Florida County: People On Sex Offender Registry Should Shelter From Dorian in Jail
Barred from other shelters, registrants were left with few options as the hurricane approached.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Sep 04, 2019
Stoking Hostility Toward Homeless People
Dozens of reports about an indigent man in Bradenton, Florida, showed the cruel excesses of local news’s homelessness coverage.
Adam H. Johnson Jul 31, 2019
When Cops Lie, Should Prosecutors Rely Upon Their Testimony At Trial?
In California, Texas and Florida, advocates sent letters to district attorneys, demanding that they refuse to work with officers with histories of misconduct.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Jul 29, 2019
Florida Sheriffs Arrest Hundreds In ‘Trafficking’ Stings
Offices across the state conduct operations under the guise of saving victims of human trafficking. But the vast majority of people detained, including sex workers, are charged with prostitution.
Molly Minta Jul 25, 2019
Miami Officials: Most People Who Owe Fines and Fees Can Vote
Lawyers and advocates in Miami-Dade County will roll out a new plan to counter the disenfranchisement of people with felony convictions.
In Alabama, Decades-Delayed Justice In A Double Homicide—Or A Brand New Injustice?
Police in Ozark said they solved the 1999 murders of two teenage girls using a genealogy database. But Coley McCraney‘s attorneys say that the case against their client is far from certain.
America’s New ‘Sheriff of the Year’ Pushed to Allow Teachers to Carry Weapons in School
Sheriff Bob Gualtieri of Pinellas County, Florida, is one of the state’s most controversial lawmen.
Jessica Pishko Jul 23, 2019
In A North Florida County, Prosecutors Drop Nearly 50 Percent of Sexual Battery Cases
Over a three-year period, Alachua County prosecutors closed 236 sexual battery cases: 115 were dropped, 92 were offered plea deals, and seven went to trial.
Molly Minta Jun 24, 2019
Floridians Are Suing a Cop Fired for Planting Drugs in Their Vehicles
Thanks to the diligence of one assistant state attorney, 119 cases were thrown out and the officer is under state investigation.
Katie Rose Quandt Jun 17, 2019
Family of Orlando Prisoner Who Died After Police Dog Bites Gets Legal Breakthrough
A new court order allows the family’s lawsuit to proceed, and may lead to holding jail staff accountable.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg May 28, 2019
‘I Can’t Afford It and I Never Will Be Able To’
Florida is poised to pass a law that imposes a ‘poll tax’ on thousands of formerly incarcerated people.
Kira Lerner May 01, 2019
Florida Woman Faced 10 Years For ‘Meth’ That Was ‘Just a Rock’
A scandal of falsified drug arrests is spreading at a Florida sheriff’s office that has also spent more than $1.33 million settling excessive force lawsuits and is at the center of the increasingly troubled Robert Kraft case.
Meg O'Connor Mar 26, 2019
Undercutting reform, Florida moves to ban certain people from ever voting again
Lawmakers are redefining certain crimes in order to carve out broad exceptions to who can regain the right to vote.
Kira Lerner Mar 20, 2019
Miami Police Arrest Thousands of Homeless But Leave Rapes, Robberies Unsolved
In 2017, over 2,000 homeless people were arrested on charges including drinking in public and panhandling. That same year, roughly 1,400 people were arrested in Miami-Dade County for rape, murder, and robbery.
Meg O'Connor Mar 18, 2019
Woman Faces Life In Prison For Sharing Drugs With Another Woman In Jail
A 22-year-old woman overdosed and died in jail. A 24-year-old faces first-degree murder charges. Did the system fail them both?
Tana Ganeva Mar 08, 2019
The Appeal Podcast: The Backlash Against Expanding Voting Rights
With Appeal staff reporter Kira Lerner
Adam H. Johnson Mar 07, 2019
ICE Wanted To Deport Him to Jamaica. But He Was Born In The U.S.
A Philadelphia-born man was detained by ICE and nearly deported. The agency’s mistake was caught, but the case exposes a new collaborative program that encourages jails to hold immigrants for ICE.
Debbie Nathan Mar 06, 2019
Florida’s Sex Offender Registry Proves Inescapable
Critics say the state's policy of keeping non-residents registered bloats the list—and harms public safety.
Steven Yoder Mar 01, 2019
Inside ‘The Stop-And-Frisk Capital of America’
Claims including sexual assault of a woman with mental illness to lying in reports haunt the Miami Gardens police; payouts in federal lawsuits have cost the city's taxpayers at least $3.5 million.
Meg O'Connor Feb 21, 2019
Prison Tech Company Is Questioned for Retaining ‘Voice Prints’ of People Presumed Innocent
Defense attorneys say they were unaware of the practice and are unclear on how they can expunge the data of nonconvicted clients.
Cops Claimed She Set Up A Drug Deal. Now She’s Being Prosecuted For Manslaughter.
A Florida woman with substance use disorder allegedly brokered a drug sale that ended in a fatal overdose; she faces 15 years in prison.
Zachary A. Siegel Feb 05, 2019
Prisons Across the U.S. Are Quietly Building Databases of Incarcerated People’s Voice Prints
The technology also allows authorities to mine call databases and cross-reference the voices of individuals prisoners have spoken with.
Florida Locales Vote to Stop Using Prison Labor—and Others May Follow
One commissioner wants the state Department of Corrections to show proof that his county isn’t just using prisoners as ‘slaves.’
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Jan 28, 2019
This Florida County’s Sheriff Is Controversial. But His Election Won’t Be Close.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office stands accused of violating immigrants’ rights and dismissing a shocking number of jail deaths.
George Joseph Oct 23, 2018
Why do Prisoners in Florida Keep Dying?
With privatization of the state’s prisons in full swing, this year is on track to be its deadliest on record.
Michael Sainato Jun 25, 2018
A Florida Sheriff’s Dramatic Drug Raid Went Viral, But It Wasn’t What It Seemed
In the ‘fentanyl’ bust at a ‘narcotics house,’ no opioids were seized at all.
George Joseph May 30, 2018