A key danger in "Safe Homes"

On Monday, Bianca Vazquez Toness of WBUR did
a really interesting story that underscores the difficulty the police can face earning the trust of local communities.

One of the reasons the police "are looking to build trust in high-crime neighborhoods," as Vazquez Toness says, is for the proposed "Safe Homes" initiative, in which Boston police plan on going door-to-door in high-crime neighborhoods, asking people to open their doors to "voluntary" searches for guns.

The ACLU of Massachusetts is concerned that people won't understand they have the right to say "no" to these searches, or that anything illegal the police find in the searches (guns, drugs, etc.) can lead to arrests and criminal charges against anyone in the home, including children. This isn't like programs which simply aim to take guns out of circulation, with no questions asked.

In other words, a key danger in "Safe Homes" is the erosion of trust. People could waive their rights to help tackle gun violence, but then feel betrayed if members of their families are hauled off to jail or are suspended or expelled from school, instead of simply having to turn over a gun -- or even if no guns were found at all.

An ACLU of Massachusetts briefing paper with more information on "Safe Homes" is available here.