Police

Prison Cigarettes

Oh, Onion… how do you manage to keep being so funny? All joking aside, the price for a singlecigarette inside Rikers (last I heard) is $20. This black market was created, of course, after smoking was “banned.” Most of the supply comes from C.O.s. Hell, for hundreds of dollar profit per pack? I might, too.

Police

Does Torture Work?

Two questions: 1) Does torture work? See FBI agent Ali Soufan’s column in the New York Times. 2) Does it matter if it works?

Police

$100 for taking out the trash

I got fined $100 for putting my trash out too early. And not all the trash. Just the recyclable cans and bottles. I thought I was doing the can-pickers a favor by giving them a few more hours of daylight to pick out can and bottles for the 5-cent deposit. I got the ticket at 3:30pm. They shouldn’t go out…

Continue Reading

Police

A bunch of old potheads?

Eight-term Iowa Republican Congressman Tom Latham is asked about LEAP, a group of former law enforcement agents who support drug legalization. He responds, “They’re probably a bunch of old potheads.” Don’t like the message? Disparage the messenger. That’s what they call an ad hominem attack. Maybe he should get to know us. Of well, you know what they say: any…

Continue Reading

Police

Arizona v. Gant

The court just ruled that police can no longer search a car incident to arrest… assuming the car isn’t within reach of the arrested person and there is no reason to suspect that the car contains evidence related to the arrest. Since New York v. Belton(1981), police have assumed that they can search a car any time the driver is…

Continue Reading

Police

Do liberals laugh?

Almost a decade ago a colleague told me “You’re the first liberal I’ve met with a sense of humor.” Granted he didn’t have too many liberal friends. But that’s not the point. Liberals have a sense of humor. Most of the great comedians are liberals. Many if not most of the world’s great jokes have their origins in liberal Jewish…

Continue Reading

Police

Police Officer Jokes About Murder Victim

That’s just about as exciting a headline as “dog bites man.” I joked about murder victims. Of course you joke about murder victims. I mean, you do try and wait till you’re away from from the murder scene before joking about murder victims (though I didn’t even always pass that test). So after work — after seeing another person take…

Continue Reading