Category social issues
Serial Killers in Sacramento–Why here?
News headlines and social media feeds were buzzing after the long-awaited death of notorious serial killer, Charles Manson. His personal role as the mastermind of the 1960’s murder spree in Southern California has been long debated, as he is quoted saying that he didn’t personally commit any of the crimes. Manson and his dysfunctional “family” of […]
When Social Media Isn’t Very Social
Social media drives me nuts. Those who know me might argue that it’s a very short trip to that particular destination. Still, the wild and woolly web is a place that brings out the worst in people. And social media magnifies it to Hubble telescope proportions. Occasionally, I’ll post about an Old Guy’s Guide to […]
Hostage Negotiation & Customer Service
I was an FBI trained hostage negotiator working in the state prison system. Every day inside the “big house” and perhaps even more so, later in my career, in the halls of the state captiol, I put these skills to the test. I convinced hard core felons to give up their weapons and surrender, let […]
All The Justice You Can Buy
I had a bit of a “Get Off My Lawn” moment this week. When we last circled around the campfire, we talked about the tale of convicted drug trafficker, Alice Johnson and a push for clemency on her behalf by the Queen of the Selfie, Kim Kardashian. There’s the link, if you want to check […]
Celebrity Prison Reform
This week, in the bizzaro world of celebrity political influence, Kim Kardashian had a meeting in the White House to discuss prison reform. Yes, you read that right, the Queen of vapid, self-absorbed empty brands, met to discuss of all things–prison reform. Not that we don’t have a national system that is overdue for a […]
Spiraling Prison Costs
It’s no great state secret that maintaining a prison system is expensive. Since California has the largest prison system in the nation, it should also be no surprise that it is the most costly. The official state budget for the operation of the California prison system is teetering on $12 Billion annually–nearly $2 Billion more […]
Paying Gang Members to Not Pull the Trigger
I’ve talked about Sacramento crime here before and how we seem to be the birthplace of violent crime and most notably, a magnet for serial killers. The Violent crime rate — which includes the number of homicides, rape, robbery, and assault — was 716.3 per 100,000 people in 2016. Nationally, the violent crime rate was […]
BETRAYED: Powerful Stories of Kick-Ass Crime Survivors
October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, and it isn’t by accident that Authors On the Air released their inaugural publication–a crime fiction anthology focused on the issue of personal violence and crime survivors–in October. All of the authors gifted their stories to the anthology and all proceeds are being donated to a non-profit community organization […]
Betrayed–A Crime Fiction Anthology
On October 1, 2017, the publishing arm of the Authors on the Air, Global Radio Network, releases their very first anthology of short crime fiction. BETRAYED features stories from twenty, critically acclaimed, best selling authors, and I’m thrilled they let me come and play with them. If you’re a crime fiction junkie, like I am, […]
Pot Crimes
My home state of California recently adopted a new state herb–Marijuana. Reactions to the new pot legalization laws were mixed, from joyous, bud-loving hippies to fearful, the end-of-days are upon us, evangelicals. Me–for the most part, I don’t care. The medicinal marijuana crowd touts the benefits of the stuff as a cure all for whatever […]
James L'Etoile
James L'Etoile 