OK Sets Execution Dates for Inmates who Lost Supreme Court Case:  The three Oklahoma death row  inmates who lost a battle to have the U.S. Supreme Court halt their executions, claiming problems with the state's lethal injection drugs, had their execution dates set on Wednesday by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals.  Heide Brandes of Reuters reports that Richard Glossip will be executed on Sept. 16, Benjamin Cole on Oct. 7 and John Grant on Oct. 28 of this year.  In April 2014, all state executions were suspected following a problematic lethal injection of convicted murderer Clayton Lockett, igniting arguments over whether the anesthesia used achieved the level of unconsciousness required for executions.  Last month, the Supreme Court found that the drug did not constitute cruel and unusual punishment, allowing Oklahoma to resume executions.

CA County Jails Taking in More Repeat Felons:  According to a recent report, fewer ex-felons are returning to California state prisons - because they're going to county jails instead.  Brian Rokos of the Press Enterprise reports that the pattern coincides with the passage of AB 109, or prison realignment, in 2011, which sends parole violators back to county jail rather returning them to the prison system.  An influx of more serious criminals into county jails, along with rampant overcrowding as a result of realignment, has caused increased violence in the state's county jails.  Since Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 109 into law, the number of inmate-on-inmate assaults almost doubled, from the mid-300s to the 600s.  Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones responded to the report on KFBK radio this morning.

Baltimore Mayor Fires Police Commissioner:  Baltimore mayor fired the city's police commissioner Wednesday, citing the recent spike in homicides following the death of an unarmed black man in police custody as cause for a change in leadership.  The AP reports that Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said that increasing criticism of Police Commissioner Anthony Batts' leadership was becoming "a distraction that was preventing the city from moving ahead."  Arrests have plummeted and homicides have spiked since the city broke out into riots almost three months ago over the death of Freddie Gray, who died of injuries sustained while in police custody, for which six Baltimore police officers have been arrested.  Deputy Police Commissioner Kevin Davis, who has been with the agency since January, will serve as interim commissioner.

Recent Homicide Spotlights Midwestern Gang Violence:  A fatal shooting in Omaha, Nebraska carried out by a 12-year-old boy with gang connections has called attention to gang violence in the Midwest, an area that is burdening a resurgence of gun assault incidents.  Erik Ortiz of NBC News reports that retaliation by nearly a dozen gangs have been blamed for Omaha's increase in violence, as Police Chief Todd Schmaderer emphasized that "what you're seeing is today's victim becomes tomorrow's suspect."  On June 29, 12-year-old Jerrell Milton, along with two teenage accomplices, fatally shot a 31-year-old man during an alleged drug deal before feeling 400 miles to Minneapolis, where he was eventually apprehended last Tuesday.  All three suspects have gang ties and have been extradited back to Nebraska to face murder charges.

TN Bank Exec and Family Kidnapped, Forced to Rob Bank:  A Knoxville, Tennessee bank executive and his family were held hostage by two armed home invaders Tuesday morning, who rounded up the family into their own vehicle and forced the executive to rob the bank where he works while his family was held at gunpoint.  Fox News reports that Tanner Harris was ordered by the masked robbers to withdraw an undisclosed sum of money while his wife, Abbey Harris, and their five-month-old baby were held in the car outside.  The robbers fled with Abbey and the child after receiving the money, but the two were left unharmed with the vehicle on an abandoned road.  FBI agents believe the same kidnappers may be responsible for a similar crime that took place three months ago, in which a credit union CEO's family was kidnapped in the same manner. 

Map Reveals Vast Network of Sanctuaries for Illegals:  Following the July 1 shooting death of Kathryn Steinle by criminal alien Francisco Sanchez in San Francisco, the U.S. Center for Immigration Studies published a map detailing counties, cities and entire states where officials are barred from cooperating with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).  Katie McHugh of Breitbart reports that policies vary from city to city and state to state, North Dakota's being particularly extreme, where state penitentiary policy forbids the state from honoring any ICE detainer and will therefore not cooperate with immigration officials, even if the detainee is a rapist or murderer.  The 2016 presidential election will give presidential candidates the opportunity to call for and outline reformation to the "immigration policies the elite of both parties designed without [Americans'] consent."