Criminal Justice
SCOTUS Says States Have No Right to Money Taken Based on Overturned Convictions
If making people prove their innocence to get their property back violates due process, what about civil forfeiture?
NYC Mayor Encourages Cigarette Smuggling with Plan to Massively Jack Up Prices
City with highest cost per pack also has highest bootlegging rate. Imagine that.
Read More Profiles of People Crushed by Florida's Draconian Opioid Laws
A Reason investigation found Florida's opioid trafficking laws put low-level offenders in prison for decades. Here are more of their stories.
Bill O'Reilly Lost to the Feminists He Despises
No one is too big to fail in a properly functioning market
Are Trump Fans a Protected Class? Maryland Cops Charge Teens Who Burned Trump Sign With a Hate Crime
Cops say the 19-year-old women violated a state law against harassment based on "race, color, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or national origin."
Calif. Lawmaker Thinks Police Aren't Protected Enough from Misconduct Claims
Bill would increase the evidence threshold to find that an officer has lied.
Where Radar Cameras Fear To Tread
Arizonans aren't big fans of being nagged about the weight of their feet on their accelerators.
Appeals Court Rejects 'Shockingly High' 19-Year Sentence for Child Porn Collection
The 2nd Circuit says the recommended prison term was "substantively unreasonable."
How Florida Entraps Pain Patients, Forces Them to Snitch, Then Locks Them Up for Decades
Florida's anti-opioid laws were supposed to take high-level traffickers off the streets. Instead, they put low-level users in prison for most of their lives.
United and the Cops Are Just the Latest Violent Partners in a Long History of Dysfunction
Government officials have often deployed force on behalf of their business and labor friends. That will change only when the consequences outweigh the gains.
Taxes, Testosterone, and the Virtues of Overbooking [Reason Podcast]
Reason editors Brian Doherty, Nick Gillespie, and Katherine Mangu-Ward discuss the week's news.
Arkansas Supreme Court Stays Tonight's Executions in Deference to U.S. Supreme Court
Other challenges also delaying state's attempt at an April death penalty spree.
Florida Man Gets Insanely Harsh 100-Year Sentence for Possessing Child Pornography
The judge thinks committing a crime and looking at pictures of it are basically the same thing.
Arizona Makes It Tougher for Police to Seize People's Money and Stuff for Themselves
Higher threshold required to trigger civil asset forfeiture in bill signed by governor.
Here Are All The Things Idaho's Governor Got Wrong About Asset Forfeiture in His Veto Statement
Gov. Butch Otter says cops never abuse asset forfeiture, but there's no way for anyone to know without this bill becoming law.
North Miami Cop Who Shot Behavioral Specialist Arrested Ten Months After Incident
Faces felony attempted manslaughter and misdemeanor culpable negligence charges.
Dylann Roof's Many Sentences Highlight U.S. Hate Crime Law's Dangerous Redundancy
There is no reason to think federal intervention was needed to achieve justice in this case.
Officer Feelgood, Meet the Constitution
Cops who stop motorists to give them stuff are abusing their power.
Recording Police Misconduct Is Just the Beginning
Police monitoring apps are getting better and better at keeping an eye on officialdom. But some now aspire to reduce the need for police at all.
Topeka Teen With Violent Pimp Faces More Than 10 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking
Kansas CPS said Anthony Long was to stay far away from then 16-year-old Hope Zeferjohn. He didn't listen. Now she's being treated as his accomplice.
Why Should Police Help United Airlines Cheat Its Customers?
United's action in having a man attacked and dragged off a flight yesterday was heinous. So is the fact that police officers cooperated.
Florida Sheriff Produces Absurd, Threatening Video over Small Number of Drug-Related Deaths
You'd think Lake County must be some sort of trafficking hotbed. It's not.
Denver Man Who Claimed Marijuana Made Him Kill His Wife Gets 30 Years
Richard Kirk said he did not realize how THC-infused taffy would affect him.
Claremont McKenna Students, Silencing Heather Mac Donald Is the Stupidest Way to Battle The War on Cops
Another censorious mob deals its own cause a setback.
D.C. Cop Pays 15-Year-Old for Sex, Steals the Money Back at Gunpoint Afterward
Police say she was "acting on her own" and "not a victim of human trafficking."
Police Chief Says Investigators Were More Concerned About Clearing Cop Who Shot Behavioral Specialist Trying to Help Autistic Man Than Conducting an Impartial Investigation
Also said the department was plagued by infighting and lax training in an interview with investigators audio of which was obtained by a local newspaper.
Idaho Governor Flips Off Libertarians With Both Hands, Vetoes Asset Forfeiture AND Licensing Reforms
Is he trying to make libertarians angry, or is he just a puppet of special interests?
Jeff Sessions Warns of Crime Rise in Baltimore After Police Oversight Agreement Finalized
Jeff Sessions once again shows he's determined to roll back the Obama administration's attempts to stop unconstitutional policing.
Federal Judge Says Molestation Law Criminalizing Diaper Changes Violates Due Process
Arizona is the only state that does not require proof of sexual intent to convict someone of molesting children.
Alternatives To Deadly Police Force
Law enforcement has room to make humane changes, without putting their lives in peril.
Polygamists Singled Out Again in Utah
Utah's new bigamy law prescribes what people can call private relationships and provides authorities with a convenient tool for suppression when polygamist families get too vocal.
The Other Side of Legalized Theft
Civil forfeiture encourages cops to loot first and ask questions never.
IRS Seized $17 Million From Innocent Business Owners Using Asset Forfeiture
The IRS used obscure money laundering rules to seize money from business owners. A watchdog report finds $17 million of that money was legally obtained.
Jeff Sessions Orders Review of All Consent Decrees, Plus a Host of Other DOJ Activities
DOJ also asked for postponement of Baltimore consent decree hearing.
North Dakota Senate Says It's Fine for Police to Seize Property Without a Conviction
Meanwhile, new reforms in Minnesota improve on a 2014 law requiring criminal conviction before property can be forfeited to law enforcement
Sen. Rand Paul Wants to Use Fight over Trump Snooping to Pass Surveillance Reforms
If Susan Rice's request to unmask Americans' names was legal, should the rules be changed?
Proposed Tweak to Internet Law Could Spur Seismic Shifts in Web as We Know It
A bill related to sex trafficking and Section 230 could have far-reaching consequences for web content, publishers, and apps.
Baylor's Corrupt Athletics Program Takes Center Court in Disgraced
Showtime documentary details scandals surrounding a murder.
Enough Stranger Danger! Children Rarely Abducted by Those They Don't Know
U.S. kids are no more likely to be abducted today than they were decades ago, and much more likely to be returned safely when they are.