Next America: Criminal Justice

A Victory for the Eighth Amendment

A majority on the Supreme Court lets states know it is serious about barring executions of the mentally disabled.

• Garrett Epps
• Mar 29, 2017

What Will Happen to Americans Who Can't Afford an Attorney?

President Trump’s budget would eliminate the Legal Services Corporation, which helps low-income individuals obtain representation in civil proceedings.

• Matt Ford
• Mar 19, 2017

What Should the Feds Do About Bad Cops?

Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the ousted top federal prosecutor for Chicago offered two different visions this week.

• Matt Ford
• Mar 16, 2017

A ‘Constitutional Crisis’ in Missouri

In a class-action lawsuit filed Thursday, a group of defendants argued the state’s public-defender system is too underfunded and overworked to meet the Sixth Amendment’s standards.

• Matt Ford
• Mar 14, 2017

Why Trump's Dismissal of Preet Bharara Matters

The move revives questions about the independence of federal prosecutors from political interference.

• Matt Ford
• Mar 12, 2017

Customs Agents' Unreasonable Demand

Why the immigration authorities ID search of a domestic flight at JFK is on weak legal ground.

• Garrett Epps
• Mar 8, 2017

Rethinking Mass Incarceration in America

A new book challenges the popular understanding of how the U.S. prison population skyrocketed.

• Matt Ford
• Mar 2, 2017

The New Legislation Targeting Protesters

Republican lawmakers in more than a dozen states are mulling bills that target recent protesting tactics.

• Matt Ford
• Feb 28, 2017

'Some Toxins Can Be Deadly in Small Doses'

The U.S. Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, overturns a death-penalty sentence after an expert witness testified the defendant was more likely to commit future crimes because he is black.

• Matt Ford
• Feb 22, 2017

Is the Southern Border a Constitution-Free Zone?

The Supreme Court considers a case involving a youth on the Mexican side of the border killed by an American border patrol agent on the U.S. side.

• Garrett Epps
• Feb 21, 2017

When Your Judge Isn't A Lawyer

In some states, justices of the peace don’t need a law degree to put defendants behind bars.

• Matt Ford
• Feb 5, 2017

What's Causing Chicago’s Homicide Spike?

President Trump is vowing to “send in the Feds,” but researchers aren’t convinced they understand the rise, or how to stop it.

• Matt Ford
• Jan 24, 2017

President Obama's Last Clemency Push

A list of the new pardons and commutations from the White House includes Chelsea Manning.

• Vann R. Newkirk II
• Jan 17, 2017

What the Investigation Into the Chicago Police Department Found

The year-long inquiry uncovered “systemic” violations of Chicago residents’ civil rights.

• Yasmeen Serhan
• Jan 13, 2017

Baltimore Police Agree to Stop Abusing Their Power

Under a consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice, the troubled force will employ a variety of measures to protect constitutional rights and correct racial disparities.

• David A. Graham
• Jan 12, 2017

Can States Make People Pay Even When Their Convictions Are Overturned?

The Supreme Court considers whether states that charge inmates with fees and restitution have to return that money if their convictions are set aside.

• Garrett Epps
• Jan 6, 2017

A Blueprint to End Mass Incarceration

A Brennan Center report argues that releasing the “unnecessarily incarcerated” could reduce U.S. prison populations by almost 40 percent.

• Matt Ford
• Dec 16, 2016

What Will It Take to Convict a Police Officer for Shooting an Unarmed Man?

In two high-profile trials—those of Officers Michael Slager and Ray Tensing—juries declined to hold cops accountable for taking the lives of civilians.

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Dec 6, 2016