Violence In Baltimore Rises To Record-Levels

CNN: Baltimore Experiences Record Number Of Homicides In May. Violence in Baltimore over Memorial Day weekend made May the deadliest month in 15 years for the city, according to CNN. Over the weekend, 9 people were killed in 29 shootings:

Baltimore is seeing its deadliest month in 15 years after an outbreak of Memorial Day weekend violence left nine people dead in 29 shootings.

So far, Baltimore has tallied 35 homicides this month, police said.

The last time Baltimore saw that many homicides was December 1999, police said. [CNN.com, 5/26/15]

Cleveland Police Accept Department Of Justice Restrictions On Use Of Force 

NY Times: The Cleveland Police Department Agrees To Implement DOJ's Use Of Force Limitations. After a nearly two-year civil rights investigation, the Cleveland Police Department has agreed to implement a revised use of force policy recommended by the DOJ, including “some of the most exacting standards in the nation over how and when its officers can use force.” According to The New York Times, the agreement reached between the DOJ and the Cleveland police includes “close oversight” to ensure the new guidelines are followed. As The Times reported:  

The new rules in Cleveland prohibit officers from using force against people for talking back or as punishment for running away. Pistol whipping is prohibited, and so is firing warning shots, the agreement says. The city has agreed to allow an independent monitor to track its progress. If the city does not put into effect the changes in the settlement, a federal judge has the authority to demand them. [The New York Times, 12/4/14, 5/26/15]

Right-Wing Media Suggest DOJ Investigations Into Police Departments Lead To The Increased Violence

Fox Business' Dobbs:  DOJ Investigations Into Local Police Departments Are “An Outright Campaign Against Law Enforcement.” During the May 26 edition of Fox Business Network's Lou Dobbs Tonight, host Lou Dobbs characterized DOJ investigations into local police departments as “an outright campaign against law enforcement.” [Fox Business Network, Lou Dobbs Tonight, 5/26/15]

Fox's Cavuto: Violence In Baltimore Is “Going Down Just As Authorities Were Cracking Down On The Police.” During the May 26 edition of Fox News' Your World with Neil Cavuto, host Cavuto linked violence in Baltimore to the Cleveland police department's implementation of the DOJ's recommended limits on police use of force. Cavuto asserted “all of this violence [was] going down just as authorities were cracking down on the police.” Cavuto pointed to Cleveland's limits on police use of force, Obama's recent executive order restricting local law enforcement's access to certain military equipment from the federal government, and Baltimore grand jury indictments for the officers allegedly behind the unexplained death of Baltimore resident Freddie Gray while in police custody as evidence of the Obama administration “cracking down on the police.” [Fox News, Your World with Neil Cavuto, 5/26/15]

Rush Limbaugh: “The Obama Administration's Theory On Policing” Will Lead To Increased Violence Like In Baltimore. On the May 26 edition of Premiere Radio Networks' The Rush Limbaugh Show, host Limbaugh highlighted the DOJ settlement with the Cleveland Police Department and argued that the new rules proved that “the Obama administration's theory on policing” would lead to violence similar to that in Baltimore, pointing to Cleveland's limits on police use of force as evidence the DOJ and Obama administration are restricting police. [Premiere Radio Networks, The Rush Limbaugh Show, 5/26/15]

Fox Contributor: If The Justice Department Continues “To Go After Police Departments ... You're Going To See Crime Rates Continue To Increase.” During the May 26 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, network contributor Rod Wheeler pointed to the Cleveland police department's implementation of DOJ-recommended limits on police use of force and the violence in Baltimore to claim that crime increases when the DOJ investigates local police departments:

WHEELER: If we continue to go after the police departments like the Justice Department is doing, you're going to see crime rates continue to increase. We see it already. Just look at this past weekend. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 5/26/15]

Fox's Bolling: When You Blame The Police Force “Crime Is Going To Go Up.” On the May 26 edition of Fox News' The Five, co-host Eric Bolling suggested that officials “pointing the finger at cops” by investigating local police departments or creating limits on police use of force, will cause an increase in violence in places like Cleveland and Baltimore:  

BOLLING: What did you expect would happen? I mean when you tell the police to stand down when there's rioting going on. When you are pointing the finger at cops every time someone is shot, blaming a cop, It's their fault -- of course you're going to demoralize the police force and crime is going to go up. It's going to happen in Baltimore, it's going to happen in Cleveland, it's going to happen in New York, it's going to happen everywhere you're pointing fingers at cops. [Fox News, The Five, 5/26/15]