Criminal justice

Most jailed Americans are eligible to vote, but don’t actually have access to that legal right. Durrel Douglas of The Sentencing Project details how to change that.

About 549,000 Americans are in the nation’s jails on a given day, according to The Sentencing Project. Jail inmates serving time for a misdemeanor or awaiting trial are eligible to vote, but there are barriers. It’s difficult to register, obtain an absentee ballot, or communicate with election officials. Durrel Douglas from The Sentencing Project joins LX News to discuss the...

The Massachusetts House on Saturday rejected a Gov. Charlie Baker plan to overhaul how criminal defendants can be deemed dangerous and detained, spiking his last-minute effort to attach the controversial measure to another criminal justice reform push. The House voted 31-122 to shoot down a state budget amendment Baker sent back (H 5112), which appended a narrower version of the…

Three former Minneapolis police officers went before a federal judge during the last week to be sentenced for violating George Floyd’s civil rights, and for each man, U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson handed out penalties well below what prosecutors sought and below federal guidelines.

After serving 32 years in jail for a murder he said he did not commit, a San Francisco man is free again.

Between 1986 and 2010, the U.S. justice system punished crack cocaine 100 times more than powder cocaine, despite them being two forms of the same drug. Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson was part of a group that worked to address the disparity.

“I do think folks who are like him…unfortunately will show up and cause problems, will get themselves into trouble in the future and we may see more copycats,” attorney and former prosecutor Alex Little says after the Kyle Rittenhouse verdict. The Illinois teen was found not guilty on all counts at his murder trial after he killed two protesters in...

Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all counts after the trial over his fatal shooting of two protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. In this clip, Rittenhouse hears the verdict from the jury foreperson and some parting words from Judge Bruce Schroeder.

We discuss the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial and the Kyle Rittenhouse trial with criminal defense attorney and legal analyst Molly Parmer. She says the judge in Rittenhouse’s trial has shown a lot of concern for due process and Rittenhouse’s rights. “I just would like to see this level of concern apply to so many more of my clients who maybe...

Both trials have made national headlines and could have important implications for the racial justice movement in the U.S., legal experts say.

Julius Jones is on death row in Oklahoma, and scheduled to be executed Nov. 18, after a murder conviction that supporters say was unjust. After a feature in the Viola Davis docuseries The Last Defense and messages of support from Kim Kardashian, Jones’ case was in the public spotlight – and now Gov. Kevin Stitt has a chance to halt...

Kyle Rittenhouse is on trial for shooting three people, two of them fatally, at a protest over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Illinois teenager will have his fate decided by 20-person jury panel that contains one person of color, according to NBC News. Legal analyst and criminal defense attorney Molly Parmer weighs in.

A special court for people arrested near the homeless encampment in Boston known as Mass. and Cass began hearing cases on Monday, while local criminal justice advocates said exaggerated concerns about public health were being used to arrest and detain people. The city says it needs to hold court in a jail facility because people living in the homeless camp…

President Joe Biden’s pick for U.S. attorney for Massachusetts is fighting back against Republican claims that she’s not tough enough on criminals. Rachael Rollins is currently the top prosecutor for the city of Boston and several suburbs. She said on GBH News on Monday that her progressive approach to crime is working. The Senate Judiciary Committee split last week...

Many of the law enforcement changes enacted by states after George Floyd’s death have centered on policing tactics, not on racial disparities in the criminal justice system.

Dr. Nneka Tapia was warden of the Cook County Jail in Chicago; now she is an advocate for prison reform. Tapia came to the criminal justice system with a unique background — a psychologist whose own father had been incarcerated. Today, she is using she perspective she gained on both sides of the system to push for change.

While most criminal justice overhauls require action from local officials or legislation, reforming the federal prison system is something President Joe Biden and his Justice Department control.

Many dating apps prohibit users with a criminal record, but don’t enforce that policy until there’s a complaint. Now a background check process could result in banning many people with a nonviolent record.

Multiple dating apps are planning to add background checks in an effort to root out sex offenders or other potentially dangerous people. But a blanket ban on all people with prior convictions could disproportionately harm Black people and people with prior drug offenses who have recovered, says Keri Blakinger of The Marshall Project.

Under the Illinois Pretrial Fairness Act — which would not be implemented until January 2023, after a two-year rollout plan — charged individuals will either be held or not held, eliminating any element of money. Along with the end of cash bond, there will be a new, strictly defined process to guide the decision-making for detention, NBC News reports.