Many advocates of “defunding the police” contend that too many police encounters with civilians concern trivial matters. Defunding proponents worry that poor decisions by officers can escalate tensions and lead to unnecessary uses of force. They argue that the police mandate should be more narrowly focused on responding to “serious” crimes, especially violent felonies. All other matters should not be considered police business. This premise has gained a receptive hearing in our political climate. Most people instinctively support the idea of leaving management of serious felonies to the police, who are certainly less likely to get into trouble if their job is simply to arrest violent felons.

The so-called "Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone" or CHAZ has been in place for weeks now and despite its leaders claiming to be able to control the situation, two shootings have already taken place on its territory, with residents not allowing police to intervene or investigate.

Amid the anger and widespread unrest over the death of George Floyd while being arrested in Minneapolis May 25, 2020, (and then the shooting of Rayshard Brooks by an Atlanta police officer a mere 25 days later) many weren't satisfied just to see officer Derek Chauvin charged with second-degree murder and three others charged aiding and abetting the crime. (Brooks' death is still under investigation.)

Across Texas, more than two weeks of protests have led to conversations about police reform. But some activists want the complete abolition of police departments.

While the issue of police reform continues around the country one company that started in Las Vegas is providing officers an option before using lethal force.

This much is clear: Nevada business owners must enforce a rigid set of rules inside their establishments if they want to reopen — or stay reopened — under the governor’s Phase One pandemic economic recovery plan.

Before hashtags circulated after the officer-involved death of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, before vigils for Philando Castile, and the marches of Black Lives Matter, police in Suffolk County, New York, killed Kenny Lazo. Among its other ramifications, his 2008 death eventually resulted in the Forced Trajectory Project, or FTP, a media and advocacy organization, now based in Las Vegas, with a website that documents families and communities impacted by police killings.

Less than an hour after the first strike team entered Stephen Paddock’s suite at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas police officers far from the scene were already sharing cellphone photos of the dead gunman.