How Imprisoned People Forced to Pick Cotton Got ‘Prison Slavery’ Bans on the Ballot On Election Day, voters in Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont will decide whether to close loopholes in their state constitutions allowing the forced labor of incarcerated people. Bryce Covert
‘Habitual Offender’ Laws Imprison Thousands for Small Crimes—Sometimes for Life Data obtained by The Appeal show nearly 2,000 people in Mississippi and Louisiana are serving long—and sometimes life—sentences after they were labeled “habitual offenders." But most are behind bars for small crimes like drug possession. Tana Ganeva
Louisiana Wants to Jail Kids at Angola Prison’s Old Death Row An upcoming court ruling could decide the fate of a plan to detain “problematic youth” at a facility that previously housed prisoners awaiting execution. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
After 51 Years In Prison, Louisiana’s Longest-Serving Incarcerated Woman Is Free Gloria Williams, who became known as “Mama Glo” behind bars, was released Tuesday, more than two years after the state parole board first recommended that her sentence be commuted. Victoria Law
The Dissenter Former Louisiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Bernette Johnson’s fiery dissents on mass incarceration and sentencing in America’s most carceral state garnered international attention. But the rise of the first Black woman on the court was characterized by one battle after another with the Deep South’s white power structure. Elon Green
‘She Just Said She Wanted To Be Believed’ More than 20 women accused Harry Morel, a longtime district attorney in Louisiana, of sexual misconduct. But Morel pleaded guilty to just a single obstruction of justice count while Mike Zummer, the FBI agent who investigated him, was fired. Now, Zummer is speaking about what he says is a grave injustice—at the hands of the Justice Department. Jerry Iannelli
Video Captures Poor Conditions At Louisiana Poultry Plant Where Prisoners Are Sent To Work Despite COVID-19 concerns, the state’s prisoners are still doing dangerous menial jobs in work-release programs. Jerry Iannelli
Louisiana Women Incarcerated for Defending Themselves Against Abusive Partners Seek Clemency Amid COVID-19 Pandemic The state has recommended the release of 10 women at a coronavirus-ravaged prison—but Governor John Bel Edwards still hasn’t signed the paperwork. Jerry Iannelli
Louisiana’s Data On Coronavirus Infections Among Prisoners Is Troubled And Lacks Transparency The state is sending virus-positive people to Angola prison—but those numbers aren’t reported on the Department of Corrections website. Jerry Iannelli
Coronavirus Exposes Precarity of Prison Towns Towns like Homer, Louisiana, have huge prisons, a tiny populace, and few public health resources—a potentially lethal combination as COVID-19 spreads. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Louisiana Prisoners Held In Notorious Isolation Unit Are Facing A ‘Slow-Moving Disaster’ Criminal justice advocates have called Camp J at the Louisiana State Penitentiary ‘a dungeon.’ Now it’s housing prisoners who have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Victoria Law
Avoid Austerity To Prevent A State And Local Coronavirus Depression Local budget cuts enacted a decade ago left states and cities dangerously unprepared for COVID-19. We shouldn’t make those same mistakes again. Nathan Tankus
‘That Man Can’t Breathe’ A sheriff’s deputy in Louisiana is caught on video choking a man after he says he asked for COVID-19 treatment. Jerry Iannelli
Surviving a Pandemic When Your Loved One Is in Prison The families and partners of those incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Complex at Oakdale are sharing information and support as COVID-19 hits the prison. Joshua Manson
Lessons from Hurricane Katrina For The COVID-19 Recovery To Come Powerful interests exploited Katrina to enrich themselves and transform the city. As a reporter who covered the fallout explains, our government’s lax oversight means the same could happen now, leaving those who most need help behind. Gary Rivlin
Fired Louisiana Prosecutor Had ‘Whites Only’ Sign in Property He Owned Jason Brown, who has worked in several parish DA's offices, was accused of using illegal tactics to win at least one case before arriving in Calcasieu Parish, where he was terminated over alleged dishonesty in a continuance motion. Now, The Appeal has learned that he had segregation-era signs in an art studio he owned. Jon Campbell
Louisiana Continues to Imprison People Past Their Release Dates A Department of Corrections official knew the extrajudicial practice was going on but little has been done to correct it. Victoria Law
Major County Jails Are Decarcerating, But Violence, Deaths Persist Jails in New Orleans and Cleveland have had significant population drops, yet conditions of confinement remain poor. Communities harmed by these jails should experiment with new accountability measures to maintain political pressure against jail administrators. Jonathan Ben-Menachem
Should a Prosecutor’s Immunity Cover Faking Documents to Lock Up Witnesses? A lawsuit alleges Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s office created bogus "subpoenas" to secure reluctant witnesses' cooperation—and even used them to jail crime victims. Jay Willis
Longtime Louisiana Prisoner Who Maintained Her Innocence Dies Less Than Two Years After Her Release The poor healthcare that Bobbie Jean Johnson received during her more than 40 years in prison contributed to her death, family members say. Roxanna Asgarian
In a Louisiana Parish, Hundreds of Cases May Be Tainted By Sheriff’s Office Misconduct During the tenure of Iberia Parish Sheriff Louis Ackal, deputies assaulted and harassed men inside the parish jail. Several deputies were convicted in federal court, and now cases brought by the office are under renewed scrutiny. Joshua Vaughn
Louisiana Prosecutors Push To Retain Nonunanimous Jury Verdicts In 2018, the state’s voters approved a constitutional amendment that requires unanimous jury verdicts in felony cases for crimes committed on or after Jan. 1, 2019. Now, the Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of the nonunanimity rule—with prosecutors arguing that the U.S. Constitution does not require unanimous jury verdicts in criminal cases. Joshua Vaughn
Louisiana To Build New Prison For Women Displaced By 2016 Storm More than three years after heavy rains and flooding devastated the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women, officials have reached an agreement to build a new facility. Lauren Gill
Tech Company Gave Two New Orleans-Area Sheriff’s Offices Access to Track Cell Phones Without Warrants Neither agency had written policies on how to capture or store the location data without violating privacy rights. Emily Lane
More Than 40 People Have Died in the East Baton Rouge Jail. Will Voters Oust the Sheriff? Sheriff Sid Gautreaux faces two Democratic challengers in the Oct. 12 election. Teresa Mathew
Courts Are Intervening to Dismantle Unjust Cash Bail Systems Across the U.S. A series of victories for advocates reflects a shift in the ‘popular narrative’ around bail. Kira Lerner
This Louisiana Gulf War Veteran Is Serving Life For Selling $30 Worth Of Marijuana Derek Harris awaits arguments in the state Supreme Court about the sentencing, which one judge called ‘unconscionable.’ Aaron Morrison
Louisiana Prosecutors Use The ‘Habitual Offender’ Statute To Jail People For Life. Attorneys For Lifers Are Fighting Back. Henri Lyles is challenging his life sentence under a statute that penalizes people for prior convictions. A favorable decision by the state Supreme Court would mean that he and a dozen people sentenced to life could one day be freed. Aaron Morrison
Meet the Latinx 19-Year-Old Running for Sheriff in a Majority-White Louisiana Parish Jose ‘Lil Joe’ Chapa says one way to make Beauregard Parish ‘great again’ is to stop construction of a new jail and divert resources to services that keep people out of lockup altogether. Aaron Morrison
Louisiana Woman Sentenced to Life for Attempting to Rob Grocery Store With Toy Gun Seeks Mercy Gloria Williams was in her 20s when she was sent to prison for her part in a robbery that turned deadly. After serving nearly five decades, including one decade in solitary confinement, Williams now has a chance at freedom. Victoria Law
In Louisiana, a Messenger of Change Disregards His Message James Stewart, Caddo Parish’s DA, continues to defend controversial death sentences that originated with his predecessors. Joshua Vaughn
Arrested for Shoplifting and Dead 2 Days Later A lawsuit filed by Kentrell Hurst’s children is the latest against New Orleans Sheriff Marlin Gusman over jail conditions. Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg
Louisiana Bill Could Jail Defense Attorneys for Doing Their Jobs ‘The bill forces attorneys to choose between violating our ethical mandates or going to jail for following them.’ Kira Lerner
New Orleans Bail Companies Owed Millions In Illegal Fees. Now They May Get To Keep The Money. The bail bonds industry was caught overcharging 50,000 families $6 million over 14 years, according to SPLC. Bryce Covert
New Orleans’s Youth Jail Faces Overcrowding Crisis as D.A. Targets Kids The Orleans district attorney has said that violent youth are the city’s biggest crime problem. Kira Lerner
Houston Homicide Under New Scrutiny After Misconduct Allegations About DEA Agent Emerge In 2000, Lamar Burks was convicted of murder and given a 70-year sentence. But the federal indictment of a DEA agent and witnesses who say Burks is innocent have raised new questions about his case. Mike Hayes
Confession Throws Prison Uprising Trials Into Chaos A judge excluded a confession that exonerated defendants in one trial related to a Delaware prison uprising, but a pair of defendants were nonetheless acquitted, promising further problems for prosecutors. Ella Fassler
Sentenced To Life At 16 In Slaying Of Man Who She Said Pulled A Gun On Her In 1996, Michele Benjamin was sentenced to life without parole for killing a man who she said solicited her for sex and menaced her with a weapon in New Orleans. A Supreme Court decision led her to be re-sentenced to life with a chance at parole in 2016. Today, a parole hearing brings the possibility of freedom. Josie Duffy Rice
The Appeal Podcast: Brutality in Baton Rouge With Appeal contributors Clarissa Sosin and Daryl Khan. Adam H. Johnson
A Year After Police Shot Calvin Toney, His Family Still Doesn’t Know What Happened Baton Rouge residents say little has changed after Alton Sterling. Clarissa Sosin, Daryl Khan
Lawsuit Accuses A Louisiana Police Chief Of Punching a Man and Throwing His Wife to the Ground Then he ordered another officer to arrest the man. George Joseph
After Victory in Louisiana, Oregon Is Now The Only State Using Split Juries to Convict People As in Louisiana, Oregon’s practice is rooted in its own rich history of white supremacy. George Joseph
The Appeal Podcast: Neglect and Abuse in Our Prison Healthcare System With Mercedes Montagnes of the Promise of Justice Initiative. Adam H. Johnson
Louisiana Judge Threatens To Appoint Every Eligible Lawyer To Death Penalty Case After the state cut funds for capital defense, there’s a growing wait list of people in jail without a lawyer. Emma Whitford
‘Will I Get Out Today?’ Louisiana is keeping people behind bars long after their sentences have expired, attorneys say. Victoria Law
Louisiana Attorney General May Run For Governor By Fearmongering Over Criminal Justice Attorney General Jeff Landry has taken a number of extreme positions on policing and sentencing in response to reform. Kira Lerner
Louisiana Law Enforcement Officers Are Moonlighting For A Controversial Pipeline Company Off-duty law enforcement officers are using state resources to work side jobs for the pipeline company. Karen Savage
Angola Prisoner Says He Was Punished For Organizing Against ‘Slavery’ Ronald Brooks was helping plan a prison strike when he was abruptly transferred to a new prison hours away. Bryce Covert
Most Recent Deaths At East Baton Rouge Jail Could Have Been Avoided A new report details the abysmal conditions, lack of medical care, and staff shortages that led to the unusually high death rate in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. Teresa Mathew
New Orleans Court Ordered To Stop Funding Itself On The Backs Of The Poor The criminal court was funneling millions of dollars a year from poor communities. Bryce Covert
New Orleans Woman Sentenced to Life In Prison For Killing Abusive Husband Is Granted New Trial Catina Curley suffered physical abuse at the hands of her husband for more than a decade. When she turned a revolver on him, she was charged with murder and sentenced to life. Now, thanks to a court ruling, she has a chance at freedom. Josie Duffy Rice
This Red State Governor Is Giving Hope To People Sentenced To Die In Prison But after a spree of commutations, the governor recently put down his clemency pen amid tough-on-crime fear mongering. Kira Lerner
After A Murder Conviction is Reversed, Police Chief Vows to Watch Defendant ‘Til the Day I Die’ Did a Louisiana police chief and a prosecutor cross a line when they issued televised threats to a man who'd just been granted relief by a federal appeals court in a child killing? Max Rivlin-Nadler
In Louisiana, Harsh Prosecutors Are Moving From Parish to Parish When Caddo voters booted their infamous district attorney, some of his toughest prosecutors found a home in Calcasieu. Josie Duffy Rice
Louisiana’s Love Affair With Locking Up Kids For Life Years after two landmark Supreme Court rulings, prosecutors in Louisiana are still overwhelmingly seeking life sentences for children. Victoria Law
Louisiana Prisoners Demand an End to ‘Modern-day Slavery’ People incarcerated at Angola want opportunities for education instead of hard labor in the fields. Bryce Covert
How Naming a Drug Operation for a Fallen Trooper Endangers His Alleged Killer’s Fair Trial Jessica Brand, Ethan Brown
In Louisiana, Threatening to File a Complaint Against Police Can Lead to a Five-Year Prison Sentence Michael Stein
Louisiana Denies Parole to Man Behind a Supreme Court Ruling Limiting Life Sentences for Children Aviva Shen
Did Prosecutorial Misconduct Result in the Indictment of an African-American Louisiana Couple in a Federal Drug Case? Max Rivlin-Nadler
Louisiana Man Ordered Released From Jail After Waiting Almost Eight Years For Trial Case called an “embarrassment to criminal justice system.” Larry Hannan
When “Ambiguity” Can Mean Life in Prison A Louisiana man’s request for a “lawyer dog” was deemed unclear by the state’s Supreme Court. Rebecca McCray
Louisiana mother faces jail time for her children’s alleged crimes A district attorney wants to solve crime by breaking up families. Carimah Townes
Life sentence for Louisiana man convicted for juvenile crime found to be unconstitutional Larry Hannan
Life sentence for Louisiana man convicted for juvenile crime found to be unconstitutional Larry Hannan
