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Stories from the high-incarceration states of the South.
A woman with light-toned skin and reddish long hair sits on a sofa, with a toddler in front of her.
Feature September 13
Oklahoma Is Prosecuting Pregnant Women for Using Medical Marijuana
Two district attorneys have targeted mothers with child neglect felonies.
By Brianna Bailey
A woman with light-toned skin and a gray T-shirt is seated while hugging a young girl with a medium-toned skin as a young girl with light-toned skin plays on a patio.
Feature September 1
They Lost Their Pregnancies. Then Prosecutors Sent Them to Prison
Dozens of women who used drugs while pregnant have faced criminal charges. Experts expect even more cases now that Roe has been overturned.
By Cary Aspinwall, Brianna Bailey, and Amy Yurkanin
A White woman with long brown hair looks at the camera.
Feature September 1
She Lost Her Baby, Then Her Freedom
In its war on drugs, Alabama targets moms.
By Amy Yurkanin
A light-skinned Hispanic man with close-cropped hair and tattoos on his arms uses the phone at the Polunsky Unit prison facility.
Death Sentences July 12
This Doctor Helped Send Ramiro Gonzales to Death Row. Now He’s Changed His Mind.
Texas plans to execute Gonzales this week even though the expert witness says he isn’t a ‘threat to society.’
By Maurice Chammah and Keri Blakinger
News July 6
New Orleans Battled Mass Incarceration. Then Came the Backlash Over Violent Crime.
After decades of a “lock them up” approach, voters put progressives in key criminal justice posts. Now a rise in violent crime is their toughest challenge yet.
By Jamiles Lartey
A black and white photo of an empty electric chair through a doorway.
Death Sentences June 29
The Supreme Court Let The Death Penalty Flourish. Now Americans are Ending It Themselves.
As Roe v. Wade ends, a look back at how the court reversed itself on capital punishment — spurring an anti-death penalty movement.
By Maurice Chammah
Ronnie Peterson, a man with short brown hair, light-toned skin and wearing a turquoise polo shirt, and Bridget Peterson, a woman with medium-length blonde hair, light-toned skin and wearing a navy blue T-shirt, kneel at the grave of their son, with their hands resting on the gravestone.
News June 22
Louisiana Limits Solitary Confinement for Youth
The governor signed the state’s first law restricting isolation for youth after two suicides and an investigation by The Marshall Project, ProPublica and NBC News into harsh conditions in a new juvenile facility.
By Beth Schwartzapfel, Erin Einhorn, and Annie Waldman
A photo illustration shows a photo of Reginald Reddick in the center, with a black and white photo of a jury to the left, and a sign saying "Criminal Court" on the right. At the top right there is a jury slip that says "Is this your verdict?" with a checkmark next to "No."
News May 10
Their Sentences Are Unconstitutional — But They’re Still In Prison.
Louisiana’s high court considers the fate of more than 1,000 people serving sentences handed down by “Jim Crow juries.”
By Beth Schwartzapfel
An illustration shows a man shouting behind the window of a prison cell, while smoke and fire billows out of it. The window forms the eyepiece of a set of blinders being worn by a prison guard. Static is shown coming out of a walkie talkie worn by the prison guard.
Feature May 9
Burned to Death in a Prison Cell
After years of warnings about broken fire alarms, two men have now died in blazes at Texas prisons.
By Keri Blakinger
The wall of a cell shows an area with gray exposed paint in the shape of a hole.
News April 28
Solitary Confinement Harms Teens. Louisiana Lawmakers Took a Step to Limit It.
An investigation by The Marshall Project, NBC News and ProPublica found that youth in a Louisiana lockup were held in isolation around the clock for weeks.
By Beth Schwartzapfel, The Marshall Project; Erin Einhorn, NBC News; and Annie Waldman, ProPublica
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