Prisons
Video of 'Fight Night' at Rikers Jail Leads Judge to Find Cruel and Unusual Punishment
A New York state judge found video of guards ceding control of Rikers to gang leaders more than enough evidence to order the release of a pretrial inmate.
A Judge Has Ordered Him Released From Prison—Twice. The Government Still Won't Set Him Free.
Bobby Sneed's story highlights how far some government agents will go to keep people locked up, flouting the same legal standards they are charged with upholding.
Crisis at Rikers Island
In 2021, the institutional rot and dysfunction at Rikers Island cascaded into a full-blown catastrophe.
Judge Orders Massachusetts Prisons To Stop Using 'Highly Unreliable' Drug Field Tests To Punish Inmates
Although the tests are used by prison systems and police departments across the country, a judge found they have an error rate "only marginally better than a coin-flip."
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.
Prisoners Sue Virginia Department of Corrections Over Canine Attacks
If police dogs assault innocent people at their handlers’ direction, it’s usually treated as the victim’s fault.
Thousands of Federal Prisoners Aren't Getting Mandated Time Credits Because Prison Officials Won't Negotiate
COVID-19 has led to foot dragging in implementing some FIRST STEP Act reforms.
Don't Punish the QAnon Shaman—or Anyone—for Demanding a Jury Trial
Coercive plea deals trample on defendants' Sixth Amendment rights.
'QAnon Shaman' Jacob Chansley Gets 41 Months in Prison
Plus: Detroit schools close on Fridays just because, Scott Alexander offers a plausible ivermectin theory, and more...
Report Finds Gruesome Medical Malpractice and Death in Arizona Prisons
"A system that allows this level of sustained incompetence and cruelty... is morally bankrupt," a doctor wrote after investigating medical neglect in Arizona prisons.
After Years of Complaints, the D.C. Jail Has Been Deemed Too Wretched for Some Inmates
A 2016 Reason story detailed the D.C. Jail's long history of failure. Now the federal government is finally paying attention.
Pennsylvania Homeless Man Spared Felony Charge for 43-Cent Misunderstanding
However, the cruel policy that threatened him with years in jail remains in place.
She Tried To Report Sexual Harassment in Jail. After Her Suicide, the Guard Was Convicted of Assaulting Four Other Women.
"She was withdrawing from opioids and actively suicidal. She needed help, and she got the opposite."
This Woman Served 11 Years in Prison on a Marijuana Charge. She's Been Sent Back Over a Clerical Error.
Raquel Esquivel, convicted of a nonviolent drug offense in 2009, was put on home confinement during COVID-19.
Denied Treatment for His Cancer, This Kentucky Man Died in Prison After Vomiting Blood
In a lawsuit, Marc Crawford's widow says the state refused to give him his prescriptions and his chemotherapy.
In Gavin Newsom's California, COVID-19 Rules Are for Those Without Political Power
Newsom's opposition to a judge's order requiring vaccinations for prison staffers lays bare the hypocrisy of the governor.
A Louisiana Prosecutor Escapes Responsibility After Allegedly Covering Up Rape Allegations Against a Prison Official
No accountability for government corruption.
185 Americans Wrongly Sentenced to Death Have Been Freed in the Last Half-Century
For every 8.3 executions in the United States, one innocent person on death row has been exonerated.
An Inmate Allegedly 'Leaking Blood All Over' Was Denied Medical Treatment for Hours. The Prison Guard Gets Qualified Immunity
The legal doctrine continues to render juries irrelevant.
The Government Let a U.S. Citizen Spend Months in a Foreign Prison for No Good Reason
Amir Meshal was never charged with a crime.
Pennsylvania Could Put a Homeless Man in Prison Over 43 Cents
Overzealous three-strikes laws claim another victim.
Rikers Island Offers a Glimpse of America's Hellhole Prisons
Formal sentences cover for informal penalties including crowding, poor sanitation, beatings, and rape.
Cashed Out
What happens when a community bail fund stops paying bail and starts trying to abolish it?
50 Years After Attica, Prisons Are Still the Problem No One Wants To See
The men of Attica said they had "set forth to change forever the ruthless brutalization" of U.S. prisoners. For all the horror and bloodshed, not much has changed.
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.
The Pandemic Showed Home Detention Works
In the right circumstances, home detention is cheaper and more effective than prison.
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.
Massachusetts Prison System Sued Over Unreliable Drug Tests That Put Inmates in Solitary
Defense lawyers say they were accused of smuggling drugs to clients based on tests so unreliable they're akin to "witchcraft, phrenology or simply picking a number out of a hat."
He Didn't Answer the Phone One Night While on House Arrest. He's Been Sent Back to Prison for Four Years.
Such punitive measures do not make society any safer.
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.
Gov. Greg Abbott Will Reportedly Separate Families and Throw Some Undocumented Migrants in Prison
In 2018, the Republican said family separations were "tragic and heart-rending."
The $2 Drug Test Keeping Inmates in Solitary
Reason tried out the field test kits used to test for drugs in prison. They were unreliable and confusing.
Will the Spike in Murder and Violence Undermine Criminal Justice Reform?
Growing criticism of big-city progressive D.A.s George Gascón and Chesa Boudin underscores the importance of distinguishing necessary reform from simply failing to enforce the rule of law.
Louisiana Can't Prove This 74-Year-Old Inmate Took Drugs. They Revoked His Parole Anyway.
After spending 47 years behind bars, Bobby Sneed may die in prison for no good reason.
He Was Granted Parole After Serving 47 Years Behind Bars. Now the Prison Won't Let Him Leave.
"It feels like we've gone from tragedy to farce."
New York Legislature Passes Bill To Limit Solitary Confinement
The HALT Act would allow incarcerated people to be held in solitary confinement for no more than 15 days.
Belly of the Beast
A new documentary explores forced sterilizations in California's women's prisons.
A Prison Guard Who Pepper-Sprayed an Inmate Without Provocation Got Qualified Immunity. SCOTUS Disagreed.
An encouraging sign from the Supreme Court
Study: Democratic Governors Feed the Prison-Industrial Complex
Electorally vulnerable Democratic governors have historically been tougher on crime than Republicans.
'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.
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.
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.
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.
