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News January 25, 2016
The Supreme Court May Have Just Granted Thousands of Prisoners a Chance of Freedom
The Montgomery ruling says juveniles sentenced to life without parole must get a shot at a new sentence or parole.
By
Life Inside March 10, 2016
My Regrets as a Juror Who Sent a Man to Death Row
“If I could have done anything, it would have been to deadlock the jury, but I didn’t have the personal strength to do that.”
By Sven Berger as told to
Prisoners train dogs at Bay Correctional Facility in Panama City, Fla.
Life Inside September 1, 2016
How Having a Dog Changed My Life in Prison
“Until now, touching another living thing took place in the context of fights, pat-downs, and strip searches.”
By
Commentary December 21, 2016
Some of Our Best Work in 2016
In-depth investigations, insightful features and one story to give us hope.
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SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA - DECEMBER 19: (Editorial Use Only) Anthony Alvarez (L), age 82, waits for the daily prisoner count while sitting on the floor of his cell at California Men’s Colony prison on December 19, 2013 in San Luis Obispo, California. Alvarez is helped by the Gold Coats, a volunteer care program where healthy prisoners volunteer to take care of elderly prisoners who either need general assistance with mobility and every day life or who also struggle with Alzheimer’s and dementia. The program, the first of it’s kind in the country, has existed for approximately 25 years. According to Alvarez, he has been incarcerated for 42 years due to a series of burglaries, possession of illegal firearms and escapes from county jail. Eventually these convictions led to him getting a life sentence due to three-strike laws. “I never shot anyone,” Alvarez said, “I had the chance but I could never shoot anyone.” Today is Alvarez’s first day being assisted by the Gold Coats; he largely needs help with mobility. Alvarez tries to work out for a few minutes every other day. He says he would like to apply for compassionate release, a program where prisoners are released from prison after being found no longer a threat to society, or if a doctor deems that they are within the last six months of their life. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Justice Lab March 20, 2015
Too Old to Commit Crime?
Why people age out of crime, and what it could mean for how long we put them away.
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News May 20, 2015
Life Expectancy
How many years make a life sentence for a teenager?
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An illustration shows a Black man, in a dark green prison suit, with his eyes closed as he faces a white dove. In front of the Black man, a black silhouette looks down. Four police officers are lined up on the left side of the illustration, with one officer handcuffed.
Life Inside January 19
How the Police and Vigilante Killings of Black People Have Forced Me to Look Inside
It feels hypocritical to reserve my rage for the men who killed Tyre Nichols and Trayvon Martin when I, too, have taken Black lives.
By LaMarr W. Knox
Judge Denise Navarre Cubbon in her courtroom with a juvenile offender in 2015 at the Lucas County Juvenile Court in Toledo, Ohio.
Justice Lab October 27, 2016
Who’s a Kid?
Science — and law enforcement — are rethinking young adults.
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In Roper v. Simmons, the Supreme Court ruled that teenagers who are younger than 18 when they commit murder cannot be executed. Christopher Simmons, who brought the case, was 17 when he murdered a woman in 1993 and 18 when he was sentenced to death. He’s now serving life without parole.
News August 12, 2018
The Right Age to Die?
For some, science is outpacing the High Court on juveniles and the death penalty.
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Life Inside September 17, 2020
How COVID-19 Tested the Family Bonds I Was Building When I Got Out
After serving more than 21 years for a crime he committed at age 15, Angel Alejandro was reintroducing himself to his family. Then the virus took three relatives.
By Angel Alejandro
Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a package of bills to overhaul Louisiana’s criminal justice system in June.
Analysis July 19, 2017
Nine Lessons About Criminal Justice Reform
What Washington can learn from the states.
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Feature April 23, 2021
How We Survived COVID-19 In Prison
At the start of the pandemic, we asked four incarcerated people to chronicle daily life with the coronavirus. Here, they reveal what they witnessed and how they coped with the chaos, fear, isolation and deaths.
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Feature May 17, 2021
Foster Care Agencies Take Millions of Dollars Owed to Kids. Most Children Have No Idea.
The majority of states obtain money intended for foster children with disabilities or a deceased parent without telling them, The Marshall Project and NPR found.
By with Joseph Shapiro, NPR
A Black man wearing glasses, dark green prison pants and a tan sweater is holding a microphone as he asks a question to a woman in the foreground, who is sitting on a chair with her back turned to the camera. Alongside the man sit four other men in the same green prison pants and a variety of shirts. Members of the audience look on from their blue-colored seats.
Feature October 29
Incarcerated Men at Sing Sing’s First Film Festival Reflect on Movies, Justice, and Change
The diverse group of jurors shared how their favorite films have shaped their perspectives on community and life behind bars.
By and
Jerry Jurek was convicted of killing 10-year-old Wendy Adams in 1973. His case went to the Supreme Court as one of several testing new death penalty laws around the country. Pictured here in 1979, left, and 2015, right.
Looking Back January 26, 2021
The Case That Made Texas the Death Penalty Capital
In an excerpt from his new book, ‘Let the Lord Sort Them,’ Marshall Project staff writer Maurice Chammah explains where a 1970s legal team fighting the death penalty went wrong.
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Feature June 28, 2016
The Day My Brother Took a Life and Changed Mine Forever
I grew up idolizing my brother. Then he killed a man.
By Issac Bailey
Feature September 25, 2015
Prison Without Punishment
Germany allows inmates to wear their own clothes, cook their own meals, and have romantic visits. Could that work in the United States?
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Feature January 4, 2016
This Boy’s Life
At 16, Taurus Buchanan threw one deadly punch—and was sent away for life. Will the Supreme Court give him, and hundreds like him, a chance at freedom?
By and
Feature September 26
The Future of Prisons?
Inspired by Germany, South Carolina let prisoners design their own units, write house rules and settle their own disputes. Then came politics.
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An illustration shows a yellow silhouette of a person using one arm to hang from a floating striped heart against a grunge purple and yellow background
Violation April 12, 2023
‘Heart Tests’: Finding Life (and Love) Behind Bars
Part Four of the “Violation” podcast follows Jacob Wideman as he confronts his mental health, navigates romance, and faces a skeptical parole board.
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