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Asked and Answered
May 6, 2015
‘It Takes a Certain Kind of Magic to be able to Survive This Kind of Separation.’
A 32-year-old woman on what it’s like being engaged to someone serving a life sentence, long-distance romantic gestures, and the cost of each visit.
By
The Marshall Project
Life Inside
October 20, 2016
A Former Prisoner on Voting for the First Time in His Life
“Being able to vote — that’s rare for people like me.”
By
Lawrence Patterson
as told to
Eli Hager
Life Inside
January 26
How a Borrowed Blazer, Tie and Dress Shirt Helped Me See Myself as a Man, Not a Prisoner
On a special visiting day at Washington Corrections Center, incarcerated men were able to dress up. This seemingly small change made a big difference.
By
Darrell Jackson
Jackson
July 24
Who Can and Can’t Vote in Mississippi: A Guide to the State’s Lifetime Voting Ban
This guide offers details about the state’s disenfranchisement laws and how you may still be able to vote from jail, even with a conviction.
By
Caleb Bedillion
Life Inside
September 14, 2017
I Can’t Visit My Sons in Prison Because I Have Unpaid Traffic Tickets
A mother with debts — and cancer — wonders if she’ll ever see her incarcerated children again.
By
Joyce Davis
, as told to
Eli Hager
News
May 30, 2019
A Monument to Survivors
The Monument Quilt, a testament to those affected by sexual violence, will blanket the National Mall with their words.
By
Anna Flagg
Life Inside
January 20
How an Illicit Cell Phone Helped Me Take College Courses from Prison
“I didn’t want to give any type of indication that I am in prison, because I didn’t want to be kicked out.”
By
Anonymous
as told to
Charlotte West
News and Awards
September 26, 2016
The Marshall Project Launches Klaxon
Open-source reporting tool enables reporters to monitor websites for breaking news
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
December 2, 2019
Keri Blakinger joins The Marshall Project
Her writing ranges from exposing prison abuses to reflecting on her time behind bars.
By
The Marshall Project
News
December 3, 2014
New York Explains Itself
Some questions and answers about the city’s new mental health initiative.
By
Andrew Cohen
Coronavirus
May 4, 2020
Can College Programs in Prison Survive COVID-19?
Many educators found workarounds now that they can no longer enter the prisons. But they fear the coronavirus could undermine a critical component: teaching in person.
By
Nicole Lewis
News Inside
February 4, 2020
Let’s Talk Politics
In the runup to the 2020 presidential election, our latest issue of News Inside explores the political opinions of incarcerated people.
By
Lawrence Bartley
The Frame
January 14, 2022
“Wild: Bird of Paradise” Envisions a World Without Prisons or Police
The final installment of Jeremy McQueen’s dance film explores the challenges and fears of being a young Black man in New York City.
By
Celina Fang
News and Awards
February 12, 2020
Anna Wolfe and Michelle Liu win February Sidney Award
Their investigation exposed modern-day debtors prisons in Mississippi.
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
August 25
Shannon Heffernan Joins The Marshall Project as Staff Writer
Heffernan comes to The Marshall Project with expertise in covering prisons and jails in Illinois for the last 15 years as a public radio reporter.
By
The Marshall Project
The Frame
September 7
Rebuilding Family After Foster Care
Bad timing and a stint in juvenile detention prevented Matthew and Terrick from accessing the foster care resources offered to their youngest brother, Joseph.
Photographs by
Max Whittaker
News
January 25, 2016
The Secret Hints for Winning Parole
Brush your teeth, sit up straight, and prepare for disappointment.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Life Inside
April 13, 2017
After 20 Years in Prison, All I Can Write Is Fantasy
An inmate, his typewriter and dreams of the Internet.
By
Jerry Metcalf
News
August 14, 2017
Crowdsourcing the Charlottesville Investigation
The mixed blessing of an internet posse.
By
Maurice Chammah
and
Simone Weichselbaum
The Frame
October 25, 2017
Intense and Raw, a Spotlight on Therapy at New Folsom Prison
In a new documentary, ‘The Work,’ inmates confront their fears in a quest for empathy.
By
Celina Fang
News
July 18, 2018
Can’t Afford a Lawyer?
Civil representation is too expensive for many, but Washington state has one solution
By
Christie Thompson
Commentary
August 9, 2018
The Real BlacKkKlansman - And Other KKK Infiltrators
Spike Lee’s Hero is Not the First Black Person to Breach the Klan — Or the Most Effective.
By
Vee Wright
Life Inside
February 24
I Was Sentenced to Die in Prison. But After 27 Years, I’m Finally Free
When I went to jail in 1995, I had never used the internet. As I play catchup, the simplest things are everything.
By
Bobby Bostic
Life Inside
April 11, 2019
Money Changed Everything for Me in Prison
“I am not evidence that the system ‘works.’ I am an outlier, dripping in luck.”
By
Morgan Godvin
Life Inside
August 11, 2016
I'm a Judge and I Think Criminal Court Is Horrifying
“I was shocked at the casual racism emanating from the bench.”
By
Hon. Shelley C. Chapman
Commentary
October 15, 2015
New York City’s Big Idea on Bail
Step one: let’s find out if it works.
By
Elizabeth Glazer
Life Inside
February 12, 2016
What It’s Like to Be a Hacker in Prison
Finding refuge in old media.
By
Stephen Watt
News
January 16, 2017
When Are You Too Stoned to Drive?
The question is trickier than you’d think for police, and the courts, to answer.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
News
November 21, 2017
43 States Suspend Licenses for Unpaid Court Debt, But That Could Change
Lawsuits say the practice severely penalizes those too poor to pay.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
News
March 28, 2018
The Uncertain Fate of College in Prison
Obama revived Pell grants for prisoners, but the program faces a cloudy future.
By
Nicole Lewis
News
September 30, 2019
New FBI Data: Violent Crime Still Falling
2018 drop extends decades-long trend, but rapes rise for sixth straight year
By
Jamiles Lartey
and
Weihua Li
Life Inside
October 28, 2019
My GPS-Tracked Life on Parole
“Even in prison, I didn’t feel so overwhelmed with worry about doing something wrong when I’m doing everything right.”
By
James Baimbridge
as told to Beatrix Lockwood, The Marshall Project
Commentary
May 10, 2019
Let’s Make It Easier for Kids to Visit Incarcerated Parents
Nonprofits in a handful of states provide transportation to help children visit their imprisoned parents. Now New York may revive a state-funded free busing program.
By
Jaime Joyce
The Rules
August 14, 2015
A Sketch of Tom Brady, but No Photo?
Maintaining courtroom decorum the old-fashioned way.
By
Andrew Cohen
Justice Talk
February 21, 2016
Join Us For Justice Talk: A New Conversation Series With The Marshall Project and Digg
Our first discussion will be Wednesday, Feb. 24, on how the police predict crime.
By
Blair Hickman
News and Awards
February 14, 2016
The Marshall Project Wins Polk Award for “An Unbelievable Story of Rape”
“An Unbelievable Story of Rape” honored in justice reporting category.
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
March 5, 2019
The Marshall Project’s Emily Kassie Named POY’s Multimedia Photographer of the Year
Celina Fang is also recognized with an Award of Excellence.
By
The Marshall Project
News
December 18, 2014
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Private Prisons...
...is none of your damn business.
By
Christie Thompson
News
August 5, 2015
If You Commit Murder, Do You Have the Right to Vote?
The evolving state of voting rights for prisoners.
By
Christie Thompson
News
June 11, 2015
Why New York Dropped Corizon
It’s not just the big profits and dead inmates.
By
Maura Ewing
Commentary
September 4, 2015
About Those Rising Murder Rates: Not So Fast
(And the same goes for the “Ferguson Effect.”)
By
Bruce Frederick
News
February 12, 2017
If Kids Ran Juvie
Suggestions from the people who know juvenile detention best.
By
Eli Hager
Feature
December 12, 2016
America’s Toughest Immigration Court
Welcome to Stewart Detention Center, the black hole of the immigration system.
By
Christie Thompson
Commentary
September 10, 2017
A Decades-Old Conviction Cost Me My Post-Retirement Job
A mistake from a Dallas grandmother’s past reared its ugly head when she least expected it.
Beverly Harrison
Commentary
July 10, 2017
To Be Good Employees, the Formerly Incarcerated Must First Become Bosses
For the incarcerated, personal agency is a deciding factor in success after release.
Marlon Peterson
News
January 7, 2018
The Check is in The Mail (For Real)
A California county will issue refunds to parents wrongly billed for their kids’ incarceration.
By
Eli Hager
News
September 4, 2018
Dallas County’s Secret Bail Machine
A lawsuit is challenging private hearings that take just seconds.
By
Mustafa Z. Mirza
Investigate Your State
September 13, 2018
How to Investigate Victim Compensation in Your State
A guide for stealing our work.
By
Alysia Santo
The Frame
October 4, 2018
The Prison Portraits
A Pennsylvania artist draws hundreds of fellow inmates to show the scale of mass incarceration.
By
Maurice Chammah
Illustrations by
Mark Loughney
Analysis
December 13, 2019
What Have We Learned Since the Central Park Jogger Case?
An eerily similar crime in New York this week will test public attitudes about juvenile justice.
By
Eli Hager
The Frame
March 15, 2021
Spotlighting the Ingenuity of Artists Behind Bars
On exhibit at MoMA PS1, “Marking Time: Art in the Age of Incarceration” is a rich exploration of how artists adapt to limited materials and endless time.
by
Maurice Chammah
Life Inside
June 10, 2021
I Hate to Admit It, but Prison Is a Blessing in Disguise.
Jy’Aire Smith-Pennick suffered multiple traumas before age 18. He masked his pain with Percocet, weed and drug-selling. Now, at a Pennsylvania prison with the right programs, he’s finally starting to heal.
By
Jy'Aire Smith-Pennick
Jackson Newsletter
May 23
Lawmakers Save Parole, Punt on Fixing Youth Court
Mississippi lawmakers considered dozens of criminal justice bills. Here is what they did and didn’t do during their first session of the new term.
By
The Marshall Project - Jackson
Case in Point
April 10, 2017
About the Gun-toting, One-legged Kentucky Woman Seeking Justice...
...and the detective she says cooked the case.
By
Andrew Cohen
Death Sentences
September 7, 2021
From Last Meals to Last Words, What Can Death Row Prisoners Request Before They Die?
As a Texas man sues for his pastor to touch him during his execution, a guide to rights for the condemned.
By
Keri Blakinger
and
Maurice Chammah
News
April 24, 2015
Why Cops Aren’t Ready for Their Close-Up
A police officer makes the case for keeping your distance.
By
Alysia Santo
Life Inside
January 8, 2016
My Life in the Supermax
Finger handshakes, the toilet phone, and the “shoe bomber.”
By
Eli Hager
Feature
July 22, 2016
The Strange Death of José de Jesús
Lost in America’s deportation bureaucracy.
By
Marlon Bishop
and
Fernanda Echávarri
Commentary
December 20, 2016
Waiting for a Reprieve That Never Comes
For defenders, the frantic paperwork ends, and so does a client’s life.
Leah A. Nelson
Life Inside
August 2, 2018
What Happened When a Hurricane Flooded My Prison
A deluge, terror and a miracle.
By
Deidre Mcdonald
Life Inside
December 12, 2019
I Did My 25 Years. Now I’m Fighting Another Sentence—Deportation
I barely remember my birthplace, Jamaica, and I have no family left there. Frankly, I’m terrified.
By
Colin Absolam
as told to
Akiba Solomon
News
May 8, 2019
More Immigrants Are Giving Up Court Fights and Leaving the U.S.
‘Voluntary departure’ applications surge as immigrants decide it’s better to return to their native countries than languish in a detention facility.
By
Christie Thompson
and
Andrew R. Calderon
Life Inside
September 2, 2022
My Wild and Winding Path to a College Degree Behind Bars
Rahsaan “New York” Thomas was proud to finally earn his associate’s degree in San Quentin State Prison. But repeated COVID-19 lockdowns turned his graduation ceremony into a two-year ordeal.
By
Rahsaan “New York” Thomas
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
Closing Argument
August 3
They Exposed Police Misconduct. Now They’re Paying a Steep Price.
Whistleblower laws have advanced in public and private sectors, but protections for police who report illegal or unethical behavior lag far behind.
By
Daphne Duret
Justice Talk
February 22, 2016
What You Need To Know About Predictive Policing
Key background reading before our discussion on predictive policing on Wednesday, February 24th.
By
Blair Hickman
Life Inside
February 25, 2016
What It’s Like to Be Gay in Prison
When the people in charge are homophobic.
By
Corbett J. Yost
News and Awards
October 19, 2016
The Marshall Project Releases Its CMS
EndRun is now available to developers.
By
The Marshall Project
The Frame
December 21, 2016
Christmas in Prison
Buses bring holiday visitors to the women in an Illinois correctional center.
By
Tom Meagher
Life Inside
May 4, 2017
When Justice Gets Personal
A judge examines the impact on those he sentences.
By
Judge Mark W. Bennett
Commentary
February 28, 2018
For Henry Montgomery, a Catch-22
His “meaningful opportunity for release” came with impossible conditions.
Ashley Nellis
Feature
July 10, 2020
How ICE Exported the Coronavirus
An investigation reveals how Immigration and Customs Enforcement became a domestic and global spreader of COVID-19.
By
Emily Kassie
and
Barbara Marcolini
News Inside
July 14, 2021
Broken Language
Issue 8 of News Inside takes on the words that define and label incarcerated people.
By
Lawrence Bartley
News and Awards
February 12, 2021
The Marshall Project and Mississippi Today Win Harry Frank Guggenheim Award for Excellence in Criminal Justice Reporting
Our investigation exposed Mississippi’s modern-day debtors prisons.
By The Marshall Project
News Inside
November 17, 2020
Subjects To Debate
News Inside knows that political debates are always taking place behind the wall, even after the presidential election. That’s why Issue 6 is full of information that will help folks inside strengthen their arguments.
By
Lawrence Bartley
Feature
January 19, 2023
The Many Ingenious Ways People in Prison Use (Forbidden) Cell Phones
Despite the security concerns of administrators, incarcerated people use phones to hustle, make TikToks or publicize prison conditions.
By
Keri Blakinger
Life Inside
July 5
Love Beyond Bars: Miguel and Silvia
While Miguel Solorio did 25 years for a crime he didn’t commit, his wife, Silvia, was right by his side. Here’s their California love story in pictures.
Photographs by
Camille Farrah Lenain
As-told-to by
Carla Canning
Life Inside
July 26
Love Beyond Bars: Raymond and Cassandra
Raymond Flanks spent nearly 39 years in Louisiana lockups for a murder he didn’t commit. Luckily, he found love with an old friend, Cassandra Delpit.
Photographs by
Camille Farrah Lenain
As-told-to by
Carla Canning
News
December 17, 2014
Peeping Toms
Do prison inmates have a right to privacy?
By
Alysia Santo
Justice Lab
December 18, 2014
Black Boy, White Boy
Another way justice is not colorblind
By
Dana Goldstein
Justice Lab
May 15, 2015
The Teenage Brain of the Boston Bomber
Is being 19 years old a defense?
By
Dana Goldstein
News
January 27, 2015
America Hates Terrorists
But we don’t execute them. A short history.
By
Eli Hager
Q&A
June 15, 2015
Money, Dogs, and Diligence: How to Catch an Escaped Prisoner
An expert casts an eye on the New York manhunt.
By
Carl Stoffers
News
June 18, 2015
Can German Prisons Teach America how to Handle Its Most Violent Criminals?
How Germany does prison, day three.
By
Maurice Chammah
Commentary
June 12, 2015
How Do We Hold a Child’s Mind Accountable?
A Colorado judge on why we don’t know nearly enough about the link between the young brains and behavior.
By
Morris B. Hoffman
Justice Lab
October 14, 2015
Politicians Still Say Longer Prison Sentences Prevent Gun Violence — But Do They?
What we know about “gun enhancements.”
By
Dana Goldstein
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
News
September 28, 2018
How to Leak Stories to The Marshall Project
Your guide to becoming a source
By The Marshall Project
Life Inside
December 1, 2016
‘Please Find My Grandson’
What I saw tracking down the mentally ill in jail.
By
Margaret Altman
Commentary
August 22, 2018
A Former Warden’s View on Prison Strikes
“An inmate is there as punishment, not for punishment.”
By
Robin Washington
Commentary
September 12, 2018
Arrests And Technology Haven’t Stopped Fare Evasion — And Probably Never Will
Subways and buses are no match for those intent on riding without paying.
By
Robin Washington
News
September 13, 2019
When People with Intellectual Disabilities Are Punished, Parents Pay the Price
A sex offense conviction can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
By
Chiara Eisner
Life Inside
July 18, 2019
My Dad Taught Me How to Build Things. Now I’m Doing It in Prison.
“What neither of us knew was that coming to prison would create new worlds for me to build.”
By
Jesse Luke Crosson
Life Inside
October 18, 2018
The Isolation of Being Deaf in Prison
“I didn’t have a way to communicate. And they basically just flipped me the bird.”
By
Jeremy Woody
as told to
Christie Thompson
Q&A
June 18, 2018
Van Jones Answers His Critics
The CNN host defends his involvement with a controversial prison reform bill and the Trump White House.
By
Justin George
Life Inside
July 15, 2021
I’m a Teachers’ Aide at My Prison. Here’s What I Learned From My Toughest Student
His disrespectful classroom antics could have sparked a fight. But as a former “hard case” myself, I was determined to help him.
By
Thomas Koskovich
Life Inside
September 23, 2021
Police Killed My Dad When I Was 8. Next Came the Rage
After cops beat my father to death, I wreaked havoc on my community.Three decades later, I wonder what my story would have been if he had lived.
By
Aulzue “Blue” Fields
as told to
Leah Rhyne
Life Inside
April 8, 2021
“Nobody Wants to Be Identified as a Victim”
Oakland activist Carl Chan reveals how fear of retaliation, mistrust of police, language barriers and technology gaps fuel underreporting of anti-Asian violence.
By
Carl Chan
as told to
Michelle Pitcher
Coronavirus
April 8, 2020
“I Do Not Want to Die Somewhere Like This.”
Medically vulnerable immigrants in ICE detention sue for release before coronavirus arrives.
By
Emily Kassie