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A White man in a black jacket leans his head forward as another White man, who is wearing a red cap and suit, talks to him.
Closing Argument April 22
How the Death Penalty Is Returning to Presidential Politics
Trump and DeSantis want to make it easier to execute people, and Biden could face a rush of clemency requests from federal death row.
By Maurice Chammah
Analysis March 16
5 Things We Learned About Prison Book Ban Policies
We added policies to our searchable database of banned books. Here’s what we’ve found (so far).
The Marshall Project
A Black man with square-framed glasses and a thin, slightly graying beard, sits in a Florida prison wearing a blue uniform and looking down.
Inside Story March 16
The Rise of Life-Without-Parole Sentences
We explore sentences that imprison people for life without parole, and comedian Ali Siddiq unpacks his behind-bars beginning in comedy.
By Lawrence Bartley and Donald Washington, Jr.
A grid of 9 book covers set on top of a blue background with sharp shadows: Hand Lettering & Calligraphy, Soledad Brother, Mein Kampf, 50 Shades of Grey, 48 Laws of Power, Prison Ramen, The Color Prple, Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary, Forgotten Realms On top, there are a few blocks of handwriting pointing to some of the books that read: "Threat to the order and security of the institution," "sexually explicit," "methods of poison"
Graphics February 23
The Books Banned in Your State’s Prisons
We asked all state systems for book policies and ban lists, then created a database for you.
error in byline
Michael Bennett reads a book at the Cheshire Correctional Institution in Connecticut, in 2010.
Feature December 21, 2022
Why Would Prisons Ban My Book? Absurdities Rule the System
Censorship kept me from finishing a college essay behind bars. Now, prisons might keep readers from my memoir.
By Keri Blakinger
A group of two men and two women hug in a courtroom full of people.
Death Sentences October 31, 2022
Would a Death Sentence Help The Parkland Families Heal?
Outrage around the school shooter’s sentence reveals tensions between what some victims’ families want and the justice system’s limits.
By Maurice Chammah
A Black man in a tan prison uniform uses a touch screen to vote at a polling place inside a jail.
Closing Argument October 29, 2022
Why Millions of Americans Will Be Left Out of the Midterms
Even in states where some people with felony convictions — and those awaiting trial in jail — have the right to vote, actually casting a ballot remains difficult.
By Jamiles Lartey
A White man wearing a blue-collared shirt and dark blue pants walks up a pathway.
Closing Argument August 20, 2022
How Conservatives Are Trying to Shut Down the Progressive Prosecutor Movement
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis removed an elected prosecutor from office. Will this become the right’s new tactic?
By Jamiles Lartey
Feature November 11, 2021
He Got a Life Sentence When He Was 22 — For Robbery
Black men are most affected by Florida’s two-strikes law.
By Dan Sullivan, Cary Aspinwall and Weihua Li
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
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