Criminal Justice
Q. & A.
How Prosecutors Might Charge Trump for January 6th
The Justice Department is reportedly using a civil-rights law that “puts front and center the injury to the American people,” rather than to the government.
Our Columnists
Bob Lee’s Murder and San Francisco’s So-Called Crime Epidemic
The killing of a tech executive reveals the cycle of outrage that puts enormous pressure on progressive district attorneys.
U.S. Journal
Is This the Worst Place to Be Poor and Charged with a Federal Crime?
The Southern District of Georgia does remarkably little to provide for indigent defendants.
Our Local Correspondents
What Responsibility Do Courts Bear for the Crisis at Rikers Island?
In the wake of a dozen deaths in New York City jails this year, prosecutors and judges are being asked to reckon with the consequences of setting bail.
Our Columnists
A Test for Congress’s Commitment to Democracy
Lawmakers who do not support Donald Trump’s effort to subvert the election will need to keep their wits about them.
Campaign Chronicles
The Fall and Rise of Kamala Harris
A heady moment of confrontation with Joe Biden at a debate seemed likely to linger awkwardly, dooming a future political partnership. But, on Tuesday, evolution was in the air.
Our Columnists
Why a Court Overturned the Death Sentence for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon Bomber
“Even the very worst among us deserves to be fairly tried and lawfully punished,” a judge wrote.
Campaign Chronicles
A Preview of How a Biden White House Might Make Policy
“Unity task forces,” intended to avoid the divisions that plagued the Democrats in 2016, could offer clues to how a Biden Administration would function.
Daily Comment
Should Billy Joe Wardlow Be Executed for a Crime Committed When He Was Eighteen?
A condemned man in Texas is asking the Supreme Court to consider the clinical, if not compassionate, possibility of redemption.
Q. & A.
How the Federal Government Can Reform the Police
A member of President Obama’s 2015 task force on policing reflects on how much reform can take place at the federal level and what “defunding the police” means in practice.
Q. & A.
Bryan Stevenson on the Frustration Behind the George Floyd Protests
The Equal Justice Initiative founder discusses the roots of police violence, how to change the culture of policing, and the frustration and despair behind this week’s protests.
Our Local Correspondents
Chesa Boudin on His Incarcerated Father and the Threat of the Coronavirus in Prisons
The San Francisco District Attorney, whose father is an elderly member of the prison population, is urging politicians and criminal-justice leaders to protect incarcerated individuals who are vulnerable to the disease.
The Front Row
“Just Mercy” and the Challenges of Depicting Real-Life Heroes
In its focus on the racial bias of the justice system, the film is a drama of immense power. And yet it remains peculiarly impersonal.
Culture Desk
“Advocate” Documents the Battles of an Israeli Activist
The film, which was short-listed for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, profiles the controversial human-rights lawyer Lea Tsemel and her defense of Palestinians under occupation.
California Chronicles
How Far Will California Take Criminal-Justice Reform?
Chesa Boudin, a public defender in San Francisco and the son of incarcerated radicals, calls for to-the-studs reform in his candidacy for district attorney.
Our Columnists
Unpopular Speech in a Cold Climate
What happens today if one agrees to represent an accused #MeToo villain or speaks out in defense of his due-process rights?
Podcast Dept.
“The Hurricane Tapes”: Will a British Podcast Solve the Hurricane Carter Case?
The series is built on a foundation of riveting audio that tells a larger story about the complex and tortured relationship between race, violence, and justice in America.
Podcast Dept.
“Conviction,” Reviewed: A Bronx P.I. Pursues Justice, and Glory
A new investigative podcast about criminal justice in New York City focusses on a protagonist we don’t instinctively trust.
Dispatch
The Eleventh Parole Hearing of Jalil Abdul Muntaqim
More than forty years ago, three members of the Black Liberation Army were convicted of killing two police officers in Harlem. Only one remains in prison.
Double Take
Sunday Reading: America’s Incarceration Crisis
From The New Yorker’s archive, reporting on the problem of mass incarceration and the experiences of people inside the prison system.