Cruelty Is A Crime

Voice of the Vulnerable – Chicago Access Network (CANTV) Show

Retired Sgt. Steve Brownstein produces his own show on the Chicago Access Network (CANTV) and you can view full episodes on his YouTube channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/SteveBrownstein

Topic range from dog fighting in Chicago to the fate of wild bats in the Philippines.  Please check it out.

Michael Vick and Animal Cruelty - The Continuing Non-Story

The following was posted in the Chicago Tribune “Voice of the People” section on January 9, 2011, and was written by Steve Brownstein:

There is a great deal of anger at Michael Vick. I think this is misguided anger.

I was a Chicago police sergeant who spent years fighting against dog-fighting and animal cruelty. I found that dog-fighting and animal cruelty are very commonly occurring crimes. It is only the rarity in which these crimes are enforced by police that is exceptional. [Read the rest of this entry...]

Animal Cruelty Is All But Ignored by Steve Brownstein

The following article appeared in the September 30, 2009 Chicago Tribune Voice of the People section.  While it is a year old, the underlying story remains the same.  Unfortunately, this article could be published in any major newspaper across the country: today, tomorrow, or 10-years ago. 

“I was a Chicago police sergeant who spent years investigating dog fighting and animal cruelty.  Dog fighting and animal cruelty are commonly committed crimes that are unexceptional in nature by their very frequency.  The only thing that is rare and uncommon is the extent to which these crimes are enforced. [Read the rest of this entry...]

Last week, during the trial of Officer David London, I (like millions of others) watched the video tape of the incident that lead to his indictment.  However, just because I was a Police Officer myself for a dozen years I don’t automatically take the side of the police in these situations.  I do, on the other hand, look at things from a slightly different perspective.

Video Without Audio

What immediately caught my attention was that there was no audio.  As numerous studies have shown, the lack of audio can have a dramatic effect on the interpretation of the facts.  Part of the reason that the academy teaches new recruits to continue to give verbal direction during a physical confrontation is to also let bystanders know when a subject is being non-compliant.  [Read the rest of this entry...]

Chicago Police Officer Densey Cole was paralyzed when he crashed his police SUV, and subsequently robbed while he lay unconscious in his vehicle.  Now he and his wife are trying to win their dream honeymoon in the Crate & Barrel/Daily Candy “Ultimate Wedding Sweepstakes”.

Please take a moment to the following link and cast your vote:  http://www.ultimateweddingcontest.com/entries/33527?sort=votes

Voting ends in a little over a week.  Please support the Cole family, and remember, they are from Chicago so “vote early and vote often”!