Jerry Iannelli Jerry Iannelli Jerry Iannelli is an Editor for The Appeal. He previously worked at Miami New Times, where his reporting helped get a local police chief fired, changed investigative policies at the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office, and exposed local cops’ plans to record the entire county from the sky from cameras mounted on Cessna planes. Jerry’s reporting directly led to Internal Affairs complaints sustained against multiple Miami cops and pressured prosecutors into filing the first on-duty shooting charges against a Miami-area cop since 1989. His reporting won the 2019 Sigma Delta Chi Award from the Society of Professional Journalists, the 2019 Florida Press Association’s Sally Latham Memorial Award for the state’s top weekly newspaper columnist and first place in the 2019 Florida Press Club’s general news reporting category. He also once shut down an unlicensed Miami daycare that was secretly run by a cult.
Voters Didn’t Buy the ‘Crime Panic’ Narrative. Democrats Should Take Note. Americans around the country were unmoved by tough-on-crime rhetoric, and instead voted in a string of reform-minded candidates. The results show that it’s time for Democrats to rethink their approach on public safety. Jerry Iannelli, Nick Wing
Halloween is Over and It Looks Like No One Got Fentanyl Candy After All Law-enforcement spent weeks scaremongering about opioids showing up in candy this Halloween. Despite the media frenzy, no drugs seem to have actually turned up. Jerry Iannelli
DOJ Finds Orange County Sheriff, DA Violated Civil Rights Using Illegal Jailhouse Informants After a six-year investigation, the DOJ says Orange County law-enforcement unconstitutionally used jailhouse informants to elicit confessions and incriminating evidence from people for years. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg, Jerry Iannelli
Florida’s ‘Secret’ Formulas to Calculate Release Dates May Be Trapping People in Prison The ACLU’s ongoing battle to force the Florida Department of Corrections to release the formulas it uses to calculate release dates for imprisoned people. Jerry Iannelli
San Antonio Activists ‘Cannot in Good Faith’ Support This Year’s Mayoral Candidates Local activists have soured on incumbent Mayor Ron Nirenberg, and no other candidate offers a compelling alternative. Jerry Iannelli
Lori Lightfoot’s Record Shows the Limits of ‘Police Reform’ In various offices across two decades, Mayor Lightfoot has failed to bring change to the Chicago Police Department. Jerry Iannelli
Denver City Council Members Propose a Way to Keep Tenants in Their Homes A new proposal would make Denver the latest major city to provide legal defense for residents facing evictions. Jerry Iannelli
In Florida, Cops Who Kill Civilians Can Now Remain Anonymous Democratic prosecutors in Tampa and Miami campaigned for the 2018 initiative that paved the way for this new ruling. Jerry Iannelli
The Major Real Estate Donors Influencing the St. Louis Mayoral Race Days before the election, campaign finance reports show that real-estate and construction industries favor Cara Spencer over Tishaura Jones. Jerry Iannelli
Seattle’s City Council Gives Poor Residents Right to Eviction Attorneys The city joins the national trend of guaranteeing counsel in eviction court, which data shows can save people’s homes. Jerry Iannelli
Houston’s Drug Busts Have a Clear Target: People of Color Two years’ worth of data shows how disproportionately the city’s police and prosecutors target certain neighborhoods. Jerry Iannelli
Anchorage’s Anti-Homeless Movement May Elect the City’s Next Mayor One of the leading candidates for Anchorage’s mayoral race is backed by a far-right Facebook group tied to the U.S. Capitol riot. Jerry Iannelli
During the Pandemic, Houston Cops Went Undercover and Arrested a Homeless Man Over 0.6 Grams of Meth As Texas lifts its COVID-19 restrictions, the city’s jail remains overcrowded and its police and prosecutors continue to operate as normal. Jerry Iannelli
California Prosecutors’ Association Reveals More Public Money May Have Been Misspent New evidence suggests more accounting troubles for the CDAA. Jerry Iannelli
The Fight for People in Prison to Vote Reaches Congress An amendment to end felony disenfranchisement failed in the House of Representatives. But the measure shows how far the fight has come in a short number of years. Jerry Iannelli
30 Years of Power Outages and Campaign Donations in Texas State officials funded by power companies have been warned, since at least 1989, that the power grid was at risk of failure in cold weather. They have consistently failed to act. Jerry Iannelli
California’s D.A. Association Misspent $3 million. Environmental Groups Want it Repaid A coalition of environmental groups urges the legislature to force the repayment and dissociate from the CDAA. Jerry Iannelli
San Antonio Bulldozed a Homeless Encampment. Then the Winter Storms Started. Now, advocacy groups are struggling to keep unhoused people safe. Jerry Iannelli
Los Angeles D.A. George Gascón Leaves California’s Powerful D.A. Association Gascón is battling a lawsuit, filed by his own line prosecutors and backed by the state DA association, against his criminal justice reforms. Jerry Iannelli
How the Killing of Breonna Taylor Is Reshaping Louisville Politics The political paradigm emerging in Louisville is being formed by newcomers to local politics. Jerry Iannelli
COVID-19 is Spreading Faster Than Ever. Jail Populations are Surging, Too In many of America’s major cities, the early efforts to reduce incarceration during the pandemic have been reversed. Jerry Iannelli
Compton Joins the Growing Number of U.S. Cities to Launch a Guaranteed Income Program The California city began distributing out up to $600 monthly to low-income residents. Jerry Iannelli
A Florida Senator Wants to Exclude People With Felony Convictions From the State’s Minimum Wage Increase It’s the latest bill in the state legislature’s long history of meddling with voter-approved amendments. Jerry Iannelli
‘No Beds Left’: Houston’s Jail is a COVID-19 Superspreader On Tuesday, Harris County Commissioners will decide if the D.A. and Sheriff will get more money to continue their neglect in the face of a public-health crisis. Jerry Iannelli
Austin’s Unreliable Crime Lab Could Lead to Another Wrongful Execution Dubious DNA evidence—and a potential coverup by the Travis County DA’s office—are at the heart of a judge’s recommendation that Areli Escobar gets a new trial. Jerry Iannelli
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh’s Legacy of Empty Promises There may be one reason for local progressives to support Walsh for the U.S. secretary of labor: He’ll leave town. Jerry Iannelli
What Public Safety Without Police Looks Like From San Francisco to Philadelphia, cities across the country are creating fully unarmed response teams to address emergencies that used to call for cops. Jerry Iannelli, Joshua Vaughn
Partners in Crime: The Siege on the Capitol, Police, and White Supremacy The historical connections were on full display during Wednesday’s violence at the Capitol. Jerry Iannelli
Scandal-Plagued Sacramento Lawmaker and Ex-Cop Considers Run for Sheriff California Assemblymember Jim Cooper may seek to be Sacramento sheriff once more—despite sexual harassment allegations and a long history of outlandish antics. Jerry Iannelli
‘She Just Said She Wanted To Be Believed’ More than 20 women accused Harry Morel, a longtime district attorney in Louisiana, of sexual misconduct. But Morel pleaded guilty to just a single obstruction of justice count while Mike Zummer, the FBI agent who investigated him, was fired. Now, Zummer is speaking about what he says is a grave injustice—at the hands of the Justice Department. Jerry Iannelli
New Orleans DA Candidate Allowed Race-Based Jury Selection In 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Keva Landrum violated the Constitution when, as a judge, she permitted nearly a dozen Black people to be struck from serving on a jury in a high-profile murder case. Jerry Iannelli
Law Enforcement Reformers Sweep Major Races In Los Angeles County Candidates promising to remake Southern California’s legal system, won major races for DA, county supervisor, and City Council, among others while overcoming significant spending by pro-law enforcement groups. Jerry Iannelli
Reformer Ed Gonzalez Wins Second Term As Harris County Sheriff Houston area voters re-elected Gonzalez after he supported bail reform, cleaned up the county jail, and provided aid to incarcerated people living with opioid use disorder. Jerry Iannelli
This California Teacher Wants Environmental Justice Fatima Iqbal-Zubair, who seeks to represent South Central Los Angeles in the State Assembly, wants 'clean air, clean water, and clean food' for her constituents. Jerry Iannelli
A Trumpist Texas Sheriff is Running for Congress. If He Wins, His Brother Might Take Over the Sheriff’s Office. Fort Bend Sheriff Troy Nehls wants voters to send him to Congress despite his department’s history of jail deaths and allegations of racial-profiling. Jerry Iannelli
In Effort to Slow Climate Change, Texas Democrat Seeks Seat On Oil Regulation Board Chrysta Castañeda wants to use the state Railroad Commission’s powers to stop energy companies from engaging in environmentally harmful practices like burning excess gas. Jerry Iannelli
Florida’s Most Powerful Pro-Police Lobbying Group Is An Anti-Reform Force The Florida Sheriffs Association gains a third of its multimillion-dollar budget by selling big-ticket items like trucks and mobile command centers to local sheriff’s departments and other government agencies. Jerry Iannelli
Four Austin Women Reported Their Sexual Assaults. But Police And Prosecutors Failed To Hold The Perpetrators Accountable. While a debate over defunding the police rages in Austin, a new lawsuit reminds its residents that assault cases in the city are routinely ignored. Jerry Iannelli
In a Small Illinois City, A Black Man Died After Officers Shoved A Baton In His Mouth. Black Officers Say They’ve Suffered At The Hands Of The Department, Too. Lawsuits from Joliet Police Department officers are among at least 12 current federal complaints against the agency. The men say their civil rights lawsuits are part of a decades-long history of discrimination. Jerry Iannelli
Florida Governor’s Bid To Felonize Protesting Is An Attack On Democracy, Justice Advocate Says Legislation proposed this week by Gov. Ron DeSantis also seeks to withhold state funding from counties that move to decrease police budgets. Lauren Gill, Jerry Iannelli
Joe Arpaio’s Longtime Deputy Could Become the Next Sheriff of Maricopa County Jerry Sheridan, who beat Arpaio in the Republican primary, has been complicit in many of the former sheriff’s worst misdeeds. Jerry Iannelli
Pittsburgh Prosecutors Relied On Man Who Allegedly Killed Baby As Witness In Bungled Case Documents obtained by The Appeal raise questions about a Pittsburgh-area mass shooting case that fell apart due to prosecutorial misconduct. Jerry Iannelli
Texas Family Wants Justice For Deadly No-Knock Drug Raid In February 2019, police officers in Killeen shot James Scott Reed in his home. One officer entered a guilty plea to evidence tampering, but Reed’s family is still suing the city and several officers in federal court. Jerry Iannelli
Orlando Sheriff, Who Is Running for Re-Election, Shot a Teen to Death in 1999 The boy’s mother says Orange County Sheriff John Mina has still never spoken to her after more than 20 years. And in the wake of the George Floyd uprisings, local activists are asking why Mina deserves to keep his job. Jerry Iannelli
Broward County Will Elect Its First New Prosecutor in 44 Years. Will the Office Veer Left? In South Florida, the crowded Aug. 18 Democratic primary features one candidate who says he would not prosecute sex work and marijuana possession cases. Jerry Iannelli
Seattle Mayor Known As ‘Tear Gas Jenny’ For Police Treatment Of Protesters Has Troubled History As A Federal Prosecutor As U.S. attorney in Seattle, Durkan prosecuted a severely mentally ill man in a terrorism case using an informant convicted of child sex abuse—and claimed to have reformed the same Seattle Police Department that has tear-gassed peaceful protesters for weeks. Jerry Iannelli
New York City’s Public Housing Rules Could Force Many Released Prisoners Into Homelessness As thousands of people are freed from local jails, a group of nonprofits and activist organizations says the city's housing authority must revamp its policies that banish the formerly incarcerated. Jerry Iannelli
As COVID-19 Permeates Prisons And Jails, Baltimore Defendants Continue To Be Held Without Bail An Appeal analysis shows that the percentage of people held without bond remains steady, at roughly 33%, although arrests are down during the pandemic. Jerry Iannelli
LAPD Officer Who Killed Man in Mental Health Crisis Is a Gun-Toting Social Media Star In late April, officer Toni McBride shot Daniel Hernandez to death after a suicide call. His attorney and grieving family say videos posted on social media of McBride gleefully firing high-powered weapons show that she’s a trigger-happy officer. Jerry Iannelli
Legal Experts Question Use Of Federal Law To Prosecute Torching Of Empty NYPD Patrol Car During Protests Federal prosecutors argue that damaging a police vehicle is a violation of federal statutes in part because the police department receives federal funding. Former prosecutors and law professors say it’s an absurd rationale driven by politics of the Justice Department. Jerry Iannelli
Family of Man Who Died at California Jail After Shouting ‘I Can’t Breathe’ Demands Answers From Sheriff In October 2018, Marshall Miles died at the Sacramento County jail after struggling with deputies. His lawyers say a deposition scheduled for next month will force the sheriff to answer for the in-custody death. Jerry Iannelli
Houston Police Chief’s Speeches Supporting Protesters Were Widely Circulated—But Video Proves His Officers Cracked Down on Them Videos contradict officers’ claims that they didn’t ‘kettle’ protesters. Jerry Iannelli
Florida Residents Trapped In Substandard Housing Face A New Threat: An Eviction Moratorium Set To Expire In Weeks. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed Florida lawmakers’ failure to build affordable housing for its residents. Jerry Iannelli
Video Captures Poor Conditions At Louisiana Poultry Plant Where Prisoners Are Sent To Work Despite COVID-19 concerns, the state’s prisoners are still doing dangerous menial jobs in work-release programs. Jerry Iannelli
Louisiana Women Incarcerated for Defending Themselves Against Abusive Partners Seek Clemency Amid COVID-19 Pandemic The state has recommended the release of 10 women at a coronavirus-ravaged prison—but Governor John Bel Edwards still hasn’t signed the paperwork. Jerry Iannelli
Despite Coronavirus Warnings, Miami Area Police Are Still Arresting Hundreds of Homeless People As of April 30, one in three unsheltered people have been arrested in Miami-Dade County since a local state of emergency was declared in March. Jerry Iannelli
Louisiana’s Data On Coronavirus Infections Among Prisoners Is Troubled And Lacks Transparency The state is sending virus-positive people to Angola prison—but those numbers aren’t reported on the Department of Corrections website. Jerry Iannelli
‘That Man Can’t Breathe’ A sheriff’s deputy in Louisiana is caught on video choking a man after he says he asked for COVID-19 treatment. Jerry Iannelli
As Coronavirus Spread, Dozens Of Law Enforcement Agents Raided Virginia Housing Projects Over Alleged Small Drug Deals Despite distancing warnings, more than 80 state and federal agents fanned out in an anti-drug operation that, The Appeal has learned, was based on a series of retail-level drug sales. Jerry Iannelli
As Major Cities Decarcerated During COVID-19’s Spread, Philadelphia’s Jail Population Barely Budged The city’s DA’s office and its public defender association urged judges to adopt video meetings to speed the release of incarcerated people. But emails obtained by The Appeal show that judges took a much more limited approach to decarceration. Jerry Iannelli
As COVID-19 Ravages Florida, Incarcerated People Are Still Doing The State’s Hard Outdoor Labor Despite risks to incarcerated people and the public, Florida is sending prisoners to perform hard labor. Jerry Iannelli
As COVID-19 Spreads In South Florida, Miami-Dade Police Department Instructs Officers To Issue Citations For All Misdemeanor Offenses One of America’s largest police forces says it’s drastically reducing the number of people it arrests during the coronavirus pandemic. Jerry Iannelli
A Black California Man Says a White Ex-Employee Assaulted Him. He Was the One Detained. Erick Wallace’s federal civil rights lawsuit joins a long line of litigation and misconduct allegations against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Jerry Iannelli
