WASHINGTON, D.C. — Youth advocate Kawana Billy nearly jumped out of her chair listening to the way a white D.C. Council member described Black youth in Washington. To him, they were “dangerous” and “radioactive,” and at one point, he alleged young people carry guns and scare residents. “It’s very interesting how folks are using these […]
Policing
Posted inClimate Change, Criminal Justice, Economic Development, Environmental Justice, Policing, Politics & Policy
Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ Makes a Black Neighborhood a Testing Lab for AI Policing
This story was published in partnership with Counterstream Media for The AI issue of Peace & Riot. ATLANTA — When he drives through his neighborhood now, Brian Page passes rows of police cars and AI‑powered cameras that track nearly every movement. For most of his life, Page, who goes by “Scapegoat Jones,” felt safest in […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Da’Quain Johnson’s Family Disputes Police Account of Fatal Michigan Shooting
Angelica Johnson is forced to recount the images and sounds of her son, Da’Quain Johnson, being attacked by a police K-9 dog and being shot three times by police last month. “As it was livestreaming, my granddaughter was calling me to tell me that the dog was attacking him, and before I could find out […]
Posted inPolicing, Politics & Policy
ICE Shooting After Takeover of Minneapolis Renews Debate on Qualified Immunity
Minneapolis entered January with unusually mild weather and a sense of calm, but that was shattered two days later when a federal immigration officer shot and killed Renee Nicole Good. Less than 24 hours later, a man and woman in Portland, Oregon, were shot and wounded by Customs and Border Protection agents. As immigration crackdowns […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Delrawn Small’s Family Still Seeks Accountability 9 Years After NYPD Killing
BROOKLYN, New York — In a neighborhood just miles from where his father was shot and killed by an off-duty police officer nine years ago, Zaiden Small sat on a couch, kicking and dangling his feet as he listened to stories about a man he never knew. He was a protector, a provider, and a […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
5 Years After Casey Goodson’s Death in Ohio, His Family Faces a New Legal Hurdle
This month, an Ohio family will gather for their fifth holiday season without Casey Goodson. The 23-year-old was fatally shot by a sheriff’s deputy while trying to enter his home on Dec. 4, 2020, in Columbus in Franklin County. He was holding keys to the front door in one hand and a bag of Subway […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Officer Found Not Guilty in Killing of Pregnant Black Mother Ta’Kiya Young
The Ohio police officer who shot and killed Ta’Kiya Young was acquitted Friday on all counts, including murder. Young was an excited mom of two little boys, and pregnant with her first daughter, when she encountered Connor Grubb at a Kroger supermarket parking lot on Aug. 24, 2023. She was accused of shoplifting by a […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Former Deputy Convicted in Killing of Sonya Massey After 15-Month Wait for Justice
An Illinois jury on Wednesday convicted a former sheriff’s deputy of second-degree murder in the death of Sonya Massey, who was shot inside her apartment last year after moving a pot of hot water into a sink. The 36-year-old mother of two called the police for help. She was shot dead on her kitchen floor. […]
Posted inPolicing, Politics & Policy
The History of National Guard Deployments in Black Cities, and Why D.C. Is Different
Omar Wasow was studying race and politics at Stanford University when on April 29, 1992, a jury acquitted the police officers who beat Rodney King of almost all charges. For nearly a week, Los Angeles was on fire, as people raged against a verdict they viewed as unjust. Within a day of the decision, President […]
Posted inPolicing, Politics & Policy
What Federal Control of D.C. Police Could Mean for Overpolicing in Black Communities
Once known as “Chocolate City” for its historically large Black population, Washington remains under partial federal control. The federal takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department under President Donald Trump marks the first time a commander-in-chief has seized control. Some 800 National Guard members were deployed to the city last week. Additionally, six Republican-led states — […]