Investigative journalist Radley Balko says that American police forces have become more like armies than keepers of the peace. He traces it back to the creation of SWAT teams in the 60s, which led to increased use of military tactics and weapons. These days, there are some 50,000 raids each year as part of "wars" declared on drugs and crime. Balko joins Doug to talk about how law enforcement has changed throughout history and what militarized police forces mean for citizens. (Rebroadcast)
Radley Balko blogs about criminal justice, the drug war and civil liberties for The Washington Post. His book is called Rise of the Warrior Cop [Indiebound|Amazon]
