Radley Balko
@radleybalko.bsky.social
Journalist. Quattrone Center journalism fellow.
Author: Rise of the Warrior Cop.
Co-author: The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist.
New podcast: Collateral Damage
Substack: radleybalko.substack.com
Signal: radleybalko.52
Author: Rise of the Warrior Cop.
Co-author: The Cadaver King and the Country Dentist.
New podcast: Collateral Damage
Substack: radleybalko.substack.com
Signal: radleybalko.52
I’ve written about a lot of forensic charlatanism over the years, but this is might be the most laughably stupid garbage I’ve ever seen. Hope this woman sues the pants off of them.
www.theblaze.com/news/former-...
www.theblaze.com/news/former-...
Former Capitol Police officer a forensic match for Jan. 6 pipe bomber, sources say | Blaze Media
A computer program that compared the bomb suspect’s gait to that of Shauni Kerkhoff produced a 94% match.
www.theblaze.com
November 11, 2025 at 1:29 AM
I’ve written about a lot of forensic charlatanism over the years, but this is might be the most laughably stupid garbage I’ve ever seen. Hope this woman sues the pants off of them.
www.theblaze.com/news/former-...
www.theblaze.com/news/former-...
Reposted by Radley Balko
November 10, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Reposted by Radley Balko
LA TACO is the real shit. Support them.
Los Angeles is under siege, and corporate-owned media has failed to meet this critical moment. #FreeLA
If you believe L.A. deserves better, support independent publications like L.A. TACO: lataco.com/join
If you believe L.A. deserves better, support independent publications like L.A. TACO: lataco.com/join
November 10, 2025 at 11:10 PM
LA TACO is the real shit. Support them.
Reposted by Radley Balko
Buried inside the deal to reopen government is a provision that would give Senators private right of action to sue for millions in damages over their phone records being analyzed by Jack Smith's team.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Shutdown Deal Would Let Senators Sue Over Jack Smith Searches
Senators whose phone records were sought by Special Counsel Jack Smith would gain authority to sue for millions in damages under a provision buried in the Senate-advanced deal to reopen the government...
news.bloomberglaw.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Buried inside the deal to reopen government is a provision that would give Senators private right of action to sue for millions in damages over their phone records being analyzed by Jack Smith's team.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Reposted by Radley Balko
Update: In 3 recent editorials, WaPo failed to disclose owner Jeff Bezos's interest in the matter under discussion.
WaPo added one disclosure after @bgrueskin.bsky.social called it out.
Two weeks after my story, the other two editorials still have none. And the paper still won't say why
WaPo added one disclosure after @bgrueskin.bsky.social called it out.
Two weeks after my story, the other two editorials still have none. And the paper still won't say why
'Washington Post' editorials omit a key disclosure: Bezos' financial ties
Three times in the past two weeks, editorials at the 'Washington Post' failed to disclose that they focused on matters in which owner Jeff Bezos had a material interest.
www.npr.org
November 10, 2025 at 10:56 PM
Update: In 3 recent editorials, WaPo failed to disclose owner Jeff Bezos's interest in the matter under discussion.
WaPo added one disclosure after @bgrueskin.bsky.social called it out.
Two weeks after my story, the other two editorials still have none. And the paper still won't say why
WaPo added one disclosure after @bgrueskin.bsky.social called it out.
Two weeks after my story, the other two editorials still have none. And the paper still won't say why
Reposted by Radley Balko
Democratic congressional candidate Stefany Shaheen trashed the shutdown-ending deal crafted by her own mother, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), calling healthcare the “cause of my life” in a statement issued Monday.”
Even her daughter knows her mother is a sellout.
Even her daughter knows her mother is a sellout.
Democratic Congressional Candidate Torches Shutdown-Ending Deal — That Was Crafted By Her Own Mother
Democratic congressional candidate Stefany Shaheen trashed the shutdown-ending deal crafted by her own mother, Senator Jeanne Shaheen.
www.mediaite.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:50 PM
Democratic congressional candidate Stefany Shaheen trashed the shutdown-ending deal crafted by her own mother, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), calling healthcare the “cause of my life” in a statement issued Monday.”
Even her daughter knows her mother is a sellout.
Even her daughter knows her mother is a sellout.
Reposted by Radley Balko
suspect has ten hands and twenty nine legs
IOP Police officers use AI tool to draft reports from body camera video #chsnews
IOP Police officers use AI tool to draft reports from body camera video
The Isle of Palms Police Department is the first city-level police department in the state to try out an artificial intelligence tool that helps them draft incident reports.
www.live5news.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:15 PM
suspect has ten hands and twenty nine legs
Reposted by Radley Balko
Read my mind. Submitted a FOIA today for all Bovino’s body worn camera footage beginning on 10/31 through the date they process the request - which I’m sure will be sometime around the year 2057.
Now that Greg Bovino is wearing his court-ordered body cam, he's wide open to FOIA requests, so have fun with that.
November 10, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Read my mind. Submitted a FOIA today for all Bovino’s body worn camera footage beginning on 10/31 through the date they process the request - which I’m sure will be sometime around the year 2057.
Reposted by Radley Balko
Border Patrol agents posed at "The Bean" for an apparent photo op after a weekend of clashes in Little Village. blockclubchi.co/4oUHKae
November 10, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Border Patrol agents posed at "The Bean" for an apparent photo op after a weekend of clashes in Little Village. blockclubchi.co/4oUHKae
Reposted by Radley Balko
The President pardoned members of his private militia after they failed to overturn an election; they, in turn, pledge their support to him and urge him to use them to police civil society.
New:
On The Gateway Pundit's podcast yesterday, Stewart Rhodes announced he's relaunching the Oath Keepers
He also urged Trump to “call us up as a militia" & "order us all to come together in our counties under his command."
www.mediamatters.org/oath-keepers...
On The Gateway Pundit's podcast yesterday, Stewart Rhodes announced he's relaunching the Oath Keepers
He also urged Trump to “call us up as a militia" & "order us all to come together in our counties under his command."
www.mediamatters.org/oath-keepers...
![STEWART RHODES (FOUNDER, OATH KEEPERS): And one other thing I want to say is that President Trump, as commander in chief, always has absolute authority to call all of us up as the militia because every one of us — in federal statues defining the militia, it's every able-bodied male from age 17-45. And for us veterans, it goes up to age 64 because of our prior training and experience.
Right now, under federal statutes, President Trump can call us up as the militia if he sees it necessary, especially for three purposes: to repel invasions, to suppress insurrections, and to execute the laws of the union. And right now, we see all three of those in play.
...
And the militia is all of us. So the National Guard is part of the militia, which is why it's completely lawful for him to use the National Guard as he has, and he should do more of that, I think, across the country.
...
He could just say given the circumstances of an invasion, insurrection, and resistance against federal law being being enforced, I'm calling up the militia, ordering all the men to come together [in] every county, put the veterans in charge of training and organizing all the other men and just have them stand too and await his orders. He can do that and I think he should do that. And so that's what I'll be advocating for from him. So from the bottom, from down the rank and file, we can let President Trump know that we're ready to serve, encourage him to do that, call us up as a militia, order us all to come together in our counties under his command, which gives you complete legal sanction to do what you're doing.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:af7tqcetuyt352aolf3znlxe/bafkreialm4skuozqobejpd6vx4m6kuwsgtidxmmxvj3ftcff6otiuyohiy@jpeg)
November 10, 2025 at 5:17 PM
The President pardoned members of his private militia after they failed to overturn an election; they, in turn, pledge their support to him and urge him to use them to police civil society.
Reposted by Radley Balko
I’m late to it—there are already several episodes—but this is a gripping, infuriating, and much-needed podcast on the human cost of the War on Drugs.
The first episode of Collateral Damage, my reported podcast with The Intercept, went up today.
Hope you’ll check it out and, if you enjoy it, give it a favorable rating or review.
Eternal thanks to my producers @lauraflynn.bsky.social and Andrew Stelzer for making it happen.
Hope you’ll check it out and, if you enjoy it, give it a favorable rating or review.
Eternal thanks to my producers @lauraflynn.bsky.social and Andrew Stelzer for making it happen.
Ep. 1 Dirty Business: The Atlanta Narcotics Unit’s Deadly Raid on 92-year-old Kathryn Johnston.
Podcast Episode · Collateral Damage from The Intercept · 10/08/2025 · 55m
podcasts.apple.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:47 PM
I’m late to it—there are already several episodes—but this is a gripping, infuriating, and much-needed podcast on the human cost of the War on Drugs.
Never really understood Griffin's appeal, and the Trump severed head thing was a dumb, poor-taste attempt to be provocative. But the reaction to it was (and apparently still is) absolutely unhinged.
She’s Been Booted Out of Hollywood and Investigated by the Secret Service. When She Let Me Into Her House, I Could See Why.
"I was kind of ahead of my time," she says. "Pun intended."
slate.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Never really understood Griffin's appeal, and the Trump severed head thing was a dumb, poor-taste attempt to be provocative. But the reaction to it was (and apparently still is) absolutely unhinged.
Here's a fundraising email I received for some reason.
Turning Point is really embracing the civil, non-incendiary discourse we were told Charlie Kirk championed.*
(*He didn't really champion those things, and I'm sure he would have been fine with this email.)
Turning Point is really embracing the civil, non-incendiary discourse we were told Charlie Kirk championed.*
(*He didn't really champion those things, and I'm sure he would have been fine with this email.)
November 10, 2025 at 3:27 PM
Here's a fundraising email I received for some reason.
Turning Point is really embracing the civil, non-incendiary discourse we were told Charlie Kirk championed.*
(*He didn't really champion those things, and I'm sure he would have been fine with this email.)
Turning Point is really embracing the civil, non-incendiary discourse we were told Charlie Kirk championed.*
(*He didn't really champion those things, and I'm sure he would have been fine with this email.)
Reposted by Radley Balko
Tell me you don’t understand risk pools without telling me you don’t understand risk pools
November 10, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Tell me you don’t understand risk pools without telling me you don’t understand risk pools
Trump has threatened to bomb or invade 7 countries with a shot to play in the 2026 World Cup. He *has* bombed one (Iran) and said he'd deny them visas. He's preparing for war with another (Venezuela). He has summarily executed citizens from at least 3. He has imposed tariffs on nearly all of them.
FIFA head says 'you will see' at World Cup draw if Trump receives new peace prize
FIFA has announced the creation of a peace prize, which it plans to award for the first time at the World Cup draw on Dec. 5 in Washington.
www.npr.org
November 10, 2025 at 12:56 PM
Trump has threatened to bomb or invade 7 countries with a shot to play in the 2026 World Cup. He *has* bombed one (Iran) and said he'd deny them visas. He's preparing for war with another (Venezuela). He has summarily executed citizens from at least 3. He has imposed tariffs on nearly all of them.
Reposted by Radley Balko
The rewards are pouring in
November 10, 2025 at 12:31 PM
The rewards are pouring in
I think my Word of the Day email might be trolling the Democrats.
November 10, 2025 at 12:16 PM
I think my Word of the Day email might be trolling the Democrats.
Gutting and politicizing the FBI is a win-win for this administration. If we get attacked because we’re vulnerable, it’s just another opportunity to crack down on dissent and consolidate power.
bsky.app/profile/news...
bsky.app/profile/news...
NYT - Kash Patel's inexperience, his dismissals of top FBI officials and his shift of resources from thwarting spies and terrorism have heightened concerns among the other Five Eyes nations that the bureau is adrift. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/wo...
F.B.I. Director Is Said to Have Made a Pledge to Head of MI5, Then Broken It
The episode has contributed to concerns among intelligence allies that Kash Patel, brash and partisan, is also unpredictable and even unreliable.
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Gutting and politicizing the FBI is a win-win for this administration. If we get attacked because we’re vulnerable, it’s just another opportunity to crack down on dissent and consolidate power.
bsky.app/profile/news...
bsky.app/profile/news...
Congrats to the eight Democrats who gave this regime a huge win over the weekend. Here’s your reward.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
Trump Pardons Giuliani and Others Involved in Effort to Overturn 2020 Election
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 12:10 PM
Congrats to the eight Democrats who gave this regime a huge win over the weekend. Here’s your reward.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
Reposted by Radley Balko
I did not grasp how bonkers Canadians are.
One news outlet likened the game conditions to a "snowglobe."
Crews took an hour during the game to clear snow.
"On over hour delay allowed the field crews to clear the pitch, using soccer’s answer to a Zamboni, to more playable conditions."
One news outlet likened the game conditions to a "snowglobe."
Crews took an hour during the game to clear snow.
"On over hour delay allowed the field crews to clear the pitch, using soccer’s answer to a Zamboni, to more playable conditions."
The CPL Final is in the middle of a snowstorm in Canada, true North American soccer heritage...how could it get any better?
HOW ABOUT A FREAKIN' BICYCLE KICK EQUALIZER!!!
HOW ABOUT A FREAKIN' BICYCLE KICK EQUALIZER!!!
November 10, 2025 at 3:13 AM
I did not grasp how bonkers Canadians are.
One news outlet likened the game conditions to a "snowglobe."
Crews took an hour during the game to clear snow.
"On over hour delay allowed the field crews to clear the pitch, using soccer’s answer to a Zamboni, to more playable conditions."
One news outlet likened the game conditions to a "snowglobe."
Crews took an hour during the game to clear snow.
"On over hour delay allowed the field crews to clear the pitch, using soccer’s answer to a Zamboni, to more playable conditions."
Reposted by Radley Balko
Agree.
Sen Hassan, asked what will happen if Republicans don't carry out the deal, "Well, shame on them."
This is not what people were mobilizing for on Oct 18.
Sen Hassan, asked what will happen if Republicans don't carry out the deal, "Well, shame on them."
This is not what people were mobilizing for on Oct 18.
November 10, 2025 at 2:45 AM
Agree.
Sen Hassan, asked what will happen if Republicans don't carry out the deal, "Well, shame on them."
This is not what people were mobilizing for on Oct 18.
Sen Hassan, asked what will happen if Republicans don't carry out the deal, "Well, shame on them."
This is not what people were mobilizing for on Oct 18.
Reposted by Radley Balko
I don’t understand what’s happening here. Is he swearing someone in for something during a football game? Why is he on the PA system?
November 9, 2025 at 11:59 PM
I don’t understand what’s happening here. Is he swearing someone in for something during a football game? Why is he on the PA system?
Reposted by Radley Balko
I wish those calling for the unmasking of ICE agents would be explicit about the obvious reason why this is necessary: these men need to be identifiable because justice demands that they be punished, severely, for what they are doing. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/u...
Immigration Agents Arrest Man in L.A. Raid and Drive Off With His Toddler
www.nytimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 7:43 PM
I wish those calling for the unmasking of ICE agents would be explicit about the obvious reason why this is necessary: these men need to be identifiable because justice demands that they be punished, severely, for what they are doing. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/u...
Reposted by Radley Balko
Judge Mark Wolf resigns from the District Court of Massachusetts and writes why in a powerful piece in the Atlantic.
One thing he doesn’t mention in his list of reasons but I’m sure is a factor:
Erez Reuveni was one of his law clerks.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
One thing he doesn’t mention in his list of reasons but I’m sure is a factor:
Erez Reuveni was one of his law clerks.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
Why I Am Resigning
A federal judge explains his reasoning for leaving the bench.
www.theatlantic.com
November 9, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Judge Mark Wolf resigns from the District Court of Massachusetts and writes why in a powerful piece in the Atlantic.
One thing he doesn’t mention in his list of reasons but I’m sure is a factor:
Erez Reuveni was one of his law clerks.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
One thing he doesn’t mention in his list of reasons but I’m sure is a factor:
Erez Reuveni was one of his law clerks.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...