Bob Barker: Reducing Recidivism One Mustard Packet At a Time

 

Prisons and jails in this country are a big business. A huge business, actually. In fact, well over 2 million people are currently incarcerated in the 5,000 prisons and jails across the U.S.. Obviously, 2 million people is a huge number of folks who must eat, wear clothing of some type, use hygiene products, etc., and those same 2 million people are unable to run out to the nearest mall or restaurant when a need arises. Besides, it’s the government’s responsibility to see to it that an inmate’s basic needs are met. Therefore, a plethora of businesses cater specifically to the prison industry.

For example, there are numerous companies specializing in inmate telephone equipment, ID cards and wristbands, commissary items, food service, condiments (mustard, ketchup, etc.), clothing, bedding, vehicles, security equipment, ATM kiosks (for visitors who wish to deposit funds to an inmate’s account), laundry equipment and supplies, and much, much more. Soooo much more.

The Bob Barker Company is a large well-known company that manufactures and/or sells products to the corrections industry. Items carried and sold include, for example, bedding, clothing, personal hygiene supplies, furniture, electronics (see-through TV’s, radios, watches, etc.), janitorial supplies, shoes, and suicide prevention items—protective helmets, jumpsuits and smocks, and more. They also sell board games, e-cigarettes, and electronic readers preloaded with approved books. Their list of goods and items is extremely long.

Bob Barker Company is a huge, extremely successful business that depends solely upon incarcerated men and women for its income. However, there’s a unique twist to this particular company’s business plan. They run a nonprofit, the BBC Foundation, that’s in place solely to help reduce recidivism. Yes, they actually try their best to prevent prisoners, the very people whom they depend upon to generate income, from returning to a life of incarceration.

Each year, the Bob Barker Company sets aside 10% of their profits to help support two commitments—local nonprofits and church ministries in their communities, and the BBC Foundation. They’ve set aside a $5 million endowment to help reach their support goals. In addition, BBC has awarded over $1 million to community-based projects.

Recidivism

Over 9.25 million people are incarcerated throughout the world, a number that’s approximately equal to the population of the state of North Carolina. The U.S. has nearly 25% of the world’s prison population despite having only 5% of the world’s population. In other words, prison is a big business in the U.S.

In 1970, the entire U.S. prison population was 338,000. It is currently over 2.3 million.

The likelihood of Americans landing in prison?

Men – 1 in 9

Women – 1 in 56

The United States currently has over 7 million people under some form of correctional supervision. Of the 7 million…

21% are in prison

10% are in jail

12% on parole

56% on probation

 

In 2011, one in every 107 U.S. adult citizens was incarcerated in prison or jail. A staggering 1 in every 34 adults were on probation or parole or other form of correctional supervision.

50% of those people housed in jails have not yet been convicted of a crime.

The U.S. spends approximately $48.5 billion per year on corrections. That figure equals to somewhere around $5.5 million per hour or, $92,000 per minute.

60% of all released inmates return within 3 years. Why? Well, I think we should look at some of the factors that may play a role in their lives of crime. First…

1. 56% of all inmates grew up in a single parent home (or guardian).

2. 1 in 9 of all inmates has lived in a foster home.

3. As children, many were physically or sexually abused.

4. Approximately 20% are illiterate. 40% are functionally illiterate.

5. 40% do not have a high school diploma or GED. 17% have an 8th grade education or less. Actually, the average inmate has a 10th grade education, yet only 3% of the prison population is offered an opportunity to  attend educational classes.

6. A whopping 60% of all inmates report they were using drugs at the time of their arrest. 36% say the same about alcohol use at the time of their arrest. 74% say they were using either or both at the time of their arrest.

*Those of you who have a copy of my book on police procedure may recall the title of chapter 11, Drugs, Not Money, Are the Root of All Evil.

 

7. 16% of all prisoners have a significant mental illness. 40% have mental problems.

8. Over 50% were on probation or parole at the time of arrest.

9. 44% have served time in the past.

10. 55% of incarcerated males have minor children at home. 65% of incarcerated women have minor children at home.

11. Children with incarcerated parents are 5 times more likely to be arrested/incarcerated.

12. 96% of all prisoners will someday be released back into society.

The Bob Barker Foundation’s mission (per the company website) is to develop and support programs that help incarcerated individuals successfully reenter society and stay out for life.

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It’s extremely difficult for former prisoners to become productive members of society. They’re branded for life with a record that follows them forever, and a criminal record will absolutely prevent most of them from securing decent employment. Sure, some will never change no matter how many programs are in place to help them. But, there are others who simply made a mistake, for whatever reason, and would never, ever do anything that would land them back in prison. However, their choices are slim. There are no second chances. Their “debt to society” is never repaid.

In some areas, convicted felons may NOT, work as movers or barbers, or hold public office. Felons may not hold certain licenses, such as a license to work as an electrician. Public housing is not available to them, nor are education grants/loans available for those convicted of most drug crimes.

So, yeah, avoiding a return trip to prison is a tough hurdle to overcome. Perhaps, having a goal to work toward, such as erasing the record of one-time offenders (for non-violent offenses) after ten years of squeaky clean behavior and contributing to the community, would go a long way toward reducing recidivism.

After all, many people are in jail or have criminal records because they were caught and arrested for doing the exact same things our current president admitted to doing (drug use) but was never caught by authorities. His message… I’m the president of the U.S. and I’ve broken the law several times, but didn’t get caught so I’m good to go. You, though, were nabbed doing the same thing so you now can never hold public office or work as a barber (even though the felon trained and worked as a barber while serving time in prison). And, to continue to punish you for the rest of your life (for something he, too, did and openly discusses), we’re not going to allow you to get an education or to have a place to live.

#everybodydeservesasecondchance

*Resources – Bob Barker Company and Bureau of Justice Statistics.

*This post is not an endorsement for Bob Barker Company or its affiliates. 

/by

Castle: What Lies Beneath – A Good Cop/Bad Cop Review

“It’s my pony, you can’t pet it.” Castle.

New Picture (10)

Melanie Atkins
I’m still not thrilled with the direction the powers-that-be have taken Kate, and by default, Rick, this season, but I enjoyed this episode much more than I did the first three. Last week, the entire setup seemed forced and everyone came off as uncomfortable, but this week the episode flowed and made me laugh out loud. One of the new writers, Barry O. Brien, penned this one, and he did a bang up job of bringing back some of the old Castle magic.

After the obligatory murder scene, Kate attempts to make coffee at the precinct using the espresso machine Rick gave the homicide crew years ago. Her attempt fails (or she suddenly can’t stand the taste — an interesting possibility brought up by two of my staunchest Facebook friends), and she pours it out just in time for Martha to walk in and confront Kate about her the state of her marriage. Kate sticks to her guns, but she’s obviously not happy about it… and Martha’s hug nearly makes her break down. “Be honest with yourself, and be honest with your husband” — the woman’s final sage words of advice — really seem to hit home and also set the theme for the show:  Lies. Lies that break up marraiges, and lies that end relationships.

Rick, of course, manages to get involved in the case of the week so he can get close to Kate. This at least gives them a little time together, even if Kate does continue to lie by omission and to keep Rick at arm’s length. Having him in such close proximity seems to shake her up, and I like that. Her secret investigation into LOKSAT needs to end and she needs to come clean with Rick so she can go back home where she belongs. Just sayin’.

In addition to still being upset with Kate, her lies, and her unecessary obsession, I’m confused as to why Alexis is working with Rick in his PI business rather than going to college. Has she graduated? Dropped out? Or is she simply taking a break? If she has graduated, then why doesn’t she have a real job? What’s the deal? I get that she wants to support her father during Kate’s absence, and I like seeing more of her, but a little explanation would be nice.

Much of the show’s humor this week comes from the interaction between Esposito and Ryan, with Rick thrown in on occasion to add even more hilarity. Sheer brilliance. I loved when they checked out the 12-step Pathological Liars Anonymous meeting (“My name is Steve.” “Thanks, Bob.”) then confronted the blind priest who turned out to be more of a con man than a man of God. The priest’s attempt to escape after being questioned cracked me up. I haven’t laughed so hard during a Castle episode in ages. So freaking funny.

Kate didn’t get on my nerves nearly as much this week as she did in the last episode, but I still want her to come home. Her working with Rick but not touching or kissing him is so unnatural, even if she is working to solve the LOKSAT mystery. Rick’s determination to win her back has gotten under her skin, but apparently not enough for her to stop her search and move back to the loft. Please note: The same FB friends who questioned Kate’s sudden aversion to coffee also questioned her being tired enough at one point to lie down on the couch in her office… and I have to wonder if the two events are meant to foreshadow an upcoming twist.

But I digress…

I love how the writers brought us full circle with the delightful Caskett scene near the end when Rick makes Kate a cup of espresso adorned with a cute little foam heart. She loves it — and she did not pour it out. Hmm. Such a sweet moment. But why didn’t she kiss him or at least give him a hug in return? Is she afraid that if she does, her resolve with crumble and she’ll give in and stop her investigation? Maybe. I hope so.

Rick and Martha threatened Kate’s boundaries in this episode, and I love it. Someone needs to wake her up and pull her back from the brink before she destroys everything she’s worked so hard to build since before she and Rick found their always.

Bring on next week’s episode. I hope it’s as well written as this one.

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Lee Lofland

I agree with Melanie. This episode was a bit better than the garbage we’d been subjected to during the past shows. However, Alexis’ sudden and totally unexpected skills as a super PI is a jolt to the system and I do not like it. Not at all. Actually, the character has always been a bit odd, but now she’s a bizarre sore thumb that desperately needs rescuing from the pit of unbelievability. She’s become almost as annoying as Pi, her former boyfriend.

Beckett. Disgusting turn of events for what used to be a cool character and, unfortunately, there’s only one solution to the madness. #killBeckett.

But, I’m thinking there’s a reason she’s seen poured onto the couch and that her tastebuds are screwy (the coffee scene). Could it be that Alexis might soon have a little brother to play with when she’s not busy saving her childlike dad from himself? If so, the pitter-pattering of tiny Castle feet could be enough to send Beckett over the edge of the failing-character-cliff her toenails are now clutching.

Think about it, how could she go off on secret missions to find everyone and anyone who possibly wronged her mother—the kids on the playground who wouldn’t let her play freeze tag, a dime store clerk who once overcharged her for gum, the company that made the ugly lipstick color that clashed with all of her best outfits, and, of course, the evil meanies who wanted her dead. It’s an old storyline. It’s tired. It’s a dead horse that no longer requires beating. So yeah, #killBeckett.

Lanie… Well, at least she didn’t mention lividity this week. Instead, she went even stupider with her time of death prediction when she said, “The wound suggests he was shot between 8 and 11 last night.” WTF???? Did the bloody hole in the victim’s shirt whisper something in Lanie’s ear? Perhaps the wound said, through gurgling and gasping breaths, “This is not…gasp…real science…gurgle…but I just happened to be looking at the clock on the wall when the bullet caused me to appear. The clock was a little blurry—gunshots can do that, you know, but it looked like I arrived…oh, somewhere between 8 and 11.” Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Look, if merely glancing at a wound is all that’s needed to determine a time of death (TOD), then why the need for fancy testing methods, equipment, training, and science? For starters, Lanie couldn’t see the wound. Instead, she made her voodooish prediction based upon a small hole in a piece of cloth. Believe me, unexamined wounds do not have the capability of “suggesting” anything even remotely related to time-telling.

Lanie went on to say that evidence showed the murderer “snuck into” the church and killed the guy while he was praying. I know I was certainly impressed when ACME Forensics and Voodoo developed and manufactured “sneak detectors.” Otherwise, it would be impossible to know the methods and walking styles bad guys use when entering buildings. Next week I guess she’ll tell us, “Evidence shows the killer walked boldly and proudly to the victim’s door where he angrily turned the doorknob. Then he stepped lively to the center of the room and happily fired three shots at the lackidasical victim who fell loudly to the floor. I know this to be so because her wounds suggested it.”

Speaking of bad guys and killers, how was it the wife/killer could locate and zero-in on her target through the nearly-opaque stained glass? After all, her shot was pretty darn accurate considering there was no way she could see her doomed spouse.

Beckett announced this to Ryan and Esposito – “Lanie called. There are no usable prints from the crime scene, and no hits off ballistics.”

I’m guessing the NYPD’s budget no longer allows for the employment of CSI techs and scientists, since the city’s medical examiner now dusts, lifts, and compares all prints at crime scenes. She also conducts tests on firearms and ammunition. This comes as no surprise. She’s a Jill of All Trades. For example, I often see her at the motor pool changing the oil in patrol cars. She sometimes works a shift or two on the garbage trucks and at NASA where she’s the go-to person for new rocket design. Brain surgery? No problem for Super Lanie. Rumor has that she even plans to someday perform an actual autopsy, but that’s just too strange, even for fiction.

Anyway, I said the show was better than the disasters we saw in the past two episodes, but I didn’t say it was good. Fortunately, for us, Ryan and Esposito are still plugging along. They’re the only drop of glue that’s holding this mess together. Unfortunately, the writers are now taking them down the road to promotion. I guess another shark paddled by and they thought it, too, needed jumping.

#collegeforAlexis

#sergeantRyan

#sergeantEspo

#wakeupCastlethisisanightmare

#talkingwounds

#sneakdetectorsrock

#Lanieforpresident

 

/by

Road Trip: Visiting Jail Inmates

 

Many of you will be spending this weekend at the beach or at the mall. Maybe you’ll be doing yard work, or simply relaxing while watching TV or reading a book. However, not everyone is enjoying the sun and sand or quiet time. Instead, there are thousands upon thousands of people who’re on the road, traveling to the various jails and prisons across the country in order to visit a loved one or close friend who’s incarcerated.

Sometimes, these weekend jaunts to see inmates are long-distance trips—four or five hours or more—one way—and they often require a stay at a hotel, meals on the road, a missed day at work, and a number of other costly inconveniences.

A visit to a jail, or prison, can be a stressful experience. It’s certainly not as simple as going to a friend’s home to sit on a couch for a couple of hours, laughing and joking about the good old days. Not at all.

So what’s it really like to visit a jail inmate? Here’s a short video that explains the visiting process and procedure at the Chatham County jail in Savannah, Georgia.

*Remember, no two jails or prisons operate in the same manner. Rules and regulations vary greatly. The video is merely an example of how one sheriff chooses to run his jail. However, the goals are all the same…security.

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Friday’s Heroes: Remembering the Fallen

Friday's Heroes - Remembering the fallen officers

 

police-officer-anthony-lossiah

Officer Anthony Lossiah

Cherokee Indian Police Department – North Carolina

October 6, 2015 – Officer Anthony Lossiah died as a result of injuries sustained in the line of duty. He is survived by his wife and children.

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Gunpowder and Lead: Stuff You Probably Don’t Know About Firearms

Guns. Whether you love ’em or hate ’em, you’ve got to deal with them. They’re here and they’re not going anywhere any time soon. As writers, though, you probably handle them, if only in your minds, more often than the average person. Therefore, it’s a good idea to know what it is you’re trusting your characters to carry and use as part of their crime-fighting tool box. So, to help your heroes sound as if they really know their stuff, here are a dozen not-so-well-known firearm facts.

1. Not all firearms require official registration under the National Firearms Act (NFA). Those that do include machine guns, short-barrel rifles (barrel less than 16″ in length) and shotguns (barrel less than 18″ in length), silencers, gadget-type firearms (pen and cellphone guns, etc.), destructive devices, and what ATF calls “any other weapons.”

*Destructive devices include Molotov cocktails, bazookas, anti tank guns (over .50 cal.), and mortars. Interestingly  grenade and rocket launchers that attach to military rifles are not considered to be destructive devices. However, grenades and rockets are listed as destructive devices.

*Any other weapons include Ithaca Auto-Burglar guns, H&R Handy-gun, and cane guns.

Violators caught with a non-registered NFA firearm may be fined not more than $250,000, and imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both.

2. Dealers who sell gas masks must be registered with ATF. It takes 4-6 weeks for the agency to process the registration paperwork.

3. Parts or devices that are designed to convert a firearm into a NFA firearm must be registered with ATF.

4. The semi-automatic assault weapon (SAW) ban went into effect on September 13, 1994. The law made it illegal to manufacture or possess SAW’s. The law expired 10 years later on September 13, 2004.

5. The ban on large capacity ammunition feeding devices (magazines, belts, drums, etc.) went into effect on September 13, 1994. It, too, expired 10 years later, on September 13, 2004.

6. The National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, is in place to instantly determine whether a prospective buyer is eligible to buy firearms or explosives (not a convicted felon or otherwise ineligible). The system is utilized each time someone purchases a firearm from a licensed dealer. NICS is maintained by the FBI. More than 100 million checks have been conducted since the system was initiated. 700,000 of those checks resulted in denials.

7. Muzzleloading cannons are NOT classified as destructive devices.

8. Machine guns may be legally transferred (sold) from one registered owner to another.

9. It is illegal to manufacture, import, and/or sell armor-piercing ammunition. However, this law does not apply to those who manufacture and sell armor-piercing ammunition to the government of the United States or any its departments or agencies, or to any state government or any department and/or agency thereof. It is also legal to manufacture and sell armor-piercing ammunition for the purpose of exporting to other countries.

ATF defines armor-piercing ammunition as:

(a) projectile or projectile core which may be used in a handgun and which is constructed entirely (excluding the presence of traces of other substances) from one or a combination of tungsten alloys, steel, iron, brass, bronze, beryllium copper, or depleted uranium; or

(b) a full jacketed projectile larger than .22 caliber designed and intended for use in a handgun and whose jacket has a weight of more than 25 percent of the total weight of the projectile.

10. Brandish – to display all or part a firearm, or make it known a firearm is present, for the purpose of intimidating another. “Cops charged my cousin with brandishing a firearm. He’ll do six months in county for this one. It’s the second time he’s done it.”

11. It is illegal for persons convicted of crimes of violence to purchase or possess body armor.

12. Gun sales to foreign embassies on U.S. soil are considered exports; therefore, typical gun sale paperwork is not required. Instead, dealers need to obtain only one of the following – an official purchase order from the foreign mission, payment from foreign government funds, a written document from the agency head stating the weapons are being purchased by the embassy, not an individual. Standard laws apply to individual parties/diplomats.

Bonus – It is illegal to knowingly sell a gun to anyone who is an unlawful user of or addicted to controlled substances. It is also illegal to knowingly sell a firearm to someone has been adjudicated as a mental defective or has been committed to a mental institution.

*     *     *

I’m goin’ home, gonna load my shotgun
Wait by the door and light a cigarette
If he wants a fight well now he’s got one

I’m gonna show him what little girls are made of
Gunpowder and lead

Miranda Lambert ~ Gunpowder and Lead

/by

Castle: Ph. Dead – A Good Cop/Bad Cop Review

Castle: Ph. Dead

 

“Working murders is not your job, anymore.” ~ Lanie to Castle

 

New Picture (10)

Melanie Atkins

Well, you can call me bad cop again this week, because I’m still not at all happy with the contrived, ill-conceived plotline the powers-that-be came up with in an effort to “shake things up” this season—when in reality it’s only served to anger loyal viewers. Sure, I’m doing my best to deal with the explosive canon twist they dumped on us last week, but the episode left a sour taste in my mouth.

Kate is still acting out of character in this one, and Rick has reduced himself to a twit as he chases after her. Granted, the episode did have its moments and I did laugh out loud a few times. All in all, however, I’m still not a happy camper. I usually want the episodes to creep by so I can savor each one, but this season I want them to hurry by so we can get to episode seven and the supposed end of Kate’s misguided quest for “justice”.

They did give us a few enjoyable Caskett moments in this one that harkened back to seasons past, but they did little to bring back the romance—something that is essential to the show, IMHO, since our dynamic duo is now husband and wife. I don’t like them being apart. It makes no sense.

The show opened with Rick waking up alone in their bed and glancing at Kate’s side with grief evident on his face. That scene alone broke my heart. I had to chuckle, however, when he turned on his new home operating system, better known as “Lucy”—a name that cracked me up because I have a calico cat named Lucy who pretty much runs my house. Lucy is a nice touch. Typical Castle.

I do like that Rick is back to solving cases now, even if he has to insinuate himself into them via his PI business, but he should be working with Kate, not against her. Her determination to keep him at arm’s length bothers me. He’s having to work too hard to get her attention, and it all falls flat to me at this point because, as I pointed out above, they’re married now, for crying out loud.

Kate kept running into Rick as the case unfolded, thanks to his conniving ways, and I did like that because it at least put them in the same room. I did not like her attitude. Too out of character.

The college prison experiment put a different twist on the case, and I loved that Rick locked himself into a cell with Kate so they could talk—and then they didn’t. Seriously? Yes, they solved the case by building theory together, something they’ve always done well, and they shared a delicious charged moment in each other’s arms – but they didn’t kiss, and I felt cheated.

Come on, writers! Are you trying to kill us? We waited years for those two to get their heads out of the sand and admit they loved each other, and now Kate’s pushing Rick away to “protect” him while she chases after some phantom nutjob we only heard about last week? Please. The whole scenario is tiresome and ludicrous.

The last scene in the show made my heart ache. Kate wants to go home, but the writers won’t let her. Rick and Kate have always been safer together than apart. Now she’s working with Vikram, a nice addition to the cast, but not the man she should have by her side while she’s fighting a phantom foe. If someone had issued a concrete threat against Rick, I could probably buy into this convoluted plotline. But all they’ve given us through three episodes is this vague threat that came out of freaking nowhere, and as hard as I try, I simply can’t suspend my disbelief long enough to buy into it.

Kate has worked too long and too hard to get where she was with Rick at the end of last season to throw it all away on another obsession. Yes, she says she still loves him, and he loves her, but that’s not enough for me. I want happiness now.

I’m going to keep a close eye on the next few episodes to see how the writers get themselves out of this mess, but we shouldn’t have to mark time like this. I want them to hurry and get us back on track. We’ll see what bones they throw us next week. I hope we get more than we did in Ph. Dead.

20140523_123600

Lee Lofland

Okay, there’s a dead guy impaled on a large, human-leg-size tree branch—a through-and-through wound to the midsection. Lanie, the voodoo forensics queen, says someone used brute strength to push the guy onto the tree limb, causing the thick, wooden appendage to pass through flesh, bone, and clothing. I agree, the person who could do this had to be a size and strength equal to that of The Hulk. No doubt about it.

However, we later learned that a tiny young woman was the great and powerful force behind the killing. Ridiculous. Not only would someone of her size and stature not have the muscle to do such a thing, it seems as if the writers totally forgot they’d had Lanie say the thing about the killer having brute strength. I suppose this was their lame way of throwing viewers off track. If this sort of thing was written into a novel we’d call it lazy writing. The same applies here. Lazy. Lazy. Lazy.

Of course, Lanie once again relied on lividity to establish a time of death (TOD). Remember, when the heart stops beating, gravity pulls blood to the lowest point(s) in the body. Blood pooling in those low areas stains the surrounding tissue which gives the appearance of purplish-blue bruising. This staining of tissue is called livor mortis, or lividity. For example, a victim lying flat on his back when he dies exhibits lividity on his back, buttocks, and the back of his legs. The same is true on the front of the body, if the victim is found lying face down.

The staining of tissue normally begins within the first two hours after death. The process reaches it’s full peak in eight to twelve hours.

If the victim is moved during the first six hours after death the purplish discoloration can shift, causing the new, lowest portion of the body to exhibit some lividity.

After a period of six to eight hours after death, lividity becomes totally fixed. Moving the body after eight hours will not change the patterns of discoloration. Therefore, investigators know a body has been moved if it’s found lying face down but lividity is present on areas of the back.

Rookie officers have sometimes confused lividity with bruising caused by fighting.

Now, with that out of the way, let’s go back to Lanie’s assessment. Again, she based the TOD on lividity. Unfortunately, it’s a bit difficult to reference something you can’t see. The victim was upright, meaning lividity would be present in the lower legs, lower arms and hands, and quite possibly the face since the face of this dead guy was aimed toward the ground. However, we saw the face and arms and there was no lividity present in either place. His legs were totally covered by clothing—couldn’t see any flesh below the wound. Therefore, Lanie could not base the TOD on lividity (which is really not an accurate basis for TOD anyway).

Alexis is the new impossible-to-believe character. Out of nowhere she’s suddenly a computer expert, a crackerjack investigator who knows more about police work than seasoned veterans, and she’s a master at working undercover. Her computer skills are beyond amazing, and she has access to things only accessible to law enforcement. And…she, like her dad, now tags along when Esposito and Ryan search buildings for dangerous bad guys. It was bad enough seeing Castle charge headfirst and unarmed into potential gunfire situations, but now we have the daughter doing the same. Please…

Alexis also has the job of providing information and clarifications that move the story from one point to another when the writers are too lazy and weak to build those tidbits into the tale. So now Alexis is forced to spout off lines of info dump material. For example, Castle mentioned the Stanford Prison Experiment, a real study conducted at Stanford University that was funded by the Navy. So, for the benefit of viewers who may not have heard about the experiment, Alexis recited a definition of the project. This was an awkward scene since Castle already knew about the experiment and there was no one else around to hear. Again, weak and lazy writing.

Castle arrested and cuffed a murder suspect, the college professor. Yeah, right. That would happen in real life. NOT.

Melanie has already addressed the other stupidity seen in this episode so I won’t go there. But I am curious about why Beckett feels the need to be away from Castle. Supposedly it’s to protect him, yet she was with him off and on throughout the show. Doesn’t make sense.

And please, TURN ON THE LIGHTS! Filming the show in near darkness does not increase the tension. Instead, doing so merely adds another reason to stop watching this train wreck.

#killBeckett

#trainwreck

#turnonthefreakin’lights!

/by

Cloaking with Teflon, and Straw Purchases: A Top 6 List for Writers

Cloaking with straw purchases, and teflon

 

Does the hero of your story have a real need to drive an invisible car? How about clothing that protects against a mustard gas attack? Is she an expert in facial recognition? Well…

1. Forensic Facial Examiners (yes, they do exist) have been tested to determine the accuracy of their identification/recognition skills. The results? Darn near perfect (99.7%, to be exact). The high mark indicates that when comparing the accuracy of trained facial examiners to non-experts, well, the trained experts were far better at recognizing, comparing, identifying and matching faces to photos than people who are not trained to do so. Therefore, it’s safe to say the experts are indeed believable and reliable when it comes to courtroom testimony.

2. Scientists have developed a new compound that neutralizes chemical warfare agents such as mustard gas. The compound, a hydrogel coating, can be applied to clothing to help safeguard against the deadly chemicals. Adding the hydrogel to paint can also protect the interior of homes/rooms from chemical hazards.

3. Researchers interviewed 99 inmates, asking where they obtained the firearms used when committing their crimes. They found that very few guns, if any, were obtained by theft. Instead, the bad guys said they obtained their guns through:

a) purchase or trade from friends and family.

b) travel to states with slack gun laws for legal purchases (gun shows, online connections, etc.), but not via traditional gun stores.

c) gangs make bulk purchases from traffickers and then distribute to members.

d) 15% of weapons recovered from the criminals interviewed were purchased for them by women. Third party gun deals are called straw purchases. It is illegal to purchase a gun for someone who cannot legally posses a firearm.

It was discovered that most guns purchased and carried by criminals are older weapons—11 years or older. The inmates also stated that proactive policing once put a damper on carrying weapons they believed to be “hot,” fearing police would connect them to other crimes. Now, however, the move away from police stop and frisk practically eliminates the crooks’ worry about carrying illegal firearms.

4. Engineers have successfully developed a cloaking device that works even on very large objects, including military drones. The new Teflon substrate and ceramic studs scatters electromagnetic waves (light and radar), causing light to bypass the target object…making it “invisible” to detection. The process is basically an alteration of our perceptions.

5. According to Alabama professor and study researcher, Adam Lankford, five percent of the world’s population lives in the U.S. Within that 5% are 31% of world’s mass shooters (based upon 1966-2012 stats). Lankford also found that mass shooters from countries other than the U.S. typically use only one firearm. In the U.S. however, over half of the mass shooters have used at least two firearms when killing.

6. A University of Illinois Chicago study shows that 92% of all police officer line of duty deaths (murders) are by gunfire. 3/4 of those deaths are by handgun. From 1996 – 2010, 782 officers were killed. 716 were killed by gunfire (515 were handguns).

The study produced an unexpected result. The states with the highest numbers of officers murdered were not states with the highest rates of violent crime. Instead, the areas where officers were murdered most frequently were the states with the highest numbers of public-owned firearms, such as Montana, Alabama, Alaska, and Mississippi.

 

*This post is not an open invitation to express opinions about gun control. Instead, the list above is a collection of facts that could add an extra element to a work in progress. 

 

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Pesky, Hard-To-Find Murder Scenes

Pesky, hard-to-find murder scenes

 

Not all murderers choose to do their dirty work in the comfort of someone’s warm and cozy brick rancher on So Sweet Lane in Lovelytown, USA. Sometimes assassins are a bit creative when it comes to disposing of the fruits of their labor. In fact, victims have been found in really odd places, like old, rat-infested, abandoned factories, dilapidated houses, inside rusty farm machinery, lying miles-deep in the woods, a railroad car, inside discarded barrels, inside water towers and tanks, under water, a chimney, and hanging from the rafters in a barn.

So why not be creative when writing your murder scenes? The real killers sure are.

* Some of the photos in today’s blog are from the collection of Maryland photographer, Sunday Kaminski. The others are mine, one of which was once an actual murder scene.

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Friday’s Heroes: Remembering the Fallen

Friday's Heroes - Remembering the fallen officers

 

police-officer-greg-alia

Officer Greg Alia, 32

Forest Acres South Carolina Police Department

September 30, 2015 – Officer Greg Alia was shot and killed at a local mall after responding to reports of a suspicious person. Officer Alia is survived by his wife, 6-month-old son, and parents.

deputy-sheriff-rosemary-vela

Deputy Sheriff Rosemary Vela, 24

Madison County Tennessee Sheriff’s Office

September 28, 2015 – Deputy Rosemary Vela was killed in a car crash while responding to backup a fellow deputy. She is survived by her five-year-old son.

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