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Silicon Valley Drunks

By Kent Scheidegger et al.

An important aspect of "broken windows" policing is the enforcement of public order laws, such as the prohibition of public drunkenness. It appears that San Jose is about to take a step backward. Sean Webby has this story in the S.J. Mercury-News. "City officials agreed Tuesday to explore ways to cut back the San Jose Police Department's aggressive use of the public-drunkenness law, following a public hearing at which hundreds of residents turned out to protest city policy." Why, one might ask. Well, it seems we have "activists" at work, playing that good old reliable race card. "During the hearing, about 50 residents spoke out against the city's aggressive policy, which led to 4,661 arrests by the department last year ? 57 percent of them Hispanics...continue to full post

Full post as published by Crime and Consequences on November 24, 2008 (boomark / email).