Corrupt Albuquerque Cops Had Friends in High Places, Including Internal Affairs
For a decade and a half, officers made DWI cases go away in exchange for bribes, relying on protection from senior officers implicated in the same racket.
Accountability
A Guilty Plea Implicates 'Almost the Entire' Albuquerque DWI Unit in Longstanding Police Corruption
Federal prosecutors say the city's police department was the main focus of a 15-year bribery scheme that also involved the sheriff's office and the state police.
The Country's Largest Police Union, Which Repeatedly Endorsed Trump, Is Dismayed by His Capitol Riot Pardons
The Fraternal Order of Police mistakenly thought that the president "supports our law enforcement officers" and "has our backs."
Biden and Trump Show Presidents How To Abuse Clemency
Biden’s preemptive pardons and Trump’s blanket relief for Capitol rioters both set dangerous precedents.
Biden's Preemptive Pardons Undermine Official Accountability and the Rule of Law
His last-minute acts of clemency invite Trump and future presidents to shield their underlings from the consequences of committing crimes in office.
Maryland Cop Who Recklessly Shot a 5-Year-Old Boy Got Qualified Immunity
The Cato Institute is urging the Supreme Court to take up the case and reaffirm that the liability shield does not apply to "obvious rights violations."
A University President Accused of Squandering Public Money Resigns in Exchange for a $2 Million Payout
Western New Mexico University's Board of Regents approved the severance package for Joseph Shepard after a state audit highlighted $364,000 in "wasteful" and "improper" spending.
An Oklahoma Cop Broke a 71-Year-Old Man's Neck Over a Traffic Dispute
Officer Joseph Gibson now faces felony assault charges.
The PPP Was a COVID-Era Disaster. Trump Wants To Promote the Guy Who Ran It.
After overseeing the pandemic-era Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was a bloated, wasteful mess, Michael Faulkender is failing up.
Nearly Five Years After Breonna Taylor's Death, Justice Remains Elusive
A long-delayed conviction illustrates the difficulty of holding cops accountable for abusing their powers.
The FBI Wrongly Raided This Family's Home. A Bipartisan Group of Lawmakers Wants the Supreme Court To Step In.
A federal court denied them the right to sue—despite Congress enacting a law five decades ago specifically for situations like this one.
An Efficiency Commission Led by Elon Musk Would Be Good for the Government
The idea, proposed by former President Donald Trump, could curb waste and step in where our delinquent legislators are asleep on the job.
Why a Federal Judge Dismissed 2 Felony Charges Stemming From the Drug Raid That Killed Breonna Taylor
U.S. District Judge Charles Simpson concluded that the alleged facts did not support penalty enhancements for violating the Fourth Amendment but left several other charges in place.
Albuquerque's Police Chief Says Cops Have a 5th Amendment Right To Leave Their Body Cameras Off
Harold Medina made that argument during an internal investigation of a car crash he caused last February.
The FBI Raided This Innocent Woman's House. Will She Ever Get Justice?
Thus far, the courts have barred Curtrina Martin from asking a jury for damages. She is appealing to the Supreme Court.
Prosecutor of Anti-Trump Protesters Allegedly Withheld Exculpatory Evidence and Lied About It
According to disciplinary charges against Jennifer Kerkhoff Muyskens, she suppressed video evidence that would have helped DisruptJ20 defendants.
She 'Came at Me With Boiling Water,' a Cop Charged With Murder Claims, Contradicting What Video Shows
An Illinois sheriff's deputy with a spotty employment history shot Sonya Massey in the face after responding to her report of a prowler.
Determined To Avoid Presidential Paralysis, SCOTUS Endorses Presidential Impunity
We need not conjure "extreme hypotheticals" to understand the danger posed by an "energetic executive" who feels free to flout the law.
Sotomayor Is Right: The Supreme Court Should Reevaluate Absolute Immunity for Prosecutors
The doctrine makes it nearly impossible for victims of prosecutorial misconduct to get recourse.
Reason Wins 7 Southern California Journalism Awards
First-place finishes include an investigative piece on egregious misconduct in federal prison, a documentary on homelessness, best magazine columnist, and more.
Ron DeSantis Won't Stop Trying To Gut Florida's Public Records Law
DeSantis' chief of staff used a personal phone to coordinate migrant flights to Martha's Vineyard. Now DeSantis' lawyers say those phone logs should be secret.
Louisiana's New 25-Foot Legal Forcefield for Police Threatens Accountability and Civil Liberties
A new law will make it much harder to film law enforcement officers in their public duties. Does that violate the First Amendment?
The COVID-19 Vaccines Shouldn't Have Been Free
So many problems would have disappeared if we had treated them like a normal product.
This Journalist Was Arrested, Strip-Searched, and Jailed for Filming Police. Will He Get Justice?
Justin Pulliam's arrest and lawsuit once again demand we ask if "real" journalists are entitled to a different set of rights.
Hey, Fauci's Staff: You Can't Just 'Make Your Emails Disappear'
A government scientist is the latest official whose attempts to evade the Freedom of Information Act have landed him in hot water.
Trump's Anti-Crime Agenda Contradicts His Criticism of Biden's Legislative Record
Since he favors aggressive drug law enforcement, severe penalties, and impunity for abusive police officers, he may have trouble persuading black voters that he is on their side.
A Cop's Corruption Allegedly Cost an Innocent Man 2 Years of His Life. Should She Get Qualified Immunity?
Judge Carlton Reeves ripped apart the legal doctrine in his latest decision on the matter.
Can This Woman Sue the Rogue Prosecutor Who Allegedly Helped Upend Her Life?
Prosecutor Ralph Petty was also employed as a law clerk—by the same judges he argued before.
Black People Overwhelmingly Want To Maintain—or Increase—Police Presence. They Also Want Better Police.
The dominant media narrative has obscured much of the nuance here.
A SWAT Team Blew Up This Innocent Couple's Home and Left Them With the Bill. Was That Constitutional?
Mollie and Michael Slaybaugh are reportedly out over $70,000. The government says it is immune.
Murder Rates Are Plummeting. What Should We Make of It?
In data from over 200 cities, homicides are down a little over 19 percent when compared to a similar time frame in 2023.
Trump Promises To Give Police 'Immunity From Prosecution'
The pledge, while mostly legally illiterate, offers a reminder of the former president's outlook on government accountability.
A Year Before Albuquerque's Police Corruption Scandal Made Headlines, an Internal Probe Found Nothing
In 2022, police received a tip that officers were getting paid to make DWI cases disappear—the same allegation that prompted FBI raids in January.
A Texas Reporter Busted for Asking Questions Asks SCOTUS To Reject the Criminalization of Journalism
Priscilla Villarreal is appealing a 5th Circuit decision that dismissed her First Amendment lawsuit against Laredo police and prosecutors.
The Alarming Implications of Trump's Immunity Claim
The Supreme Court will decide whether former presidents can avoid criminal prosecution by avoiding impeachment and removal.
Ron DeSantis Signs Florida Bill Limiting How Close Bystanders Can Get to Police
The law makes it a misdemeanor to approach within 25 feet of a first responder after receiving a verbal warning to stay away.
Albuquerque's Police Chief Ran a Red Light and Broadsided a Car. A Review Board Says It Was Unavoidable.
Harold Medina, who severely injured a driver while fleeing a gunman, ordered a thorough investigation of his own conduct.
Judge Quashes Felony Murder Charges Against Former Houston Cop Whose Lies Led to a Deadly 2019 Drug Raid
Gerald Goines' lawyers argued that the indictment did not adequately specify the underlying felony of tampering with a government document.
A 5th Albuquerque Cop Resigns Amid Widening DWI Corruption Scandal
"There is a much bigger story here," the officer's lawyer says. "It goes outward and upward."
Supreme Court Says Officials Who Block Critics on Social Media Might Be Violating the First Amendment
The justices established guidelines for determining whether that is true in any particular case.
Without More Accountability, Sunshine Laws Are Toothless
An AP survey found that most states have no mechanism to appeal denials of records requests, outside of filing a lawsuit.
New Mexico MADD 'Officer of the Year' Resigns Amid DWI Corruption Scandal
Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina, who promised to "get to the bottom of this," is himself the subject of an internal investigation after broadsiding a car last month.
The Federal Government Doesn't Know How Many of Its Buildings Contain Asbestos
A new report from the Government Accountability Office finds that two-thirds of government-owned buildings haven't been inspected for asbestos in at least five years.
A Paramedic Got 5 Years in Prison for Elijah McClain's Death. That's Not Justice.
It can certainly be true that Peter Cichuniec made an egregious professional misjudgment. And it can also be true that punishing him criminally makes little sense.
This Prosecutor Secretly Worked for the Judges Overseeing His Cases. Will His Victims Be Able To Sue?
Ralph Petty likely violated the Constitution. In a rare move, a federal court signaled this week that lawsuits against him may not be dead on arrival.
A Florida Cop Gets Into a Shootout With an Acorn, Emptying His Gun Into His Own Patrol Car
Deputy Jesse Hernandez, whose bullets miraculously missed the handcuffed suspect in the car, resigned during an investigation that found he "violated policy."
Qualified Immunity Is Not Limited to Police Brutality. It Protects a Wide Variety of Abusive Officials.
An analysis of appeals involving the doctrine finds that less than a quarter "fit the popular conception of police accused of excessive force."
She Was Arrested for Her Journalism. A Federal Court Says She Can't Sue.
Priscilla Villarreal, also known as "Lagordiloca," has sparked a debate about free speech and who, exactly, is a journalist.
