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 Feb 08, 2021
Why We Shouldn’t Reward Fearmongering in Criminal Justice Reporting
The Courier Journal’s Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting on Governor Matt Bevin’s commutations sensationalizes crime at the expense of future clemency efforts.
Zachary A. Siegel, Leo Beletsky May 19, 2020
Government Enforcement of Quarantine Raises Concerns About Increased Surveillance
Louisville, Kentucky judges are ordering people with COVID-19 who have allegedly defied quarantine to wear GPS ankle monitors, raising ethical questions about the government’s role in a pandemic.
Kira Lerner Apr 09, 2020
When Jail Time Comes With A Bill
A case before the Kentucky Supreme Court involves a challenge to the practice of charging people for the time they are held in jail even if they are ultimately not convicted of the charges against them.
Vaidya Gullapalli Jan 27, 2020
Kentucky Bill Would Make It Harder For Formerly Incarcerated People To Vote
The bill would disproportionately affect the 140,000 people whose voting rights were recently restored.
Kira Lerner Jan 21, 2020
Tuesday’s Election Boosts Voting Rights for People With Past Convictions
A claimed victory in Kentucky and wins in Virginia mean hundreds of thousands of people could have their right to vote restored.
Kira Lerner, Daniel Nichanian Nov 06, 2019
Police Chief Sued Over Handling of Violent Rape Case
A federal lawsuit claims that Asheville, North Carolina’s interim chief, Robert C. White, prevented a rape victim from filing a complaint against an officer when he led the Louisville, Kentucky, department.
Meg O'Connor Oct 16, 2019
Spotlight: Fighting Against a New Prison—and Winning—in Eastern Kentucky
The region of eastern Kentucky, once reliant on mining and the coal industry, has, over the decades, become home to three federal prisons. Last year, the Daily Appeal wrote about the controversial proposal to build yet another federal prison in Letcher County, Kentucky. That project had been pushed since 2005 by local backers and a powerful U.S. representative, […]
Vaidya Gullapalli Jul 01, 2019
Overdoses, Riots, And Escapes Roil A Rural Kentucky Jail
The Boyd County Detention Center has been consumed in chaos, even as the DOJ investigates it. Now, the community is pinning hopes for reform on a new jailer.
Zachary A. Siegel Jan 02, 2019
Two States Just Made It Easier to Take Babies Away From Mothers Who Use Drugs During Pregnancy
M. thought she was doing the right thing. She had become dependent on opioids, but when she learned she was pregnant, she immediately tried to enroll in a medication assisted treatment (MAT) program. MAT is the standard of care for treating people with opioid use disorder — especially pregnant women, as quitting opioids too suddenly […]
Lisa Sangoi May 17, 2018
Kentucky’s Heroin Bill Was Meant to Ease the State’s Opioids Crisis; Instead It’s Increasing the State’s Prison Population
In 2013, Kentucky closed the last of its private prisons partly because of a 2011 State House Bill that moved low-level drug offenders into treatment instead of prison, through a deferred prosecution program. Fueled by the bill’s success, Kentucky’s prison population went down to 20,300 by the end of 2013, down from 21,466 in 2012. The 5.3% […]
Michael Arria Dec 13, 2017
Judge throws out “satanic” murder convictions after new evidence suggests two men weren’t killers
The murder convictions of two Kentucky men have been thrown out after new evidence was discovered in their cases. Garr Keith Hardin and Jeffrey DeWayne Clark will get new trials after a judge found there was no credible evidence that the killing of Rhonda Sue Warford was related to satanic worship. The Kentucky Supreme Court upheld the ruling. The […]
Larry Hannan Sep 12, 2017
Romance leads to removal of Kentucky prosecutor (again)
The Christian County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office has been removed from handling a murder case after a judge found that Commonwealth’s Attorney Lynn Pryor had a conflict of interest from previously dating the lead detective. Pryor, who took over as top county prosecutor in January 2007, and her entire office are now off the murder case of Jarred Tabor Long […]
Larry Hannan Aug 09, 2017
Kentucky judge rules death penalty unconstitutional for defendants under 21
A Kentucky judge has ruled that the death penalty is unconstitutional for defendants who committed a murder before they turned 21 years of old. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roper v. Simmons that the death penalty is unconstitutional for anyone who committed murder when they were under the age of 18. Fayette Circuit Court […]
Larry Hannan Aug 04, 2017
Illicit affair of Kentucky prosecutor leads to murder conviction being thrown out
A Kentucky murder conviction has unraveled amid allegations that the elected prosecutor was having an affair with the lead detective on the case. The prosecutor’s office is also being accused of failing to disclose critical evidence to the defense. David Wayne Dooley was convicted of the 2012 murder of Michelle Mockbee and sentenced to life in […]
Larry Hannan Aug 01, 2017
Prosecutorial misconduct results in reversal of molestation conviction
The Kentucky Supreme Court unanimously threw out a child molestation conviction because the Campbell County trial prosecutor “flagrantly abused its authority in prosecuting the case” by making misleading statements to the jury during closing argument. David Albert Soloway was sentenced to 45 years in prison after the 8-year-old daughter of his live-in girlfriend accused him of molesting […]
Larry Hannan Jul 26, 2017