Resources

The Field Scan served several goals: first, to review where Connecticut stands in its efforts to end mass incarceration; second, to understand how the Connecticut criminal justice field perceived progress in our state comparatively to states across the nation; third, increase understanding of the range of groups, coalitions, and networks currently working to end mass incarceration in Connecticut . Finally, to bring together a wide range of voices.

As the costs of police misconduct rise, cities and counties across the United States are going into debt to pay for it. Often this debt is in the form of bond borrowing. When cities or counties issue bonds to pay these costs, banks and other firms collect fees for the services they provide, and investors collect interest. The use of bonds to pay for settlements and judgments greatly increases the burden of policing costs on taxpayers, while producing a profit for banks and investors. Using bonds to pay for settlements or judgments can nearly double the costs of the original settlement. All of this is paid for by taxpayers.

A report by JusticeLA, Center for Popular Democracy, and Law 4 Black Lives on policing and punishment budgets in LA county and recommendations for change.

The key policy points of a city ordinance passed in 2017 on how police should function and how to hold them accountable.

A report from the NYC Community Service Society on gentrification and 311 and law enforcement calls.

The Vera Institute of Justice’s Policing Program is partnering with stakeholders in Camden County, NJ and Tucson, AZ on an exploratory study that defines the landscape of 911 calls for service, how they are processed, what outcomes they produce, and what alternatives might exist. The goal of the project is to produce recommendations that will serve as a model for police departments and communications centers around the county.

A collection of reports from the Alternatives to Arrest initiative, including the role of research in policy change, creating a fairer pretrial system, targeting fines and fees, and disrupting the cycle of mental illness, substance use, and incarceration.

The NYU Policing Project has set out on a two phase project around cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of policing. Phase I involved bringing together talented academics from a variety of fields and disciplines to discuss the challenges of using CBA to assess policing practices. In Phase II, teams of academics will work with policing agencies to do preliminary CBAs around specific policing practices. This is the report of the first phase.

Policing Project of NYU Director Barry Friedman speaks with MuckRock regarding the move by safety tech company Axon to shift its production focus from its Taser stun guns to providing increased artificial intelligence services for police departments around the country.