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Prison sentence

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Innocence

Imagine Having a Decade of Your Life Erased. It Happened to 161 People Exonerated from Prison in 2021.

A new report shows wrongfully convicted people serving 1,849 years behind bars across the United States before being released last year.

Scott Shackford | 4.13.2022 2:10 PM

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Commutations

Colorado Gov. Polis Commutes 110-Year Sentence for Trucker in Deadly Crash, Pardons Hundreds of Marijuana Convictions

Rogel Aguilera-Mederos faced harsh punishment under the state’s mandatory minimum sentences for insisting on the right to a trial.

Scott Shackford | 12.31.2021 12:45 PM

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Federal Prisons

Biden Administration Reverses Course, Will Let Prisoners Sent Home Due to Pandemic Stay There

Christmas comes a few days early for 2,800 inmates who had told they’d eventually have to return to their cells to serve out their terms.

Scott Shackford | 12.22.2021 11:30 AM

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Prison Life

He Wouldn't Wear a Mask on a Bus. One Thing Led to Another, and He Ended Up Dying in Jail.

Given the dangers of jails and prisons, the pettiest of crimes can become death sentences.

Brian Doherty | 11.22.2021 5:30 PM

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Criminal Justice

Pennsylvania Homeless Man Spared Felony Charge for 43-Cent Misunderstanding

However, the cruel policy that threatened him with years in jail remains in place.

Joe Lancaster | 11.1.2021 12:35 PM

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Jail

ACLU Sues a Pennsylvania County for Detaining Probation Violators for Months With No Hearings

A Supreme Court ruling requires due process before sending these people back to jail. That’s not happening in Montgomery County.

Scott Shackford | 10.27.2021 1:30 PM

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Criminal Justice

Pennsylvania Could Put a Homeless Man in Prison Over 43 Cents

Overzealous three-strikes laws claim another victim.

Joe Lancaster | 9.21.2021 12:09 PM

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Solitary Confinement

A Philly Man Who Spent 37 Years of a 50-Year Prison Sentence in Solitary Confinement Has Been Freed

Arthur Johnson spent his entire adult life in jail for a murder he says he was coerced to confess to by police.

Scott Shackford | 8.12.2021 1:05 PM

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Sex Offender Registry

Former Staffers Condemn Cruel Treatment of Inmates at a Texan Prison for Sex Offenders

The men must keep masturbation diaries, wear ankle monitors, and even use penile circumference gauges.

Lenore Skenazy | 8.12.2021 10:00 AM

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Prisons

The Pandemic Showed Home Detention Works

In the right circumstances, home detention is cheaper and more effective than prison.

Jillian Snider and Maya Szilak | 8.6.2021 1:50 PM

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Prisons

The Government Says These Missouri Men Are Innocent. It Won't Release Them From Prison.

Kevin Strickland, Christopher Dunn, and Lamar Johnson are still paying for crimes that government officials say they did not commit.

Billy Binion | 8.4.2021 5:26 PM

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Clemency

Only Biden or Congress Can Prevent 4,000 Inmates From Being Forced Back Into Federal Prison Post-COVID

The CARES Act allowed home release of nonviolent inmates during the pandemic. But after it's over, many will have to go back unless their sentences are commuted.

Scott Shackford | 7.20.2021 11:25 AM

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Federal Prisons

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.

Scott Shackford | 7.7.2021 1:05 PM

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Espionage Act

National Security Agency Leaker Reality Winner Freed from Prison Early

She was sentenced to more than five years for revealing how Russia tried to hack the 2016 election.

Scott Shackford | 6.14.2021 5:00 PM

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Documentary

40 Years a Prisoner

The new HBO documentary looks at what happened before, during, and after the 1978 MOVE shootout in Philadelphia.

Jacob Sullum | 3.19.2021 7:30 AM

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Mass incarceration

What Happened When Life Sentences Got Out of Control

The prisons are filled with aging inmates who no longer pose a public threat.

Sonny Mazzone | 2.25.2021 3:40 PM

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ICE

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.

Zuri Davis | 11.25.2020 5:40 PM

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Criminal Justice

California Gov. Gavin Newsom Signs Policing, Probation, Juvenile Justice Reforms

Limits on probation length, a ban on chokeholds, and a plan to dismantle a state juvenile prison system

Scott Shackford | 10.1.2020 3:40 PM

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Brickbats

Brickbat: Stay Out

Charles Oliver | 9.7.2020 4:00 AM

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Documentary

Kim Kardashian West: The Justice Project

C.J. Ciaramella | 6.12.2020 6:00 AM

Louisiana State Penitentiary

Coronavirus

At Angola, Coronavirus Turns Life Without Parole for Selling Weed Into a Potential Death Sentence

Fate Vincent Winslow, who has never committed a violent crime, fears catching coronavirus in prison.

Tana Ganeva | 5.27.2020 11:40 AM

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Coronavirus

Prosecutors Fight Early Release for Whistleblower Reality Winner

Fears of contracting COVID-19 in prison are not enough, Justice Department says

Scott Shackford | 4.22.2020 12:45 PM

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Coronavirus

Serving 12 Years for Possessing a Cellphone—Unless the Coronavirus Gets to Him First

Some places are releasing nonviolent offenders during the COVID-19 outbreak. Mississippi won't free a man who failed to hand in his phone.

Zuri Davis | 4.13.2020 10:15 AM

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Criminal Justice

Mississippi Court Upholds 12-Year Sentence for a Man Who Unwittingly Had a Phone in Jail

The court says 12 years was "obviously harsh," but hey, at least it wasn't 15.

Zuri Davis | 1.13.2020 12:23 PM

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Hate crimes

A 15-Year Sentence for Burning a Stolen Gay Pride Flag Is Not Justice

Hate crime enhancements meet three-strikes laws, and the consequences are terrible.

Scott Shackford | 12.20.2019 12:25 PM

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Criminal Justice

After Spending 23 Years in Prison for a Murder He Didn't Commit, Ricky Kidd Is Going Home

Reason previously shared the story of Ricky Kidd's wrongful conviction in April.

Zuri Davis and Joe Setyon | 8.15.2019 9:55 AM

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FIRST STEP Act

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.

Scott Shackford | 7.19.2019 2:10 PM

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Criminal Justice

Kim Kardashian and the FIRST STEP Act Freed Another Person From Prison

Jeffrey Stringer was sentenced to life in prison for a drug offense.

Zuri Davis | 5.7.2019 1:50 PM

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Julian Assange

Julian Assange Sentenced to 50 Weeks in U.K. Prison for Skipping Bail

And the WikiLeaks founder will be in court again tomorrow.

Joe Setyon | 5.1.2019 10:05 AM

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HomePage

London To Require GPS Trackers for Certain Residents Convicted of 'Knife Possession'

The latest in London Mayor Sadiq Khan's war on knife ownership.

Joe Setyon | 2.11.2019 3:45 PM

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Hit & Run

Did SCOTUS Just Rule That Pickpocketing Is a 'Violent Felony'?

Justice Sonia Sotomayor has some concerns.

Joe Setyon | 1.16.2019 1:35 PM

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HomePage

This 'Three Strikes' Law Sends People to Die in Federal Prison For Drug Crimes

Roughly 800 federal inmates are sentenced to life under an obscure sentencing enhancement that lawmakers in Congress might soon vote to reduce.

C.J. Ciaramella | 11.27.2018 10:00 AM

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Hit & Run

Florida Judge Sentences Corrupt Cops to Prison, Slams Prosecution for "Slap on the Wrist"

Former Biscayne Park Officers Charlie Dayoub and Raul Fernandez are going to prison after pinning burglaries on innocent black men.

Zuri Davis | 10.17.2018 2:20 PM

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Hit & Run

DNA Evidence Exonerates a Man Who Spent 19 Years in Prison for the Death of His Lover

The California Innocence Project helped free Horace Roberts from prison.

Zuri Davis | 10.16.2018 11:15 AM

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Hit & Run

20 Years in Prison for Florida Man Who Swiped $600 Worth of Cigarettes

He has prior felony convictions, but 20 years still seems harsh.

Joe Setyon | 9.24.2018 1:55 PM

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HomePage

After 27 Years, Golf Drawings Helped Clear a Convict of Murder

Valentino Dixon has been proclaiming his innocence for decades. After a golf magazine brought attention to his case, people started to listen.

Joe Setyon | 9.20.2018 11:50 AM

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HomePage

A Young Mom Was Justified in a Shooting, but a Past Marijuana Charge Means Prison Time

Authorities say Krissy Noble was justified in shooting and killing a home intruder while she was pregnant.

Zuri Davis | 8.31.2018 2:25 PM

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HomePage

Tourist Gets 8 Years in Egyptian Prison for Facebook Video Blasting 'Son of a Bitch' Country

Egypt has no freedom of speech.

Joe Setyon | 7.9.2018 12:50 PM

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HomePage

Recalling Aaron Persky, the Judge Who Showed Brock Turner Leniency, Is a Mistake That Will Haunt Progressives

California voters just encouraged judges to show no mercy.

Robby Soave | 6.6.2018 12:15 PM

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HomePage

Ross Ulbricht Is Serving a Double Life Sentence

His mother, Lyn Ulbricht, talks about her son's life in maximum security prison and their Supreme Court hopes for the Silk Road case.

Katherine Mangu-Ward | 5.31.2018 12:00 AM

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