A Manhattan D.A. Candidate Touts Her Leadership of a Conviction Review Unit. Why Did It Exonerate So Few People?
Under Tali Farhadian Weinstein’s leadership, Brooklyn’s unit exonerated just four people—a far lower rate than in previous years.
Sam Mellins May 17, 2021
The Pandemic Prompted Marilyn Mosby to Stop Prosecuting Low-Level Crimes. Will Other D.A.s Follow?
Prosecutors across the country have begun declining low-level cases in an effort to reduce racial inequity and to slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Joshua Vaughn Apr 12, 2021
3 Transformational Candidates That the Working Families Party Is Excited About
The party’s national director tells The Appeal about candidates in New York, Washington, D.C., and New Mexico that the WFP would like to see oust the establishment.
Joshua Vaughn Oct 28, 2020
How Organizers Are Defending Against Evictions Amid a Pandemic
Tenants rights groups in Brooklyn, Kansas City, New Orleans, and elsewhere are using physical blockades and direct action to keep people in their homes.
Bryce Covert Oct 20, 2020
What ‘Defund The Police’ Means In A New York Neighborhood With High Homicide Rates and a History of Struggling for Justice
Although there’s a diversity of views about law enforcement in Brownsville, Brooklyn, there’s widespread agreement that the community is still fighting to obtain all the resources it needs to thrive and police itself.
Abigail Savitch-Lew Aug 19, 2020
The Financial Toll of COVID-19 Deaths
Organizations in New York City have stepped in to help families with funeral costs and related matters in communities hit hard by the disease, but their money and resources are strained.
Bryce Covert Jul 15, 2020
Halfway House Residents Describe ‘A Scary Situation’ As Coronavirus Sweeps The U.S.
‘It is progressively getting worse, exponentially worse,’ a resident of one halfway house told The Appeal as part of a survey of facilities. ‘Something is going to happen and it’s not going to be good.’
Lauren Gill Mar 31, 2020
When Prosecutors Bury Police Lies
Court records and interviews with former prosecutors show that internal assessments of police dishonesty are rarely memorialized, potentially violating the rights of people charged in criminal cases and sometimes keeping the records of bad cops clean.
George Joseph, Ali Winston Sep 17, 2019
New York Law Removes ‘Unnecessary’ Step for Children Charged With Felonies
16-year-olds won’t have to reappear in adult criminal court if they’re arrested when youth court isn’t in session.
Lauren Gill Sep 03, 2019
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 Aug 20, 2019
A Night in Jail Over $2.75
In 2017, the Manhattan district attorney pledged not to pursue criminal charges for subway fare evasion. Now the MTA is increasing the system’s police presence.
Bryce Covert Jul 29, 2019
‘Just Leave Them to Die’
The crisis at Brooklyn’s federal jail reveals how jails and prisons ‘are not prepared for a disaster.’
JB Nicholas Feb 22, 2019
The ‘Failure to Appear’ Fallacy
Prosecutors denounce bail reform efforts when people miss court dates, but ‘failure to appear’ rates obscure the fact that many who miss court aren’t on the run.
Puck Lo, Ethan Corey Jan 09, 2019
The ‘Hypocritical’ Loophole in New York’s Pledge to Stop Prosecuting Marijuana
People caught vaping marijuana oil face the same charge as for low-level heroin possession.
Raven Rakia Nov 16, 2018
Advocates Say Brooklyn D.A.’s Office Is Prosecuting Transgender People In Self-Defense Cases
Decision-making by prosecutors in such cases, says one attorney, ‘compounds, entrenches, and ultimately authorizes the initial act of violence by prosecuting the victim.’
Aviva Stahl Oct 24, 2018
How decriminalizing sex work became a campaign issue in 2018
State Senate candidate Julia Salazar explains how sex workers’ rights is a key part of reforming criminal justice in New York.
Melissa Gira Grant Sep 07, 2018
Exoneree Accuses Brooklyn DA’s Office Under Joe Hynes of Prosecutorial Misconduct in Denying his Freedom of Information Request
Letter from Jabbar Collins warns that his case is likely only “the tip of the proverbial iceberg”
Theodore Hamm Jan 11, 2018
Like Cy Vance, Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez Takes Questionable Attorney Donations
“It’s time that candidates for local District Attorney just say no to campaign donations from criminal defense lawyers,” Preet Bharara tweeted on October 12 in response to the scrutiny of the financial support Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance received from lawyers representing Harvey Weinstein as he faced potential charges for his sexual assault of Ambra Battilana Gutierrez. […]
Theodore Hamm Oct 13, 2017
Don’t Just Vote for a Legacy.
Vote in a Brooklyn District Attorney that Represents Your Values for the Future of Criminal Justice.
Scott Hechinger Sep 07, 2017
Brooklyn district attorney candidates spar for title of ‘most progressive’
In Bedford-Stuyvesant’s historic Mount Pisgah Baptist Church on Tuesday night, candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the race for Brooklyn’s next district attorney gathered to compare their progressive track records and reform-driven plans. The forum, hosted by Faith Over Fear, a “faith and justice coalition,” focused heavily on police accountability, the protection of immigrants, […]
Rebecca McCray Aug 31, 2017
Democratic candidates debate ahead of Brooklyn DA primary elections
Candidates sparred last month at a political forum hosted by VOCAL-NY in the race to become Brooklyn’s next District Attorney. The debate allowed community members to question candidates on myriad criminal justice issues, from wrongful convictions to protecting immigrants from deportation. According to recent polling, Eric Gonzalez, acting-District Attorney since Ken Thompson’s death in October 2016, leads the […]
Waseem Salahi Aug 29, 2017
Local government leader proposes solution for Brooklyn’s “wrongful convictions crisis”
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams is urging the state of New York to create a independent commission to look into what he has called a “wrongful convictions crisis” in Brooklyn. Since 2014, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office’s Conviction Review Unit (CRU) has investigated at least 70 convictions; 23 have been overturned. The CRU, which was started by the […]
Larry Hannan Aug 04, 2017
The bail bond company financing Brooklyn DA candidate Eric Gonzalez
Eric Gonzalez has a longstanding reputation as a “pure district attorney” and criminal justice reformer. Before assuming his position as the Brooklyn District Attorney in 2016, following the death of much-beloved predecessor Ken Thompson, Gonzalez worked on a policy to scale back the prosecution of low-level marijuana offenders. He also assisted in the creation and implementation of a […]
Carimah Townes Aug 02, 2017
Another Detective Scarcella-involved conviction thrown out in Brooklyn
In the context of the justice system, it is now becoming disturbingly common: a conviction vacated and an innocent person freed from prison because of the misdoings of former New York City Detective Louis Scarcella. The latest is 43-year-old Jabbar Washington. Earlier this week his conviction was vacated after prosecutors determined he was denied a fair trial […]
Larry Hannan Jul 14, 2017