Rikers Island Offers a Glimpse of America's Hellhole Prisons
Formal sentences cover for informal penalties including crowding, poor sanitation, beatings, and rape.
Federal Prisons
The Pandemic Showed Home Detention Works
In the right circumstances, home detention is cheaper and more effective than prison.
He Didn't Answer the Phone One Night While on House Arrest. He's Been Sent Back to Prison for Four Years.
Such punitive measures do not make society any safer.
Judge Frees 76-Year-Old Woman Sent Back to Federal Prison After Missing a Phone Call from Officials
Controversy highlights punishing responses to mundane mistakes during post-release monitoring of felons.
Pressure Grows on Biden To Rescind Memo That Would Send Thousands Released on Home Confinement Back to Federal Prison
More than 4,000 people released on home confinement could be sent back to federal prison after the pandemic. Senators and advocacy groups say it's cruel and unnecessary.
Biden Orders Justice Department To Phase Out Use of Private Prisons
Biden reportedly will also reinstate restriction on transfers of surplus military gear to police.
Not Even COVID-19 Infections Among Prison Staff Can Convince the Feds To Halt Executions
Five who tested positive recently will participate in this week’s planned executions of Brandon Bernard and Alfred Bourgeois.
An Inmate Firefighter Might Be Deported After California Handed Him Over to ICE
Bounchan Keola was injured while fighting the deadly Zogg Fire. California rewarded him with a possible deportation.
Federal Prosecutors Argue COVID-19 Is Just 'One More Way to Perish in Prison'
Atilano Dominguez was serving a life sentence for marijuana offenses, and federal prosecutors tried to ensure he died behind bars.
A New Bill Would Stop the Feds From Tossing Drug Defendants in Prison Before They're Convicted
A proposed bipartisan change in pretrial detention rules could free thousands annually.
These Women Received a Death Sentence for Being Sick In Prison
A Reason investigation has identified three deaths from alleged medical neglect at FCI Aliceville, a federal women's prison. Current and former inmates say it's routine, but the Bureau of Prisons won't talk about it.
Justice Department Asks Supreme Court To Block Judge's Order To Release Inmates at Ohio Federal Prison
A federal judge ordered officials at Elkton to stop "thumbing their nose" at their own authority to release inmates at risk of coronavirus.
Judge Rules in Favor of Federal Inmates in Coronavirus Suit, Orders Speedier Releases
A Connecticut federal prison's failures to grant early release to eligible inmates "amount to deliberate indifference" under the Eighth Amendment, the judge says.
Celebrity Criminals Are Leaving Prison Early Because of COVID-19. What About the Drug Offenders?
If officials want to ease the burden of the pandemic behind bars, there are hundreds of thousands of inmates who can help them do it.
The First Federal Female Inmate To Die of COVID-19
Andrea Circle Bear was serving a 2-year sentence for a nonviolent drug crime.
Prosecutors Fight Early Release for Whistleblower Reality Winner
Fears of contracting COVID-19 in prison are not enough, Justice Department says
Bureau of Prisons Reverses Coronavirus Home Confinement Policy
"What they are doing to people is cruel and unusual. It isn't right."
Attorney General Expands Home Confinement for Some Federal Inmates Facing Coronavirus Threat
William Barr: "We want to make sure our institutions don't become petri dishes."
The Feds Are Opposing Efforts To Release Maryland Inmates Into Home Confinement Because of Coronavirus
A Maryland defense attorney says the Bureau of Prisons is ignoring a judge's order to release his client into home confinement because of coronavirus concerns.
Advocates and Lawmakers Urge Trump Administration to Release Elderly Inmates Vulnerable to Coronavirus
"They were not sentenced to death, and they should be released immediately."
Chelsea Manning Freed Again, but Her Refusal to Testify Comes With a $256,000 Price Tag
She was imprisoned for a year as she resisted a grand jury's investigation of WikiLeaks.
Lawsuit Alleges 'Rampant' Sexual Abuse at Federal Prison
Those who reported sexual abuse were sent to a county jail, the suit alleges.
Trump Might Not Support Criminal Justice Reforms Anymore. That Doesn't Erase His Past Success.
We probably won’t see a follow up to the FIRST STEP Act. But it’s still been a boon to federal prisoners.
Justice Department Shakes Up Bureau of Prisons Leadership Following Jeffrey Epstein's Death
Criminal justice reformers say the federal prison system is in desperate need of more oversight.
Jeffrey Epstein Is Dead Because His Jailers Neglected Him. He's Not the Only One.
The most unusual thing about Jeffrey Epstein dying in a federal jail was how quickly the Justice Department sprang into action to investigate it.
Trump Mulls Commutation for Disgraced Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich
While the president's mercy might be self-serving, it's not necessarily wrong.
Attorney General Barr Orders the Federal Government To Start Executing Prisoners Again
After two decades of mercy, the Justice Department announces five men on federal death row will face lethal injections this winter.
Cory Booker's 'Second Look' Reforms Would Create More Chances To Reduce Federal Prison Sentences
Judges would be permitted to rethink sentences after 10 years have been served, particularly for inmates over the age of 50.
Thousands Freed from Federal Prison by FIRST STEP Act Reforms
Many benefit from an increase in "good time" credits and from retroactive reductions in crack cocaine mandatory minimum sentences.
Congressman Asked Bureau of Prisons Three Times About Nonviolent Offender Who Later Died in Maximum Security Lockup
A congressman forwarded messages to the Bureau of Prisons from Rick Turner's family begging for his relocation. Two were ignored.
Cory Booker Proposes Thousands of Drug War Commutations If Elected President
Booker would move the process away from prosecutors and into the White House.
A Terminally Ill, Wheelchair-Bound Inmate Applied for Compassionate Release. The Justice Department Argued He Wasn't Dying Fast Enough To Qualify.
The FIRST STEP Act gives dying inmates the opportunity to appeal to a judge for compassionate release. This case shows why.
Paul Manafort Sentenced to Nearly Four Additional Years in Federal Prison Just as New York Files New Charges
Double jeopardy or a way of circumventing a potential Trump pardon? Or both?
Trump's Budget Shortchanges the Prison Reform Bill He Signed
The FIRST STEP Act called for $75 million for reentry programs. It's not listed in the White House's summary.
Van Jones Praises Conservatives on Criminal Justice Reform: 'You Are Stealing My Issue!'
Overall, CPAC attendees seem enthusiastic about criminal justice reform.
Federal Public Defenders Sue Over Terrible State of Brooklyn Detention Center
Inmates were left in the dark and frigid cold for a week, while families and lawyers were denied access.
Trump Endorses Criminal Justice Bill, Giving Momentum to Long-Delayed Reforms
"We're all better off when former inmates can reenter society as law-abiding, productive citizens."
Top National Police Organization Declares Support for Modest Federal Sentencing Reforms
What did it take? A promise not to make mandatory minimum reductions retroactive.
This Woman Was Shackled While Pregnant in Federal Prison. A New Bill Would Make Sure That Never Happens Again
Read the horrifying story of one woman who went through it.
Criminal Justice Reform in Congress Is On Hold, but Advocates Remain Hopeful
Trump and Republicans will wait until after midterm elections to try to pass a long-awaited prison reform bill.
This Man Was Released From Prison and Rebuilt His Life; Two Years Later He Got Sent Back Because of an 'Error'
Now writers, activists, and thousands of readers are calling on Trump to commute Matthew Charles' sentence.
Prison Reform Bill Passes The House; Is Prison Reform Dead?
The House passed a major, bipartisan prison reform bill backed by the White House, but it's being attacked from all sides.
Federal Prisons Scaling Back Accommodations for Transgender Inmates
New amendments to rules default to placing prisoners on the basis of their "biological sex."
Will Congress Pass This Absolute Unit of a Prison Reform Bill?
The FIRST STEP Act would result in the immediate release of about 4,000 federal inmates, advocates say.
White House Touts Prison Reforms But Throws Cold Water on Sentencing Bill
And throws a bipartisan sentencing reform bill under the bus.
Trump Wants to Arrest His Way Out of the Opioid Overdose Crisis
The president lacks subtlety or substance over a chronic public health problem-go figure.
DOJ Report Highlights Problem of Solitary Confinement of Mentally Ill. Is Privatization a Solution?
The comprehensive report from the Office of the Inspector General is unlikely to have much follow up.
