Criminal Justice
Indiana Senate Passes Bill To Let Government Steal Stuff From People Suspected of 'Unlawful Assembly'
Vague laws are typically vague for a reason.
South Dakota Supreme Court Rules Property Owners not Entitled to Compensation for Severe Damage to their Home Inflicted by Police During a Law Enforcement Operation
The ruling denies relief under a state constitutional provision requiring compensation for "taking" or "damaging" of private property by the government. Many other states have similar provisions.
Los Angeles Slashes Number of School Police Amid National Debate
The plan will shift $25 million away from school police and into support services for black students.
Study: Democratic Governors Feed the Prison-Industrial Complex
Electorally vulnerable Democratic governors have historically been tougher on crime than Republicans.
Video: Two 'Homeless Liaison' Deputies in California Kill a Man for Jaywalking
It's a vivid example of why people are demanding alternatives to police responses.
New Mexico Could Be the Third State To Authorize Lawsuits Against Abusive Cops Without Qualified Immunity
A bill approved by the state House would let people sue government officials for violating rights protected by the state constitution.
Trump's Messy Pardon Spree Left Too Many Behind. Biden Must Do Better.
Criminal justice groups say Biden should move the pardon process out of the Justice Department and consider categorical clemencies.
5th Circuit Grants Qualified Immunity to Cops Who Ignited a Suicidal, Gasoline-Drenched Man by Tasing Him
The appeals court concluded that the officers' use of force was reasonable in the circumstances.
Civil Forfeiture Does Not Seem To Reduce Drug Use or Help Fight Crime
A new study provides further evidence that property seizures are driven by financial motives rather than public safety concerns.
Appeals Court Rules Against New York Police Unions, Says Misconduct Records Can Be Released
The 2nd Circuit rejected the police unions' arguments that disclosure would invade officers' privacy and put them in danger.
Judge Threatens to Jail North Carolina Town Officials for Seizing Man's Money, Refusing To Return It
A misdemeanor marijuana charge leads to an attempt to take $17,000.
Biden Says Drug Users Shouldn't Be Jailed but Won't Do Anything To Stop It
Plus: "Cancel culture" confusion, Biden rejects student loan forgiveness, Stossel and Snowden on internet privacy, and more...
This Cop Wants Qualified Immunity for Fatally Shooting a Passenger in a Fleeing Vehicle
The unfolding legal saga of City of Hayward v. Stoddard-Nunez
FBI Arrests Activist Daniel Baker Over Posts About Police Abuse and Self Defense
Plus: The aftermath of the New York Times' anti-Pornhub crusade, and more...
SCOTUS Refuses to Let Alabama Execute Willie Smith Without His Pastor Present (Without Noting Who Cast the Fifth Vote)
With Justice Barrett joining Justice Kagan, does Dunn v. Smith represent a shift on the Court?
Rochester Releases More Footage of Police Pepper-Spraying Nine-Year-Old
"You did it to yourself, hon," the officer says.
Derek Chauvin May Get a Sentence Much Shorter Than the One William Barr Thought Would Be Seen As Too Lenient
The former attorney general reportedly nixed a plea deal that involved a sentence of more than 10 years but would have precluded a federal prosecution.
Did Police Play Copyrighted Music to Prevent Video Streaming of Citizen Interactions?
Either these police really love playing Sublime at the office, or they came up with a creative way to discourage video streaming of police conduct.
Berkeley Dorms Guarded by Cops Who Only Let Students Out To Eat, Use the Bathroom, or Get a COVID-19 Test
Plus: New Mexico moves to legalize homemade food, the illogic of civil commitments for sex offenders, and more...
Civil Commitment of Sex Offenders Pretends Prisoners Are Patients
The practice evades constitutional constraints by casting punishment and preventive detention as treatment.
Tampa Mayor To Hunt Down Maskless Super Bowl Attendees
"Bad actors will be identified, and the Tampa Police Department will handle it."
'I Use Heroin to Be a Better Person': Columbia University Neuroscientist Carl Hart
His new book, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear, is a provocative manifesto for legalizing all drugs.
Virginia Poised To Become 23rd State To End Death Penalty
The state that has executed the most prisoners may soon end the practice entirely.
An Unconstitutional Arrest for Refusing To Show ID to the Cops
Fourth Amendment advocates prevail in Wingate v. Fulford.
The Seemingly Interminable Saga of the Timbs Asset Forfeiture Case Continues
It went all the way to the US Supreme Court, and is now back in the Indiana state Supreme Court for the third time.
Indiana Argues That the State Should Be Able To Take Everything You Own if You Commit a Drug Crime
The state used civil asset forfeiture to seize Tyson Timbs' car in 2013. His nightmare hasn't ended.
This Draconian Bill Would Turn Millions of Peaceful Gun Owners Into Felons
Sheila Jackson Lee's sweeping licensing and registration scheme suggests what Democrats would do if they didn't have to worry about the Second Amendment.
Federal Court Confirms That Shackling an Inmate During Exercise Is Cruel and Unusual Punishment
The warden at the center of the case was originally given qualified immunity.
Thanks to Colorado's Reforms, Cops Who Forced Children To Lie on the Pavement at Gunpoint Might Be Held Accountable
A state law eliminated qualified immunity as a defense for abusive officers.
SCOTUS To Decide if Cops Need More 'Elbow Room' To Conduct Certain Warrantless Home Searches
A new case tests the limits of the “community caretaking exception” to the Fourth Amendment.
In a Year of Wild Conspiracy Theories, Super Bowl Sex Trafficking Is a Classic
Plus: A reminder that censorship backfires, Wyoming city considers ban on "performance prostitution," and more...
Federal Judge Orders Oregon To Offer Vaccines to Incarcerated People Immediately
"During difficult times we must remain the most vigilant to protect the constitutional rights of the powerless," the judge writes.
Milwaukee Cops Left 4-Year-Old in Freezing Car Overnight
Plus: Texas sends out Amber Alert for Chucky doll, people are fleeing California and the Northeast, and more.
The Little Things Is a Twisty Thriller About the Inner Lives of Bad Cops
It’s a comfortable throwback to 1990s crime films. Too comfortable.
Does America Really Need the Foreign Agents Registration Act?
The U.S. has an interest in protecting its political system from manipulation by foreign enemies or their paid agents. But treason and espionage are already illegal, as is bribery.
'She Could Have Been Hurt Worse': Police Union Defends Officer Who Pepper-Sprayed 9-Year-Old Girl
Public-sector unions often protect the government at the expense of the people.
A Pennsylvania Inmate Dies of COVID-19 While Awaiting Mercy from the Governor
The Board of Pardons recommended Bruce Norris’ release. A signature didn’t come in time.
Explaining the Great 2020 Homicide Spike
While a new report released today by the Council on Criminal Justice downplays the role anti-police protests played in last year's unprecedented homicide spike, a decline in pro-active policing following the protests remains the most likely cause.
