Articles

Examining Financial Fraud Against Older Adults

Written by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), this article presents findings from a nationally representative sample of persons age 60 or older who experienced personal financial fraud. The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) Supplemental Fraud Survey (SFS) aims to address the need for nationally representative estimates of fraud, both reported and not reported to the police. In addition, the SFS reveals that the demographic profile of financial fraud victims age 60 or older differs from the profile of fraud…


Trigger Control Is Not the Answer

Michael T. Rayburn Many firearms instructors incorrectly state that the primary issue for the majority of shooters is “trigger control.” Now, I’d like to pose a straightforward question to you. Although it may be somewhat lengthy, it remains a simple and direct contradiction. Imagine this scenario: I take your handgun and line it up on target on the range – physically line the gun up so that, when you pull the trigger, the bullet will go straight into the target,…


The Best and Worst States to Be a Police Officer in 2024

With the median annual salary for a police officer reaching over $69,000, the personal finance Web site WalletHub recently released its report, “Best & Worst States to Be a Police Officer in 2024,” as well as expert commentary, to help identify where this career is the most worthwhile. WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 30 key metrics. The data set ranges from the median income for law enforcement officers to police deaths per 1,000 officers…


Busted! Real Stories of Genuine Absurdity May/June 2024

James L. McClinton, Ph.D. A pooch pirate…better than a cat burglar… A doorbell camera captured the moment when a Tennessee homeowner’s package was stolen from their front porch. A woman in Tennessee who was waiting for an Amazon delivery learned that the package she ordered was taken by an unexpected porch pirate. The homeowner received an E-mail notice from Amazon stating that one of her packages had been delivered. She then reviewed her doorbell app which showed the thief committing…


… AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH May/June 2024

Ramesh Nyberg A Hungry Dog Hunts Best The book my generation learned to read in the first grade went something like this: “This is Spot. See Spot run. Run, Spot, run!” Then, there would be a big picture of the dog and the question, “Do you see Spot?” The “book” is quite different now. It is compacted into an invisible computer code which goes, “Run, Spot! Now, go into the building with this geolocator, Spot. Once inside, send us back…


Critical Incident Review: Active Shooter at Robb Elementary School

On Thursday, January 18, 2024, the Department of Justice, through the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), released a report on its critical incident review of the law enforcement response to the tragic school shooting at Robb Elementary School. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced the review shortly after the tragedy on May 24, 2022, in which 19 children and two teachers died at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The report provides a thorough description of the critical…


Considerations for Specialized Units: A Guide for State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies to Ensure Appropriateness, Effectiveness, and Accountability

Throughout 2023, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) and the National Policing Institute (NPI) convened a series of meetings to discuss specialized units in state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies and create guidance for those agencies’ leadership to consider when forming, managing and disbanding such units. This report includes sections on identifying the need for a specialized unit; selecting the unit’s membership and leadership; managing the unit; establishing its policies, procedures, and end date; holding the unit…


2024 Law Enforcement Resource Guide

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the 2024 Law Enforcement Resource Guide for state, local, tribal, territorial, and campus law enforcement partners. This resource guide, updated annually, highlights the most up-to-date training and resources DHS provides to support law enforcement. Download a copy of the resource guide (PDF)


Legal Update March/April 2024

Larry E. Holtz, Esq. Concealed Carry for Retired Law Enforcement Officers In Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association vs. Attorney General New Jersey (No. 22-2209; 2-14-2024), retired law enforcement officers from various agencies brought an action claiming that a federal statute, the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA), 18 U.S.C. § 925C, gives them a federal right to carry concealed firearms anywhere in the United States, including their home state of New Jersey. The Third Circuit agreed, holding that “thefederal statute…


Busted! Real Stories of Genuine Absurdity March/April 2024

James L. McClinton, Ph.D. Gone in 60 seconds… A trio of armed and masked criminals in Commerce City, Colorado, recently robbed a check-cashing service. Unfortunately, the armed robbery went awry when the three pathetic perpetrators emerged from the scene of the crime with cash in hand, only to discover that someone had stolen their getaway car while they were inside robbing the business. Interestingly, police suspect their getaway car “may have already been stolen” from someone else. No one was…