MetaFilter posts tagged with crime

A Tale of Two Cities

HumanComplex — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:54:09 -0800

Crime: A Tale of Two Cities. When "The Wire" gained popularity in Great Britain, we were contacted by a London-based journalist who proposed a job swap. Mark Hughes, a crime reporter with The Independent, a national newspaper in the United Kingdom, wanted to come to Baltimore to see if the city’s police officers, drug dealers, prosecutors and politicians bore any resemblance to those on show. We agreed to complete the exchange by sending our police reporter, Justin Fenton, to London to compare crime trends. Articles from The Independent: Mark Hughes in Baltimore: Just minutes after I arrived, I was at the scene of a shooting ... 189 homicides this year – this is The Wire, only real The trials of 'Baltimore's Boris'' Wire' star joins real fight against crime Justin Fenton in London: The sound of fireworks reminds me of home 'Disputes are pettier than in Baltimore' Britain's use of DNA is light years ahead Keeping children out of the gangs' clutches Readers from both sides of the pond react to the story.

Cleveland serial killer highlights police indifference

bitter-girl.com — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:56:54 -0800

Alleged serial killer and convicted rapist Anthony Sowell is creating even bigger problems for the Cleveland police department, who have been accused of joking about missing victims, passing the blame onto those victims and outright incompetence. As of today, the body count is up to 10 (plus one skull), and people around the world are wondering what went wrong.

Bank Notes - a collection of bank robbery notes

nthdegx — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:43:20 -0800

Bank Notes - a collection of bank robbery notes, successful and otherwise.

Blood sucking leeches

caddis — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 07:59:18 -0800

Leeches, horror film staples, medicinal wonders, and now crime fighters. Police cracked the case of a home invasion and safe robbery when they found one of the suspects' blood inside a leech on the floor and matched his dna.

More of the Best

dances_with_sneetches — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 10:39:46 -0800

Having previously put together a post with links to stories from the 2009 edition of Best of American Crime Reporting, I decided to go to earlier editions to gather together what is available on the web. Starting in 2007 with The Tainted Kidney: Charles Graeber, New York. A serial killer who chooses to donate his kidney has his motives questioned. Continuing in 2007 with The Inside Job: Neil Swidey, Boston Globe A trusted employee pilfers millions. Double Blind: Matthew Teague, The Atlantic An undercover agent helps take down the IRA. A Kiss Before Dying: Pamela Colloff, Texas Monthly A legendary haunting inspires a reporter to dust off a 45 year old killing. The Devil in David Berkowitz: Steve Fishman, New York Born again, David Berkowitz now has Christian advocates. The Man Who Loves Books Too Much: Allison Hoover Bartlett, San Francisco A book collector doesn't want to pay. Dirty Old Women: Ariel Levy, New York Teachers who seduce their students. Who Killed Ellen Andros? / Dan P. Lee, Philadelphia The prosecution of a police officer plays out between competing Medical Examiners. Fatal Connection: David Bernstein, Chicago Magazine The murder of a high class prostitute. Last Seen September 10th: Mark Fass, New York A doctor disappears the day the towers fall. Previously discussed. My Roommate, The Diamond Thief: Brian Boucher. New York Magazine. An aspiring writer lucks out by stumbling into a good story. The Monster of Florence: Douglas Preston, The Atlantic A journalist and a crime novelist investigate a series of murders near Florence, Italy and become part of the story. Also, previously discussed. The Loved Ones: Tom Junod, Esquire. A riveting account of a New Orleans couple scapegoated for the sins of those who did not adequately respond to Katrina. Also previously linked. The School: C.J. Chivers, Esquire Over a thousand students, parents and teachers are taken hostage in a Russian school. A couple more in the collection were not available online. The Talented Dr. Krist: Steve Fennessy, Atlanta Magazine The perpetrator of a notorious kidnapping appears to be trying to go straight after prison. not available. The Case of the Killer Priest: Sean Flynn, GQ Magazine After a quarter century, a priest is brought to trial for the murder of a nun. Not available. 2008 The Story of a Snitch: Jeremy Kahn, The Atlantic. A police witness gets careless. A Season in Hell: Dean LaTourrette, Men's Journal A surfer in Nicaragua is accused of murder. I'm with the Steelers: Justin Heckert, ESPN Magazine A con man convinces local women he's a pro football player. The Caged Life: Alan Prendergast, New West A white supremacist spends decades in solitary confinement. Badges of Dishonor: Pamela Colloff, Texas Monthly Two border patrol agents shoot an illegal alien and become heroes to some. The Ploy: Mark Bowden, The Atlantic Mark Bowden revisits the subject of interrogation and how it was used to find Al-Zarqawi. Day of the Dead: D.T. Max, New Yorker The life and death of Malcolm Lowery. Just a Random Female: Nick Schou, Orange County Weekly A student's murder appears to be the first of a serial killer. The Serial Killer's Disciple: James Renner, The Cleveland Free Times A man is executed for three murders. But was he the one? Mercenary: Tom Junod, Esquire A self-proclaimed government assassin is hired as head of security at a nuclear plant. Murder at 19,000 Feet: Jonathan Green, Men's Journal (pdf file) Mountain climbers witness an execution and face a moral dilemma. Dangerous Minds: Malcolm Gladwell, New Yorker A deconstruction of criminal profilers. (previously discussed) And again a couple in the anthology that are not available online. The House Across the Way: Calvin Trillin, New Yorker In an isolated town in Northern Canada, townsfolk go to war with an alleged drug dealer. Dean of Death Row: Tad Friend, New Yorker CO Vernell Crittendon becomes the public face of California's death row.

Crime Time

dances_with_sneetches — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:28:03 -0800

The 2009 anthology of The Best American Crime Reporting is out. Each year this series collects examples of exceptional and diverse true crime journalism. Many of the entries are available in their online magazines. Starting with "Dan P. Lee, Body Snatchers - Philadelphia magazine" (part of the story previously discussed here), a ghoulish tale of stolen corpses and the market behind him. Continuing with the sad life of a spree killer: Mark Boal, Everyone Will Remember Me as Some Sort of Monster - Rolling Stone A pathological spree of consumerism is recounted in Sabrina Rubin Erdely's, The Fabulous Fraudulent Life of Jocelyn and Ed - Rolling Stone. A surgeon recalls The Day Kennedy Died - Michael J. Mooney, D Magazine. Charles Bowden writes about drug wars in Mexico's Red Days - GQ magazine A hate crime or not a hate crime? R. Scott Moxley, Hate and Death - OC Weekly. A hedge fund trader is found floating face down in his swimming pool in Stephen Rodrick, Dead Man's Float - New York magazine. Hanna Rosin's, American Murder Mystery previously discussed here - The Atlantic. Not generally available, but in The New Yorker archives for subscribers, Calvin Trillin, The Color of Blood - The New Yorker John Colapinto, Stop, Thief! - The New Yorker David Grann, True Crime - New Yorker (recommended) Alec Wilkinson, Non-Lethal Force - The New Yorker And finally, only available in the book: Matt McAllester, Tribal Wars - Details Mark Arax, The Zankou Chicken Murders - Los Angeles magazine L. Jon Wertheim, Breaking the Bank - Sports Illustrated Enjoy.

Polanski arrested

acb — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 06:55:58 -0800

Film director Roman Polanski, who won numerous awards for films like Chinatown and The Pianist, has been detained for extradition to the US, whilst travelling to Switzerland to collect a lifetime achievement award at the Zürich Film Festival. Polanski spent the past three decades in exile in France, which (unlike Switzerland) has no extradition treaty with the US, after being convicted of having raped a 13-year-old girl at a party. He was nonetheless able to sue for libel in the UK despite being a fugitive there. The victim has asked for charges to be dropped, though Polanski has, until now, been a wanted man in the US. If he is extradited, he faces up to life imprisonment.

The Mind of Kalebu

KokuRyu — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:28:15 -0800

Why are people like Isaiah Kalebu—people diagnosed with serious psychological problems and accused of violent crimes—allowed to remain free until trial? In the 16 months before he allegedly killed Teresa Butz, Isaiah Kalebu was accused of threatening to kill his mother, investigated for a suspicious fire that killed his aunt, and warned that he needed to stay on his meds. Sealed and unsealed court documents obtained by The Stranger paint a terrifying portrait of the psyche of the suspected murderer—and reveal major loopholes in the way mentally unstable criminal suspects move through the legal system. By the Stranger's talented senior staff writer Eli Sanders.

The Market for Lemons, or Thieves Discount the Value You(r Identity)

filthy light thief — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 13:37:22 -0800

Calculate the value of your identity on the black market, based on how you access your financial information, your involvement in social and file-sharing networks, and security software installed. Spoiler: it's less than you imagine, as using the data is riskier than stealing the data, and the thieves market is polluted by liars (you can read more in the 12 page Microsoft research PDF). If you think you've been the victim of identity theft, the Federal Trade Commission and Better Business Bureau have lists of actions to follow. For a broader view of legal responses, wikipedia has details listed per country for a few nations (currently listing information for Australia, Canada, France, Hong Kong, India, UK and US). The Consumer Credit Reporting Agency page on Wikipedia is thinner, covering the US, UK, and India.

Dark Behind It Rose The Forest

WPW — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 16:00:42 -0800

Inside America's most dangerous national forest.

"In my next conscious moment, I was dimly aware that I was facedown on the pavement. There was blood in my mouth."

MCMikeNamara — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:48:43 -0800

"A Mugging on Lake Street" : John Conroy -- author and former staff writer of the Chicago Reader best known for his articles on police torture finds himself a victim of a "senseless" crime and is forced by circumstance to examine his own opinions about race, hate crimes, and violence. (last link is referenced in original article)

By day a mild mannered pencil-monkey...

Artw — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 16:04:07 -0800

Zap! Pow! Comicbook artist Chris Weston fights crime!

Dominick Dunne 1925-2009

reenum — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 10:00:06 -0800

Dominick Dunne died yesterday at the age of 83. was well known for his chronicling of the follies and crimes of the rich. You can read some of his pieces from Vanity Fair here.

Excuse me, may I have some directions? Certainly sir, step right this way!

woodblock100 — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 20:15:22 -0800

The 'problem'? A perceived spate of recent knife crime in Japan:

The 'solution'? Revise the 'Firearm and Sword Control Law' to ban possession of daggers and other double-edged knives with blades 5.5 cm or longer.

The 'result'? Pocket knife lands tourist, 74, in lockup, with nine days in a holding cell. Two other American tourists were arrested that same day at the same koban (police box) ...

Seventy-five years of Bonnie and Clyde

Guy_Inamonkeysuit — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 09:34:38 -0800

But have they become tools of the Left? Seventy-five years on, the murderous pair is still provoking comment. This time, from neocons.

On the Trail of a Serial Killer in Macedonia

Kattullus — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 08:29:26 -0800

Then, in November 2007, exactly three years after the disappearance of Simjanoska, another woman from Kičevo went missing. Fifty-six-year-old Lubica Ličoska was, like Simjanoska, a custodian, and she also lived in the same section of town. When the similarities were noted, locals suddenly remembered Gorica Pavelska. She was seventy-three, a retired custodian who went missing in May 2003. No one had thought much of it at the time. She might have suffered a stroke in some remote place, they had speculated, or gone to work in Skopje. No trace of her was ever found and the whole business had been forgotten. But now it appeared that little Kičevo was home to a serial killer, and Vlado Taneski’s editors smelled a big story.

- The Mask of Sanity: On the Trail of a Serial Killer in Macedonia by Dimiter Kenarov. An account of the Kičevo Monster and the killer's surprising identity. [Warning: Descriptions of the murders include graphic details]

it's a Federal crime

nickyskye — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 05:43:27 -0800

Brian W. Walsh thinks You're (Probably) A Federal Criminal.

Smart? Tossers.

acb — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:30:14 -0800

The latest craze among yobs in Amsterdam seems to be Smart tossing. Jeremy Clarkson would undoubtedly approve, were he not busy urging Britain to invade France.

A boy called Sue

acb — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 07:37:39 -0800

A new US study, recently published in Social Science Quarterly, has shown that the more uncommon or feminine a boy's first name is, the greater the likelihood that he will end up in prison.

While Shippensburg University professor David Kalist's report in Social Science Quarterly shows that "unpopular names are likely not the cause of crime," he explains that factors often associated with those names can "increase the tendency toward juvenile delinquency." Boys with unpopular, girlish or uncommon names often are ridiculed by peers, come from families of low socioeconomic status and face discrimination in the workforce based on a preconceived bias about their names, according to the study, which analysed more than 15,000 names.

Murdered by skinheads for being gay. When will the igorance and hate stop?

hooptycritter — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 17:05:58 -0800

A family tries to cope after their son is killed for being gay Remarkable family. Interesting, layered documentary but bad translation.

The Year of Parker

dortmunder — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 10:59:55 -0800

He is a man with one name. He is a thief and a killer, and the protagonist of 24 hard boiled novels written by prolific author Donald Westlake (previously) under the pseudonym Richard Stark. He is Parker, and he is enjoying a resurgence in popularity. His first adventures, long out of print, are being reissued by the University of Chicago Press. While the first three, The Hunter, The Man with the Getaway Face and The Outfit, were published without forwards, the second batch of books featured a forward by John Banville, which originally appeared in Slate. (This article was also referenced in the Westlake obit post, but is included here for the sake of completeness). The third set of reprints, coming in August, will have a forward by noted writer and critic Luc Sante. It will presumably come from his 1985 essay “The Gentrification of Crime,” for the New York Review of Books, which is not available online in its entirety. You can read an excerpt, however (scroll down to the Westlake heading). Not only are the Parker books being reprinted, but the first novel, The Hunter, which served as the basis for the movies Point Blank and Payback, has been adapted as a graphic novel by Darwyn Cooke. Initial reviews are positive. Cooke has said he has plans to give the graphic novel treatment to the first four Parker novels. While the aforementioned Point Blank and Payback are the most well known film versions of Parker novels, there are many more. The first was Made in U.S.A. directed by Godard. It was a loose adaptation of The Jugger where Parker was played by actress Anna Karina. Due to the fact that Godard never bothered to acquire the rights to the book, the film did not receive an American release until this year. For those who can’t get enough, the definitive site for all things Stark is The Violent World of Parker, which has an exhaustive list of novels and adaptations. Additional Links: An interview with Darwyn Cooke and Ed Brubaker An interview with Donald Westlake

"I rob banks for a living, what do you do?"

kirkaracha — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:38:26 -0800

John Dillinger was paroled from Indiana State Prison in May 1933 after serving eight years for assault and battery and attempted robbery and launched a Midwest Crime Wave from June 1933 to June 1934. Dillinger was embittered by his prison sentence. His accomplice "pleaded not guilty, stood trial, and was sentenced to two years." Dillinger "confessed, was convicted of assault and battery with intent to rob, and conspiracy to commit a felony, and received joint sentences of 2 to 14 years and 10 to 20 years." June 10, 1933: Dillinger robbed his first bank, in New Carlisle, Ohio. September 22, 1933: After Dillinger robbed a bank in Bluffton, Ohio, Dayton police captured Dillinger at a girlfriend's apartment. He was sent to the county jail in Lima, Ohio. When he was frisked police found plans for a prison break. Footage of Dillinger yucking it up with prosecutor Robert Estill ended Estill's career. September 26, 1933: Harry Pierpont, Charles Makley, and eight other inmates escaped from the Indiana State Penitentiary following Dillinger's escape plan and using guns he'd smuggled into the prison. October 12, 1933: Pierpont, Makley, and two accomplices broke Dillinger out of the Lima, Ohio jail, killing Sheriff Jesse Sarber in front of his wife and his deputy. ("Charles Makley Was Framed!") January 25, 1934: Dillinger and his gang were captured in Tuscon, AZ, after a fire in their hotel when firemen recognized them from their mugshots. March 3, 1934: Dillinger broke out of the Lake County Jail in Crown Point, Indiana, according to legend using a fake gun he carved out of wood and painted with shoe polish. He stole a car during the escape and crossed state lines, sparking an FBI manhunt led by Melvin Purvis. April 23, 1934: FBI agents accidentally killed a local resident and two innocent Civilian Conservation Corps workers and "Baby Face" Nelson killed Agent Carter Baum during a bungled capture attempt and shootout at the Little Bohemia Lodge ("Dillinger only left because he had to!!!") in Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin. July 22, 1934: Dillinger was killed in an ambush outside the Biograph Theater in Chicago. The movie was Manhattan Melodrama ("A human document, picturing every exciting phase of life in the world's greatest metropolis!"). Newspaper illustration: "How death was dealt to death-dealing John Dillinger." The killing made the FBI famous and movies about G-Men superseded the gangster movies popular in the early 1930s. Dillinger went to the movies with Polly Hamilton and Anna Sage (Ana Cumpanas), the "Woman in Red" (she actually wore an orange skirt and white blouse). Sage had set up Dillinger in exchange for a cash reward and a promise to help prevent her deportation. She was deported anyway. More info: Dillinger learned about robbing banks from a fellow inmate who worked for for Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch. "What I Knew About John Dillinger" by longtime girlfriend Evelyn Frechette. Polly Hamilton reminisces about "Jimmy Lawrence." Vintage newsreels. Detailed timeline (scroll down). Another timeline. Lists of gang members and their fates, and banks robbed by Dillinger and his associates. Theories that the real Dillinger wasn't killed at the Biograph persist, but a 2006 documentary concluded that it was the real deal (The Straight Dope agrees). A post-mortem photograph sparked stories that Dillinger was especially well-endowed and other myths, but it's really his arm in rigor mortis.

When Gravity Fails

Artw — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 00:24:45 -0800

Editor Marty Halpern looks back at the career of George Alec Effinger (part 1, part 2, part 3), a prolific author best known for his work set in the Budayeen, a walled city in a future Islamic state, teeming with gangsters, hustlers and transsexual prostitutes, many of them habitual users of plug in personality modules. The noirish tone and exotic technology of the Marîd Audran books (When Gravity Fails, A Fire In The Sun, The Exile Kiss) made Effinger one of the leading lights in the cyberpunk movie, and spawned a videogame - a rare attempt at a graphical adventure from Infocom - and an RPG setting. Sadly Effinger faded from prominence after that, and he suffered from a number of health and financial setbacks before passing away in 2002. His work has had somewhat of a resurgence in popularity of late, with the Marîd Audran books coming back into print in 2007, a long with a collection containing The Wolves of Memory, Effinger's personal favourite amongst his novels.

The Practice of Photography in Sites of Incarceration

mediareport — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 06:31:55 -0800

Pinhole Photography by Incarcerated Girls at Remann Hall, Washington State. Prison Baseball. Guantanamo: Directory of Photographic and Visual Resources. Painted photographs of forgotten incarcerated Russian youth. 19th century prison ships. Pete Brook's Prison Photography blog links to lots of great stuff.

Protect Yourself, Your Family, Your Identity

netbros — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:42:49 -0800

The commercials are all over television — and they certainly are attention-grabbing. They’re the ones where the heavy, bald guy is sitting in his easy chair talking in a squeaky female voice about all the clothes he bought — including a bustier. Or the little old lady speaking with the gruff voice of a younger man about the sweet motorcycle she now owned. Identity theft is a serious crime — one that is occurring with an alarming frequency. The Identity Theft Manifesto explains how criminals get your personal info, and what you can do about it.