Crime News
The Daily Signal reports on crime news with analysis and commentary on policies, crime rates, and policing debates.
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opinion
Illegal Immigration Linked With Organized Crime, Border Expert Says
A direct link exists between criminal organizations and illegal immigration, former federal prosecutor Josh Jones says. Jones, now senior fellow in border security at Texas Public Policy Foundation, joins “The Daily Signal Podcast” to discuss his recent report, “Joined at the Hip: Organized Crime and Illegal Immigration.” Jones explains how gangs and other criminal groups… -
opinion
The Untold Story Behind the Atlanta Murders
The killing of eight individuals at three Atlanta massage parlors has been framed, almost solely, as a case of race-based murder. This is piling distortion on top of tragedy. The Washington Post ran 16 separate pieces depicting the fatal shootings as racially motivated, while The New York Times settled for a mere nine stories reaching… -
news
How ‘Minneapolis Effect’ Explains Surge of Violent Crime in American Cities
This past year, “defund the police” has been a frequent call from activists seeking systemic reform of the American criminal justice system. It became a popular rallying cry after the May 25 death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis. And Minneapolis is among cities that partially defunded police departments and proactive crime prevention… -
opinion
Earmarks Represent Corruption, Waste, and the Swamp. The Ban on Them Should Stay in Place.
After a decade-long ban, earmarks, the practice of Congress funneling your tax dollars to special interests, is set to make a comeback. Some members of Congress are now proposing a plan to bring earmarks back under the rebranded euphemism “community project funding.” Conservatives have long found against the practice of earmarking federal funds for special… -
opinion
More Children 14 and Under Are Murdered Than Die of COVID-19
American children 14 years and younger are more likely to be murdered than to die because of COVID-19, according to data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. On Jan. 12, the federal agency’s National Center for Health Statistics published its final report on the death data for the United States in 2018…. -
news
House Democrats Ignore GOP Calls to Investigate Cuomo Nursing Home Scandal
Some House Democrats have called for New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to resign over allegations of sexual harassment, but aren’t willing to investigate his role in COVID-19 deaths at nursing homes. Cuomo’s fellow Democrats seem to be trying to “change the narrative” on the governor to avoid talking about the state’s nursing home deaths, said… -
opinion
He Was Murdered Over a Lie: What the Killing of Samuel Paty Means for Free Expression
Samuel Paty was decapitated on Oct. 16, 2020, outside the middle school in a north Paris suburb where he had taught history and civics for five years. The murderer, a radical Islamist terrorist, acted because Paty had supposedly shown his class images of the Prophet Muhammad from the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in a… -
opinion
Sen. Mike Lee Attempts to Restore Fundamental Fairness to Federal Criminal Laws
Before he retired in 2018, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, was a tireless champion for reforming criminal law. Now, it seems as though Republican Sen. Mike Lee, now the senior senator from Utah, is picking up where Hatch left off, by introducing the Mens Rea Reform Act of 2021, which is being co-sponsored by Sens. Rand… -
news
Biden Administration Locks Twitter Account for Alerts on Criminal Aliens
The Twitter account for Immigration and Customs Enforcement alerts—which notified the public about criminal illegal immigrants—has been locked by the Biden administration. In a statement to The Daily Signal, Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., said that the locking of the ICE Alerts Twitter account, which appeared to have occurred on Tuesday, is bad news for the… -
news
7 Highlights From Oversight Hearing on FBI and Capitol Riot
FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday that the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol was a planned act of domestic terrorism, but didn’t have definitive answers in his Senate testimony for why security broke down during the riot. Wray was testifying at a congressional hearing for the first time since a mob breached the Capitol,… -
opinion
Biden’s Assault on Gun Owners
For the duration of his 2020 presidential campaign—which at first appeared to be a long shot, especially given the far left’s vocal disdain for “old, white men”—Joe Biden ran on the promise that he would unite the country. He repeatedly spoke about the importance of America’s institutions and norms, and to the many who ultimately… -
opinion
He Spent 14 Years in Prison. Here’s Why He’s Fighting for Criminal Justice Reform
Louis Reed spent nearly 14 years in prison on bank fraud and other charges. Since then, he has become an advocate for criminal justice reform and supported the First Step Act, a bipartisan measure to improve criminal justice outcomes, which was signed into law by then-President Donald Trump in December 2018. Reed joins “The Daily… -
news
7 Takeaways as Merrick Garland Gets Hearing for Attorney General
Merrick Garland, whose nomination five years ago to the Supreme Court was doomed, finally got a hearing Monday before the Senate Judiciary Committee—as President Joe Biden’s nominee for attorney general. Judging from their statements, the panel’s Republican senators seemed likely to confirm Garland. After President Barack Obama nominated Garland for the Supreme Court in March… -
opinion
State, Local Police Should Keep 287(G) Partnerships With ICE to Protect Us From Criminal Aliens
Dozens of Democratic lawmakers earlier this month urged the Biden administration to terminate the cooperative agreements between the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement and their state and local law enforcement partners under what is known as the 287(g) program. Such a reflexive policy decision, if pursued, would be a dangerous and reckless… -
news
Justice Department Won’t Oppose Arizona Election Reform Before Supreme Court Hears Case
On the cusp of Supreme Court arguments about Arizona’s ban on the controversial practice of ballot harvesting, President Joe Biden’s Justice Department pulled a surprise maneuver—inaction. The Biden administration in effect maintained the same position, for now, as the Trump administration regarding a major election integrity case. In a carefully worded letter to the Supreme… -
opinion
With Super Bowl, Tampa Braces for Surge in Sex Trafficking. Here’s How It’s Combating It.
Expect human traffickers to exploit the Super Bowl in Tampa, Florida, this weekend. While current COVID-19 restrictions will limit game attendance, there will still be 22,000 fans there, and with Tampa as the home city of the Buccaneers, one of the participating teams, there will be many more in town. Traffickers are criminal economic enterprises who target… -
opinion
The Connection Between Porn and Human Trafficking
Pornography usage is increasing all over the world. It is estimated that 79.5% of women and 98% of men have watched porn. But why is this an issue, one might ask? Pornographers are just sexually liberated people, right? Unfortunately, many people featured in porn are being sex-trafficked, and viewers are unaware that the people they… -
opinion
Trump Delivers Long-Awaited Triumph for Criminal Justice Reform in Last-Minute Executive Order
The last few days of an administration often see a flurry of executive orders. The Trump administration is no exception, and former President Donald Trump is making the most of this tradition. In one of these twilight executive orders, Trump has delivered an important criminal justice victory in the area of “mens rea” reform, which scholars at The Heritage Foundation have been urging for years (see here, here, here, here, here, here, and here for more information). … -
opinion
Unrelated Amendments in COVID-19 Relief Bill Only Add to Overcriminalization
Congress is very good at two things: spending money and thinking up duplicative—and, therefore, unnecessary—ways to criminalize many aspects of our daily lives. The latest COVID-19 relief bill does both. >>> What’s the best way for America to reopen and return to business? The National Coronavirus Recovery Commission, a project of The Heritage Foundation, assembled… -
opinion
As Biden Attorney General, Merrick Garland Will Face Political Pressures
With President-elect Joe Biden’s choice of federal Judge Merrick Garland as his new attorney general last week, the question arises: Will Garland carry out his responsibilities in a nonpartisan manner, or will he return the Justice Department to the days of the Obama-Biden administration — when, as I have argued, Eric Holder politicized the department more than…