‘They Killed Freddie Gray’: New Book Reveals Dark, Hidden Truth About Gray’s Death
In her new book, “They Killed Freddie Gray”, Justine Barron reveals much of what the public has believed about Gray’s death is incorrect.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Aug 23, 2023
Survivor Injustice Asks Us To Reconsider What Justice Looks Like For Crime Victims
This excerpt from Survivor Injustice asks us to reconsider what justice really looks like for crime victims.
Kylie Cheung Aug 16, 2023
Democrats Won Power in Four States. Will They Use It to Pass Bold Justice Reforms?
In Minnesota, Democrats used a newly won legislative trifecta to legalize marijuana, overhaul the pardons process, and limit no-knock warrants. But they also funneled hundreds of millions in new funding toward prisons and policing.
Cinnamon Janzer May 25, 2023
Judge Reinstates ‘Zero Bail’ Policy in Los Angeles
A preliminary injunction issued this week forbids officials from forcing people charged with low-level offenses to remain in jail because they cannot afford bail.
Meg O'Connor May 18, 2023
Life in Prison for a Killing He Didn’t Cause or Condone
In Illinois alone, around 500 people are currently serving first-degree felony murder sentences for killings they did not commit themselves or intend to commit. Reform efforts must consider past injustices as well as future abuses.
Sarah Free Apr 27, 2023
Here’s What LA County is Doing—And Not Doing—to Move People With Mental Illness Out of Jail
America’s largest county has launched numerous initiatives to shrink its jail population and divert people with mental illness from jail entirely. Here’s an explainer on what the major initiatives are and what, if any, progress has been made.
Meg O'Connor Mar 12, 2023
Some Good News and Ways to Give Back
For millions of families, this time of year is yet another reminder of all that is missed when a loved one is incarcerated
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Dec 21, 2022
A New Class of Candidates Seeks to Transform L.A.’s Approach to Housing, Justice
After a scandal engulfed some of L.A.’s most powerful politicians, a slate of progressive candidates is running on new approaches for tackling homelessness and mass incarceration.
Francisco Aviles Pino Nov 08, 2022
Democrats Would Rather Become Republicans Than Make the Case for Justice Reform
If the Democratic Party wants to run away from those candidates, it will only be running towards its own demise.
Jerry Iannelli Jun 22, 2022
The Truth About Marijuana and the Criminal Legal System
We’re celebrating 4/20 by tackling some popular myths about marijuana and the criminal legal system.
Katie Jane Fernelius Apr 20, 2022
Florida Cops Nearly Sent a Five-Year-Old to Jail
Reporters entertained the notion that a toddler deserved prison time with headlines like ‘No Charges for 5-Year-Old in Pembroke Pines School Attack’
Nneka Ewulonu Apr 13, 2022
Does Bail Reform Lead to More Crime?
Opponents of bail reform blame pretrial release for increased crime, despite a lack of evidence. Lost in the debate—the proven harms of jail.
Ethan Corey Apr 06, 2022
Los Angeles Democrats Embrace the Tough-on-Crime Backlash
In February, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón became the latest local Democratic politician to fold to conservative critics when he walked back two major campaign promises that had swept him into office just over a year before.
Jerry Iannelli Mar 15, 2022
“It’s like a slow war, like a slow burn. Like a slow, quiet form of torture.”
Thank you for all of your support. Your contributions have enabled us to turn The Appeal into a worker-led newsroom dedicated to exposing the harms of the criminal legal system — and to begin publishing again! Check out some of our recent pieces: We uncovered a robbery task force at DC’s Metropolitan Police Department that […]
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Dec 14, 2021
These November Elections Could Dramatically Change Local Police Departments
The Appeal is back and we’re worker-run. We’re excited to bring you the fourth edition of our weekly newsletter as we continue to work toward an official relaunch. Every dollar we raise helps us produce vital journalism. Next month, we’ll begin publishing a special package of stories. Help us return to publishing full time by […]
Anna Simonton Oct 26, 2021
The Recent Rise in Violence Should Be a Rallying Cry for Reform
Acknowledging the increase in homicides doesn’t mean giving in to the clamor for punitive responses. Instead, it should be a rallying cry for reform.
Nick Wing Oct 05, 2021
California’s New Attorney General Has A Reputation As A Criminal Justice Reformer. But His Biggest Test Is Yet To Come
Rob Bonta’s career has hinged on the idea that the law can be used to engender social justice. His elevation to California’s “top cop” position, where he will become responsible for the vast bureaucracy of the state’s criminal legal system, will be a crucible for that belief.
Piper French May 03, 2021
Five Times Miami’s New Police Chief Got It Wrong on Public Safety
Art Acevedo’s recent comments reveal an official who, despite his “good cop” veneer, has played fast and loose with the facts when it comes to addressing public safety.
Eoin Higgins Apr 12, 2021
Activists Who Helped Elect Birmingham Mayor Balk at Police Expansion Plans
Mayor Randall Woodfin is increasing police funding and ignoring calls for non-law enforcement public safety alternatives.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Mar 30, 2021
Phoenix Wants To Shift Crisis Response Away From Police—While Also Increasing The Police Budget
The trial budget includes a proposal to expand a crisis response program under the fire department, but also includes a $3.7 million increase to the Phoenix Police Department’s $745 million budget.
Meg O'Connor Mar 19, 2021
Choosing Adam Schiff For California Attorney General Would Be Ignoring What Californians Want
The U.S. representative has been a chief architect of mass incarceration in the state and an instigator of racial injustice.
Jody David Armour Feb 11, 2021
Trump Turned the Justice System Into a Black Box. Biden Could Fix It
The Bureau of Justice Statistics has suffered from years of poor funding and political interference by the Trump administration. Fixing it could be one of the most important tasks on Biden’s criminal justice reform agenda.
Ethan Corey Feb 02, 2021
The Prosecutors’ Union That’s Suing George Gascón Has A History Of Zealous Opposition To Reform
A look at the organization’s past actions suggests that this lawsuit is part of a longstanding pattern of ideologically motivated advocacy and commitment to tough-on-crime policies, rather than a show of blind allegiance to the law.
Piper French Jan 27, 2021
Why Goodwin Liu Should Be California’s Next Attorney General
The California Supreme Court Justice is motivated not by politics but by making equal justice under the law a reality for all Californians.
Earlonne Woods Jan 18, 2021
Gavin Newsom’s High-Stakes Choice For California Attorney General
By appointing a reformer to replace the outgoing Xavier Becerra, Newsom has the chance to begin dismantling a sprawling, bloated system of prisons and jails that incarcerated nearly a quarter-million people as of 2018.
Jay Willis Jan 14, 2021
What Traffic Enforcement Without Police Could Look Like
Because traffic stops all too often escalate into deadly incidents, calls have grown to disentangle traffic enforcement from police—and a measure to do so has already passed in Berkeley, California.
Meg O'Connor Jan 13, 2021
D.C. May Give People Convicted As Young Adults A Chance At Resentencing
The D.C. Council is set to vote on a bill aimed at giving people who committed serious crimes before their 25th birthday an opportunity to petition a judge for resentencing.
Meg O'Connor Dec 14, 2020
Terry McAuliffe’s Record on the Death Penalty Is Out of Step With National Trends
McAuliffe is running to become Virginia governor a second time. If he wins, he would be the only active Democratic governor to have carried out executions in office.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Dec 11, 2020
Resentencing Units Can Rectify, Rehabilitate, and Restore
A concerted effort to review, resentence, and release is the right thing to do for those who have been unjustly sentenced. It is also the right thing to do for our community.
George Gascón, Marilyn Mosby Dec 08, 2020
Two Rising Democratic Stars May Be Vying for Pennsylvania Governor. On Criminal Justice, They’re Very Different
Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman has jumpstarted the state’s pardons process, while Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s self-styled progressivism isn’t winning over advocates.
Joshua Vaughn Nov 24, 2020
Some Texas Elections Suggest Voters Aren’t Afraid of Defunding Police
None of the Austin City Council members who voted to cut police funding lost their elections, but a police union vice president who fearmongered about the defund movement did.
Meg O'Connor Nov 20, 2020
Report Finds Bail Reform in Chicago Reduced Pretrial Incarceration Without Hurting Public Safety
A growing body of evidence suggests that it’s possible to reduce or even eliminate the use of money bail without increasing crime.
Ethan Corey Nov 19, 2020
Americans Are Getting Tired of Willie Horton-Style Fearmongering
In North Carolina, Attorney General Josh Stein’s Republican opponent painted him as soft on crime. Voters re-elected him anyway.
Jay Willis Nov 18, 2020
In a Blow to the Progressive Prosecutor Movement, Allister Adel Wins the Maricopa County Attorney Race
Voters decided to keep Adel in charge of the third-largest prosecuting agency in the country. She is recovering from emergency surgery for bleeding in her brain.
Meg O'Connor Nov 11, 2020
Police Unions Are Losing The War on Criminal Justice Reform
Law enforcement organizations have long treated mass incarceration as a job creation program. In 2020, the tide began turning against them.
Jay Willis Nov 10, 2020
George Gascón Wins Race for Los Angeles D.A. in Major Victory for Progressive Prosecutor Movement
Los Angeles County, with the country’s largest jail system and largest local prosecutor office, is considered a crown jewel in a nationwide push for criminal justice reform.
Eliyahu Kamisher Nov 06, 2020
Holly Mitchell Wins Supervisors Race With Big Implications For Criminal Justice Reform In Los Angeles County
The LA County supervisors are poised to tackle a wide range of criminal justice reforms, including moving children and people struggling with mental health issues out of the criminal legal system, and redirecting millions of dollars away from law enforcement and back into communities.
Piper French Nov 05, 2020
Mondaire Jones Is Bringing the Fight Against Systemic Racism to Congress
Jones has vowed to support expansion of the Supreme Court, back the Green New Deal, and push for criminal justice reform.
Lauren Gill Nov 04, 2020
Esther Agbaje, Fighting For Affordable Housing And Prison Reform, Becomes Minnesota’s First Nigerian-American Legislator
“I have always had a focus on public service, always a desire to make sure that I’m using my skills and talents to help people and to make the community around me a little bit better,” she said.
Dawn R. Wolfe Nov 04, 2020
Athena Hollins Wins Seat In Minnesota State House, Pledging To Fight For Broad Police Reforms
Hollins’s ‘very personal’ decision to run was sparked in part by the Trump administration ‘catching everything on fire.’ Now she wants to advocate for subsidized child care, police reform, and more.
Dawn R. Wolfe Nov 04, 2020