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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 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 December 21
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.
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A group of two men and two women hug in a courtroom full of people.
Death Sentences October 31
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
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
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
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
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 2, 2021
Police Hurt Thousands of Teens Every Year. A Striking Number Are Black Girls.
By Abbie VanSickle and Weihua Li
Lance Lowry, who recently retired after 20 years as a corrections officer, outside the Huntsville Unit in Texas.
News November 1, 2021
As Corrections Officers Quit in Droves, Prisons Get Even More Dangerous
Fewer guards lead to more lockdowns, rising tensions and scant access to healthcare.
By Keri Blakinger, Jamiles Lartey, Beth Schwartzapfel, Mike Sisak and Christie Thompson
A man from a nearby prison was shackled to the bed in a Rhode Island hospital while being treated with a ventilator for COVID-19 in the intensive care unit in December.
Coronavirus June 30, 2021
A Half-Million People Got COVID-19 in Prison. Are Officials Ready for the Next Pandemic?
People who live and work in prisons worry they remain vulnerable, even as life behind bars returns to business as usual.
By Katie Park, Keri Blakinger and Claudia Lauer
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