Jonathan Ben-Menachem Jonathan Ben-Menachem Jonathan Ben-Menachem writes about politics and culture, focusing on policing, austerity, and the criminalization of poverty. He is based in New York City, and you can follow him on Twitter @jbenmenachem.
The Cops at the Capitol Law enforcement officers from around the country attended and supported last week’s rally in support of President Trump that sparked a riot. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
New York Ends a Punishment That Traps People in Poverty A new law will stop the suspension of driver’s licenses when New Yorkers fail to pay fines. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Don’t Delay on Closing Rikers The city says COVID-19 budget constraints will set back its plans to close the jail but people incarcerated there are suffering from the disease right now. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
How Legislation Meant to Overhaul Probation And Parole In Pennsylvania Strayed From Its Roots Through a series of maneuvers, state legislators narrowed the ambitious scope of Senate Bill 14. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
‘It’s Feudalism, Pure Exploitation’ The Doe Fund says it pays homeless and formerly incarcerated people New York City’s minimum wage of $15 per hour. But the nonprofit charges weekly fees that can drive their wages below the federal minimum of $7.25. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Budget Cuts May Keep Rikers Open Past 2027 Deadline Reductions in budgets related to the novel coronavirus have slowed New York City’s plan to close Rikers by building new jails, and it’s becoming increasingly possible that the city will not meet its January 2027 deadline. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
U.N. to Hold Debate On U.S. Police Violence After families of people killed by police asked the organization to investigate racist American policing, 54 African nations called for a debate on the treatment of Black Americans. The debate will happen today. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
The Public Health Risks of Jailing People for Poverty In Hillsborough County, Florida, the jail population is bloated by cash bail, fines, and fees, perpetuating health inequities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Coronavirus Exposes Precarity of Prison Towns Towns like Homer, Louisiana, have huge prisons, a tiny populace, and few public health resources—a potentially lethal combination as COVID-19 spreads. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Cities Fighting Coronavirus Must Provide Housing For The Homeless Taking emergency measures to protect homeless people from the pandemic is simply common sense. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
People Held in New York Prison Say They Face Abuse After Guard In Their Unit Tested Positive For COVID-19 Men in Unit B-2 at the Shawangunk Correctional Facility say staff members have harassed and abused them since they possibly came into contact with an infected officer. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Critics Of Progressive Judges Find A Willing Ally In Local Newsrooms With few exceptions, news outlets in Harris County, Texas, spotlight singular instances of crime to allege that legal reform policy is a threat to the public. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Bail Reform Fearmongering Shouldn’t Turn New York’s Jewish Communities Against Their Allies Between solidarity actions and political efforts, Jewish communities have a wide range of options to stop antisemitic violence without relying on a criminal legal system that harms communities of color. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Major County Jails Are Decarcerating, But Violence, Deaths Persist Jails in New Orleans and Cleveland have had significant population drops, yet conditions of confinement remain poor. Communities harmed by these jails should experiment with new accountability measures to maintain political pressure against jail administrators. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
New York Subway Police Make Us Less Safe Recent violent arrests in the city subways should make New Yorkers question the push by Governor Andrew Cuomo and the MTA to hire 500 new transit police. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Say No to New Jails in New York City The mayor claims that building new jails is the only safe way to close Rikers Island jail complex, but the City Council shouldn’t fall for this Faustian bargain. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Inequality, Not Violence, Is Killing Americans At Record Rates Media coverage obsessively focuses on homicides, which are at historical lows. Meanwhile, suicides and overdoses skyrocket, quietly driving record declines in American life expectancy. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Pulling Back the Curtain on Boston’s ‘Operation Clean Sweep’ Most coverage of police raids targeting homeless people and substance users parroted official—and fraught—talking points. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Media Frame: Stop Quoting Bill Bratton For far too long, the press has leaned on wrong-headed tough-on-crime officials like the former NYPD commissioner when reporting on the criminal legal system. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
County Failures, Not State Reforms, Are Killing People In California Jails Since the state’s public safety realignment in 2011, sheriffs have used criminal legal reform as a scapegoat for their failure to maintain safe jails—and recent reporting has given county officials a free pass to make that excuse. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
A Troubled Virginia Jail Looks To Add Guards, But Advocates Push For Decarceration As the Hampton Roads Regional Jail proposes spending $7 million for 113 new guards, advocates renew calls for officials to improve conditions—and an Appeal analysis suggests that the jail could save millions by incarcerating fewer people with mental illness. Aaron Morrison, Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Body Cameras And Tasers Rake In Billions For Axon, But They’re No Panacea For Police Violence The popularity of Axon’s tech soared after the police killing of Michael Brown in 2014, but it may be doing more harm than good in protecting people from excessive force. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
It’s Time to Make Chicago Police Pay For Their Misdeeds—Out Of Their Own Budget Chicago hands out millions in settlements and legal fees for police misconduct. Its newly inaugurated mayor should take a dollar from the department’s budget for every dollar the city spends settling with its victims. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Incarceration Is Always a Policy Failure Instead of building ‘humane jails’ to replace Rikers Island, let’s push the NYPD to cut down on arrests. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
