Life Inside May 24

I Followed My Mom to Prison and to a Degree

“This is the path my life had to take so I could be strong.”

By Arielle Pierre, as told to Nicole Lewis

Life Inside March 8

Caring for My Sick Husband From Prison

A federal inmate feels helpless as her partner’s health deteriorates.

By Connie Farris, as told to Christie Thompson

News January 12

New York Cancels Private Prison Care Packages Program

An uproar over cost, selection — and coloring books.

By Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge

News January 4

The Latest Big Win for Prison Privatization

It just got a lot harder to send a care package to New York prisoners.

By Taylor Elizabeth Eldridge

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 November 2, 2017

What to Never Ask a Prison Wife

People say the darndest things when they hear your spouse is incarcerated.

By Heather Moore

News November 2, 2017

Can Jared Kushner Save Criminal Justice Reform?

“Fat chance!” is giving way to “Well, maybe…”

By Justin George

Feature October 26, 2017

We are Witnesses

The American criminal justice system consists of 2.2 million people behind bars, plus tens of millions of family members, corrections and police officers, parolees, victims of crime, judges, prosecutors and defenders.

By The Marshall Project

Life Inside October 12, 2017

How to Have a Jail Wedding in 3 Minutes

For two women getting hitched at Rikers Island, the ceremony was short and bittersweet.

By Emma Gilbey Keller

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 September 19, 2017

Why Many Deaf Prisoners Can’t Call Home

Faulty and outdated technology is pervasive, and upgrades are slow in coming.

By Christie Thompson

Life Inside September 14, 2017

I Can’t Visit My Sons in Prison Because I Have Unpaid Traffic Tickets

A mother with debts — and cancer — wonders if she’ll ever see her incarcerated children again.

By Joyce Davis, as told to Eli Hager

Life Inside May 25, 2017

Prison Is Killing My Prison Romance

A reflection on “the improbability of us.”

By Arthur Longworth

News March 3, 2017

Philadelphia Will Stop Billing Parents When Their Children Are Incarcerated

The announcement comes just hours after we highlighted the practice.

By Eli Hager

News March 2, 2017

Your Kid Goes to Jail, You Get the Bill

For 40 years, many parents have had to pay for their children's incarceration, but that may be changing.

By Eli Hager

Life Inside February 16, 2017

A Mother Visits Her Son, Who’s Condemned to Die in April

‘I can’t touch him and comfort him.’

By Marilyn Shankle-Grant as told to Maurice Chammah

Life Inside February 9, 2017

When a Wedding Narrowed the ‘Emotional Distance’ of Prison

For the best man, a fleeting moment of humanity.

By James King

Case in Point January 9, 2017

The Punishing Price of Freedom

Alabama never forgave Phillip Chance for running away.

By Andrew Cohen

Life Inside January 5, 2017

‘Who Killed My Mom?’

A grandmother struggles to explain the unexplainable.

By Lisa Marino, as told to Eli Hager

Life Inside December 22, 2016

‘I’ll Be Waiting’

In cell 62, another birthday turns into another day alone.

By John Francis

News December 20, 2016

Child Support Relief Coming for Incarcerated Parents

In the last days of the Obama administration, regulators quietly ease the child support burden on parents in prison.

By Eli Hager

News September 6, 2016

Mississippi Limits Prison Visits to Immediate Family

A strict new policy begins after "a security violation".

By Christie Thompson

Life Inside June 30, 2016

What You Do While You Wait for Your Husband to Go to Prison

“Drive whenever you go anywhere, get your financial house in order, finalize your will, take baths, and cry.”

By Anonymous

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

Life Inside May 5, 2016

My Father Killed Two People

On living with, and sharing, that information for a lifetime.

By Pamela Brunskill

Life Inside April 28, 2016

How I Break Prison Rules to Keep in Touch with My Family

“Sometimes I won’t hear from my family in years.”

By Anonymous

The Frame March 13, 2016

The Radio Show That Reunited Inmates and Families

“Shout outs” on the air led to van rides to the supermax.

by Lisa Iaboni

Life Inside February 18, 2016

I Married a Sex Offender

Life, restricted.

By gretchen as told to Beth Schwartzapfel

Life Inside February 5, 2016

How I Reconnected with My Estranged Daughter from Prison

One crinkly letter at a time.

By Daniel Royston`

News January 19, 2016

Massachusetts Mobilizes to Treat Addicted Moms

Jail time increasingly gives way to residential programs.

By Meredith Derby Berg

The Frame December 29, 2015

Watch Alvin Ailey Dancers Rehearse a Piece About Being Locked Up

A choreographer explores separation and alienation in our prison system.

By Caroline Grueskin & Christie Thompson

Life Inside December 11, 2015

My Wife and Child Died on the Way Home From Visiting Me in Prison

On loss behind bars.

By Charles Davis

News October 22, 2015

The FCC Looks into the Prison Telephone Racket

Phone home, go broke.

By Beth Schwartzapfel

Feature October 18, 2015

For Men in Prison, Child Support Becomes a Crushing Debt

New regulations would give parents in prison the right to pause child support payments, but opponents say it undercuts welfare reform.

By Eli Hager

Feature September 8, 2015

‘I Reviewed Jail on Yelp Because I Couldn't Afford a Therapist.’

Why people are using sites like Yelp to vent and offer tips about prison and jail.

By Beth Schwartzapfel

Justice Lab June 4, 2015

You Can’t Go Home Again

Surprising new research suggests parolees who go somewhere new are less likely to offend again.

By Dana Goldstein

Asked and Answered May 6, 2015

‘It Takes a Certain Kind of Magic to be able to Survive This Kind of Separation.’

A 32-year-old woman on what it’s like being engaged to someone serving a life sentence, long-distance romantic gestures, and the cost of each visit.

By The Marshall Project

Feature April 15, 2015

Hard Labor

A doula offers a little comfort for a birth behind bars.

By Simone Weichselbaum

The Lowdown February 11, 2015

Conjugal Visits

Why they’re disappearing, which states still use them, and what really happens during those overnight visits.

By Dana Goldstein

News February 11, 2015

‘Heaven’

Happiness is a family sleepover.

By Sheila Anne Feeney

Asked and Answered November 20, 2014

‘I'm Only Allowed One Kiss and Hug.’

What can Charles Manson’s fiancee expect? The experience of this inmate’s wife offers some clues.

By The Marshall Project