Murder
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.
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.
Dr. Kevorkian Was Convicted of Murder 25 Years Ago Today
Examining the mixed legacy of a fighter for patient autonomy.
Pol Pot's Atrocities Still Matter, 45 Years After Khmer Rouge's Fall
Like many horrors throughout history, they were rooted in radical ideas aimed at implementing some utopian vision.
Alabama Set To Use Experimental Execution Method
In killing Kenneth Eugene Smith by nitrogen hypoxia, the state would be using him as a "test subject," Smith's lawyers argue.
He Allegedly Killed a Cop During a No-Knock Raid. Will the Jury Agree It Was Self-Defense?
Almost 10 years after his arrest, Marvin Guy will soon learn if he'll spend the rest of his life in prison.
In French Thriller Anatomy of a Fall, the Law Is No One's Friend
A tricky, excellent legal drama shows just how hard it can be to pin down the truth.
Alabama Set To Try New, Untested Execution Method
The state has filed a motion to set an execution date for Kenneth Eugene Smith, who survived a previous execution attempt.
New Statistical Evidence Supports the "Minneapolis Effect" as an Explanation for Increases in Homicides
A recently published statistical analysis of homicide rates in New York City finds strong support for the hypothesis that de-policing resulting from the George Floyd protests caused the 2020 homicide spikes.
These Murders Don't Fit Into the Culture War
By glossing over routine crime victims in favor of stories with unorthodox circumstances, the press paints a distorted picture of a very real problem.
Greg Abbott's Pardon Promise Ignores the Shakiness of Daniel Perry's Self-Defense Claim
A Texas jury unanimously rejected Perry’s assertion that Garrett Foster pointed a rifle at him.
'Stand Your Ground' Laws Are Back in the News, but It's Not Clear Why
The duty to retreat from public confrontations has nothing to do with the cases cited in recent stories about seemingly unjustified shootings.
Oklahoma Says Richard Glossip Was Denied a Fair Trial. An Appeals Court Still Won't Overturn His Conviction.
"While I respect the Court of Criminal Appeals' opinion, I am not willing to allow an execution to proceed despite so many doubts," said Oklahoma's attorney general.
Oklahoma Almost Killed Him 3 Times. Now, the State Is Trying To Vacate His Conviction.
"It is critical that Oklahomans have absolute faith that the death penalty is administered fairly and with certainty," said the state's attorney general in a Thursday press release.
New Mexico Cops Fatally Shoot Homeowner After Showing Up at the Wrong House
Plus: Los Angeles sues journalist who published police photos, IRS releases $80 billion budget plan, and more...
He Got 30 Years for Murder After a Cop Killed His Friend
Lakeith Smith's case epitomizes the issues with the "felony murder" doctrine.
Police Officers Charged With Murder in 'Smothering' of Virginia Man
"What I saw today was heartbreaking," said the victim's mother. "It was disturbing, it was traumatic. My son was tortured."
Women Who Get Abortions Could Be Charged With Homicide Under South Carolina Bill
Plus: ACLU sues over low-flying helicopter during protests, Canada's Online News Act, and more...
Michigan Appeals Court Weighs Charging Parents of School Shooter With Manslaughter
Judges and prosecutors accused James and Jennifer Crumbley of negligent behavior despite the fact that school officials at the time reached many of the same judgments.
5 Memphis Cops Charged With Murder of Tyre Nichols, Who Died After Traffic Stop Beating
Plus: Judge blocks California's COVID-19 censorship law, Cato's latest Human Freedom Index, and more...
Texas Executes Man Using Expired Drugs
A last-minute injunction gets tossed, allowing the state to give Robert Fratta a lethal dose of pentobarbital.
Amber McLaughlin's Jury Deadlocked—So the Judge Decided She Should Be Executed
Today's scheduled execution is getting attention because she's trans. But the bigger story here is how she was sentenced to die.
2022 Was a Year of Bad, Botched Death Row Executions
Fortunately, government kills fewer prisoners each year.
Oregon's Governor Commutes Sentences of All State Death Row Inmates
Brown: “The state should not be in the business of executing people.”
Alabama Execution Called Off Because Officials Couldn't Insert Needle
For the second time in three months, the state struggles and fails to execute a death row inmate.
Republicans Need an Actual Plan To Grow the Economy
The biggest beneficiaries of economic growth are poor people. But the deepest case for economic growth is a moral one.
Oklahoma Court Denies New Evidence Hearing for Death Row Inmate Richard Glossip
After the latest reprieve from the governor, he’s scheduled for execution in February.
Some Supreme Court Justices Want the Court To Tackle More Government Abuse Cases
Unfortunately, in five separate cases today, they're outnumbered.
Is Crime Getting Better or Worse? We Don't Really Know.
The FBI changed the way it compiles data, and reporting law-enforcement agencies have yet to catch up.
Federal Report Adds to the Evidence That Bitemark Analysis Is Nonsense
Forensic techniques are nowhere near as reliable as cops shows pretend.
Biden Is Still Seeking Potential Life Sentences for Distributing Weed, Even As He Pardons for Possession
Pardoning possession offenders is nice. Taking his boot off the necks of cannabis sellers would be even better.
Storms and Reforms
Plus: The editors unpack a philosophical question from a listener concerning foreign policy.
Teenage Girl Killed in Police Shootout With Her Dad in California Desert
Media outlets repeated police speculation that she might have been involved, but investigators now say she was likely unarmed.
Why Are Half of All U.S. Exonerations of Black Prisoners?
A new report looks at decades of troubling trends of bad convictions in murder, rape, and drug cases.
In Netflix's Dahmer, Incompetent Police Fail To Catch a Serial Killer
The show depicts the killer's gruesome crimes but lays some of the blame on the Milwaukee police who failed for so long to catch him.
Las Vegas Elected Official Robert Telles Arrested as Suspect in Journalist Jeff German's Death
Plus: The wage premium from having a college degree is falling, study finds black access to firearms reduced lynchings during Jim Crow, and more...
Manhattan D.A. To Prosecute Domestic Violence Victim for Murder After Saying It Wasn't Murder
Alvin Bragg campaigned on Tracy McCarter’s innocence. Once in office, that was apparently less politically expedient.
Number of American Mass Murders Relatively Steady Since 2006
Plus: A surge in female voter registrations, eminent domain in North Carolina, and more...
Oklahoma Governor Orders Stay of Execution for Richard Glossip
Delaying Glossip's execution until December allows the courts to consider new evidence that might prove his innocence.
Oklahoma Lawmakers Urge New Review of Evidence Before Richard Glossip Is Executed for Murder
A newly unearthed letter suggests the primary witness against Glossip (and the actual killer) had regrets and made a “mistake.”