10 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: SEPTEMBER 2017 NATIONWIDE What’s up in law enforcement across the U.S.A. THETOPTEN New rules In Minneapolis police officers have been ordered to turn on their body cameras when responding to any call, traffic stop or self-initiated activity. The announcement was made by acting Police Chief Medaria Arradondo recently following Justine Damond’s shooting death. “We are not passing judgment on a single officer, nor are we looking at a single event; we are responding to our communi- ties and to recent ongoing assessment,” Arradondo told reporters. “This policy enhancement has been in process for a few months now and many officers are using their cameras a lot and as they’re intended to be used. But there are some officers who are not using them nearly enough.” Child pornography In California, the deputy attorney general has been charged with possessing child pornography after a months-long investigation by multiple law enforce- ment agencies. Raymond Liddy, 53, was arrested at his residence in Coronado, California. Liddy stands accused of owning images that appeared to depict minors under age 12 engaging in sexual acts, court records showed. The San Diego Union-Tribune, which first reported the case, said Liddy pleaded not guilty in federal court for the Southern District of California, and that he was placed on administra- tive leave by the attorney general’s office. Court records showed Judge Jan Adler released Liddy on a $100,000 bond and sentenced him to house arrest. Tough on crime In Virginia, a jury has sentenced Jason Brooks to 132 years for repeatedly stealing tires and rims in Virginia’s Loudoun County. Brooks is suspected of similar crimes in other states as well. He reportedly faces similar charges in Maryland and New Jersey. According to Wikipedia, Loudoun County’s median household income was $117,876 in 2012. Brooks was found guilty of “six counts of grand larceny, six counts of larceny with intent to sell, three counts of destruction of property and three counts of tamper- ing with an automobile.” The jury recommended he receive a sentence of “132 years in prison, 63 months in jail and ordered to pay $6,000 in fines.” Tape tales In Baltimore, 34 criminal cases have been dis- missed after an investigation into the alleged planting of evidence by a Baltimore City police officer. More convictions could be at risk. At least 123 cases are being reviewed by prosecutors in light of controversial police body camera footage that appears to show officers planting evidence. The officer wearing the camera in the video that went viral has been suspended and two other officers heard and seen in the video have been placed on administrative duty. Are you ready for some football? Oxnard, California Chief of Police Scott Whitney attends opening ceremonies with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on the first day of training camp recently in Oxnard, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) 1. It’s not the injuries that will kill you – you’re far more likely to bleed out in the meat wagon in stand- still traffic where pedestrians have the right of way – and it’s all 90-degree angles. 2. If you buy an iced tea, a pack of cigarettes and take the subway once, that will run you about $24. 3. There are open-air drug markets next to hotels that book rooms at $4,300 per night. 4. If you’ve got the money, you can get literally whatever you want delivered. 5. The average temperature of a Manhattan side- walk in July is 159 degrees Fahrenheit. 6. If you’ve got a problem with gay people you might want to avoid Chelsea altogether. 7. There are some restaurants that are so exclusive you have to make reservations six to four months in advance, and you still might not get a table. 8. The city is a bright neon sign that flashes “Income Inequality.” 9. New York City has more people than 39 of the 50 states in the U.S. 10. Cost of a one-year hot dog stand permit in Cen- tral Park: over $289,000. things you learn living in NYC So called “pit maneuvers” are on the way out in Ne- braska. Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner says he was trained to end high- speed chases by bumping a fleeing car causing it to spin out. But according to a recent article from the Star Herald, Wagner’s agency, like near- ly all others in Nebraska, has dumped the technique out of safety concerns. More agencies are weigh- ing the costs and benefits of dangerous pursuits due to the threat they pose to po- lice and the public alike. These days, agencies often use spike strips to stop vehicles or are using helicopters or airplanes to track fleeing vehicles to a location where officers can make an arrest. “There are other tech- niques and tools now,” Wagner said. “Things have changed in the pursuit world — the public is less tolerant of third parties be- ing injured.” Oddly enough, only the Nebraska State Patrol still formally allows officers to engage in “pursuit interven- tion techniques,” or PIT. However, both the Iowa and South Dakota High- way Patrols employ the practice, as do the police forces in Council Bluffs and Rapid City, South Da- kota. As is almost always the case with restrictions on past patterns and prac- tices, some wonder about the commonly referenced hypothetical of the fleeing murder suspect. Pit maneuvers on the way out?