Crime
Blog
The Night Westwood Died and Crime in Cities
On January 31, 1988, 27 year-old Karen Toshima was enjoying an evening with her boyfriend in Westwood Village. She had just gotten a promotion at work and like thousands of other Angelenos did almost every weekend decided that Westwood was the place to be. After dinner, Karen and ...
Blog
Is lefty San Francisco moving in a rightward direction?
Apparently, everyone has a breaking point and for San Franciscans things broke around COVID-19. While public schools shut down amid the pandemic and parents were openly frustrated, the school board took several actions that landed it on the wrong side of voters. That led to the recall of three members ...
Blog
The Campus Sexual Assault Epidemic – Our laws make it worse
The State of California has released its 2021 annual crime report and crime is up across the board. Of particular concern are the sexual assault statistics. According to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office, “the rape rate increased 8.6 percent in 2021 (from 33.8 in 2020 to 36.7 in ...
Blog
How a ‘perfect storm’ killed an LA philanthropist
How a ‘perfect storm’ killed an LA philanthropist BY STEVE SMITH The murder of philanthropist Jaqueline Avant, the wife of famed music producer (“The Godfather of Black Music”) Clarence Avant, sent shock waves throughout Los Angeles society. Her death, during a home-invasion robbery on Dec. 1, 2021, not only shattered ...
Blog
Crime in California and the Left/Right Divide
Writing for the LA Times recently, columnist Anita Chabria calls Kern, Merced, and Tulare counties “Trump’s California” and describes Kern as first amongst the “the locales where your chance of being murdered is greatest.” Merced and Tulare round out the top three. She then contrasts them and their conservative district ...
Blog
Union power makes urban reform nearly impossible
It’s well known that private-sector unions imposed higher costs and competitive disadvantages on companies that remained in cities. In a 2010 Cato Journal article, Stephen J. K. Walters explained that unions sparked their transformation “from engines of prosperity into areas afflicted by economic stagnation, chronic poverty, and all the social ...
Blog
When Right Thinking Californians Learn About Tennessee’s Policy Agenda, They Might Be Ready to Call a Realtor
I recently traveled to Nashville to attend the annual Heritage Foundation Resource Bank conference, and annual gathering of conservative policy leaders from around the country. While at the conference, I had the opportunity to hear great speakers including Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and attend ...
Blog
Gun Violence Increases in California
The May 15th shooting at the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Hills, where six people were shot and one tragically died, is yet another reminder that California is experiencing an increase in homicides not seen since 1960. Statewide, homicides were up 30 percent in 2020 and, while 2021 crime statistics ...
Blog
Violent Repercussions from Prop. 57 and Persisting Prison Overcrowding
Why CA Should Rethink the Closure of Two State Prisons California voters recently voiced in a UC Berkeley poll released April 14, 2022, that crime is one of the top three issues needed to be addressed in the state. From organized looting to early release of violent criminals, the problem ...
Blog
National Crime Victims Week 2022
For over 40 years America has recognized the last week of April as National Crime Victims Week. California honors Crime Victims Week in a variety of ways at the State and Local level. This year, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation adopted a theme of “Rights, Access and Equity” ...
The Night Westwood Died and Crime in Cities
On January 31, 1988, 27 year-old Karen Toshima was enjoying an evening with her boyfriend in Westwood Village. She had just gotten a promotion at work and like thousands of other Angelenos did almost every weekend decided that Westwood was the place to be. After dinner, Karen and ...
Is lefty San Francisco moving in a rightward direction?
Apparently, everyone has a breaking point and for San Franciscans things broke around COVID-19. While public schools shut down amid the pandemic and parents were openly frustrated, the school board took several actions that landed it on the wrong side of voters. That led to the recall of three members ...
The Campus Sexual Assault Epidemic – Our laws make it worse
The State of California has released its 2021 annual crime report and crime is up across the board. Of particular concern are the sexual assault statistics. According to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office, “the rape rate increased 8.6 percent in 2021 (from 33.8 in 2020 to 36.7 in ...
How a ‘perfect storm’ killed an LA philanthropist
How a ‘perfect storm’ killed an LA philanthropist BY STEVE SMITH The murder of philanthropist Jaqueline Avant, the wife of famed music producer (“The Godfather of Black Music”) Clarence Avant, sent shock waves throughout Los Angeles society. Her death, during a home-invasion robbery on Dec. 1, 2021, not only shattered ...
Crime in California and the Left/Right Divide
Writing for the LA Times recently, columnist Anita Chabria calls Kern, Merced, and Tulare counties “Trump’s California” and describes Kern as first amongst the “the locales where your chance of being murdered is greatest.” Merced and Tulare round out the top three. She then contrasts them and their conservative district ...
Union power makes urban reform nearly impossible
It’s well known that private-sector unions imposed higher costs and competitive disadvantages on companies that remained in cities. In a 2010 Cato Journal article, Stephen J. K. Walters explained that unions sparked their transformation “from engines of prosperity into areas afflicted by economic stagnation, chronic poverty, and all the social ...
When Right Thinking Californians Learn About Tennessee’s Policy Agenda, They Might Be Ready to Call a Realtor
I recently traveled to Nashville to attend the annual Heritage Foundation Resource Bank conference, and annual gathering of conservative policy leaders from around the country. While at the conference, I had the opportunity to hear great speakers including Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and attend ...
Gun Violence Increases in California
The May 15th shooting at the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Hills, where six people were shot and one tragically died, is yet another reminder that California is experiencing an increase in homicides not seen since 1960. Statewide, homicides were up 30 percent in 2020 and, while 2021 crime statistics ...
Violent Repercussions from Prop. 57 and Persisting Prison Overcrowding
Why CA Should Rethink the Closure of Two State Prisons California voters recently voiced in a UC Berkeley poll released April 14, 2022, that crime is one of the top three issues needed to be addressed in the state. From organized looting to early release of violent criminals, the problem ...
National Crime Victims Week 2022
For over 40 years America has recognized the last week of April as National Crime Victims Week. California honors Crime Victims Week in a variety of ways at the State and Local level. This year, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation adopted a theme of “Rights, Access and Equity” ...
