“The People’s Safety Report” Calls on Cities to Protect Local Control of Public Safety

In March 2026, the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School, in partnership with the Center for Policing Equity (CPE), published “The People’s Safety Report,” an outline of guidelines, strategies, and recommendations detailing how local and state leaders can use political and legal recourse to protect local control of public safety. This report provides resources for local leaders to prepare for, prevent, and respond to intrusions into local safety matters.

“It is urgent for local leaders to undertake proactive measures to preserve the autonomy of local governance in public safety matters,” said Dr. Phillip Atiba Solomon, co-founder and CEO of the Center for Policing Equity. “Our hope is that this report can equip leaders with the context, policies, and language needed to keep their communities safe from the violence of federal overreach. We must preserve standards of accountability and transparency, or the rule of law is replaced by selective terrorism.”

“As we have seen in Chicago and Minneapolis, local authorities are not powerless against the federal government’s incursion,” Caroline Nobo, executive director of the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School. “We’ve engaged experts with front-line experience to develop a set of realistic political and legal strategies to help enable local and state officials to prepare for, prevent, and respond to unwarranted federal and military intrusions that threaten local public safety. We hope this will serve as a guide for local leaders across the country seeking to protect communities and the Constitution.”

The report includes specific recommendations for implementing three strategies: enacting legislation and strategies to combat the federal use of enforcement conducted by masked, nondescript individuals; employing strategies to keep communities informed, maintain clear guidance, and protect against abuses; and preventing the erosion of the rule of law.

Read the full publication on the Justice Collaboratory website.  

The Center for Policing Equity is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that uses data science to empower vulnerable communities — particularly Black communities — to partner with decision-makers on redesigning public safety systems that facilitate bold, innovative, and lasting change. 

The Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School is a collaborative of more than 20 distinguished scholars, across multiple disciplines and institutions. The research findings of The Justice Collaboratory, derived from a strict adherence to the scientific method, are the basis for the proven theoretical foundations that can transform historically underserved communities to ones of vitality, opportunity, and justice.