Homicides in San Francisco reached a ten-year high in 2007, while the murder rate in other big cities, such as Los Angeles and New York declined. A story by Cecilia M. Vega in today's San Francisco Chronicle reports that murders were up in other bay area cities as well, with drug-related shootings driving the numbers. It should be noted that San Francisco voters support law enforcement policies which are unusually tolerant. It is a sanctuary city for illegals, and DA Kamala Harris, has taken a softer approach to the enforcement of "Three Strikes" and has kept her promise not to enforce the death penalty.

Death Penalty: As posted earlier, in the aftermath of the New Jersey Legislature's vote to abolish capital punishment, opponents have focused on other states where beachheads have already been established. Among these states is Maryland, where a 2003 University of Maryland study has been widely cited for showing that the application of the sentence is racially biased, although a closer look at the numbers refutes that interpretation. That same year former Governor Parris Glendening instituted a one-year moratorium. Last year Governor Martin O'Malley tried, but failed, to get the state legislature to abolish executions. Reporter Jennifer McMenamin has a story in this morning's Baltimore Sun reporting that, according to a recent poll, 57% of Maryland voters want to keep the death penalty for the worst murderers, a 24% margin over those supporting abolition of the punishment.

The Nine: Yet more errors in Jeffrey Toobin's notorious book are pointed out here by Gideon Kanner and on VC by Ilya Somin. Previous posts on this book are here and here, and a post about a Toobin article on habeas corpus is here.