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News
December 20, 2015
Spotting the ‘Red Flags’ of Abusive Prison Guards
Under pressure, New York says it will better track correctional officers
By
Tom Robbins
Commentary
May 28, 2015
How Nebraska Repealed the Death Penalty
A deep-red state shows the way, with conservatives in the lead.
By
Shari Silberstein
Jackson
June 20
Mississippi Wants to Allow Some Votes From Jails and Prisons. Red Tape May Stop It.
A new state law will allow more people in jails and prisons to cast absentee ballots, but many obstacles remain.
By
Caleb Bedillion
News and Awards
June 27
Kristin Bausch and Chris Vazquez Join The Marshall Project as Audience Engagement Producers
Bausch and Vazquez will bolster, in particular, the newsroom’s journalistic visuals and videos on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
November 27
Aala Abdullahi Joins The Marshall Project as Engagement Reporter
Abdullahi comes to The Marshall Project with a track record of reaching underserved audiences.
By
The Marshall Project
Analysis
July 13, 2015
The President Goes to Prison
But Congress is the place to watch.
By
Andrew Cohen
Life Inside
January 29, 2016
What It’s Like to Be Moved From Cell to Cell, Prison to Prison
An endless shuffle takes a toll.
By
Arthur Longworth
News
October 30, 2017
‘Restorative Justice’ for Shoplifting? A Court Calls It Extortion
A company’s program, used by Walmart and others, bypasses the cops.
By
Jessica Pishko
News
June 8, 2020
The Short, Fraught History of the ‘Thin Blue Line’ American Flag
The controversial version of the U.S. flag has been hailed as a sign of police solidarity and criticized as a symbol of white supremacy.
By
Maurice Chammah
and
Cary Aspinwall
News
August 31, 2015
In the Execution Business, Missouri Is Surging
Defense lawyers call it a crisis; the state says it’s just doing its job.
By
Maurice Chammah
Life Inside
February 10
I Write About Bad Prison Conditions. That Doesn’t Mean I Hate All Cops.
As a kid in Pakistan, police treated Tariq MaQbool like a nephew. As an adult in solitary confinement, the kindness of one New Jersey corrections officer made him feel human.
By
Tariq MaQbool
Commentary
December 17, 2015
Raphael Holiday was Put to Death, and His Lawyers Should Have Tried Harder to Stop It
Gretchen Sween was hired a month before Holiday was executed. This is what she saw.
By
Gretchen Sween
Life Inside
March 15
Boxer Shorts Blues: My Path to Gender-Affirming Underwear in Prison
Nonbinary writer K.C. Johnson soon learned that behind bars, even their underwear was subject to deliberations.
By
K.C. Johnson
Commentary
May 22, 2016
Pretty in Pink Handcuffs
We’re going to shackle you while you give birth, but you’ll look great.
By
Bill Keller
News
February 2, 2017
Watch: A New Documentary’s Rare Access Inside Solitary
A filmmaker spends a year inside a Virginia supermax facility.
By
Celina Fang
Closing Argument
November 11, 2023
Supreme Court Takes on Gun Cases as State Laws Shift
The court is considering the safety of victims of domestic violence, bump stocks and more.
By
Jamiles Lartey
Feature
March 17, 2022
He Teaches Police “Witching” To Find Corpses. Experts Are Alarmed.
At the National Forensic Academy, crime scene investigators learn to dowse for the dead, though it’s not backed by science.
By
Rene Ebersole
Looking Back
May 28, 2018
Defending Al Capone
How the most notorious gangster of all got railroaded in Philadelphia.
By
Marc Bookman
The Frame
March 13, 2016
The Radio Show That Reunited Inmates and Families
“Shout outs” on the air led to van rides to the supermax.
by
Lisa Iaboni
Feature
October 29, 2020
Police Wanted “A Dog That Would Bite A Black Person”
The terrifying reign of a small town’s police dog.
By
Challen Stephens
Cleveland
November 21, 2022
How a Wealthy Cleveland Suburb Profits From Ticketing Black Drivers
Black Clevelanders say Bratenahl police have targeted them for years.
By
Mark Puente
,
Stan Donaldson Jr.
and
Cid Standifer
Life Inside
June 2, 2015
A Night with the NYPD
In which the rookie learns what police really think.
By
Bob Henderson
Feature
December 12, 2016
America’s Toughest Immigration Court
Welcome to Stewart Detention Center, the black hole of the immigration system.
By
Christie Thompson
Life Inside
June 14
A Criminal Justice Journalist Wrestles With Doubts in the Jury Box
A longtime journalist serving on a jury must weigh the flaws of the system against the holes in the gun and drug case he heard.
By
Tom Meagher
Life Inside
January 26, 2017
The Implications of Trying to Kill Yourself on Death Row
Is dying sooner better than being executed later?
By
George T. Wilkerson
Feature
May 22, 2017
The Accusation
Katie's father went to prison for raping her and her brothers. It was an unthinkable crime that broke her family apart. So why couldn't she remember it?
By
Maurice Chammah
Violation
April 5, 2023
‘A Trap for the Unwary’: The Power and Paradox of Parole Boards
Part Three of the “Violation” podcast examines America’s opaque parole system and how Jacob Wideman prepared to argue for his release.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Feature
November 27, 2018
Why Is Karl Taylor Dead?
Our prisons are our mental wards. One fatal case in New York shows where that can lead.
By
Tom Robbins
Looking Back
June 24, 2018
“An Odd, Almost Senseless Series of Events”
Every law student knows John Brady’s name. But few know the story of the bumbling murder that ended in a landmark legal ruling.
By
Thomas L. Dybdahl
Feature
February 28, 2018
Guantánamo, Forever
After nearly a decade in detention, Haroon Gul believed he had a chance at freedom. Then came President Trump.
By
Amos Barshad
News
August 14, 2017
Crowdsourcing the Charlottesville Investigation
The mixed blessing of an internet posse.
By
Maurice Chammah
and
Simone Weichselbaum
Commentary
June 9, 2016
Poster Child
How Terrance Williams became the face of the death penalty debate in Pennsylvania.
By
Andrew Cohen
Life Inside
October 25, 2018
Freaky Friday, Prison-Style
At a Kentucky prison, inmates and staff switch places during a “re-entry to society” role-playing game.
By
Derek R. Trumbo, Sr.
Life Inside
October 6, 2016
How a Phone Changed My Life on Death Row
“I felt like a virgin on my wedding night — eager to put this thing to use, not sure if it’ll hurt.”
By
George T. Wilkerson
Feature
October 11, 2020
The City Where Someone Was Bitten by a Police Dog Every 5 Days
Why K-9s in Indianapolis have mauled so many people—and why that may change.
By
Ryan Martin
,
Andrew Fan
,
Dana Brozost-Kelleher
and
Ellen Glover
News
December 23, 2014
PowerPoint Justice
When prosecutors slide around the law.
By
Ken Armstrong
Violation
March 22, 2023
A Summer Camp Murder. Two Sons, Lost.
The premiere of “Violation,” a podcast from The Marshall Project and WBUR, examines the decades-long ripple effects of an inexplicable crime.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Southside
October 31, 2018
The Waiting Room
For many released into the harsh environment outside Chicago’s Cook County Jail, it can be impossible to find their way home.
By
Nicole Gonzalez Van Cleve
Case in Point
August 15, 2016
The Case of the Do-Nothing Judge
Suppose a judge decides not to decide. For five years.
By
Andrew Cohen
Life Inside
August 4, 2022
Prison Money Diaries: What People Really Make (and Spend) Behind Bars
We asked people in prison to track their earning and spending — and bartering and side hustles — for 30 days. Their accounts reveal a thriving underground economy behind bars.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Life Inside
December 6, 2018
Should I Have Let My Friend on Death Row Kill Himself?
“We don’t live on death row; we wait to die.”
By
Paul Brown
Life Inside
September 24, 2020
I Hate My Prison Dorm So Much, I Enjoyed COVID-19 Quarantine in the Box
After two decades in a single-person cell, I moved to an open dorm with 30 other men. Between the smells, stress and lack of privacy, I was happy to spend time in solitary confinement.
By
Corey Devon Arthur
Analysis
June 13, 2016
Should Jurors Refuse to Serve with the Judge in the Brock Turner Case?
The oddest fallout from the Stanford sexual assault
By
Andrew Cohen
Southside
November 2, 2018
Cellmates
Lee Harris spent years in prison without hope, until an unlikely friendship led to a years-long crusade to prove his innocence.
By
Tori Marlan
The Lowdown
November 19, 2014
Fakeup
How women in prison remake makeup.
By
Simone Weichselbaum
News
January 20, 2015
The Near Death of Mark Christeson
He was nearly executed because his lawyers missed a filing deadline. Now the Supreme Court has weighed in on what should happen next.
By
Ken Armstrong
Commentary
November 13, 2018
Voters Want Criminal Justice Reform. Are Politicians Listening?
Midterms show wide support across party lines for changing the system.
Daniel Gotoff
and
Celinda Lake
Crime on the Ballot
November 9, 2016
Law and Order Trumps Reform
There’s a new sheriff in town.
By
Bill Keller
News
June 2, 2015
Who Runs Rikers?
The rule says no solitary for kids. The staff finds a loophole.
By
Alysia Santo
Life Inside
May 4, 2017
When Justice Gets Personal
A judge examines the impact on those he sentences.
By
Judge Mark W. Bennett
Analysis
May 24, 2016
Why the Virginia GOP Can’t Thwart McAuliffe on Voting Rights
The state constitution is pretty clear, says a man who helped draft it.
By
Andrew Cohen
Commentary
May 21, 2015
The ‘South Texas Family Residential Center’ Is No Haven
It’s an internment camp.
By
Carl Takei
Analysis
August 28, 2019
Is It Time to Remove Immigration Courts From Presidential Control?
Calls grow to create an independent court system that protects immigration judges from political pressure.
By
Julia Preston
Life Inside
January 10, 2019
Why Showering in Prison Is Hell
“Step by step, I shuffle forward amid the mass of bodies, waiting to get inside.”
By
Jason Wright
Life Inside
January 22, 2016
How I Experience Female Contact in Prison
On being pent up.
By
Rahsaan Thomas
Commentary
December 9, 2014
Eric Holder’s Final Crusade
Feds announce new racial profiling rules — and local police yawn
By
Andrew Cohen
News
August 26, 2015
Doubting Jennifer Herndon
An appeals lawyer who has represented more than a half-dozen men put to death in Missouri faces questions about her competency.
By
Ken Armstrong
Commentary
December 2, 2015
New York Disarms the ‘Mentally Ill’
Why mental health experts are up in arms.
By
James B. Jacobs
and
Zoe Fuhr
Feature
February 3, 2016
Policing the Future
In the aftermath of Michael Brown's death, St. Louis cops embrace crime-predicting software.
By
Maurice Chammah
, with additional reporting by
Mark Hansen
Case in Point
July 17, 2017
Who Pays for Jail Rape?
Under “qualified immunity,” often no one.
By
Andrew Cohen
Español
March 5, 2021
Lo que las personas en prisión deben saber sobre la vacuna contra el COVID-19
Más de 100 personas encarceladas en todo el país nos plantearon sus preguntas sobre la vacuna. A continuación explicamos si es segura, cuándo estará disponible y más
Por
Ariel Goodman
.
Life Inside
July 19, 2018
It’s Surprisingly Tough to Avoid Snitching in Prison
How hard could it be not to betray your friends?
By
George T. Wilkerson
Life Inside
November 15, 2018
Even My Dreams Are Behind Bars
After being locked up for years, a prisoner’s ability to see freedom fades.
By
Felix Rosado
Life Inside
January 11, 2018
The Curious Case of the Prisoners in the Wrong Cellblock
A mystery unfolds during an urgent phone call.
By
Sterling R. Cunio
News
March 24, 2015
The Worst State for Kids Up Against the Law
It’s Florida, hands down.
By
Eli Hager
Analysis
July 29, 2015
Meet Dylann Roof’s Defender
Representing an avowed racist, a champion of racial justice.
By
Andrew Cohen
Case in Point
October 16, 2017
A Tragedy of Errors
The corkscrew case of Rogers Lacaze.
By
Andrew Cohen
Life Inside
November 16, 2017
Prisoner to Violence
After a bloody fight in the yard, an inmate reflects on his behavior.
By
Demetrius Buckley
News
October 25, 2016
Does the First Amendment End at the Prison Gate?
An inmate’s novel is the latest test.
By
Eli Hager
Justice Lab
October 27, 2016
Who’s a Kid?
Science — and law enforcement — are rethinking young adults.
By
Dana Goldstein
Southside
October 29, 2018
The Hustle of Kim Foxx
After the fatal police shooting of Laquan McDonald, can a new state’s attorney bring real reform to Chicago?
By
Steve Bogira
Analysis
November 6, 2020
“Law and Order” Still Reigns in State Supreme Court Elections
A Nevada state supreme court candidate was one of very few nationwide to run on a message of reform. Most campaigns leaned on “tough on crime” strategy yet again.
By
Christie Thompson
News and Awards
May 26, 2020
The Marshall Project and Sundance Institute Announce Short Film Grantees
Films offering new perspectives on criminal justice in the United States to be made through a new initiative from The Sundance Institute and The Marshall Project
By
The Marshall Project
News
March 12, 2015
Why Is the FBI so White?
The nation diversifies. The bureau, not so much.
By
Simone Weichselbaum
Life Inside
May 17, 2018
Why We Can’t Have Nice Things on Death Row
Not even an extra boiled egg.
By
Timothy White
Commentary
July 3, 2018
Revolutionary Moments in Law Enforcement
Had British authorities and their soldiers exercised de-escalation tactics, would the United States exist today?
By
Robin Washington
News
August 6, 2018
Senators Take Aim at Bail Industry Backers
Cory Booker and Sherrod Brown, both Democrats, want answers from the insurance industry.
By
Joseph Neff
Commentary
August 15, 2018
What ‘Enemies Of The People’ Truly Means — And Why The Media Are Not
Journalists expose systems that don’t work, and officials often agree.
By
Carroll Bogert
News
October 24, 2017
Innocent, Disabled and Vulnerable
A judge protects an exonerated man from his lawyer.
By
Joseph Neff
News
January 4, 2018
The Latest Big Win for Prison Privatization
It just got a lot harder to send a care package to New York prisoners.
By
Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge
Feature
September 24, 2017
How Conservatives Learned to Love Free Lawyers for the Poor
By reframing the issue around the evils of big government, Republicans are notching victories that have eluded more liberal legislatures.
By
Alysia Santo
News
July 1, 2015
How the Law Will Adapt to Oregon’s Legalized Pot
Expunged arrest records, and new jobs for police dogs.
By
Maura Ewing
,
Carl Stoffers
,
Simone Seiver
and
Eli Hager
Q&A
March 2, 2016
The Rev. Jesse Jackson Remembers Rodney King and the L.A. Riots
‘Rodney King is in the lineage of Emmett Till, Medgar Evers, Trayvon Martin — that lineage of violation.’
By
Bill Keller
News
March 29, 2016
DOJ Tells Prisons to Put Safety First in Housing Transgender Inmates
Rules from 2012 are too often ignored, advocates say.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Commentary
August 12, 2016
End Prisons-for-Profit
A scathing report calls for “better oversight.” That’s not enough.
By
Carl Takei
Life Inside
August 25, 2016
What I've Learned Cutting Hair in Jail
“They look tired, ragged, and sick, more so than they thought they would.”
By
Andre Lyons
Life Inside
May 5, 2016
My Father Killed Two People
On living with, and sharing, that information for a lifetime.
By
Pamela Brunskill
Analysis
December 16, 2016
Why Congress May Bring Criminal Justice Reform Back to Life
Four reasons a bipartisan bill has a better chance than you think
By
Bill Keller
Life Inside
January 12, 2017
My Best Friends in Prison are Frogs, Turtles, and Raccoons
Sharing space with open-minded visitors from beyond the walls.
By
Joseph Dole
Jackson Newsletter
June 20
Mississippi Court Elections: What Do You Want to Know?
Two Mississippi Supreme Court seats and other posts are up for election on Nov. 5. What would you ask the candidates?
By
The Marshall Project - Jackson
News
November 18, 2014
Is Mass Incarceration Going Away?
New numbers from 28 states suggest otherwise.
By
Andrew Cohen
News
November 21, 2014
Deporting ‘Felons, Not Families’
Obama’s immigration plan has no room for criminals. But what’s a criminal?
By
Christie Thompson
News
December 2, 2014
Pulling the Teeth from the Prison Rape Elimination Act
Delay, defy, defang.
By
Alysia Santo
News
January 16, 2015
Bad Blood
Lawyer v. Court. Guess who wins?
By
Maurice Chammah
News
January 16, 2015
A Pirate’s Booty
The Feds acquire a confusing asset: bitcoins.
By
Gerald Rich
News
January 8, 2021
Hidden in Bill Passed Over Trump’s Veto: Limits on Police Militarization
But local cops can still receive Pentagon equipment, including automatic rifles.
By
Eli Hager
and
David Eads
News
May 17, 2015
Feds Open Attica Investigation
Justice Department to study brutality in troubled prison.
By
Tom Robbins
Commentary
September 4, 2015
About Those Rising Murder Rates: Not So Fast
(And the same goes for the “Ferguson Effect.”)
By
Bruce Frederick
Life Inside
July 5, 2018
Learning Violin Helped Me Survive Prison
How one former inmate found healing—and himself—through music.
By
Jason Naradzay