Oakland Police Massacre Casts Ugly Glare on Ex-Felon Desperation

Its a story repeated all over America, even if it does not always end in a killing spree as it did in Oakland, says NAM contributing editor Earl Ofari Hutchinson. Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. His weekly radio show, The Hutchinson Report can be heard in Los Angeles on KTYM 1460 AM and nationally on blogtalkradio.com.

A general consensus is that it was a deadly mix of panic, rage, and frustration that caused Lovelle Mixon to snap. His shocking murderous rampage left four Oakland police officers dead and a city and police agencies searching its soul about what went so terribly wrong. Though Mixons killing spree is a horrible aberration, his plight as an
unemployed ex-felon isnt. There are tens of thousands like him on Americas streets.

In 2007, the National Institute of Justice found that 60 percent of ex-felon offenders remain unemployed a year after their release. Other studies have shown that upwards of 30 percent of felon releases live in homeless shelters because of their inability to find housing. And those are the lucky ones. Many camp out on the streets.

A significant number of them suffer from drug, alcohol and mental health challenges, and lack education or any marketable skills

Read More