Monday Morning Quickies

Just a few quick items that caught my attention this morning:

Definition of 'Good Cop' Evolving: How many times do you read an article about an upcoming Texas execution that begins with the words, "Mike Griffith was a good cop." Uh Really!?! A good cop who "had a habit of beating the women he loved." A cop who goes home and beats the crap out of his girlfriend, in my book, can never be considered a "good cop."

Too Little, Too Late: The US Department of Justice has announced a civil rights investigation into use of force practices at the Austin Police Department. I've been around this block before. What DoJ will find is a police union that runs the show and routinely prevents officers from being disciplined for anything but the most serious crimes, and then only when caught red-handed.

Juvie Discipline Biased? Data from the Texas Education Agency analyzed in a Fort Worth Startlegram report revealed that minority kids are much more likely to be disciplined in school than white kids.

Okies Face Prison Crowding Crisis: Like Texas, the next Oklahoma Legislature will struggle with finding solutions expensive, overcrowded prisons filled with low-level offenders - they're looking forward to the results of an upcoming audit to give them guidance.

Informants Seen as Unreliable: The Black Athlete Sports Network published an interesting article about the confidential informant who accused Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick of dogfighting, asking reasonably, "since when do arrests, search warrants and convictions that result from informants giving information to cops make them reliable?" and declaring "The phrase 'reliable confidential informant' is almost a classic American oxymoron."