Social distancing orders are a necessity, but they create a host of new problems for people in treatment for substance use disorders.

Many programs for people on parole, probation, or supervision take place in group settings—the exact opposite of what public health officials are recommending in order to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Advocates for the area’s homeless residents say the pandemic will worsen the crisis they have already been living through.

“Based on this analysis, New York City jails have become the epicenter of COVID-19,” a Legal Aid attorney said.

Jason Brown, who has worked in several parish DA’s offices, was accused of using illegal tactics to win at least one case before arriving in Calcasieu Parish, where he was terminated over alleged dishonesty in a continuance motion. Now, The Appeal has learned that he had segregation-era signs in an art studio he owned.

“The doctors said they were going to come and do screenings every day, but for the past two days, they’ve just come into the dorm and stood by the front door and yelled, ‘Does anybody have any symptoms?’”

Politicians and the general public are ignoring the health and safety needs of those with disabilities and chronic conditions.

‘It was almost like they were going to do whatever they could to demean him and take away his dignity,’ Woods’s spiritual adviser said.

Josie Duffy Rice and guest co-host Darnell Moore talk with Sherrilyn Ifill about policing, civil rights, the criminal justice system, and more.

Everyone, it seems, is telling us that we are all “in this together”: The World Health Organization, the First Minister of Scotland, LL Cool J, and Gayle King among them. This seems to mean, for most, that people should think of others when deciding whether to cancel events, whether to go to the beach, and exactly how much toilet […]

“Still no hand sanitizer, no bleach.”

The island’s Communicable Disease Unit is already overflowing with quarantined people.

New research shows that jails contribute to infectious disease deaths in the greater community.

In Boston, it’s worse than business as usual at the police department as the pandemic spreads. On a recent day, officers arrested people for charges the district attorney has publicly declined to prosecute.

Up to 1,000 people will have their sentences delayed or suspended.

The Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies are intersecting with a highly contagious disease at a time when cities across the country are shutting down.

When the dust settles on this pandemic, we need to be clear on what was an emergency response and what is a desirable permanent change.

Advocates have called on Governor Tom Wolf and state Department of Corrections officials to release elderly and infirm people from state prisons. But the law is limiting how quickly they can move.

The H1N1 pandemic, the HIV/AIDS crisis, and other outbreaks have taught us that blanket policies of solitary confinement and isolation have led to harmful outcomes.

One of America’s largest police forces says it’s drastically reducing the number of people it arrests during the coronavirus pandemic.

The state Department of Corrections confirmed two staff cases of COVID-19. No prisoners have been confirmed to have the virus, the department said.

While those facing charges appear by video at arraignments, all others—attorneys, officers, the judge—are in the courtroom in close quarters, defense attorneys say.

Organizers have been collecting signatures as part of a ballot initiative known as State Question 805, which calls for the end of sentencing enhancements for people convicted of nonviolent crimes.

Prosecutors say Walter Ogrod is ‘likely innocent’ of the charges that sent him to prison in 1996. Now, his attorney says, ‘every day a decision and/or hearing is delayed is another day that Mr. Ogrod’s health is at grave risk.’

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Seifullah Chapman’s Eighth Amendment Rights were violated by federal prison staff who were indifferent to his medical needs.

But the proposals on the table are leaving our most vulnerable neighbors behind.

Late Wednesday, the chief physician at the Rikers jail complex said on Twitter that judges and prosecutors must not leave New York City’s jailed population ‘in harm’s way.’

Conditions at the Newark jail where the strike is taking place were dire even before the threat of COVID-19.

Cascading crises have significantly increased the stakes for the city’s most vulnerable residents.

It should not take a global pandemic for our elected officials to acknowledge that we are all safer if everyone can shower and wash their hands.

In Northampton County, advocates say the practice is putting the people charged for minor offenses, and the broader community, in danger.

A new report shows broad bipartisan support for care in response to crisis

How California, which is home to more than half of the country’s unsheltered homeless population, is addressing the needs of the unhoused.

As COVID-19 spreads, ICE detained a Central American immigrant in a hospital, causing confusion and raising concerns.

A man with multiple medical conditions incarcerated on a technical violation urgently needs to be released, his attorney says.

Sheriffs wield enormous power, and they can direct it in ways that will help contain the spread of COVID-19 and protect incarcerated people.

The Metropolitan Police Department has discussed reducing arrests, but it has not formally announced any policy changes.

Josie Duffy Rice and guest co-host Darnell Moore focus on the death penalty as they talk with State Attorney Aramis Ayala of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida.

Spotlights like this one provide original commentary and analysis on pressing criminal justice issues of the day. You can read them each day in our newsletter, The Daily Appeal. Democrats who hope to retake the White House in November are seeking to turn out voters—a lot of them. According to one information systems professor who worked for President […]

At a time when it’s vital to reduce jail and prison populations to prevent outbreaks, this data can help advocates identify areas where that is or is not happening.