Scott Hechinger

@scotthech.bsky.social

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Civil rights attorney. Longtime public defender. Dad. Executive Director, Zealous. Supporting local coalitions to tell more compelling stories and work better together.

My org: https://ZEALO.US

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Anytime you hear a “rise in crime” or “spike in shootings,” remember: whatever they claim, it’s happening despite investing most on policing in the history of the world. A brutal indictment of the efficacy of policing. Yet police are using their failures to get even more?

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How copaganda works. Police, prosecutor, & prison interests use media to exaggerate & lie about "sensational" cases. Amplify them on repeat. Create the *perception* that "crime" or "migrants" are a "Crisis!" Perpetual anger/fear buys votes & public opinion. Facts be damned.

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Tennessee cop was texting at night, while driving a restrained woman in his back seat, bragging to his wife about making his first arrest, ran his car into a river, killing him & the helpless woman he had just arrested. This is the headline. The story barely mentions her.

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Questions journalists should be asking: Will the Manhattan DA now move to dismiss the indictments against these men? Had the Manhattan DA seen the full unredacted video prior to bringing the cases before the grand jury? Did the Grand Jury see the entire incident?

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The police version of events never made any sense. Unprovoked "attacks" on police happen near-never. Colleagues and I have been talking for weeks about "what must have happened" before but we weren't seeing. Police harassing and attacking migrants was top of the list.

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For weeks now, Republicans & Democrats have been raising alarm about an "unprovoked attack" against NYPD in Times Square. NYPD only released a highly edited 45 second video. Now new videos contradict them. Show police illegally harassing & attacking. www.thecity.nyc/2024/02/08/t...

New Videos Contradict NYPD Account of Lead-Up to Times Square Attack on Copswww.thecity.nyc Police said Yohenry Brito was disobeying a lawful order to disperse when an officer tried to arrest him, triggering a melee with nearly a dozen men. But footage released today shows he was walking awa...

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How copaganda works. Police release a highly edited video that doesn't include their unprovoked, violent, & unjustified attack on a migrant. Manufactured "outcry" ensues. Lawmakers call for sweeping policy changes. New video later released. It's too late. Profound damage done.

Hard to fathom. Philadelphia’s Department of Human Services takes $1.3 million in Social Security benefits supposed to go to support 380 foster kids per year as “repayment” for the “services” they provide. “Stealing money from foster kids.” Read this:

Philly still keeps the benefits of foster care youths despite a 2022 law banning the practicewww.inquirer.com Despite the city's new law, DHS acknowledges it’s still keeping the money meant for foster kids — about $1.3 million in Social Security benefits for 380 children in a typical year.

Governor Newsom just passed a nearly $300 million budget to combat “organized retail theft.” Since then: Retailers are admitting they lied about the extent of retail theft. And FBI data just released tells us retail theft is down & property crime is *lowest since 1961.* Lies.

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"Felony murder" laws allow for people to be charged w/ murder if a death occurs during certain other felonies -- regardless of whether that death was intended. Or, in Sadik's case a person was even present. Sentences include life & even death. Must read:

Sentenced to Life for an Accident Miles Awaywww.newyorker.com A draconian legal doctrine called felony murder has put thousands of Americans—disproportionately young and Black—in prison.

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Sadik Baxter, a 25 y/o dad sat handcuffed in a cop car. Miles away, his friend accidentally hit two bicyclists w/ a car. Sadik was charged w/ their murder. In U.S., prosecutors charge murder even if everyone agrees you didn't intend to kill. Must read: www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Sentenced to Life for an Accident Miles Awaywww.newyorker.com A draconian legal doctrine called felony murder has put thousands of Americans—disproportionately young and Black—in prison.

Meanwhile on the other app…

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my latest for MSNBC

Opinion | Behind Eric Adams and Mike Johnson's God talk is a frightening beliefwww.msnbc.com New York Mayor Eric Adams and House Speaker Mike Johnson are two of the latest officials who want us to believe God put them where they are.

Don’t do it.

This is child abuse.

Black Texas student given additional suspension for loc hairstyle | CNNwww.cnn.com A Black Texas high school student who was suspended because his loc hairstyle violated the district’s dress code was suspended again upon his return to school Monday, an attorney for the family told...

Two weeks ago in Michigan, my colleague's close friend was sentenced to 17 years prison for trying to sell cocaine to a friend. 17 years! Michigan--like so many "blue states"--is as bad if not worse than red. A must read on the blue state prison problem:

Michigan’s Prison Crisiswww.thenation.com The state, often considered a bastion of progressive policies, has some of the worst carceral instincts and politics.

Copaganda at work: CBS New York operating as police PR agent. 1. Violent felonies like this remain bail eligible post reform. 2. Prosecutor requested an outrageous $150k bail. 3. Judge released this presumptively innocent person on GPS monitor. 4. He appeared for court w/o issue.

There is zero accountability for police. Or incentives for them to act in the interests people, public health & safety, or fiscal responsibility.

The NYPD won’t be paying a cent of these historic settlement amounts. The officers who violated the constitution & exacted violence on NYers won’t be paying any. It’s NYC taxpayers who are the hook for the NYPD’s abuse. There is no accountability.

NYC has paid $50 million so far this year in police misconduct payouts, Legal Aid saysgothamist.com The price tag covered the resolution of more than 400 lawsuits between January and late July, based on the organization’s analysis of city data.

Amid the bigotry & misinfo over the “migrant crisis,” these facts get lost: While they wait for their asylum case, immigrants 1. Arent allowed to work, 2. Get no financial support even for basic necessities, & (3) w/ no right to counsel, must rep themselves. Process takes years.

Wow. Teen Vogue continues to produce the best in justice journalism. In honor of suicide prevention week, they just published a back-to-school syllabus of readings, viewings, & other powerful projects to get a leg up on the issue of solitary confinement:

We Can Come Together to End Solitary Confinementwww.teenvogue.com There's growing recognition that this practice is torture.

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There are only 32 full time public defenders in all of Mississippi. The result: Thousands of people who’d otherwise be free who are trapped incarcerated pretrial w/ no lawyer to argue for release.

Mississippi's public defender system in crisis as some wait years for court-appointed lawyert.co Legal experts say the Mississippi public defender system is underfunded and fails to provide counsel to people who cannot afford their own. This has left people waiting behind bars for legal represent...

There are only 32 full time public defenders in all of Mississippi. The result: Thousands of people who’d otherwise be free who are trapped incarcerated pretrial w/ no lawyer to argue for release.

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I hate mugshots. I get that it may feel great to see Giuliani, Powell, Eastman line up, but mugshots and the prevalence of them literally ruin the lives of millions of ordinary people. The more we celebrate horrible features of the legal system the further ingrained they get.