Louisiana takes aim at Jim Crow-era jury law
Louisiana is one of only two states in the country allowing a non-unanimous jury to convict a defendant of a felony, and a Louisiana lawmaker says it is time for the Jim Crow-era practice to end.
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Giving vulnerable residents help before mental health issues land them in jail
Each year, an estimated 2 million people suffering from mental illness are booked into county jails. In Kansas City, Missouri, like other places around the country, officials are looking for a better way to get those people the help they…
WATCH: Jeff Sessions announces guidelines for stricter sentencing
WASHINGTON — Attorney General Jeff Sessions is directing federal prosecutors to pursue the most serious charges possible against the vast majority of suspects, a reversal of Obama-era policies that is sure to send more people to prison and for much…
Granted clemency, this former inmate is starting over
In 1992, Norman Brown was convicted on six counts for the distribution of cocaine. In accordance with mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines, the 22-year-old received three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. In July 2015, after nearly 25 years…
In September 1971, Attica Correctional Facility in upstate New York became the site of a bloody uprising that would shock the nation. Over several days, some 1,300 inmates seized parts of the prison, demanding better living conditions. Heather Ann Thompson…
In our series on the issues shaping this election, we turn to the topic of crime and justice. Donald Trump has promised to curb crime through stronger “law and order” initiatives, while Hillary Clinton has addressed issues of racial bias…
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration wants federal agencies to stop asking early questions about some job applicants' criminal history, part of an effort to help ex-convicts enter the job market and decrease the number of those who end up back…
In 2009, Jennifer Hopper and Teresa Butz were attacked and sexually assaulted in their home; Butz did not survive. In “While the City Slept,” Eli Sanders, a Pulitzer winner for his reporting on the case, examines the troubled life of…
