Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: SEPTEMBER 2016 33 At this event cops and reporters outnumbered protestors 5 to 1. A demonstrator is taken into custody by police after climbing over a barricade near the AT&T Station in Philadelphia, during the first day of the Democratic National Convention. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum) T he problem with “big data” is that the numbers are put into the ma- chines by human beings. That’s why you’ll find such huge disparities between the numbers reported to the Bu- reau of Justice Statistics and other places. In Pittsburg, California there is some controversy over recent crime report- ing. According to a two-month investigation by the Contra Costa District Attorney and Sheriff’s offices, Pittsburg PD failed to report more than 100 crimes in 2015. Those crimes were reclas- sified as “suspicious circum- stances.” The impact of the reclas- sifications is relatively minor and would not move the needle far on “official” local crime rates. “Our recommendation would be to provide updated crime report training to your personnel, and to construct new report writing policies and procedures that reflect current industry standards,” concluded the report, signed by District Attorney Mark Peterson and Sheriff David Livingston. But the fact that discrepan- cies are so small (between numbers reported to FBI and other sources) is the proof that the agency isn’t cooking the books according to the same report. “This fact clearly under- mines the allegation that the police department deliber- ately falsified or misclassified crimes,” the report said. “The fact that nearly all of the face sheets of the reports actually listed the correct crimes also undermines the allegation of intentional de- ception.” A whistleblower and his lawyer disagree. The attorney for former Lt. Wade Derby, who filed a wrongful-termination claim against the city, says his cli- ent is standing by allegations that the city has engaged in a longtime practice of delib- erately falsifying its crime numbers through multiple means. “2015 is a stunning failure by Pittsburg police because by that year they were on notice that Wade would go public with this, and they tried to clean it up,” Dan Horowitz, who represents Derby, told reporters with the East Bay Times. Crimes are in the eyes of the beholder You can have data without information, but you cannot have information without data. – Daniel Keys Moran We at Boston Leather support those who serve. Let us serve you with only the best quality leather products. HANDCUFF CASES | BADGE HOLDERS | RADIO HOLDERS CHEMICAL HOLDERS | BELTS | HOLSTERS | K9 ACCESSORIES P: (800) 733-1492 | F: (800) 856-1650 | 1801 Eastwood Dr. Sterling, IL 61081 Visit Us Online To Find A Dealer Near You | www.bostonleather.com Fine Leather Belts and Accessories ERVWRQ CRAFTED WITH PRIDE IN THE USA BATON HOLDERS BELT KEEPERS CHEMICAL HOLDERS FLASHLIGHT HOLDERS HANDCUFF CASES KEY HOLDERS MAG POUCHES RADIO HOLDERS SHOULDER MIC STRAPS