LAPD Officer Who Killed Man in Mental Health Crisis Is a Gun-Toting Social Media Star
In late April, officer Toni McBride shot Daniel Hernandez to death after a suicide call. His attorney and grieving family say videos posted on social media of McBride gleefully firing high-powered weapons show that she’s a trigger-happy officer.
Jerry Iannelli Jul 02, 2020
L.A. Mayor’s Reaction to Protests Proves He’s Unfit to Govern
This weekend’s string of errors is just the latest in his career of cruelty.
Jonny Coleman Jun 04, 2020
The L.A. Mayor’s ‘Unacceptable’ Budget Would Deprive Those In Need And Accelerate The City’s Slide Toward A Police State
The City Council must not let Mayor Eric Garcetti’s unconscionable priorities dictate how Los Angeles responds to the COVID-19 crisis.
May 21, 2020
The Battle to Convert California Hotels into Housing Has Begun
Elected officials need to stop making excuses for not getting unhoused people into hotel rooms.
Jonny Coleman Apr 24, 2020
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 Apr 14, 2020
Working-Class Tenants Are Seizing Vacant State-Owned Property in LA
On the intersection of two public health crises: housing and COVID-19.
Jonny Coleman Apr 09, 2020
Closing California Courts Won’t Prevent A COVID-19 Crisis in Jails
Los Angeles County judges must move quickly to release a broad group of people in custody.
Alicia Virani Apr 02, 2020
How Coronavirus Is Making the Fight for Homeless Communities in LA More Difficult
Cascading crises have significantly increased the stakes for the city’s most vulnerable residents.
Jonny Coleman Mar 19, 2020
As Coronavirus Spreads, the Crisis LA’s Homeless Community Is Facing Has Been Decades in the Making
It should not take a global pandemic for our elected officials to acknowledge that we are all safer if everyone can shower and wash their hands.
Washington, D.C. Continues Low-level Arrests Amid Pandemic
The Metropolitan Police Department has discussed reducing arrests, but it has not formally announced any policy changes.
Jon Campbell Mar 18, 2020
To Stop the Spread of Coronavirus, California Officials and Attorneys Call for Eviction Bans
Experts say evictions cause a ‘downward spiral’ of health problems for renters, and that housing security is necessary to slow the spread of the pandemic.
Darwin BondGraham Mar 13, 2020
In Los Angeles, Police-Backed Street Cleanings are Upending the Lives of Homeless People
The city is ramping up a cleanup program that activists fear will worsen the criminalization of homelessness.
Eliyahu Kamisher Mar 03, 2020
A Black California Man Says a White Ex-Employee Assaulted Him. He Was the One Detained.
Erick Wallace’s federal civil rights lawsuit joins a long line of litigation and misconduct allegations against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Jerry Iannelli Feb 11, 2020
Jackie Lacey Met Her Progressive Challengers On Stage For The First Time, And It Was Explosive
A fiery debate outlined what’s at stake in the race to lead the largest prosecutor’s office in the country.
Eliyahu Kamisher Jan 30, 2020
Pretrial Reform Must Go Beyond Ending Cash Bail
As a society, we can’t continue to subject hundreds of thousands of people to the trauma of incarceration before they face a jury of their peers.
Andy Philipson Jan 29, 2020
LA Police Union Contributes $1 Million To Anti-George Gascón PAC
The influx of cash shows the police union’s determination to stop the reform-minded district attorney candidate.
Eliyahu Kamisher Jan 20, 2020
Los Angeles County D.A. Jackie Lacey Skipped The First Democratic Debate of the Race
After two terms at the helm of the nation’s largest prosecutor office, Lacey has drawn pointed criticism from community advocates who say she is standing in the way of criminal justice reform.
Aaron Morrison Dec 12, 2019
Los Angeles County Democratic Party Endorses George Gascón for District Attorney
The former San Francisco DA got the nod over incumbent Jackie Lacey, whose tenure advocates and activists have long criticized as lackluster.
Jessica Pishko Dec 10, 2019
How District Attorney Jackie Lacey Failed Los Angeles
On a host of issues—including police shootings, bail reform, marijuana legalization, and the death penalty—critics say Lacey, once seen as a reformer, has sought to preserve the status quo.
Jessica Pishko Nov 12, 2019
California Court Destroys Files In Historic Police Corruption Case
Criminal case files from Oakland’s seminal Riders scandal were among documents shredded by the Alameda County Superior Court in 2015.
New Lawsuit Focuses On Alleged L.A. County Deputy ‘Gangs’
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva was elected on the promise of reforming the scandal-plagued sheriff’s department. But eight deputies now accuse Sheriff Villanueva of allowing a violent group, the Banditos, to thrive in his department's ranks.
Ali Winston Oct 10, 2019
California Gang Laws Are Normalized Racism
The gang database in the state gives police increased authority to approach and harass people for virtually no reason at all.
Emily Galvin-Almanza Oct 04, 2019
Pepper Spray Is Toxic, Experts Say. So Why Is It Being Used on Children?
California is one of only six states that allow staff in juvenile facilities to carry pepper spray. But LA’s coming ban is still facing pushback.
Charlotte West Sep 10, 2019
Chicago’s Top Prosecutor: Clearing Marijuana Records Will Be ‘Life-Changing’
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx is partnering with a technology nonprofit to expunge tens of thousands of minor marijuana convictions. Other jurisdictions could follow.
Kira Lerner Aug 30, 2019
LA County Supervisors to Vote on Canceling Jail Contract
Black Lives Matter and other advocates have pushed county officials to abandon the $2.2 billion project with McCarthy Builders.
Lauren Gill Aug 08, 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
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 Jul 22, 2019
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 Jul 16, 2019
Jackie Lacey’s Legacy Is ‘Unfair and Discriminatory,’ Advocates Say
A new report charges the Los Angeles DA with seeking the death penalty in unjust and harsh ways.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Jun 19, 2019
L.A. Prosecutor Touts Her Mental Health Reforms, But Critics Say She’s Making The Crisis Worse
Advocates and attorneys say Jackie Lacey’s rhetoric doesn’t match her actions.
Raven Rakia Jun 07, 2019
Are Sheriffs Necessary?
Advocates are pushing to abolish the office in Los Angeles and elsewhere.
Jessica Pishko Apr 24, 2019
Hundreds Stuck in California Prisons as Prosecutors Seek to Block New Law
Senate Bill 1437 virtually eliminated the ‘felony-murder rule,’ but district attorneys aren’t ready to let it go.
Jessica Pishko Mar 25, 2019
Expansion Of Largest Jail System In The United States Must End
Los Angeles County’s jail system incarcerates tens of thousands of people at a multi-billion dollar cost. The communities most impacted by mass incarceration have had enough.
‘A Convenient Scapegoat’
Cherie Townsend is suing the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department after she says they falsely imprisoned her for murder and destroyed her reputation.
Raven Rakia Jan 11, 2019
Claims of Racism and Brutality Dog Los Angeles County Sheriff ‘Deputy Gangs’
A lawsuit brought by a Compton resident detailing an alleged beating by deputies is just one of nearly three dozen federal civil rights lawsuits alleging brutality and racial bias at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Free Meek Mill, Philly cops panic over their new DA, LAPD caught planting drugs, 14 year old boy killed on reservation
In Justice Roundup is my weekly debrief rounding up the justice news you need to know.
Shaun King Nov 14, 2017
Los Angeles County To Pay $4 Million To Families Of Couple Killed In Car Crash Caused By Police Officer
District Attorney Jackie Lacey chose not to prosecute officer
Larry Hannan Nov 13, 2017