Criminal Justice
States crack down on at-home sexual assault kits
Policymakers are concerned that self-administered sexual assault exams can impede justice and recovery for survivors.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams charged with bribery, fraud, soliciting foreign campaign donations
Eric Adams is the first New York City mayor to be indicted while in office.
NYC Mayor Eric Adams indicted on federal criminal charges
The indictment against the mayor is expected to be unsealed today.
These counties are recruiting teenagers to shore up a corrections guard shortage
Two counties in Texas house training programs in local high schools as officials pitch corrections jobs as gateways to criminal justice careers.
A national blueprint for taking money out of justice
COMMENTARY | A year ago, Illinois became the first state to abolish cash bail. Critics argued this reform would result in an increase in crime—they were wrong.
A $100 fine should never equal jail time
COMMENTARY | Several states have begun to change their laws to remove unjust or inequitably implemented fines and fees. It's a start, but states need to do more.
Michigan to hunt down sexual offenders who fled the state
The operation is a partnership with county prosecutors and the U.S. Marshals Service to locate and return fugitive sexual offenders with outstanding warrants to Michigan. It is the first partnership of its kind in the county—one Michigan hopes other states will replicate.
New bans on panhandling in medians spark debate over free speech rights
The efforts to pass pans have grown amid a nationwide homelessness crisis, with more people visibly soliciting money in the streets, and higher pedestrian deaths compared with before the pandemic.
Efforts to release prisoners from long sentences draw new interest
As America’s prison population both ages and increases, the “second look” movement has gained interest as a way to reduce overcrowding and potentially save money. But some say the laws could retraumatize crime victims and further burden a strained court system.
Maryland is on track to process a nearly 50-year-old backlog of rape kits
A new law extends the state’s sexual assault evidence protections to cover DNA samples. But getting justice in hundreds of cold cases will require more than just testing, survivors say.
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Criminal justice reform may be under pressure, but it still has plenty of life
COMMENTARY | Policy advances in areas such as prison conditions, reentry and record clearing may seem incremental, but they will produce durable, measurable results.
These wrongly arrested black men say a California bill would let police misuse face recognition
Three men falsely arrested based on face recognition technology have joined the fight against a California bill that aims to place guardrails around police use of the technology. They say it will still allow abuses and misguided arrests.
Greater focus on crime sparks another wave of juvenile justice bills
Nearly every state this legislative session considered changes in juvenile age limits, detention or education programs.
New veteran justice program aims to steer veterans back to ‘hero status’
Nebraska is the first state to adopt recommendations from a commission on veteran justice that calls for treatment and case plans that address military service-connected conditions that contributed to criminal offenses.
The possibility of parole: A powerful incentive that makes us all safer
COMMENTARY | Researchers have found that offenders incarcerated under truth-in-sentencing laws racked up more disciplinary infractions and engaged in fewer rehabilitation programs. And after release, they were much more likely to reoffend.
Pretrial diversion programs are effective. And expensive for participants.
Courts often charge high fees for people to get into programs that allow them to avoid prison. Alabama's Jefferson County is trying a different approach.
With addiction bill passed, now Oregon faces biggest challenge
Counties have to build new treatment facilities to deflect people away from the criminal justice system but they only have a few months before possession is recriminalized.
‘Tough-on-crime’ policies are back in some places that had reimagined criminal justice
Several states are considering or have already enacted legislation undoing more progressive policies.
Report shows Ohio one of many states still prosecuting ‘HIV-related’ crimes
A new report shows more than 200 cases of "HIV-related prosecutions" in Ohio between 2014 and 2020.
As xylazine surges, some lawmakers want jail time for dealers and people who use the drug
The animal sedative is cheap, easy to get and sometimes winds up in other illicit substances.
