The Crime Report (https://thecrimereport.org/category/focus/)
This section features the best criminal justice reporting around the nation, produced by our media partners and collaborators, and journalists who have participated in the Criminal Justice Reporting Fellowship programs sponsored by the Center on Media, Crime and Justice at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, TCR’s parent organization. For a more comprehensive list of Fellows’ work, please check out the “programs” section—and monitor this site for information on upcoming programs and how to apply!
With family visits barred during the pandemic, relatives of Alaska prisoners pay high fees to stay in touch with their loved ones by phone. The state has offered some relief, but the monthly bill incurred through for-profit phone services can still run as high as $500.
Restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic are raising concerns about the mental health of inmates at Pittsburgh’s Allegheny County Jail (ACJ), one of the largest jail facilities in the U.S.
An ABC News investigation of millions of traffic stops in major cities found that Black drivers or pedestrians were more likely to be stopped by police than white drivers or pedestrians.
Christian Science Monitor reporters explore what happens when encounters with the justice system are shaped by race.
An Oregon news organization’s review of 40 fatal police shootings in the Portland area since 2003 found those killed were disproportionately Black. Half suffered from mental illness. And none of the 65 officers who pulled a trigger were indicted by a grand jury or ultimately disciplined.
Washington state journalist Levi Pulkkinen spent the past year digging into a subject many Americans have never given more than a passing thought: healthcare for people in prison. His three-part multimedia investigative series reveals a system where delays in health care may mean life or death for the men and women behind bars, but also has an outsized impact on the state budget.
The pandemic’s effect on courts is hitting hardest on defendants awaiting trial, as defense lawyers across the country struggle to explain to clients sitting in jail when they might get in front of a judge and jury. “How do you have a confidential communication with your client if you can’t get within six feet of them?” asks one.
Anthony Blue spent more than 40 years in Maryland prisons for a crime he said he did not commit. Then came coronavirus.
The release of older, vulnerable federal inmates as a protective health measure, with no discernible impact on crime rates, should be a sign that “the sky’s not going to fall” if the releases continue after the crisis, say reformers. They hope it can pave the way for a more evidence-based approach to crime and punishment.
The practice of transferring prisoners to other states was once illegal. Today, it’s practiced by several state corrections systems—and it raises moral and humanitarian questions, particularly in the time of coronavirus, says NYU law professor Emma Kaufman in a Q&A with Journalist’s Resource.