Criminal Justice
Arizona Bill to Crack Down on Rioters Could Be Used to Shut Down Protests
Adding rioting to racketeering laws could lead to arrests of peaceful organizers, opponents fear.
New Orleans Police Chief Says He Needs to Hire and Fire Commanders at Will to Protect Reforms
Says the commanders are responsible for many reforms already implemented.
Police, Criminal Justice, and the Millennial Vote
Emily Ekins on the Latest Polling Numbers
When Even Prosecutors Can't Be Informed About Corrupt Cops, We've Got a Problem
California's shielding of police misconduct affects criminal cases.
Book Aims to Roll Back Surveillance and Force Via More Democracy
Matt Welch reviews Barry Friedman's Unwarranted: Policing Without Permission in the Wall Street Journal
ACLU To File Civil Rights Lawsuit Against Milwaukee Over Stop-and-Frisk
A class-action federal civil rights lawsuit argues the Milwaukee Police Department's suspicionless stop-and-frisk practices are unconstitutional.
Cell Blocks Aren't Psych Wards
Even with the best of intentions, using jails to house the mentally ill is a bad policy.
Legislators Who Supported Criminal Justice Reform Now Sponsoring Tougher Heroin Bills
Heroin hysteria is in full swing this year.
Deported for Giving a Handjob?
For some unlucky women, wiping a cop's semen from their massage-table may be one of the last things they do in this country.
Houston D.A. Will No Longer Prosecute Pot Cases, Outraging Other Prosecutors
This is why we can't have nice things.
Talking Trump, Michael Flynn Resignation, and Civil-Asset Forfeiture: Nick Gillespie on Keith Larson
"You are on Twitter like all day."
Ashton Kutcher Claims He Helped Cops Save Way More Sex-Trafficking Victims Than Authorities Say They've Found
How can Kutcher's group have helped in dramatically more sex-trafficking investigations than were actually opened across America?
Watch NYPD Officer Use Taser on an Unarmed Pregnant 17-Year-Old
Even though she was surrounded by police officers who could have subdued her, the girl was tased for resisting arrest.
You're Not Really a 'Sanctuary City' If You Keep Sending the Police to Harass the Poor
Oppressive municipal codes expose immigrants to potential deportation methods.
Rand Paul, to Libertarians Critical of His Sessions Vote: 'I would suggest that maybe they spend some of their time on the other 99 less libertarian senators'
Libertarianish senator decries 'character assassination,' discusses his Obamacare replacement plan, and compares the anti-Trump left to the Tea Party
Law Enforcement Leaders Release Agenda Calling for Trump Administration to End 'Unnecessary Incarceration'
Current and former prosecutors and police chiefs say "today's crime policies...are simply ineffective in preserving public safety."
Protests Over Alleged Rape by French Police Turn Violent
An initial police investigation found the rape of a 22-year-old was 'accidental.'
Trump's Executive Orders on Crime are More of the Same, Just More Intense Rhetoric, Says Harvey Silverglate
Trump's orders are "draconian" but Obama gets too much credit for too little actual criminal justice reform, according to famed civil liberties attorney.
3 Reasons Trump Is Wrong to Oppose Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform
Civil asset forfeiture reform is an idea that's time has come, in Texas and elsewhere, whether Donald Trump is ready or not.
What Was Rand Paul Thinking in Voting for Jeff Sessions? That the A.G. Agrees With President Trump (Updated)
Senator and staff explain the puzzle of opposing Loretta Lynch, supporting Jeff Sessions, and threatening to filibuster Elliott Abrams
Ready for a Federal 'Blue Lives Matter' Law?
Trump releases executive orders calling for more federal action on crime-fighting, police protections.
Is Trump a 'Fascist, Loofa-Faced, Shit-Gibbon' for Opposing Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform? (New Reason Podcast)
"The police don't have to even charge you with a crime to seize your stuff."
Trump Does Not Know What Civil Forfeiture Is, but He Likes It
The president agrees there should be no restraint on a form of legalized theft he clearly does not understand.
The Sessions Debacle, the Travel Ban SNAFU, and Trump's Residency Between Your Ears: Matt Welch on Red Eye
Watch Fox News at 3 a.m. for some unkind words about Elizabeth Warren, the new attorney general, and people with cracked iPhones
Jeff Sessions, Fan of the Drug War and Asset Forfeiture, Confirmed as Attorney General
Sen. Rand Paul votes aye with rest of GOP.
The Fight for Criminal Justice Reform is Moving to the States
New initiatives by criminal justice groups will target state-level reform, where 86 percent of U.S. prisoners are held.
Get Acquitted on Gun Possession Charges. Get Sent To Prison for Over 3 Years Anyway.
That happened to Wisconsin man Damien Payne, because he was on parole.
Gov. Christie Helps N.J. Police Keep Property Seizure Info Secretive
Vetoes legislation requiring better reporting of how law enforcement gets its hands on people's stuff.
Your Government at Work: Trying to Prosecute Restaurateur for Tweeting Photo of Underage Kids Who Tried to Buy Beer [UPDATE: Acquittal!]
Why is government mad? The kids were sent by cops to entrap him into selling them the beer.
Trump Says U.S. Murder Rate at Highest Level in 45 Years. That's Not Even Close to Being True
Even with the murder rate ticking upwards over the past two years, we are still at a level that's less than half of the peak murder rate over the past 45 years.
Updated! Meet the Libertarian-Leaning GOP Texas State Senator[s] Whose Career[s] Donald Trump Wants To Destroy
Konni Burton is leading a coalition to reform civil-asset forfeiture abuses. So naturally the president is against her.
No Super Bowl Sex-Trafficking Hordes in Houston
Where were all the Super Bowl 2017 sex-traffickers? Living only in activist and law-enforcement imaginations, it seems.
The NYPD's Transparency Policies Make No Sense
Officer Richard Haste's departmental trial for the killing of teenager Ramarley Graham was open to the public, but records of the trial are not.
Killer Who Blamed Marijuana Pleads Guilty to Second-Degree Murder
A Denver man who shot his wife after eating cannabis candy agrees to a sentence of 25 to 30 years.
In Bowling Green 'Massacre,' FBI Agents Foiled an FBI Terror Plot
A 2011 "terrorist plot" in Kentucky is oft used to warn against Muslim refugees. But the only terrorists in this case were manufactured by the FBI.
Prof Screams at the NYPD Because They Didn't Beat Up 'Nazi' Gavin McInnes
'It's not up to these students to kick the ass of a neo-nazi! They don't have to raise their fist! They were taught to be peaceful! Fuck you!'
San Bernardino Deputy Threatens to 'Create' Charges Against Man Videotaping Him
"I'll create something. Do you understand? You'll go to jail," deputy tells citizen.
Here's That Time Jeff Sessions Wanted to Execute Drug Dealers
"I don't think that sounds like something I would normally say," says the guy who definitely said that.
Get Ready for the 'Office for Victims of Crimes Committed by Removable Aliens'
President Trump orders new government entities to keep track of everything from petty crimes to 'honor killings' committed by undocumented immigrants.
NYPD is Developing an Algorithm to Measure Police-Community Relations
'Sentiment meter' would help law enforcement understand where and how to improve cooperation with the public.
Texas Sought Banned Death Penalty Drugs From Overseas Party Dealers
In the future, President Trump's lifelong fanaticism for capital punishment could make such shady deals unnecessary.
This Inmate Received Clemency from Obama. He Still Might Die in Prison
On his last day in office, Obama commuted the sentences of 330 inmates. For one of those prisoners, it was a bitter day.
Trump Is Wrong About Crime in Chicago (and His Voters Are Wrong About Crime Everywhere Else Too)
Trump voters overwhelmingly believe crime is getting worse, even though it's far better than it used to be. The president is only feeding that misconception.
Trump's Chicago Crime Slams: Political Posturing, Federal Overreach, or Legit Assistance?
Mayor and president use their bully pulpits to kvetch at each other. Does it even mean anything?
