Police Abuse
He Was Arrested for Criticizing the Cops. A Federal Court Says He Can Sue.
Jerry Rogers Jr. complained that police hadn't solved a murder yet—and found himself in a jail cell.
Michigan Couple Says Town Seized Their Building and Offered To Return It if They Bought Two Cars for Police
"Extortion, there's no other way to explain it," the couple's attorney says.
He Was Sentenced to Death After Law Enforcement Fabricated Evidence. A Federal Court Says He Can Sue.
A conservative judge expressed skepticism at the panel's conclusion before issuing a strong rebuke of prosecutorial immunity.
Sheriff Agrees To Stop Stealing Cannabis Cash From Armored Cars, Saying His Deputies 'Are Not Highway Robbers'
The settlement came after the Justice Department agreed to return more than $1 million in proceeds from state-licensed marijuana businesses in California.
11 Insanely Corrupt Speed-Trap Towns
Caught stealing from motorists, these towns disbanded their police forces or even disbanded their governments altogether.
He Didn't Use the 'Magic Words' To Get Access to a Lawyer. Were His Rights Violated?
A recent court decision has reinvigorated the debate around just how specific the accused has to be in asking to speak with an attorney.
City Council Furious at Cop Who Played Disney Songs To Keep from Being Recorded
There is some confusion over what the response should be, but there is broad agreement that the officer acted inappropriately.
Cop Who Arrested High Schooler on 'Terrorizing' Charges for Class Joke Gets Qualified Immunity
A judge's blistering dissent is a reminder that this issue does not have to be a partisan one.
France's Authoritarian Establishment Faces Off Against the Even Uglier Authoritarianism of the Far Right
French President Emmanuel Macron is authoritarian-light. Candidate Marine Le Pen is worse.
City Won't Pay $6 Million Awarded to Man Wrongfully Imprisoned for Decades
Plus: how a pesticide ban hurt Sri Lanka, how Japanese reality TV reveals deficiencies in American parenting, and more...
The Feds Will Return More Than $1 Million in Marijuana Money That California Cops Stole From Armored Cars
Empyreal Logistics agreed to drop its claims against the Justice Department, but it is still suing San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus.
Police Play Disney Songs To Keep Citizen Recordings Off YouTube
A Santa Ana police officer is the latest official to use YouTube's copyright infringement algorithm as a means to evade accountability.
A Federal Jury Delivers a Rebuke of FBI Entrapment
The agency’s tactics doomed the prosecution of defendants who allegedly planned to kidnap Michigan's governor.
Two Cops Will Not Face Discipline For Pushing a 75-Year-Old to the Ground. You Can Thank the Police Union.
The ordeal highlights how collective bargaining in the public sphere has stacked almost every factor against alleged victims of police misconduct.
Texas Prosecutors Blatantly Ignored the Law When They Charged a Woman With Murder 'by a Self-Induced Abortion'
As Starr County District Attorney Gocha Allen Ramirez belatedly conceded, that charge is explicitly prohibited by the Texas Penal Code.
Cops Seized $8,000 From Her and Never Charged Her With a Crime
After Rochester police took her cash, Cristal Starling found out just how hard it is to challenge civil asset forfeiture in court.
The Supreme Court Says You Can Sue Cops Who Frame You on False Charges
The previous standard barring such lawsuits made “little sense," wrote Justice Brett Kavanaugh for the majority.
Tulsa Police Officers Taunt Elderly Woman With Bipolar Disorder Before Violently Arresting Her
"This is gonna be so fun," one officer says.
A Federal Judge Says a Victim of Retaliatory Prosecution Can Sue a Cop Who Treated Criticism As a Crime
An Arkansas police officer used trumped-up charges to punish a man who criticized him for violating the Constitution.
He Spent 28 Years Behind Bars for a Murder He Didn't Commit and Died Before Seeing Justice
The police officers who allegedly framed William Virgil were denied qualified immunity. But they're still trying to delay a trial.
He Disarmed a Gun-Wielding Menace in a San Jose Taqueria. Then the Cops Shot Him.
Plus: Russia update, literary censorship, myths about American workers, and more...
The 5th Circuit Approves a Cop's Violent Response to a Dispute Over a 7-Year-Old's Littering
The officer used a "pain compliance maneuver" to force information from the boy's sister, who was recording the encounter.
Police Officer Kills Dog for Walking Toward Him With Tail Wagging
Bradley Brock says his dog Moose was walking toward a police officer wagging its tail when the officer gunned his pet down.
Video Shows California Cops Arresting Mom and Grandma for Filming Them
Mariah Herefored says police in Hemet, California, smacked cell phone cameras out of her and her mother's hands and violently arrested them.
Man Suffers Heart Attack, Dies, After Being Cuffed For Cussing at Officer and Trying to Shut his Door
Cops in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, were searching for a theft suspect on the property who was not there when they arrested William Walls and caused his death.
Prosecutor Extorts $300,000 Out of Alleged Drug Dealer by Threatening His Entire Family With Charges
Patrick Card's story is a case study in how the state uses civil forfeiture to try to coerce plea bargains.
A Jury Concludes That Blindly Firing 10 Rounds Into Breonna Taylor's Apartment Was Not 'Wanton Endangerment'
Brett Hankison's acquittal shows how difficult it is to hold cops accountable for abusing their power.
The New Violence Against Women Act Aims To Protect Women From State Violence
The bill addresses treatment of women in federal prisons and sexual assault of people in police custody.
No Cops Will Face Legal Consequences in Conjunction With Breonna Taylor Killing
Plus: Russians occupy Ukrainian nuclear plant, the results of misinformation bans, and more...
A Federal Lawsuit Challenges Blatantly Unconstitutional Anti-Crime Checkpoints in Jackson, Mississippi
"You can't treat everyone like a criminal to find the criminals," an outraged driver says. In Jackson, apparently you can.
Colorado Legislators Advance Bill To Ban Police from Lying to Minors During Interrogations
Reason reported last year on how minors are particularly susceptible to being coerced into false confessions.
The Convictions of 3 Cops Who Failed To Prevent George Floyd's Death Underline the Duty To Intervene
The defendants unsuccessfully argued that their training was inadequate and that they understandably deferred to a senior officer.
An Off-Duty Cop Murdered His Ex-Wife. The California Highway Patrol Ignored the Red Flags.
When cops don't police their own, the results can be deadly.
Brett Hankison Is Not the Only Cop Who Acted Recklessly the Night Breonna Taylor Was Killed
The former detective's trial should not obscure the responsibility of the drug warriors who authorized, planned, and executed the deadly raid.
Anti-Crime Checkpoints in Jackson, Mississippi, Blatantly Violate the Fourth Amendment
To "get wanted individuals off the streets," police are stopping drivers without any evidence that they have broken the law.
Questionable SWAT Raid Leaves a Toddler Injured and His Father Facing Attempted Murder Charges
The Pensacola Police Department has launched an internal investigation into how a 1-year-old boy was injured in police custody following the pre-dawn raid.
Arizona House Committee Approves Bill To Criminalize Filming Cops on the Job
"You'll have a bunch of people who plead to avoid trial or go broke trying to vindicate their rights."