Criminal Justice:
Tale of Two Cities - San Francisco police and BART overreact to protests DC police fail to react to hate crime against lesbians
Last week, San Francisco’s transit authorities stepped on the First Amendment, in the supposed interest of preventing commuter protests on BART, the regional subway system, by closing cell phone access on the system.
The protests have been ongoing since July when police shot and killed two civilians on BART in separate incidents, that sparked massive protests.
Media reports on CNN and the Christian Science Monitor indicate that this is the first time police in the US have blocked cell phone access to suppress protests although it has happened in Syria and Iran. You can read more about it at http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2011/0812/To-defuse-flash-protest-BART-cuts-riders-cell-service.-Is-that-legal
Meanwhile, DC cops are under investigation for refusing to take a police report when lesbians reported being assaulted by a group of men who used homophobic slurs and then beat them. After local advocacy groups complained, Chief Lanier intervened and hate crime charges were filed. More on the incident from DCist http://dcist.com/2011/08/lanier_says_cops_could_be_let_go_af.php
