Link: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/31/fact-sheet-release-of-the-2023-women-peace-and-security-strategy-and-national-action-plan/

Promoting women’s meaningful participation, leadership and engagement in decision-making at all levels is both a moral and a strategic imperative for U.S. foreign policy and national security.  Wherever the rights of women and girls are under threat, so, too, is democracy, peace, and stability.

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is proud to release the 2023 Women, Peace, and Security Strategy (WPS) and National Action Plan.  With this Strategy, we renew our commitment to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, consistent with the Women, Peace, and Security Act of 2017, which codified our decades-long, sustained commitment to the principles of the WPS agenda.  This updated Strategy reflects critical shifts in our global landscape—including geopolitical changes, a rise in climate-related crises, and advancements in technology—and maintains a strong focus on five core lines of effort:

2023 Guidelines Manual New Federal Sentencing Guideline Amendments Take Effect Tomorrow The U.S. Sentencing Commission's 2023 amendments to the federal sentencing guidelines take effect tomorrow, November 1 (see below for a recap of amendments).  The 2023 Guidelines Manual can now be accessed online in PDF, annotated HTML, and mobile-friendly app formats.  Hard copies are en route to Federal Judges, U.S. Probation Officers, Federal Public Defenders, U.S. Attorneys, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, and Commission Advisory Group members.  The GPO Bookstore will also soon have hard copies publicly available for purchase.

2023 Annotated Manual  The official online version of the Guidelines Manual includes quick integrated access to guidelines history and reasons for amendments. Use the + icon next to a provision to access a hyperlinked list of related amendments in chronological order.  Explore the Annotated Manual   2023 Guidelines App The Guidelines App offers easy on-the-go access to the Guidelines Manual (with add-on features below) through any internet browser —no download or installation necessary. Search for the applicable guideline in a case using the statute of conviction. Determine the guideline range, or drug equivalencies using calculators. Research a guideline amendment through the amendment number or effective date. Quickly access the drug, loss, and sentencing tables. Explore the App

What happens after the money I paid into a FERS retirement runs out?

https://www.federaltimes.com/your-career/2023/10/27/what-happens-after-the-money-i-paid-into-a-fers-retirement-runs-out

This week Army CID Director Gregory Ford hosted Women in Federal Law Enforcement (@WIFLE) Foundation President Catrina Bonus at Army CID headquarters for a capability briefing and to discuss the importance of women in law enforcement.

  ASK THE EXPERT, BY REG JONES  

Must separation incentives be repaid to rejoin the federal workforce? Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment Authority allows agencies that are downsizing or restructuring to offer lump-sum payments to employees. Read More

Got a question about federal retirement? Email Reg Jones at fedexperts@federaltimes.com.

Do I have to repay my VSIP if I rejoin the federal workforce?

Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment Authority allows agencies that are downsizing or restructuring to offer lump-sum payments to employees.Read More

Link to article: https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-hosts-five-eyes-summit-to-launch-drive-to-secure-innovation-in-response-to-intelligence-threats

In their first-ever joint public appearance, leaders of the Five Eyes intelligence partnership—the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand—traveled to the U.S. at the invitation of FBI Director Christopher Wray.

Together they are launching the first Emerging Technology and Securing Innovation Security Summit in Palo Alto, California, the heart of Silicon Valley. In addition to the Five Eyes, the summit is bringing together business leaders and entrepreneurs, government officials, and academics to discuss threats to innovation, coming trends in the use and potential exploitation of emerging tech, and means to work together to advance both economic security and public safety.

The summit kicks off with a fireside chat with all five members hosted by Dr. Condoleezza Rice, former secretary of state. The intelligence leaders will outline current threats and trends to private sector organizations in their respective countries. Following the fireside chat, the intelligence leaders will sit down with private sector leaders for in-depth discussions about expanding and strengthening private-public partnerships to better protect innovation and the collective security of the five nations and their citizens.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced the release of a new publication, Recruitment and Retention for the Modern Law Enforcement Agency. The publication is the result of a convening of law enforcement and community leaders across the country, facilitated by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), at the request of Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. The report presents recommendations to address the challenges in recruitment and retention law enforcement agencies are facing nationwide.

“Law enforcement officers across the country are facing unprecedented challenges at a time when they are already being stretched thin,” said Attorney General Garland.  “The Justice Department has produced this report because we recognize the urgency and significance of the recruitment and retention crisis that agencies are encountering. Policing is a noble profession, and we are committed to doing everything we can to support local police departments as they work to serve their communities, build public trust, and keep people safe.”

“Our law enforcement officers are the nation’s most valuable assets for preserving public safety in our communities,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco. “The Justice Department is committed to helping state and local law enforcement retain their critically important workforce – while recruiting the next generation of brave public servants. The more than 50 recommendations in this report will help police departments across the country to meaningfully enhance their recruitment and retention.”

The Lineup Podcast: A Deadly Shooting and a Tragic Fire

The new episode discusses a shooting that killed a Philadelphia police officer and injured another in an airport garage and looks at a training fire that critically injured two deputies. Plus, other stories.

October 11, 2023 N.C. prisons embrace digital learning to combat inmate idleness, foster skill development

The blend of technology and education aims at equipping inmates with job-ready skills, amid ongoing 40% staff vacancy rate.

By Avi Bajpai
The Charlotte Observer
Link to full Article https://www.corrections1.com/products/facility-products/inmate-visitation/articles/nc-prisons-embrace-digital-learning-to-combat-inmate-idleness-foster-skill-development-xyr4Gdt8brdfcauN/

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The top official in charge of North Carolina’s prison system said Monday that electronic tablets that have been distributed to prisons across the state have become a valuable and productive resource for inmates.

Speaking at a conference focused on prison reform, N.C. Secretary of Adult Correction Todd Ishee highlighted the rollout and implementation of the tablets, which provide inmates with educational courses to help them learn and develop skills they can use once outside of prison, as a success.

N.C. inmates can use tablets for learning, entertainment and communication. (Photo/AP)

The tablets allow inmates to access thousands of academic, vocational and self-improvement courses as part of an initiative officials launched last year, called Hope University. Since the program’s launch in April 2022, inmates have used the tablets to complete nearly 260,000 full, interactive courses, as well as more than 3.3 million learning resources like videos, audio recordings, and readings, Ishee said.

Courses are offered in more than 170 fields, according to the Department of Adult Correction, but Ishee said the most popular have been the ones that can provide people with tangible skills that could help them get jobs after prison.

At the top of the list was a training course offered by a culinary institute, and introductory courses to commercial driving, carpentry, electrical studies, legal studies, and plumbing — fields that Ishee said were less likely to care about an applicant’s history and were more concerned with whether they could do the job well.

COPS Dispatch
1. Project Unite: The four Integrated Systems for School Violence Prevention
     https://cops.usdoj.gov/html/dispatch/10-2023/school_violence_prevention.html

2. A Tribal Police Peer Support Team
       https://cops.usdoj.gov/html/dispatch/10-2023/tribal_police_peer_support.html

3.  Resources on Current Events
         https://cops.usdoj.gov/html/dispatch/#resources