Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Ferguson Update

The city manager of Ferguson, Mo., has resigned in the wake of a critical Justice Department report on the behavior of local police. The city’s municipal court has also been canceled for a week, with all cases being transferred to a state judge.

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On Monday, state Judge Roy L. Richter was reassigned by the Missouri Supreme Court to take over all pending and future municipal cases from Ferguson. The high court said the move was intended “to help restore public trust and confidence,” adding that Richter would be authorized to implement any reforms needed to “ensure that the rights of defendants are respected and to help restore the integrity of the system.”

Richter won’t actually take over the city’s caseload until March 19, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, but he will remain in place until the state Supreme Court reverses its decision.

  RT
Has anybody done a study to see if the state of Missouri is any better at this than the City of Ferguson?

Meanwhile, after Madison police shooting:
Madison police have already been receiving racial sensitivity training, Chief Koval told the Wisconsin State Journal. However, though the city enjoys the reputation of a liberal haven with progressive politics, statistics indicate substantial disparities between whites and blacks on every level, from poverty and unemployment to arrest rates.

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According to 2011-2012 arrest statistics reported by USA Today, Madison actually had worse racial disparity in arrests than Ferguson, Missouri.

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“There is no question that the system is kinder and gentler” to middle-class white youths, Madison Mayor Paul Soglin told RT's Manuel Rapalo. Soglin added that the city is experimenting with ways to keep young African-Americans out of the criminal justice system, by working with a municipal judge and setting up a “peer court” in one of the districts.

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“Reconciliation cannot begin without my stating ‘I am sorry,’ and I don't think I can say this enough. I am sorry,” wrote Madison Police Chief Michael Koval on his official blog.

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On Tuesday evening, however, a cyber attack crippled city and county computers in Madison, with the hacker collective Anonymous claiming responsibility.

  RT

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