Overcriminalization

The overcriminalization in the charges against Michael O’Donnell
07
May
By Bob Weeks

The overcriminalization in the charges against Michael O’Donnell

The indictment against Sedgwick County Commissioner Michael O'Donnell smells of overcriminalization. Former Wichita City Council Member, former Kansas Senator, and present Sedgwick County Commissioner Michael O'Donnell has been charged with a series of serious crimes -- serious, at least, in the potential penalties he faces. First, I know Michael O'Donnell, and although I have been critical of some of his votes in the Kansas Senate and many while a member of the Sedgwick County Commission, I still consider him a friend, and I hope he considers me the same. I have worked on some of his campaigns, sometimes as a…
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WichitaLiberty.TV: Keen Umbehr on criminal justice reform
19
Mar
By Bob Weeks

WichitaLiberty.TV: Keen Umbehr on criminal justice reform

In this episode of WichitaLiberty.TV: Keen Umbehr is a criminal defense attorney. He talks about reforms needed in the criminal justice system. View below, or click here to view on YouTube. Episode 143, broadcast March 19, 2017. Show notes Keen Umbehr on Facebook Midwest Innocence Project Kansas civil asset forfeiture Criminal Justice and Policing Reform -- Charles Koch Institute
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In Wichita, your house numbers may become illegal
08
Aug
By Bob Weeks

In Wichita, your house numbers may become illegal

Thousands of Wichita homeowners may soon be lawbreakers if the city council follows its staff's recommendation. An update is at the end of this article. This week the Wichita City Council may make your house number illegal, even though those numbers may -- literally -- be set in stone. This will be the case if the council takes the action recommended by its Department of Public Works and Utilities. Current city code requires address numbers three inches high. The proposed ordinance requires numbers four inches tall. The penalty for noncompliance is $500 per day, with each day being "a separate…
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Wichita to impose burdensome occupational requirements
29
Feb
By Bob Weeks

Wichita to impose burdensome occupational requirements

The proposed massage therapist regulations in Wichita are likely to be ineffective, but will limit economic opportunity and harm consumers. The Wichita City Council is concerned about human trafficking for the purposes of prostitution. That's good. But the response the council is considering -- which is licensing massage therapists -- is not needed. We have strict laws already on the books that make human trafficking a serious criminal offense, which it is. The proposed Wichita regulations will simply make it more difficult for honest people to become massage therapists. Criminals will operate illegally. They are criminals, after all. Or, they…
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Massage business regulations likely to be ineffective, but will be onerous
24
Feb
By Bob Weeks

Massage business regulations likely to be ineffective, but will be onerous

The Wichita City Council is likely to create a new regulatory regime for massage businesses in response to a problem that is already addressed by strict laws. During a presentation to the Wichita City Council on February 23, 2016, police officials reported on a number of investigations and arrests. In 2015, there were 22 arrests for human trafficking and other violations. The presentation did not include what comprised "other violations," nor did it contain any information about the disposition of these cases. If the city is concerned about prostitution and child trafficking, the latter being a serious crime, we already…
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23
Feb
By Bob Weeks

If you can’t get a cop in Wichita

It could be that the officers are busy protecting the city from the illegal playing of poker. This is an area ripe for reform. Why is playing poker for money on east Kellogg illegal? At one time the state thought it had to protect us from gambling because it was sinful. That argument has faded as states across the nation have sanctioned casinos. Kansas is unique -- at least at the time of the start of non-Indian casino gambling in the state -- in that the casinos are actually owned by the state. So if the state of Kansas owns…
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Criminal justice reform: Why it matters
24
Sep
By Bob Weeks

Criminal justice reform: Why it matters

Mark Holden, Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Koch Industries, Inc., speaks about criminal justice reform initiatives Koch is encouraging in and why they're important from moral, constitutional and fiscal perspectives. Holden spoke at a luncheon of the Wichita Pachyderm Club on September 18, 2015. View below, or click here to view in high definition at YouTube. Videography by Paul Soutar. More information about this topic is at The Overcriminalization of America.
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Making Wichita an inclusive and attractive community
09
Feb
By Bob Weeks

Making Wichita an inclusive and attractive community

There are things both easy and difficult Wichita could do to make the city inclusive and welcoming of all, especially the young and diverse. In its questionnaire for candidates for Wichita mayor and city council, the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce asked this: "How will you work to make Wichita an inclusive community where all will feel welcome, particularly the young and diverse talent we need to help attract more young and diverse talent?" There are a few very easy things Wichita could do to appeal to millennials -- I think that is one of the groups the Chamber addresses…
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09
Jan
By Guest Author

The Overcriminalization of America

The Overcriminalization of America How to reduce poverty and improve race relations by rethinking our justice system By Charles G. Koch and Mark V. Holden As Americans, we like to believe the rule of law in our country is respected and fairly applied, and that only those who commit crimes of fraud or violence are punished and imprisoned. But the reality is often different. It is surprisingly easy for otherwise law-abiding citizens to run afoul of the overwhelming number of federal and state criminal laws. This proliferation is sometimes referred to as “overcriminalization,” which affects us all but most profoundly…
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