Public Safety & Justice Update 11/22/22

So far this year there have been more than 600 mass shootings — defined as a shooting when four or more people die or are injured in a single incident — in the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA)...

Anderson Lee Aldrich was arrested and charged with murder and hate crimes for the murder of five people and wounding of 18 others inside a Colorado Spring’s LGBTQ club on 11/19…

The Colorado LGBTQ nightclub shooting by a suspected gunman who was arrested last year in connection with a bomb threat has renewed questions about "red flag" laws that are used irregularly across the U.S…

Christopher Jones Jr. is accused of shooting University of Virginia football players, killing three and injuring two others, on a bus that had returned from a field trip Sunday, 11/13…

Threat assessment has become an increasingly vital task during the past two decades at colleges and universities across the country…

Mental health professionals are riding along with officers to deal with the rise in mental health cases, but some critics question how safe this is…

Los Angeles police had been trained for decades in pretextual stops: Pull over a driver for a minor infraction such as broken taillight, use something vaguely suspicious — a shaking hand, a whiff of pot — to justify a search, hope to find drugs or weapons…

Police have killed more than 1,000 Americans this year – more than any other point in the past decade, according to recent data from Mapping Police Violence…

A panel of three appeals court judges appeared skeptical Tuesday, 11/22, that the federal government violated former president Donald Trump’s rights when it searched Mar-a-Lago in August, questioning whether a lower court judge erred in appointing an outside expert to review documents seized from the property…

The families of nine people killed last year by a coworker at a Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) rail yard will receive $8 million to settle damage claims filed last November, officials said…

Weekly Update 11/21/22

Coronavirus

Two new studies offer compelling views into how two basic mitigation measures— vaccination and masking — could keep students and their families dramatically safer if a winter surge materializes…

California

California could expand the use of controlled burns in the wilderness to reduce the danger from larger, more destructive wildfires, the non-partisan Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) said last week…

California not long ago was reveling in a record budget surplus…

Gov. Newsom has agreed to restore local homelessness funding that he recently pulled back — but only if municipal leaders set more aggressive goals for mitigating one of California’s most pressing crises…

President and Administration

Children’s health groups are asking the Biden administration to declare a public health emergency over surging hospitalizations from RSV and the flu and the continuing mental health crisis…

November has been designated as the National Family Caregivers Month to recognize and honor family caregivers across the nation…

Suicide rates have declined in recent years among white Americans, while rates among Black and Hispanic Americans have risen, according to new data released by the CDC on Wednesday, 11/16…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released the National Guidelines for Child and Youth Behavioral Health Crisis Care…

Drug overdose deaths have declined in the U.S. for three consecutive months, according to provisional data released Wednesday, 11/16, by the CDC…

The Biden administration has begun notifying millions of federal student loan borrowers it had approved their applications for debt relief — even as the program remains in legal limbo…

Congress

One of Congress’s main responsibilities is to allocate funding for the federal government’s services and programs, such as Social Security, the military and scientific research…

As the GOP prepares to take the House, top Senate Democrats are desperately proclaiming that the post-election session is the best…

House Armed Services Chair Adam Smith (D-WA) and ranking member Mike Rogers (R-AL) predicted a final version of the National Defense Authorization Act could be ready for a vote as early as the first week of December…

The Senate took yet another step forward on Thursday, 11/17, to making the right to same-sex marriage the law of the land…

 Education

 The application period for the White House Internship Program’s Summer 2023 session is now open…

 A record 1,835 colleges will conduct admissions this year without considering test scores, according to the National Center for Fair & Open Testing…

On Thursday, 11/15, the Common Application released its first information on the totals for fall 2023…

There were 174 Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) in California as of the 2020-21 school year, more than in any other state…

A new report offers guidance to community college leaders seeking to re-enroll adult learners who earned academic credits but left college without a degree or credential…

New data show enrollment in California community colleges is at its lowest point in 30 years, the Los Angeles Times reported…

Teachers were far more likely than other workers to experience anxiety during the first year of the pandemic, a newly released study has found…

In the earliest weeks of the pandemic, researchers predicted that school closures would lead to lower math and reading scores and that the already broad range of academic levels within classrooms would yawn wider…

Education Department Undersecretary James Kvaal said in a court filing that “there could be an historically large increase,” in student loan default rates if the president’s student loan relief program gets blocked…

 The best lever to accelerate learning in America is to use the science of how children learn to read, comprehensively outlined by the National Reading Panel more than 20 years ago, in the year 2000…

 An estimated one out of every five requests for substitute teachers typically went unfilled pre-pandemic…

On Monday, 11/14, the Department of Education announced the launch of Raise the Bar: Unlocking Career Success…

Weekly Update 11/14/22

Election Updates

The House of Representatives still has a number of seats to be officially called…

Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) is holding a lead of less…

Rep. Mike Levin (D-CA) is beating Republican Brian Maryott…

Rep Young Kim’s (R-CA) race in CA-40 was called…

Reps. Michelle Steel (R-CA) in CA-45…

Rep. Lou Correa’s (D-CA) race in CA-46…

Rep. John Garamendi’s (D-CA) race in CA-8 was called…

Rep. Mike Thompson’s (D-CA) race in CA-4 was called…

Rep. Eric Swalwell’s (D-CA) race in CA-14 was called…

Rep. Jim Costa (D-CA) is beating Republican challenger…

Rep. Josh Harder (D-CA) is beating Republican challenger…

Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) race in CA-20 was called…

Sen. Alex Padilla’s (D-CA) race has been called…

Coronavirus

COVID-19 at any level of severity is linked to an increased risk of dangerous blood clots…

The CDC estimates there were roughly 26 million cases of COVID-19 among people under 18 during the first 20 months of the pandemic…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday, 11/4, that the U.S. is experiencing the highest hospitalization rates for influenza…

Pfizer-BioNTech said Friday, 11/4, that their updated COVID-19 booster substantially increased protection against the virus compared to previous iterations of the vaccine…

California

California voters said yes to abortion rights, increasing funding for the arts in public schools and to a ban on flavored tobacco…

Earning college credit in high school can be a powerful tool for exposing students to universities and helping them get a leg up on tuition and earning a degree…

California filed suit Thursday, 11/10, against makers of a class of chemical compounds used in many consumer products that don't break down in the environment and are believed to pose a long-term health risk…

Wells are running dry in California at a record pace…

Gov. Gavin Newsom has issued a blanket rejection of local California governments’ plans to curb homelessness, putting on hold hundreds of millions of dollars in aid…

Poverty fell in California during the COVID-19 pandemic, recent data shows, largely due to state and national safety net programs, especially the expansion of federal child tax credits…

California lawmakers have approved a proposal for children who qualify for Medicaid to enroll at birth and stay enrolled until age five, starting in 2025, pending federal approval…

President and Administration

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas reiterated on 11/1 that his agency is working with other federal departments, local groups and even gaming companies to build out a renewed response to school safety…

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), released a new report…

More than three million middle and high school students have used a tobacco product in the past month…

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released a new report on Thursday…

McKinsey analysts project nearly $20 billion in federal pandemic relief funds for K-12 schools might not get spent by a 2024 deadline unless the money is spent faster, based on spending projections and a survey of 260 administrators conducted last year…

Congress

In a discussion draft released 11/10, the Senate Finance Committee laid out new ideas for Congress to address mental health…

Education

Nearly 26 million Americans have applied for relief under the student loan forgiveness plan, with 16 million applications approved…

New data indicate that online schools have had a staying power beyond the pandemic that few observers suspected…

Overall foreign student enrollment at U.S. institutions saw a four percent boost during the 2021-2022 school year, up from the severe decline during the 2020-2021 school year, according to a new report from the Institute of International Education…

The Education Department is moving forward to carry out some parts of the FAFSA Simplification Act before unveiling a simplified Free Application for Federal Student Aid next fall…

SUNY Westchester Community College and MDRC, a social policy research organization, released the results of a new study Thursday, 11/3, which found that students in the college’s student support program enrolled full-time at higher rates and accumulated more credits than their peers…

A new report examining peer mental health supports on college campuses found that such programs are popular and useful, though they also raise some concerns…

The U.S. Department of Justice Community Relations Service (CRS) provides services to communities to respond to community tension and allegations of bias and hate incidents…

The expiration of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, likely to occur in January, will create significant complexity for schools that provide telehealth services to students…

The Education Department this morning is releasing new guidance that encourages schools and colleges to use unspent COVID-19 relief money to expand various career options for students…

Public Safety & Justice Update 11/10/22

The Smart Policing Initiative (SPI), in partnership with the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), recently released its Blueprint for Law Enforcement Recruitment and Retention in the 21st Century: Principles of a Comprehensive Recruitment, Hiring, Promotion, and Retention Strategy…

 Democrats and Republicans agree that government should provide for public safety, especially after the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020…

Oregon voted to pass stricter gun laws on Tuesday — the only ballot measure nationwide that addresses gun violence…

At age 23, Nabeela Syed was just elected as the youngest member of the Illinois House of Representatives…

A federal judge suspended parts of new gun restrictions after a century-old law was struck down over the summer in New York State Supreme Court…

A federal grand jury indictment revealed new details in last month’s attack against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband…

The Justice Department’s inspector general is investigating a top federal prosecutor in Massachusetts, prompted by U.S. Attorney Rachel Rollins’ appearance at a political fundraiser featuring first lady Jill Biden…

The Department of Justice is looking into crypto exchange FTX after its apparent collapse…

 Former Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith was found guilty on all six corruption and misconduct counts in her civil corruption trial last week…

“Two LA police officers will not face criminal charges in the July 2021 shooting death of a man holding a lighter that looked like a gun,” the state attorney general said, releasing the first results of an investigation into an officer-involved shooting under a program intended to increase oversight of police…

Public Safety & Justice Update 11/1/22

A gun control group is suing the Biden administration, claiming federal regulators left “mile-wide loopholes” that have increased untraceable, home-assembled weapons…

 After increased gun violence in the U.S., the political power of gun reform will be tested this election cycle…

Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), was struck by a person with a hammer who shouted “Where is Nancy, where is Nancy?”...

 On the same day an intruder assaulted House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband at their San Francisco home, federal officials announced a 22-year-old Pennsylvania man, Joshua Hall, pleaded guilty to threatening to kill Bay Area congressman Eric Swalwell (D-CA), and issued a broader warning about politically motivated violence in advance of Election Day…

A New Jersey legislative committee voted to require liability insurance for gun owners and restrict where they could carry their weapons, moving what would be some of the strictest U.S. firearms limits closer to becoming law…

Families of the Uvalde school shooting victims slammed the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Col. Steven McCraw, at a public safety commission meeting in Austin on 10/27…

Black drivers in California are nearly five times more likely than white motorists to get pulled over by sheriffs for traffic violations, according to a new report on racial profiling…

Republicans cite crime as a top issue in many midterm elections and have demanded solutions to crime increases, criticizing Democrats for supporting major changes to criminal justice policy in recent years, claiming that they, and progressive prosecutors, have fueled swelling crime rates…

The Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday, 10/31, in two cases challenging race-conscious admissions policies at the University of North Carolina and Harvard…

Eight officers at the Antioch Police Department are under federal investigation, according to Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe…

 Chief LeRonne L. Armstrong of the Oakland Police Department (OPD) announced he is extending the department’s current 30-day crime plan…

 Six-term Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith resigned Monday, 10/31 morning as jurors are actively deliberating whether she abused her powers in office…

 Last year, fentanyl killed one-fifth of 15-to-24-year-olds. In 2021, California’s death rate from all drug overdoses surpassed that of lung cancer and ranked just below hypertensive heart disease…

 San Jose officers working the midnight shift Saturday were so busy with emergencies that no one was sent to look into a disturbance at a party where a man was later fatally shot…

Both Los Angeles mayoral candidates Congresswoman Karen Bass (D-CA) and Rick Caruso have consistently rebuffed calls from residents, politicians and far-left activists to cut the Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) roughly $3-billion budget because of what many see as the agency’s historical mistreatment of Black and Latino Angelenos…

Aspire Academy gives high school girls an opportunity to see what a career in public safety looks like…

As part of an agreement with federal prosecutors, a California prisoner has admitted to running a huge, multi-state drug ring from his cell and to plotting to kill a member of the Aryan Brotherhood at the behest of prison gang members, records show…