Pennsylvania Case Challenges ‘Death by Incarceration’ for 18-year-olds
Recent Supreme Court rulings have led to a review of life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed at age 17 and younger, but attorneys for Avis Lee say there’s no reason to stop there.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Nov 12, 2018
Communicating While Queer Is Being Punished in Prison
A lawsuit accuses Illinois of cutting off LGBTQ prisoners’ lifeline to supporters.
Raven Rakia Nov 08, 2018
Your Essential Criminal Justice Guide to Election Night
From sheriffs to bail to marijuana, and more—here’s what you need to know.
Daniel Nichanian Nov 05, 2018
For The First Time, A Chicago Judge Could Lose His Seat For Being Too ‘Tough on Crime’
No Cook County judge has lost a retention election in 28 years.
Solitary Confinement, Jail Deaths Rock Race For Sheriff in California
In Santa Clara County, incarcerated people, and a former undersheriff challenging six-term sheriff Laurie Smith, have turned conditions of confinement into a potent electoral issue.
Victoria Law Oct 29, 2018
Mother’s Lawsuit Says Oklahoma Prison Failed to Prevent Her Daughter’s Death
New development in a high-profile case comes as advocates question the state’s prison conditions and sentencing practices.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Oct 17, 2018
At Angola Prison, ‘People Are Suffering. People Are Dying’
Trial begins in class action suit alleging medical neglect by Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Jessica Pishko Oct 12, 2018
Cash Bail Yields A New Casualty
A Texas jail suicide involving a woman who couldn’t make bail in a shoplifting case highlights of the plight of pretrial detainees with mental illness.
Prisons Crack Down On An Opioid Treatment Drug, Endangering Lives
Few of the prisons trying to stem flow of contraband Suboxone offer substantial opioid treatment programs.
Raven Rakia Oct 11, 2018
Common Bails Out a Stranger
What it’s like to take part in New York City’s Mass Bailout.
Sarah Lustbader Oct 10, 2018
Will Alabama Sheriffs Finally Stop Diverting Jail Food Funds To Their Own Wallets?
The governor is making sheriffs sign an oath promising they won't misuse funds meant to feed jail prisoners. But some sheriffs are already pushing back.
One Year After Cook County’s Bail Reform, Court Watchers Say Things Are Getting Worse
Judges are still setting bail at unaffordable levels, and more people are being held without bond.
Bryce Covert Oct 05, 2018
NYC Prosecutors Are Stoking Fear About the Mass Bailout, But Their Arguments Don’t Add Up
District attorneys’ comments belie the true purpose of bail in New York and ignore the safety risks of jail itself.
John Pfaff Oct 02, 2018
‘Worse Than Guantánamo’
Dozens of former detainees at the Gwinnett County jail in Georgia claim they were subjected to brutality at the hands of its Rapid Response Team.
Kira Lerner Oct 01, 2018
House of Cards
‘Cold case’ playing cards were just introduced into Delaware prisons in hopes of producing tips on unsolved homicides—but critics warn that informants cultivated behind bars can be dangerously unreliable.
Lauren Gill Sep 27, 2018
‘Will I Get Out Today?’
Louisiana is keeping people behind bars long after their sentences have expired, attorneys say.
Victoria Law Sep 26, 2018
Activists Brace For Further Retaliation In The Wake Of The National Prison Strike
As media attention wanes, “this is the most dangerous period with any prisoner action,” one organizer said.
Bryce Covert Sep 25, 2018
Pennsylvania Prisons Hired A Private Company To Intercept And Store Prisoners’ Mail
The company is being paid $4 million a year to open and scan prisoners’ mail into a searchable database.
Raven Rakia Sep 24, 2018
The Incalculable Costs of Mass Incarceration
Prisons carry enormous, perhaps impossible to measure social costs—but when assessing the system fiscally, reformers should focus on staffing salaries instead of the number of incarcerated people.
John Pfaff Sep 20, 2018
Curtis Brooks Didn’t Kill Anyone. So Why Is He Labeled A Murderer For Life?
A man sentenced to die in prison is inciting debate over ‘felony murder’ rules in Colorado.
Katie Rose Quandt Sep 18, 2018
‘Safer to Leave Them There’
How the politics of storm preparation reveal whose lives matter, and who gets left behind.
Kate Aronoff Sep 14, 2018
In New York, Most Parolees Can Now Vote—But Many County Websites Say They Can’t
As Thursday's election approaches, confusion reigns.
Emma Whitford Sep 12, 2018
Deported Before His Case Was Closed
Immigrants are being deported while their cases are still pending, immigration attorneys say.
Zack Peterson Sep 11, 2018
Man Sentenced As ‘Career Criminal’ Gets His First Chance At Freedom In 48 Years
Despite a 2015 Supreme Court ruling limiting the mandatory minimum law, few people are seeing relief.
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 Sep 06, 2018
‘Just Let Him Kick’
Lawsuits allege that a private Tennessee prison neglected diabetic prisoners, contributing to at least one death.
‘There’s An All-out Manhunt’: A Strike Organizer Speaks From Prison
An imprisoned organizer with Jailhouse Lawyers Speak said prison officials are trying to identify those leading the strike.
Raven Rakia Sep 05, 2018
As National Prison Strike Continues, Incarcerated People Face Retaliation
Now in its second week, a strike staged by prisoners over poor conditions, low wages, and other issues is resulting in consequences, including harsh conduct reports and placements in solitary confinement.
Raven Rakia Aug 31, 2018
‘We thought it was important to knock down doors’
Lewis Conway Jr., a formerly incarcerated activist running for Austin City Council, sits down with The Appeal.
Sylvia A. Harvey Aug 30, 2018
Here Are the Criminal Justice Issues Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon Should Debate
From policing to parole, this election could be pivotal for reform.
Emma Whitford Aug 28, 2018
A Troubled Federal Prison Unit Gets New Life In A Different State
Instead of changing its conditions and practices, The Bureau of Prisons is simply moving a problem-plagued federal prison unit in Pennsylvania to Illinois.
Victoria Law Aug 21, 2018
Why Prisoners are Striking Today
Prisoners are striking to end death by incarceration, prison slavery and poor living conditions.
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 Aug 20, 2018
The Appeal Podcast Episode 12: When Electronic Cages Replace Steel and Cement
With journalist Kira Lerner.
Adam H. Johnson Aug 16, 2018
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 Aug 15, 2018
Caretaker Faces Deportation Over Dubious ‘Shaken Baby’ Conviction
After being released from prison, her only chance is a pardon from the governor.
Jessica Pishko Aug 14, 2018
‘They treated me like a dog’: An Immigrant Was Forced to Clean the Truck of the Border Agent Who Arrested Him
Under ‘Operation Streamline,’ Border Patrol has become responsible for the housing and transporting of immigrants.
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 Aug 13, 2018
Milwaukee Candidates Clash In Race to Succeed The Infamous Sheriff Clarke
Several candidates are vying to become Milwaukee Sheriff in the wake of Sheriff David Clarke's resignation last fall. But will they truly spurn his legacy of jail deaths and cooperation with ICE?
Raven Rakia Aug 10, 2018
Ohio Council Member Wants to Implant Microchips in People Awaiting Trial
Taking electronic monitoring to the next level.
Kira Lerner Aug 07, 2018
Will Governor Cuomo Give Roy Bolus a Second Chance?
Bolus is one of thousands of New Yorkers sentenced to life in prison who are waiting for the governor to keep his clemency promise.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Aug 06, 2018
Philadelphia Courts are Running a Financial Scheme That Profits Off The Poor
And padding city and state coffers with millions of dollars.
Maura Ewing Aug 03, 2018
How Activists Convinced New York City To Stop Profiting Off Prisoners’ Phone Calls
News of the victory is spreading rapidly to other cities.
Bryce Covert Jul 26, 2018
Expert: Crime registries turn people into pariahs with ‘very little to lose’
New types of registries are being created around the country, despite research showing they don’t work.
Jessica Pishko Jul 20, 2018
Pretrial Detainees Are Being Billed For Their Stay in Jail
In jurisdictions across the country, people incarcerated before they've ever been convicted of a crime are charged a daily fee just for sitting in jail—and several courts have ruled that the practice is legal.
Immigrants Share Horror Stories From Inside Massachusetts’s ‘Worst’ Jail
“Jail is not a country club,” the Bristol County sheriff said. “That’s why once you’ve done time in the Bristol County House of Corrections, you won’t want to come back.”
Eoin Higgins Jul 17, 2018
What Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court Would Mean for Criminal Justice
Trump’s pick to replace Justice Kennedy would most likely undermine the rights of criminal defendants and stall progress on solitary confinement, prisoners’ rights, and the death penalty.
Kyle C. Barry Jul 13, 2018
Trump’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ Immigration Policy Has an Antidote
New bail funds aren’t just getting immigrants out of detention—they’re helping them stay in the country permanently.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Jul 10, 2018
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 Jul 09, 2018
The Only Winners In California’s Fines and Fees System Are Private Debt Collectors
San Francisco just became the first city in the nation to stop charging court fines and fees, but the rest of the state has a long way to go.
Teresa Mathew Jul 02, 2018
Mayors Who Care About Child Separation Should Look in Their Own Backyards
Families are torn apart by the criminal justice system every day.
Josie Duffy Rice Jun 28, 2018
ICE Limits Access To Lawyers For NYC Immigrants In Detention, Citing Protests
Advocates decry court's shift to using teleconferencing for hearings.
Emma Whitford Jun 27, 2018
Thousands of ‘Lawyer Moms’ Will Swarm Congress To Fight For Migrant Children
'We have a reaction as mothers to what’s been going on.'
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
Exclusive: Immigrant Detainees In an Oregon Federal Prison Are Being Held In General Population Units
As a consequence, authorities are keeping them in cells for 22 to 23 hours a day, according to Oregon’s federal public defender.
Locked up for three decades without a trial
A New York City man has been shuffled between Rikers Island and mental hospitals for 32 years.
Cuomo the Merciless
New York's Democratic governor has granted only a trickle of commutations, fewer than many of his Democratic and Republican predecessors.
Victoria Law Jun 20, 2018
‘You Never Want to go to the Workhouse’
Activists launch a new campaign to close an infamous St. Louis jail.
Sylvia A. Harvey Jun 18, 2018
Alice Marie Johnson is free. Now it’s time to free thousands more prisoners with unjustly long sentences.
Kim Kardashian's successful campaign to free a 63-year-old grandmother serving a life sentence in a drug case is a reminder that we need to go big on clemency. A 52-year-old grandfather named Euka Wadlington, also doing life in a drug case, would be a great place to start.
Shaun King Jun 15, 2018
Illinois Prisoners Speak Out—and Then Lose a Cherished Debate Program
Debate coach Katrina Burlet says she was banned from state’s prisons after prisoners in her program argued for parole.
Michael Sainato Jun 11, 2018
Santa Clara County Public Defender Explains What Judge Persky’s Recall Means For His Clients
The judge who sentenced Brock Turner brought much-needed compassion to the bench, says public defender Sajid Khan.
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 Jun 08, 2018
‘I didn’t lay down’: How a California man convicted of murder may have saved his own life
Death penalty mitigation offers juries a chance to see defendants in a different light.
Maura Ewing Jun 06, 2018
We’ve been fighting the drug war for 50 years. So why aren’t we winning?
A new paper argues that President Johnson’s 1967 Commission on Law Enforcement’s report on the subject was “decades ahead of its time.”
Zachary A. Siegel Jun 04, 2018
How the Push to Close Rikers Went From No Jails To New Jails
Activists say a once-radical campaign has been co-opted.
This Deep Red State Just Ended Cash Bail
Alaska’s new comprehensive criminal justice reform law will reduce the prison population by 13% and save taxpayers $380 million.
Bryce Covert Jan 10, 2018
Jail Policies Restrict Legal Representation in North Carolina
Public defenders in Charlotte say restrictions on communication hinder their ability to help jailed clients.
Jessica Brand Dec 14, 2017
Cyntoia Brown Case Reveals Entrenched Problems with Tennessee Juvenile Justice
State law makes it easier to throw Brown away than consider traumas youth face and offer them hope of rehabilitation.
Demetria D. Frank Dec 01, 2017
Ditching the Bondsman is Only Part of the Battle for Bail Reform
The five states that have done away with commercial bond outlets still struggle with inequity when it comes to cash bail.
Rebecca McCray Nov 22, 2017
Louisiana Man Ordered Released From Jail After Waiting Almost Eight Years For Trial
Case called an “embarrassment to criminal justice system.”
Finding a Place for Restorative Justice
A new project chronicles the myriad alternative visions of justice taking place in the U.S. and Canada.
Rebecca McCray Nov 17, 2017
Cryptocurrency is the Next Frontier in the Quest to Abolish Cash Bail
A new app seeks to liberate people from more than “liberal malaise.”
Rebecca McCray Nov 15, 2017
New Jersey Governor-Elect Promising Bold Criminal Justice Reform Agenda
Phil Murphy has promised marijuana legalization, end of cash bail and will look at ending minimum mandatory sentences
Larry Hannan Nov 09, 2017
Pennsylvania Case Challenges ‘Death by Incarceration’ for 18-year-olds
Recent Supreme Court rulings have led to a review of life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed at age 17 and younger, but attorneys for Avis Lee say there’s no reason to stop there.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Nov 12, 2018
Communicating While Queer Is Being Punished in Prison
A lawsuit accuses Illinois of cutting off LGBTQ prisoners’ lifeline to supporters.
Raven Rakia Nov 08, 2018
Your Essential Criminal Justice Guide to Election Night
From sheriffs to bail to marijuana, and more—here’s what you need to know.
Daniel Nichanian Nov 05, 2018
For The First Time, A Chicago Judge Could Lose His Seat For Being Too ‘Tough on Crime’
No Cook County judge has lost a retention election in 28 years.
Solitary Confinement, Jail Deaths Rock Race For Sheriff in California
In Santa Clara County, incarcerated people, and a former undersheriff challenging six-term sheriff Laurie Smith, have turned conditions of confinement into a potent electoral issue.
Victoria Law Oct 29, 2018
Mother’s Lawsuit Says Oklahoma Prison Failed to Prevent Her Daughter’s Death
New development in a high-profile case comes as advocates question the state’s prison conditions and sentencing practices.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Oct 17, 2018
At Angola Prison, ‘People Are Suffering. People Are Dying’
Trial begins in class action suit alleging medical neglect by Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Jessica Pishko Oct 12, 2018
Cash Bail Yields A New Casualty
A Texas jail suicide involving a woman who couldn’t make bail in a shoplifting case highlights of the plight of pretrial detainees with mental illness.
Prisons Crack Down On An Opioid Treatment Drug, Endangering Lives
Few of the prisons trying to stem flow of contraband Suboxone offer substantial opioid treatment programs.
Raven Rakia Oct 11, 2018
Common Bails Out a Stranger
What it’s like to take part in New York City’s Mass Bailout.
Sarah Lustbader Oct 10, 2018
Will Alabama Sheriffs Finally Stop Diverting Jail Food Funds To Their Own Wallets?
The governor is making sheriffs sign an oath promising they won't misuse funds meant to feed jail prisoners. But some sheriffs are already pushing back.
One Year After Cook County’s Bail Reform, Court Watchers Say Things Are Getting Worse
Judges are still setting bail at unaffordable levels, and more people are being held without bond.
Bryce Covert Oct 05, 2018
NYC Prosecutors Are Stoking Fear About the Mass Bailout, But Their Arguments Don’t Add Up
District attorneys’ comments belie the true purpose of bail in New York and ignore the safety risks of jail itself.
John Pfaff Oct 02, 2018
‘Worse Than Guantánamo’
Dozens of former detainees at the Gwinnett County jail in Georgia claim they were subjected to brutality at the hands of its Rapid Response Team.
Kira Lerner Oct 01, 2018
House of Cards
‘Cold case’ playing cards were just introduced into Delaware prisons in hopes of producing tips on unsolved homicides—but critics warn that informants cultivated behind bars can be dangerously unreliable.
Lauren Gill Sep 27, 2018
‘Will I Get Out Today?’
Louisiana is keeping people behind bars long after their sentences have expired, attorneys say.
Victoria Law Sep 26, 2018
Activists Brace For Further Retaliation In The Wake Of The National Prison Strike
As media attention wanes, “this is the most dangerous period with any prisoner action,” one organizer said.
Bryce Covert Sep 25, 2018
Pennsylvania Prisons Hired A Private Company To Intercept And Store Prisoners’ Mail
The company is being paid $4 million a year to open and scan prisoners’ mail into a searchable database.
Raven Rakia Sep 24, 2018
The Incalculable Costs of Mass Incarceration
Prisons carry enormous, perhaps impossible to measure social costs—but when assessing the system fiscally, reformers should focus on staffing salaries instead of the number of incarcerated people.
John Pfaff Sep 20, 2018
Curtis Brooks Didn’t Kill Anyone. So Why Is He Labeled A Murderer For Life?
A man sentenced to die in prison is inciting debate over ‘felony murder’ rules in Colorado.
Katie Rose Quandt Sep 18, 2018
‘Safer to Leave Them There’
How the politics of storm preparation reveal whose lives matter, and who gets left behind.
Kate Aronoff Sep 14, 2018
In New York, Most Parolees Can Now Vote—But Many County Websites Say They Can’t
As Thursday's election approaches, confusion reigns.
Emma Whitford Sep 12, 2018
Deported Before His Case Was Closed
Immigrants are being deported while their cases are still pending, immigration attorneys say.
Zack Peterson Sep 11, 2018
Man Sentenced As ‘Career Criminal’ Gets His First Chance At Freedom In 48 Years
Despite a 2015 Supreme Court ruling limiting the mandatory minimum law, few people are seeing relief.
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 Sep 06, 2018
‘Just Let Him Kick’
Lawsuits allege that a private Tennessee prison neglected diabetic prisoners, contributing to at least one death.
‘There’s An All-out Manhunt’: A Strike Organizer Speaks From Prison
An imprisoned organizer with Jailhouse Lawyers Speak said prison officials are trying to identify those leading the strike.
Raven Rakia Sep 05, 2018
As National Prison Strike Continues, Incarcerated People Face Retaliation
Now in its second week, a strike staged by prisoners over poor conditions, low wages, and other issues is resulting in consequences, including harsh conduct reports and placements in solitary confinement.
Raven Rakia Aug 31, 2018
‘We thought it was important to knock down doors’
Lewis Conway Jr., a formerly incarcerated activist running for Austin City Council, sits down with The Appeal.
Sylvia A. Harvey Aug 30, 2018
Here Are the Criminal Justice Issues Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon Should Debate
From policing to parole, this election could be pivotal for reform.
Emma Whitford Aug 28, 2018
A Troubled Federal Prison Unit Gets New Life In A Different State
Instead of changing its conditions and practices, The Bureau of Prisons is simply moving a problem-plagued federal prison unit in Pennsylvania to Illinois.
Victoria Law Aug 21, 2018
Why Prisoners are Striking Today
Prisoners are striking to end death by incarceration, prison slavery and poor living conditions.
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 Aug 20, 2018
The Appeal Podcast Episode 12: When Electronic Cages Replace Steel and Cement
With journalist Kira Lerner.
Adam H. Johnson Aug 16, 2018
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 Aug 15, 2018
Caretaker Faces Deportation Over Dubious ‘Shaken Baby’ Conviction
After being released from prison, her only chance is a pardon from the governor.
Jessica Pishko Aug 14, 2018
‘They treated me like a dog’: An Immigrant Was Forced to Clean the Truck of the Border Agent Who Arrested Him
Under ‘Operation Streamline,’ Border Patrol has become responsible for the housing and transporting of immigrants.
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 Aug 13, 2018
Milwaukee Candidates Clash In Race to Succeed The Infamous Sheriff Clarke
Several candidates are vying to become Milwaukee Sheriff in the wake of Sheriff David Clarke's resignation last fall. But will they truly spurn his legacy of jail deaths and cooperation with ICE?
Raven Rakia Aug 10, 2018
Ohio Council Member Wants to Implant Microchips in People Awaiting Trial
Taking electronic monitoring to the next level.
Kira Lerner Aug 07, 2018
Will Governor Cuomo Give Roy Bolus a Second Chance?
Bolus is one of thousands of New Yorkers sentenced to life in prison who are waiting for the governor to keep his clemency promise.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Aug 06, 2018
Philadelphia Courts are Running a Financial Scheme That Profits Off The Poor
And padding city and state coffers with millions of dollars.
Maura Ewing Aug 03, 2018
How Activists Convinced New York City To Stop Profiting Off Prisoners’ Phone Calls
News of the victory is spreading rapidly to other cities.
Bryce Covert Jul 26, 2018
Expert: Crime registries turn people into pariahs with ‘very little to lose’
New types of registries are being created around the country, despite research showing they don’t work.
Jessica Pishko Jul 20, 2018
Pretrial Detainees Are Being Billed For Their Stay in Jail
In jurisdictions across the country, people incarcerated before they've ever been convicted of a crime are charged a daily fee just for sitting in jail—and several courts have ruled that the practice is legal.
Immigrants Share Horror Stories From Inside Massachusetts’s ‘Worst’ Jail
“Jail is not a country club,” the Bristol County sheriff said. “That’s why once you’ve done time in the Bristol County House of Corrections, you won’t want to come back.”
Eoin Higgins Jul 17, 2018
What Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court Would Mean for Criminal Justice
Trump’s pick to replace Justice Kennedy would most likely undermine the rights of criminal defendants and stall progress on solitary confinement, prisoners’ rights, and the death penalty.
Kyle C. Barry Jul 13, 2018
Trump’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ Immigration Policy Has an Antidote
New bail funds aren’t just getting immigrants out of detention—they’re helping them stay in the country permanently.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Jul 10, 2018
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 Jul 09, 2018
The Only Winners In California’s Fines and Fees System Are Private Debt Collectors
San Francisco just became the first city in the nation to stop charging court fines and fees, but the rest of the state has a long way to go.
Teresa Mathew Jul 02, 2018
Mayors Who Care About Child Separation Should Look in Their Own Backyards
Families are torn apart by the criminal justice system every day.
Josie Duffy Rice Jun 28, 2018
ICE Limits Access To Lawyers For NYC Immigrants In Detention, Citing Protests
Advocates decry court's shift to using teleconferencing for hearings.
Emma Whitford Jun 27, 2018
Thousands of ‘Lawyer Moms’ Will Swarm Congress To Fight For Migrant Children
'We have a reaction as mothers to what’s been going on.'
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
Exclusive: Immigrant Detainees In an Oregon Federal Prison Are Being Held In General Population Units
As a consequence, authorities are keeping them in cells for 22 to 23 hours a day, according to Oregon’s federal public defender.
Locked up for three decades without a trial
A New York City man has been shuffled between Rikers Island and mental hospitals for 32 years.
Cuomo the Merciless
New York's Democratic governor has granted only a trickle of commutations, fewer than many of his Democratic and Republican predecessors.
Victoria Law Jun 20, 2018
‘You Never Want to go to the Workhouse’
Activists launch a new campaign to close an infamous St. Louis jail.
Sylvia A. Harvey Jun 18, 2018
Alice Marie Johnson is free. Now it’s time to free thousands more prisoners with unjustly long sentences.
Kim Kardashian's successful campaign to free a 63-year-old grandmother serving a life sentence in a drug case is a reminder that we need to go big on clemency. A 52-year-old grandfather named Euka Wadlington, also doing life in a drug case, would be a great place to start.
Shaun King Jun 15, 2018
Illinois Prisoners Speak Out—and Then Lose a Cherished Debate Program
Debate coach Katrina Burlet says she was banned from state’s prisons after prisoners in her program argued for parole.
Michael Sainato Jun 11, 2018
Santa Clara County Public Defender Explains What Judge Persky’s Recall Means For His Clients
The judge who sentenced Brock Turner brought much-needed compassion to the bench, says public defender Sajid Khan.
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 Jun 08, 2018
‘I didn’t lay down’: How a California man convicted of murder may have saved his own life
Death penalty mitigation offers juries a chance to see defendants in a different light.
Maura Ewing Jun 06, 2018
We’ve been fighting the drug war for 50 years. So why aren’t we winning?
A new paper argues that President Johnson’s 1967 Commission on Law Enforcement’s report on the subject was “decades ahead of its time.”
Zachary A. Siegel Jun 04, 2018
How the Push to Close Rikers Went From No Jails To New Jails
Activists say a once-radical campaign has been co-opted.
This Deep Red State Just Ended Cash Bail
Alaska’s new comprehensive criminal justice reform law will reduce the prison population by 13% and save taxpayers $380 million.
Bryce Covert Jan 10, 2018
Jail Policies Restrict Legal Representation in North Carolina
Public defenders in Charlotte say restrictions on communication hinder their ability to help jailed clients.
Jessica Brand Dec 14, 2017
Cyntoia Brown Case Reveals Entrenched Problems with Tennessee Juvenile Justice
State law makes it easier to throw Brown away than consider traumas youth face and offer them hope of rehabilitation.
Demetria D. Frank Dec 01, 2017
Ditching the Bondsman is Only Part of the Battle for Bail Reform
The five states that have done away with commercial bond outlets still struggle with inequity when it comes to cash bail.
Rebecca McCray Nov 22, 2017
Louisiana Man Ordered Released From Jail After Waiting Almost Eight Years For Trial
Case called an “embarrassment to criminal justice system.”
Finding a Place for Restorative Justice
A new project chronicles the myriad alternative visions of justice taking place in the U.S. and Canada.
Rebecca McCray Nov 17, 2017
Cryptocurrency is the Next Frontier in the Quest to Abolish Cash Bail
A new app seeks to liberate people from more than “liberal malaise.”
Rebecca McCray Nov 15, 2017
New Jersey Governor-Elect Promising Bold Criminal Justice Reform Agenda
Phil Murphy has promised marijuana legalization, end of cash bail and will look at ending minimum mandatory sentences
Larry Hannan Nov 09, 2017
Pennsylvania Case Challenges ‘Death by Incarceration’ for 18-year-olds
Recent Supreme Court rulings have led to a review of life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed at age 17 and younger, but attorneys for Avis Lee say there’s no reason to stop there.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Nov 12, 2018
Communicating While Queer Is Being Punished in Prison
A lawsuit accuses Illinois of cutting off LGBTQ prisoners’ lifeline to supporters.
Raven Rakia Nov 08, 2018
Your Essential Criminal Justice Guide to Election Night
From sheriffs to bail to marijuana, and more—here’s what you need to know.
Daniel Nichanian Nov 05, 2018
For The First Time, A Chicago Judge Could Lose His Seat For Being Too ‘Tough on Crime’
No Cook County judge has lost a retention election in 28 years.
Solitary Confinement, Jail Deaths Rock Race For Sheriff in California
In Santa Clara County, incarcerated people, and a former undersheriff challenging six-term sheriff Laurie Smith, have turned conditions of confinement into a potent electoral issue.
Victoria Law Oct 29, 2018
Mother’s Lawsuit Says Oklahoma Prison Failed to Prevent Her Daughter’s Death
New development in a high-profile case comes as advocates question the state’s prison conditions and sentencing practices.
Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg Oct 17, 2018
At Angola Prison, ‘People Are Suffering. People Are Dying’
Trial begins in class action suit alleging medical neglect by Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Jessica Pishko Oct 12, 2018
Cash Bail Yields A New Casualty
A Texas jail suicide involving a woman who couldn’t make bail in a shoplifting case highlights of the plight of pretrial detainees with mental illness.
Prisons Crack Down On An Opioid Treatment Drug, Endangering Lives
Few of the prisons trying to stem flow of contraband Suboxone offer substantial opioid treatment programs.
Raven Rakia Oct 11, 2018
Common Bails Out a Stranger
What it’s like to take part in New York City’s Mass Bailout.
Sarah Lustbader Oct 10, 2018
Will Alabama Sheriffs Finally Stop Diverting Jail Food Funds To Their Own Wallets?
The governor is making sheriffs sign an oath promising they won't misuse funds meant to feed jail prisoners. But some sheriffs are already pushing back.
One Year After Cook County’s Bail Reform, Court Watchers Say Things Are Getting Worse
Judges are still setting bail at unaffordable levels, and more people are being held without bond.
Bryce Covert Oct 05, 2018
NYC Prosecutors Are Stoking Fear About the Mass Bailout, But Their Arguments Don’t Add Up
District attorneys’ comments belie the true purpose of bail in New York and ignore the safety risks of jail itself.
John Pfaff Oct 02, 2018
‘Worse Than Guantánamo’
Dozens of former detainees at the Gwinnett County jail in Georgia claim they were subjected to brutality at the hands of its Rapid Response Team.
Kira Lerner Oct 01, 2018
House of Cards
‘Cold case’ playing cards were just introduced into Delaware prisons in hopes of producing tips on unsolved homicides—but critics warn that informants cultivated behind bars can be dangerously unreliable.
Lauren Gill Sep 27, 2018
‘Will I Get Out Today?’
Louisiana is keeping people behind bars long after their sentences have expired, attorneys say.
Victoria Law Sep 26, 2018
Activists Brace For Further Retaliation In The Wake Of The National Prison Strike
As media attention wanes, “this is the most dangerous period with any prisoner action,” one organizer said.
Bryce Covert Sep 25, 2018
Pennsylvania Prisons Hired A Private Company To Intercept And Store Prisoners’ Mail
The company is being paid $4 million a year to open and scan prisoners’ mail into a searchable database.
Raven Rakia Sep 24, 2018
The Incalculable Costs of Mass Incarceration
Prisons carry enormous, perhaps impossible to measure social costs—but when assessing the system fiscally, reformers should focus on staffing salaries instead of the number of incarcerated people.
John Pfaff Sep 20, 2018
Curtis Brooks Didn’t Kill Anyone. So Why Is He Labeled A Murderer For Life?
A man sentenced to die in prison is inciting debate over ‘felony murder’ rules in Colorado.
Katie Rose Quandt Sep 18, 2018
‘Safer to Leave Them There’
How the politics of storm preparation reveal whose lives matter, and who gets left behind.
Kate Aronoff Sep 14, 2018
In New York, Most Parolees Can Now Vote—But Many County Websites Say They Can’t
As Thursday's election approaches, confusion reigns.
Emma Whitford Sep 12, 2018
Deported Before His Case Was Closed
Immigrants are being deported while their cases are still pending, immigration attorneys say.
Zack Peterson Sep 11, 2018
Man Sentenced As ‘Career Criminal’ Gets His First Chance At Freedom In 48 Years
Despite a 2015 Supreme Court ruling limiting the mandatory minimum law, few people are seeing relief.
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 Sep 06, 2018
‘Just Let Him Kick’
Lawsuits allege that a private Tennessee prison neglected diabetic prisoners, contributing to at least one death.
‘There’s An All-out Manhunt’: A Strike Organizer Speaks From Prison
An imprisoned organizer with Jailhouse Lawyers Speak said prison officials are trying to identify those leading the strike.
Raven Rakia Sep 05, 2018
As National Prison Strike Continues, Incarcerated People Face Retaliation
Now in its second week, a strike staged by prisoners over poor conditions, low wages, and other issues is resulting in consequences, including harsh conduct reports and placements in solitary confinement.
Raven Rakia Aug 31, 2018
‘We thought it was important to knock down doors’
Lewis Conway Jr., a formerly incarcerated activist running for Austin City Council, sits down with The Appeal.
Sylvia A. Harvey Aug 30, 2018
Here Are the Criminal Justice Issues Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon Should Debate
From policing to parole, this election could be pivotal for reform.
Emma Whitford Aug 28, 2018
A Troubled Federal Prison Unit Gets New Life In A Different State
Instead of changing its conditions and practices, The Bureau of Prisons is simply moving a problem-plagued federal prison unit in Pennsylvania to Illinois.
Victoria Law Aug 21, 2018
Why Prisoners are Striking Today
Prisoners are striking to end death by incarceration, prison slavery and poor living conditions.
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 Aug 20, 2018
The Appeal Podcast Episode 12: When Electronic Cages Replace Steel and Cement
With journalist Kira Lerner.
Adam H. Johnson Aug 16, 2018
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 Aug 15, 2018
Caretaker Faces Deportation Over Dubious ‘Shaken Baby’ Conviction
After being released from prison, her only chance is a pardon from the governor.
Jessica Pishko Aug 14, 2018
‘They treated me like a dog’: An Immigrant Was Forced to Clean the Truck of the Border Agent Who Arrested Him
Under ‘Operation Streamline,’ Border Patrol has become responsible for the housing and transporting of immigrants.
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 Aug 13, 2018
Milwaukee Candidates Clash In Race to Succeed The Infamous Sheriff Clarke
Several candidates are vying to become Milwaukee Sheriff in the wake of Sheriff David Clarke's resignation last fall. But will they truly spurn his legacy of jail deaths and cooperation with ICE?
Raven Rakia Aug 10, 2018
Ohio Council Member Wants to Implant Microchips in People Awaiting Trial
Taking electronic monitoring to the next level.
Kira Lerner Aug 07, 2018
Will Governor Cuomo Give Roy Bolus a Second Chance?
Bolus is one of thousands of New Yorkers sentenced to life in prison who are waiting for the governor to keep his clemency promise.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Aug 06, 2018
Philadelphia Courts are Running a Financial Scheme That Profits Off The Poor
And padding city and state coffers with millions of dollars.
Maura Ewing Aug 03, 2018
How Activists Convinced New York City To Stop Profiting Off Prisoners’ Phone Calls
News of the victory is spreading rapidly to other cities.
Bryce Covert Jul 26, 2018
Expert: Crime registries turn people into pariahs with ‘very little to lose’
New types of registries are being created around the country, despite research showing they don’t work.
Jessica Pishko Jul 20, 2018
Pretrial Detainees Are Being Billed For Their Stay in Jail
In jurisdictions across the country, people incarcerated before they've ever been convicted of a crime are charged a daily fee just for sitting in jail—and several courts have ruled that the practice is legal.
Immigrants Share Horror Stories From Inside Massachusetts’s ‘Worst’ Jail
“Jail is not a country club,” the Bristol County sheriff said. “That’s why once you’ve done time in the Bristol County House of Corrections, you won’t want to come back.”
Eoin Higgins Jul 17, 2018
What Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court Would Mean for Criminal Justice
Trump’s pick to replace Justice Kennedy would most likely undermine the rights of criminal defendants and stall progress on solitary confinement, prisoners’ rights, and the death penalty.
Kyle C. Barry Jul 13, 2018
Trump’s ‘Zero Tolerance’ Immigration Policy Has an Antidote
New bail funds aren’t just getting immigrants out of detention—they’re helping them stay in the country permanently.
Max Rivlin-Nadler Jul 10, 2018
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 Jul 09, 2018
The Only Winners In California’s Fines and Fees System Are Private Debt Collectors
San Francisco just became the first city in the nation to stop charging court fines and fees, but the rest of the state has a long way to go.
Teresa Mathew Jul 02, 2018
Mayors Who Care About Child Separation Should Look in Their Own Backyards
Families are torn apart by the criminal justice system every day.
Josie Duffy Rice Jun 28, 2018
ICE Limits Access To Lawyers For NYC Immigrants In Detention, Citing Protests
Advocates decry court's shift to using teleconferencing for hearings.
Emma Whitford Jun 27, 2018
Thousands of ‘Lawyer Moms’ Will Swarm Congress To Fight For Migrant Children
'We have a reaction as mothers to what’s been going on.'
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
Exclusive: Immigrant Detainees In an Oregon Federal Prison Are Being Held In General Population Units
As a consequence, authorities are keeping them in cells for 22 to 23 hours a day, according to Oregon’s federal public defender.
Locked up for three decades without a trial
A New York City man has been shuffled between Rikers Island and mental hospitals for 32 years.
Cuomo the Merciless
New York's Democratic governor has granted only a trickle of commutations, fewer than many of his Democratic and Republican predecessors.
Victoria Law Jun 20, 2018
‘You Never Want to go to the Workhouse’
Activists launch a new campaign to close an infamous St. Louis jail.
Sylvia A. Harvey Jun 18, 2018
Alice Marie Johnson is free. Now it’s time to free thousands more prisoners with unjustly long sentences.
Kim Kardashian's successful campaign to free a 63-year-old grandmother serving a life sentence in a drug case is a reminder that we need to go big on clemency. A 52-year-old grandfather named Euka Wadlington, also doing life in a drug case, would be a great place to start.
Shaun King Jun 15, 2018
Illinois Prisoners Speak Out—and Then Lose a Cherished Debate Program
Debate coach Katrina Burlet says she was banned from state’s prisons after prisoners in her program argued for parole.
Michael Sainato Jun 11, 2018
Santa Clara County Public Defender Explains What Judge Persky’s Recall Means For His Clients
The judge who sentenced Brock Turner brought much-needed compassion to the bench, says public defender Sajid Khan.
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 Jun 08, 2018
‘I didn’t lay down’: How a California man convicted of murder may have saved his own life
Death penalty mitigation offers juries a chance to see defendants in a different light.
Maura Ewing Jun 06, 2018
We’ve been fighting the drug war for 50 years. So why aren’t we winning?
A new paper argues that President Johnson’s 1967 Commission on Law Enforcement’s report on the subject was “decades ahead of its time.”
Zachary A. Siegel Jun 04, 2018
How the Push to Close Rikers Went From No Jails To New Jails
Activists say a once-radical campaign has been co-opted.
This Deep Red State Just Ended Cash Bail
Alaska’s new comprehensive criminal justice reform law will reduce the prison population by 13% and save taxpayers $380 million.
Bryce Covert Jan 10, 2018
Jail Policies Restrict Legal Representation in North Carolina
Public defenders in Charlotte say restrictions on communication hinder their ability to help jailed clients.
Jessica Brand Dec 14, 2017
Cyntoia Brown Case Reveals Entrenched Problems with Tennessee Juvenile Justice
State law makes it easier to throw Brown away than consider traumas youth face and offer them hope of rehabilitation.
Demetria D. Frank Dec 01, 2017
Ditching the Bondsman is Only Part of the Battle for Bail Reform
The five states that have done away with commercial bond outlets still struggle with inequity when it comes to cash bail.
Rebecca McCray Nov 22, 2017
Louisiana Man Ordered Released From Jail After Waiting Almost Eight Years For Trial
Case called an “embarrassment to criminal justice system.”
Finding a Place for Restorative Justice
A new project chronicles the myriad alternative visions of justice taking place in the U.S. and Canada.
Rebecca McCray Nov 17, 2017
Cryptocurrency is the Next Frontier in the Quest to Abolish Cash Bail
A new app seeks to liberate people from more than “liberal malaise.”
Rebecca McCray Nov 15, 2017
New Jersey Governor-Elect Promising Bold Criminal Justice Reform Agenda
Phil Murphy has promised marijuana legalization, end of cash bail and will look at ending minimum mandatory sentences
Larry Hannan Nov 09, 2017