful behaviour on behalf of their group.

• These findings show that people who participated in anti-authority protests were more vulnerable to radicalisation compared with other protestors and non-protestors. The results have implications for responding to protest movements that promote anti-government sentiment, that spread disinformation and that are exploited by malicious actors.

• AIC Research Report 31

Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology, 2024. 62p.

By Vicki Sentas, Louise Boon-Kuo  & Justin R. Ellis

The violent and contested overpolicing of LGBTQI+ communities at Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras has a long and visible history which has been amplified through intensified drug policing over the last two decades. This article scrutinises police practices during Sydney WorldPride events in February and March 2023, which included Mardi Gras events. It draws on a unique data set drawn from the NSW Police Force and an independent legal observer initiative, ‘Fair Play’, that provided support for policed people at WorldPride. We ask: What do police practices tell us about the exercise of police power over LGBTQI+ people at WorldPride? Our study found intensive and aggressive high-visibility policing characterised by invasive questioning and drug detection dog patrols, and humiliating and potentially unlawful searches. The impacts illustrate how policing criminalises and gatekeeps belonging to sexual and gender-diverse communities.

Current Issues in Criminal Justice, 1–17.2024.

By Loch K. Johnson

Recent years have seen numerous books about the looming threat posed to Western society by biological and chemical terrorism, by narcoterrorists, and by the unpredictable leaders of rogue nations. Some of these works have been alarmist. Some have been sensible and measured. But none has been by Loch Johnson.

Johnson, author of the acclaimed Secret Agencies and "an experienced overseer of intelligence" (Foreign Affairs), here examines the present state and future challenges of American strategic intelligence. Written in his trademark style--dubbed "highly readable" by Publishers Weekly--and drawing on dozens of personal interviews and contacts, Johnson takes advantage of his insider access to explore how America today aspires to achieve nothing less than "global transparency," ferreting out information on potential dangers in every corner of the world.

And yet the American security establishment, for all its formidable resources, technology, and networks, currently remains a loose federation of individual fortresses, rather than a well integrated "community" of agencies working together to provide the President with accurate information on foreign threats and opportunities. Intelligence failure, like the misidentified Chinese embassy in Belgrade accidentally bombed by a NATO pilot, is the inevitable outcome when the nation's thirteen secret agencies steadfastly resist the need for central coordination.

Ranging widely and boldly over such controversial topics as the intelligence role of the United Nations (which Johnson believes should be expanded) and whether assassination should be a part of America's foreign policy (an option he rejects for fear that the U.S. would then be cast not only as global policeman but also as global godfather), Loch K. Johnson here maps out a critical and prescriptive vision of the future of American intelligence.

New York; London: NYU Press, 2002. 298p.

By Luis A. Fernandez , Amory Starr and Christian Scholl

Recently, a wall was built in eastern Germany. Made of steel and cement blocks, topped with razor barbed wire, and reinforced with video monitors and movement sensors, this wall was not put up to protect a prison or a military base, but rather to guard a three-day meeting of the finance ministers of the Group of Eight (G8). The wall manifested a level of security that is increasingly commonplace at meetings regarding the global economy. The authors of Shutting Down the Streets have directly observed and participated in more than 20 mass actions against global in North America and Europe, beginning with the watershed 1999 WTO meetings in Seattle and including the 2007 G8 protests in Heiligendamm. Shutting Down the Streets is the first book to conceptualize the social control of dissent in the era of alter globalization. Based on direct observation of more than 20 global summits, the book demonstrates that social control is not only global, but also preemptive, and that it relegates dissent to the realm of criminality. The charge is insurrection, but the accused have no weapons. The authors document in detail how social control forecloses the spaces through which social movements nurture the development of dissent and effect disruptive challenges.

New York; London: NYU Press, 2011. 224p.

By Susan Dewey and Patty Kelly

Mónica waits in the Anti-Venereal Medical Service of the Zona Galactica, the legal, state-run brothel where she works in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Mexico. Surrounded by other sex workers, she clutches the Sanitary Control Cards that deem her registered with the city, disease-free, and able to work. On the other side of the world, Min stands singing karaoke with one of her regular clients, warily eyeing the door lest a raid by the anti-trafficking Public Security Bureau disrupt their evening by placing one or both of them in jail.

Whether in Mexico or China, sex work-related public policy varies considerably from one community to the next. A range of policies dictate what is permissible, many of them intending to keep sex workers themselves healthy and free from harm. Yet often, policies with particular goals end up having completely different consequences.

Policing Pleasure examines cross-cultural public policies related to sex work, bringing together ethnographic studies from around the world—from South Africa to India—to offer a nuanced critique of national and municipal approaches to regulating sex work. Contributors offer new theoretical and methodological perspectives that move beyond already well-established debates between “abolitionists” and “sex workers’ rights advocates” to document both the intention of public policies on sex work and their actual impact upon those who sell sex, those who buy sex, and public health more generally.

New York; London: NYU Press, 2011. 240p.

By William Garriott

In its steady march across the United States, methamphetamine has become, to quote former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, “the most dangerous drug in America.” As a result, there has been a concerted effort at the local level to root out the methamphetamine problem by identifying the people at its source—those known or suspected to be involved with methamphetamine. Government-sponsored anti-methamphetamine legislation has enhanced these local efforts, formally and informally encouraging rural residents to identify meth offenders in their communities.
Policing Methamphetamine shows what happens in everyday life—and to everyday life—when methamphetamine becomes an object of collective concern. Drawing on interviews with users, police officers, judges, and parents and friends of addicts in one West Virginia town, William Garriott finds that this overriding effort to confront the problem changed the character of the community as well as the role of law in creating and maintaining social order. Ultimately, this work addresses the impact of methamphetamine and, more generally, the war on drugs, on everyday life in the United States.

New York; London: NYU Press, 2011. 201p.

United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency

From the document: "Disaster recovery begins shortly after a disaster when survivors start to rebuild their community. The disaster recovery process creates opportunities for communities to rebuild thoughtfully, equitably, and resiliently. 'Achieving Equitable Recovery: A Post-Disaster Guide for Local Officials and Leaders' (hereafter the 'Guide') helps communities focus their efforts on forming relationships, holding conversations about equity, and prioritizing post-disaster recovery projects and resources that meet the needs of each community member. [...] This Guide identifies eight goals that organize actions to work towards achieving equitable recovery outcomes through an accessible, inclusive, and equitable recovery planning process. These goals are action-oriented to better provide local recovery officials with strategies for implementing focused and system-wide changes to the disaster recovery process."

United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency. 2023. 144p.

By Susan Olzak

An underlying premise of democratic politics is that protest can be an effective form of civic engagement that shapes policy changes desired by marginalized groups. But it is not certain that this premise holds up under scrutiny. This paper presents a three-part argument that protest (a) signals the salience of a movements’ focal issue and expands awareness that an issue is a social problem requiring a solution, (b) empowers residents in disadvantaged communities and raises a sense of community cohesion, which together (c) raise costs and exert pressure on elites to make concessions. The empirical analysis examines the likelihood that a city will establish a Civilian Review Board (CRB). It then compares the effects of protest and CRB presence on counts of officer-involved fatalities by race and ethnicity. Two main conjectures about the effect of protest are supported: Cities with more protest against police brutality are significantly more likely to establish a CRB, and protest against police brutality reduces officer-involved fatalities for African Americans and Latinos (but not for Whites). But the establishment of CRBs does not reduce fatalities, as some have hoped. Nonetheless, mobilizing against police brutality matters, even in the absence of civilian review boards.

American Sociological Review. 86(6): 2021.

By Statistics Canada

Having a high level of confidence in the Federal Parliament, the justice system and courts, the police, and the Canadian media can be seen as a vital measure for assessing the health of democracy in Canada. Confidence in these institutions reflects the sense that they are safe, effective, transparent and accountable.

From October 2022 to January 2023, about two-thirds (67%) of Canadians reported having a high level of confidence in the police. This was a greater proportion than other institutions, such as the justice system and courts (51%), the Federal Parliament (36%) and the Canadian media (33%).

In the context of increased diversity and immigration being the main driver of population growth in Canada, it is relevant to investigate if different groups of the population share these views similarly.

Using preliminary data from the Survey Series on People and their Communities, this report examines whether racialized and non-racialized, non-Indigenous people in Canada have differing levels of confidence in public institutions, which is a key indicator of Canada's Quality of Life Framework.

Southeast Asian, Black and Japanese people are less likely to report confidence in police

Previous surveys have shown that Black Canadians report lower levels of confidence in police than non-Indigenous and non-racialized people. Along the same lines, this survey reported that Southeast Asian (63%), Black (52%) and Japanese (47%) people in Canada were less likely to have confidence in the police, compared with those who did not belong to a racialized group and were not Indigenous (69%). Some subgroups had notably lower confidence in the police, like Southeast Asian (45%) and Black (32%) people who were born in Canada.

Most racialized groups report higher levels of confidence in the justice system and courts than non-racialized, non-Indigenous people

By contrast, some racialized groups were more likely to be confident in the justice system and courts. Compared with their non-racialized, non-Indigenous counterparts (49%), racialized groups—such as South Asian, Chinese, Filipino, Arab, Latin American, Southeast Asian, West Asian and Korean people in Canada—were more likely to have confidence in the justice system and courts (ranging from 58% to 69%; Table 1). However, Japanese people in Canada (36%) were less likely to be confident in this institution. Recent South Asian, Chinese, Filipino, Arab and Southeast Asian immigrants reported particularly high confidence (Tables 2 and 3).

Similar patterns were found for levels of confidence in the Federal Parliament and the Canadian media. Japanese people in Canada were less likely to be confident in the Federal Parliament (24%) and the Canadian media (21%) than their non-racialized, non-Indigenous counterparts (31% for both institutions). However, South Asian, Chinese, Black, Filipino, Latin American, Southeast Asian, West Asian and Korean people in Canada were more likely to have confidence in the Federal Parliament (ranging from 44% to 58%; Table 1) and the Canadian media (ranging from 35% to 45%; Table 1).

Among most racialized groups, recent immigrants had a substantially higher level of confidence in the media and the Federal Parliament. For example, among South Asian people, 25% of those born in Canada had confidence in the Canadian media, compared with 57% of recent immigrants (Table 2, 3).

This report identified that the intersection between racialized groups and immigrant status was associated with confidence in all four institutions. Future research using the Survey Series on People and their Communities will be useful for tracking relevant indicators in the Quality of Life Framework among racialized groups as well as immigrants in Canada.

Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 2022. 5p.

By Laura Connelly, Roxy Legane, and Remi Joseph

The number of school-based police officers (SBPOs) across Greater Manchester is significantly increasing with at least 20 more officers being introduced for the 2020/2021 academic year. This is happening without due consultation with parents, teachers, young people, or wider communities. In response, this report explores the views and experiences of people who live and work in Greater Manchester in relation to police in schools. Drawing upon the survey responses of 554 people – including young people, teachers, parents, and community members – this report is by far the most comprehensive of its kind in the UK. Key Statistics 95% of respondents reported that they have not been consulted on the plans for more police in Greater Manchester schools. Almost 9 out of 10 respondents reported feeling negative about a regular police presence, with 7 out of 10 of these respondents very negative. Almost 2 in 5 young people who responded to the survey attend or have attended a school with a ‘regular police presence’. Almost 3 in 4 parents or guardians stated that they would have concerns about sending their children to a school with a regular police presence. Exacerbating Existing Inequalities SBPOs are disproportionately placed in schools with a high proportion of working class students and young people of colour. This was a major concern for survey respondents who believe that this will exacerbate existing inequalities. Responses from young people who attend schools in Greater Manchester with a regular police presence suggest that officers act in ways that discriminate against students of colour, and particularly Black students. As well as Black and Asian and/or working class students, concerns were also raised about the negative impact that police in schools can have on disabled students; LGBTQ+ students; Muslim students; Gypsy, Roma and Traveller students; and women/girls. Stigmatising Schools A broad cross-section of respondents – including teachers, young people, parents/guardians, and community members – felt that a regular police presence would lead to the stigmatisation of a school. Seventy percent of young people said that schools with a regular police presence would be viewed more negatively by society than those without. Only 8% said that they wouldn’t. etc.

Manchester, UK: Kids of Colour and Northern Police Monitoring Project, 2020. 55p.

Contributor(s): National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education; Committee on National Statistics; Katrina Baum Stone, Rapporteur

From April 25-26, 2023 the Committee on National Statistics of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop to identify challenges in and opportunities for measuring suicide in the law enforcement occupation. Experts in the field met to identify ways to improve the measurement of suicide by current and former police and corrections officers, dispatchers, and other sworn and civilian personnel, in public and private organizations. This proceedings provides a synthesis of key themes identified during the workshop.

Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. 2023. 126p.

United States. National Aeronautics And Space Administration

From the document: "Recently, many credible witnesses, often military aviators, have reported seeing objects they did not recognize over U.S. airspace. Most of these events have since been explained, but a small handful cannot be immediately identified as known human-made or natural phenomena. These events are now collectively referred to as Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, or UAP [Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena]. A vital part of NASA's mission is exploring the unknown using the rigorous process of the scientific method. This means scrutinizing our assumptions and intuition; transparently and diligently collecting data; reproducing results; seeking independent evaluation; and finally, reaching a scientific consensus about the nature of an occurrence. The scientific method challenges us to solve problems by impartially evaluating our own ideas, by being willing to be wrong, and by following the data. [...] This report offers a vision of how NASA could contribute to understanding the phenomena and how the agency's approach will complement the whole-of-government effort to understand UAP."

Washington. D.C. United States. National Aeronautics And Space Administration 2023. 36p.