Calling All Nerds: Data Scientists Mapping Police Violence Need Help
For those of us with tech skills, who have been frustrated by not knowing how best to contribute to help America get out of this racist dogshit situation, here’s an effort that could use your skills: Mapping Police Violence
A group of data visualization nerds, led by Ian Johnson, are trying to create databases and maps, so we can get a clearer picture of when & where cops kill citizens.
There’s also a project that scores California cops & sheriffs.
The criteria seem simple enough:
- The agency should prioritize protecting people from violence, not arresting people for low level offenses
- The agency should avoid the use of force, especially deadly force, to the greatest extent possible
- When people come forward to report misconduct by employees of the agency, it should result in some form of accountability
- When people call on the agency to help solve the most serious crimes - those resulting in death - they should be able to trust that agency to find the person responsible
- The agency should accomplish these goals in ways that are not biased or discriminatory
Unsurprisingly, the LAPD got an “F” grade.