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Life Inside
April 8, 2022
Surviving Prison is 90% Mental. That’s Why I Teach Workouts That Strengthen the Mind
The sessions I lead are intense enough to match the mental strain that we endure daily: the rejected phone calls, denied visits, humiliating random pat-downs and other microaggressions.
By
Aaron M. Kinzer
Just Say You’re Sorry
May 29
As a Texas Ranger Gains National Fame, His Interrogations Draw Skepticism
James Holland’s star rises after he coaxes killer Samuel Little to confess to 90 murders. But his work in Larry Driskill’s case comes into question.
By
Maurice Chammah
News
March 3, 2016
There Are Still 80 ‘Youth Prisons’ in the U.S. Here Are Five Things to Know About Them
They’re harsh, dangerous and isolated — and may be around for a while.
By
Eli Hager
Life Inside
October 26, 2017
After 20 Years, Still Haunted by a Drug Conviction
“The criminal justice system has become an ever-present shadow looming over my life.”
By
Jason Bost
Life Inside
May 12
My Brother Was Wrongfully Convicted for Murder. 20 Years Later, So Was My Son.
Although it was a coincidence, I knew it wasn’t a mistake. What Louisiana was doing to men like my brother Elvis and my son Cedric was intentional.
By
Earline Brooks Colbert
, as told to
Jamiles Lartey
News
December 17, 2019
The Hidden Cost of Incarceration
Prison costs taxpayers $80 billion a year. It costs some families everything they have.
By
Beatrix Lockwood
and
Nicole Lewis
Analysis
February 22, 2017
The Case of Duane Buck
Was he sentenced to death “because he is black”?
By
Maurice Chammah
Life Inside
October 27, 2016
After Nearly 20 Years in Prison, a Parking Lot Was Heaven
The terror and joy of stepping outside.
By
Carlos Flores
Commentary
April 6, 2016
Oops, We Took 20 Years of Your Life by Mistake. Have a Nice Day.
What society owes the exonerated.
By
Jarrett Adams
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
Looking Back
July 8, 2016
Bill Clinton’s Dissident
On criminal justice, Abner Mikva was about 20 years early.
By
Ken Armstrong
The Lowdown
May 26, 2022
The 1990s Law That Keeps People in Prison on Technicalities
How the Supreme Court expanded the most important law you’ve never heard of.
By
Keri Blakinger
and
Beth Schwartzapfel
Feature
October 24, 2019
The Kim Foxx Effect: How Prosecutions Have Changed in Cook County
The state’s attorney promised to transform the office. Data shows she’s dismissed thousands of felonies that would have been pursued in the past.
By
Matt Daniels
Life Inside
November 10, 2016
When Your Cellmate is Mentally Ill
Spending 20 hours a day with someone else’s delusions.
By
Johnathan Byrd
Life Inside
April 6, 2017
My Execution, 20 Days Away
In Arkansas, 8 men are scheduled to die by lethal injection this month.
By
Kenneth Williams
News
December 14, 2015
What Angola's Resigning Warden Is Leaving Behind
For 20 years, Burl Cain both punished and preached.
By
Maurice Chammah
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
Life Inside
March 29, 2018
When You’re 16 and It’s Your First Time in Solitary
“I felt like I aged 10 years just by doing 20 days in there.”
By
Jordan
as told to
Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge
News
October 22, 2015
The FCC Looks into the Prison Telephone Racket
Phone home, go broke.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Coronavirus
March 31, 2020
Why Jails Are So Important in the Fight Against Coronavirus
With about 200,000 people flowing into and out of jails every week, there are great risks not only for the detained, but also for jail workers and surrounding communities.
By
Anna Flagg
and
Joseph Neff
The Lowdown
June 25, 2015
What Will You Look Like 20 Years From Now?
For forensic artists, a sketch is more than just gray hair and wrinkles.
By
Simone Seiver
Feature
September 13, 2017
From Prison to Ph.D.: The Redemption and Rejection of Michelle Jones
In prison for 20 years, Michelle was chosen for Harvard's elite graduate history program. Then she was unchosen.
By
Eli Hager
Life Inside
March 28, 2019
In Military Prison I Learned The True Meaning of Service
It took me more than 20 years to become a lieutenant colonel. Then I was sent to Leavenworth.
By
Ken Pinkela
as told to Joseph Darius Jaafari
Coronavirus
June 1, 2020
What COVID-19 Prison Outbreaks Could Teach Us About Herd Immunity
Prisons turn out to be a key place to study how coronavirus spreads and how immunity to it works.
By
Jamiles Lartey
Coronavirus
March 21, 2020
Coronavirus Transforming Jails Across the Country
Some sheriffs, prosecutors and defenders scramble to move people from local jails, potential petri dishes for infection.
By
Cary Aspinwall
,
Keri Blakinger
,
Abbie VanSickle
and
Christie Thompson
News
February 7, 2018
Mississippi Moonlighting
Congressional hopeful, district attorney, debt collector.
By
Nicole Lewis
Feature
April 7, 2015
Unfreed
The man who was accidentally released from prison 88 years early.
By
Robert Kolker
Feature
July 23, 2018
New York on ICE
How Donald Trump’s war on immigrants is playing out in his hometown.
By
The Marshall Project
Life Inside
December 18, 2020
A Question of Violence
Rahsaan “New York” Thomas is barred from COVID-related release from San Quentin because his 20-year-old crime was violent. GoFundMe cancelled his legal defense campaign for the same reason. Here’s what it’s like to live with the scarlet letter V.
By
Rahsaan "New York" Thomas
Case in Point
September 22, 2016
Is a Life in Solitary “Cruel and Unusual?”
In Pennsylvania, the heart of solitary confinement reform, an intellectually disabled inmate says he’s been held in wretched isolation for 36 years.
By
Andrew Cohen
Closing Argument
February 24
Knock, Knock! Who’s There? The Police.
What happens when a joke carries criminal charges?
By
Lakeidra Chavis
Looking Back
March 13, 2015
Broken on the Wheel
The gruesome 18th Century legal case that turned a famed philosopher into a crusader for the innocent.
By
Ken Armstrong
Feature
October 6, 2014
No Country for Young Men
Junior Smith was a troubled kid who needed help. Instead, West Virginia sent him to jail.
By
Dana Goldstein
News
February 27, 2015
Untested Rape Kits: FAQ
Why cities are struggling with backlogs, and what they’re doing about them.
By
Clare Sestanovich
Closing Argument
August 5
Federal Judge Eyes a ‘Last Resort’ Fix for New York City’s Jails
Record deaths at Rikers Island may lead to a federal takeover as criticism mounts.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
News
November 20, 2018
The Jerry Brown Way of Pardoning
Former inmates facing deportation place their hope in California's outgoing governor.
By
Abbie VanSickle
News
December 9, 2014
It’s Not the Heat
Prison inmates are dying of cold. Why?
By
Alysia Santo
Closing Argument
July 22
‘Concrete Coffins’: Surviving Extreme Heat Behind Bars
Record temperatures in much of the U.S. threatening more people in prisons.
By
Jamiles Lartey
Feature
December 21, 2017
The Big Business of Prisoner Care Packages
Inside the booming market for food in pouches, clear electronics, pocket-less clothing and other corrections-approved goods.
By
Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge
Life Inside
October 24, 2019
Being a Prisoner is Like Being a Ghost
Waiting to die, we haunt our loved ones.
By
Fernando Rivas
Commentary
November 21, 2014
Is the Criminal Justice System Defensible?
A debate between Judge Harvie Wilkinson III and Stephen Bright.
By
Andrew Cohen
Feature
September 7, 2016
When the Money Runs out for Public Defense, What Happens Next?
Massive caseloads, long wait lists, group plea deals, and other realities of a funding crisis.
By
Oliver Laughland
Feature
September 24, 2019
Detained
How the United States created the largest immigrant detention system in the world.
By
Emily Kassie
Feature
June 1, 2015
After Lethal Injection
Three states, three ways to kill a human being.
By
Maurice Chammah
,
Eli Hager
and
Andrew Cohen
News
March 8, 2018
Convicted of a Drug Crime, Registered with Sex Offenders
In Kansas, even many minor drug offenders must appear on the state’s public registry. A new bill would change that.
By
Maurice Chammah
Analysis
June 14, 2016
So You Think a New Prison Will Save Your Town?
Six reasons you’re likely to be disappointed
By
Tom Meagher
&
Christie Thompson
Analysis
June 26, 2015
Scott Walker on Crime and Punishment: Back to the ‘90s
As his rivals ease up, one candidate hangs tough
By
Eli Hager
Analysis
June 12, 2018
Is Domestic Violence Private?
It took 20 years for courts to say no. It took Jeff Sessions no time to say yes.
By
Julia Preston
Commentary
February 17, 2016
Policing After Scalia
He thought the Fourth Amendment protected property, not people.
By
Jonathan M. Smith
Life Inside
December 7, 2017
When Your 18th Birthday Gift Is a Transfer to Adult Prison
A “baby-faced kid” comes of age while incarcerated.
By
Anonymous
Feature
June 26, 2019
Corporate Confession: Gangs Ran This Private Prison
What happened in Mississippi when no one wanted dangerous, low-paying guard jobs.
By
Joseph Neff
and
Alysia Santo
Death Sentences
April 8, 2022
The Return of the Firing Squad?
With a scarcity of lethal injection drugs, South Carolina has brought back an archaic execution method. In other states, men on death row are asking for it.
By
Maurice Chammah
Feature
November 11, 2021
Two Strikes and You’re in Prison Forever
Why Florida leads the nation in people serving life without chance of parole.
By
Cary Aspinwall
,
Weihua Li
and
Dan Sullivan
News
February 5, 2017
Sessions May Resist Federal Oversight of Police, But There’s Another Option
A California law offers a way for states to reshape troubled departments.
By
Simone Weichselbaum
Case in Point
September 25, 2017
A Vestige of Bigotry
The Supreme Court and non-unanimous juries.
By
Andrew Cohen
Feature
July 9, 2015
The Sex-Offender Test
Can the Abel Assessment tell if you're a potential child-molester?
By
Maurice Chammah
Feature
November 20, 2020
Superpredator: The Media Myth That Demonized a Generation of Black Youth
25 years ago this month, “superpredator” was coined in The Weekly Standard. Media spread the term like wildfire, creating repercussions on policy and culture we are still reckoning with today.
By
Carroll Bogert
and
Lynnell Hancock
Testify
September 11, 2023
Cuyahoga County Judges Vowed to Reform the Bail System. Here’s What Happened.
Court officials informally changed their bail-setting practices for felony cases. Now, fewer people have to pay to get out of jail, a Marshall Project analysis shows.
By
Ilica Mahajan
and
Rachel Dissell
Life Inside
November 10, 2017
The Singular Sorrow of Grieving Behind Bars
“I had no idea how much pain I would be forced to carry alone.”
By
Dwayne Hurd
Looking Back
August 19, 2019
In Sickness, In Health—and In Prison
A Nebraska couple fighting to marry behind bars wouldn’t be the first: Three decades ago, two prisoners took their bid to marry all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
By
Mia Armstrong
Life Inside
June 2, 2015
A Night with the NYPD
In which the rookie learns what police really think.
By
Bob Henderson
Commentary
July 11, 2018
This Call May be Monopolized and Recorded
Advocates say prison phone companies’ merger diminishes competition
By
Bianca Tylek
and
Connor Mccleskey
The System
November 13, 2020
Life Behind the Wall
Sure, prisons and jails are dangerous places. But everyday life inside isn’t as explosive as TV and movies make it look.
By
Nicole Lewis
and
Annaliese Griffin
News
August 10, 2015
The Woman Who Spent Six Years Fighting a Traffic Stop
Getting caught in a speed trap in a small Louisiana town.
By
Ken Armstrong
Analysis
September 23, 2020
Trump’s Crime and Carnage Ad Blitz Is Going Unanswered on Facebook
The president has spent millions on misleading Facebook ads targeting undecided voters, while Joe Biden has been virtually silent.
By
Jeremy B. Merrill
and
Jamiles Lartey
News
August 1, 2019
One Lawyer. Five Years. 3,802 Cases.
In Detroit, court-appointed lawyers for the poor are encouraged to take on large caseloads at the expense of their clients, a new report says.
By
Eli Hager
Asked and Answered
March 25, 2015
‘People Forget that We Are Human Beings.’
A New York City cop of over 20 years on the media’s ignorance, the benefits of stop-and-frisk, and why he wishes he could live in New Jersey.
By
The Marshall Project
News
April 23, 2020
New York Rolled Back Bail Reform. What Will The Rest Of The Country Do?
Bail reform advocates are adapting in light of COVID-19 releases and the lessons from New York’s no-bail flop.
By
Jamiles Lartey
News
April 22, 2015
Policing is Not a Part-Time Job
A 25-year-veteran cop says the place for reservists is behind a desk.
By
Eli Hager
News
June 11, 2021
31,000 Prisoners Sought Compassionate Release During COVID-19. The Bureau of Prisons Approved 36.
As the pandemic worsened inside federal prisons, officials granted fewer releases.
By
Keri Blakinger
AND
Joseph Neff
News
December 14, 2016
Let’s Go to Prison!
A national field trip to Incarceration Nation, under the shadow of Donald Trump
By
Eli Hager
Analysis
April 18, 2022
Texans Spend Billions on Border Operations. What Do They Get in Return?
Rick Perry and Greg Abbott have launched widely publicized and costly border initiatives for nearly two decades — often during reelection season or while eyeing higher office.
BY
Lomi Kriel
AND
Perla Trevizo
, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune AND
Andrew Rodriguez Calderón
Feature
March 23, 2023
The War on Gun Violence Has Failed. And Black Men Are Paying the Price.
In Chicago and elsewhere, gun possession arrests are rising as shootings go unsolved.
By
Lakeidra Chavis
and
Geoff Hing
Inside Out
September 23, 2021
Experts Say the Culture Is Often to Blame When Lock-ups Spin Out of Control
Could changes in jailers’ attitudes lead to better jail conditions and fewer deaths?
By
Keri Blakinger
News
August 1, 2017
Ending Solitary for Juveniles: A Goal Grows Closer
Recent rulings in a half-dozen states signal new momentum.
By
Eli Hager
The System
November 4, 2020
The Truth About Trials
“We put together the most cumbersome and expensive trial system that the world has ever seen, and then we decided we can’t do it for all but a tiny, tiny portion of people.”
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
,
Abbie VanSickle
and
Annaliese Griffin
Cleveland
March 22
For a Handful of Lawyers in Cuyahoga County, Juvenile Cases Are Big Business
Judges steered two-thirds of cases involving kids accused of crimes to just 10 lawyers in one year, according to a Marshall Project - Cleveland analysis.
By
Doug Livingston
and
Rachel Dissell
Feature
January 7, 2016
How to Get Out of Solitary — One Step at a Time
New programs are easing inmates out of years of solitary confinement with surprising outcomes for both prisoners and corrections officers.
By
Maurice Chammah
Feature
February 2, 2016
What’s Justice for Kids Who Kill?
Kahton Anderson and the raging raise-the-age debate.
By
Dana Goldstein
Feature
July 8, 2020
She Said Her Husband Hit Her. She Lost Custody of Their Kids
How reporting domestic violence works against women in family court.
By
Kathryn Joyce
Q&A
April 29, 2015
David Simon on Baltimore’s Anguish
Freddie Gray, the drug war, and the decline of “real policing.”
By
Bill Keller
Feature
December 10, 2015
The Marshall Project’s Holiday Gift Guide
From prison pups to personal trainers with rap sheets.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Closing Argument
July 15
For Many, a Lawyer Is a Luxury Out of Reach
Sixty years after a landmark Supreme Court ruling, the promise of legal representation for everyone is largely unrealized.
By
Jamiles Lartey
Cleveland
January 11
How Cuyahoga County Picks Attorneys to Represent Children
Ohio sets rules for fairly appointing attorneys and the qualifications they must meet to be paid.
By
Rachel Dissell
and
Doug Livingston
, The Marshall Project and
Stephanie Casanova
, Signal Cleveland
Feature
May 13, 2015
Willie Horton Revisited
We talk to the man who became our national nightmare. Thirty years later, does he still matter?
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
and
Bill Keller
Feature
June 24, 2015
The Surprisingly Imperfect Science of DNA Testing
How a proven tool may be anything but.
By
Katie Worth
News
March 16, 2016
Should Hard-line Prosecutors Be Nervous?
After voters oust two prosecutors for failing to hold police accountable, maybe.
By
Christie Thompson
News
October 11, 2017
California Ends Practice of Billing Parents for Kids in Detention
The change comes months after a Marshall Project investigation.
By
Eli Hager
News
January 30, 2020
Colin Absolam, an Immigrant Facing Deportation, Pardoned by Gov. Cuomo
His lawyer said he remained in custody in an ICE detention facility.
By
Marshall Project Staff
News and Awards
November 1, 2018
Bill Keller to retire from The Marshall Project
He built the country’s leading, award-winning destination for criminal justice news.
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
September 15, 2021
The Marshall Project Wins Sheehan Award for Investigative Journalism
National Press Club Award recognizes overall body of investigative reporting, citing impact of “Mauled,” coverage of Mississippi prisons and more.
By
The Marshall Project
News and Awards
October 7, 2021
The Marshall Project Founder Neil Barsky to Step Down as Board Chair
Liz Simons announced as next chair for Pulitzer Prize-winning nonprofit newsroom covering criminal justice.
By
The Marshall Project
Feature
June 28, 2016
The Day My Brother Took a Life and Changed Mine Forever
I grew up idolizing my brother. Then he killed a man.
By
Issac Bailey
Case in Point
July 18, 2016
Letting Prosecutors Write the Law
It’s more common than you think.
By
Andrew Cohen
Testify
June 1, 2022
We’re Answering Your Questions About Cleveland’s Court System
We’re answering questions from the community about Cuyahoga County’s criminal courts, and sharing what we have gathered from the public docket of felony cases.
By
Ilica Mahajan
,
Rachel Dissell
and
Anna Flagg
News
March 15, 2018
If You Can’t Kill It, Join It
Trump’s nominee to this panel called it “an overfed lemur.”
By
Justin George
Commentary
September 20, 2017
When Backing the Blue Backfires
The DOJ’s most recent attempt to appear pro-cop actually hurts law enforcement.
Chiraag Bains
News
December 19, 2018
Okay, What’s the Second Step?
Now that the First Step Act passed, prison reformers are already making lists.
By
Justin George
Feature
March 22, 2017
“Harmless Errors”
Eight young men and the murder story that sent them away for life
By
Thomas Dybdahl