Criminal Justice

A Chicago Attorney Is Getting Justice For Hundreds Of Wrongfully Convicted People All At Once
Josh Tepfer has helped exonerate 288 people, many of whom were convicted based on patterns of misconduct by corrupt police or officials.

A Man Used Instagram To Target Women And Teens Whom He Then Raped And Tried To Extort, Los Angeles Police Said
Michael Neal Watson Jr. of Los Angeles faces 16 felony charges that include rape, assault, robbery, and attempted extortion.

Crime Researchers Say Political Candidates Are Ignoring Evidence As The Midterm Campaigns Heat Up
“Tough on crime” rhetoric may be effective for political campaigns, but researchers and experts told BuzzFeed News it doesn’t match up with reality.

The First San Francisco Cop To Face Charges For Killing Someone While On Duty Still Hasn’t Gone To Trial
The former police officer accused of killing Keita O’Neil hasn’t even faced a preliminary hearing nearly two years after being charged with manslaughter.

Jail Time For An “Imaginary Crime”: It’s Almost Impossible To Overdose Just By Touching Fentanyl, But People Are Being Locked Up For It Anyway
“People should not be in jail for imaginary crimes,” one expert said.

Alice Johnson, Whose Sentence Was Commuted By Trump, Gave An Uplifting Speech About Criminal Justice Reform At The RNC
“We’ve all made mistakes, and none of us want to be defined forever based on our worst decision.”

Tiffany Cabán Says Criminal Justice Reform Could Improve Public Safety
Cabán, a candidate for district attorney in Queens, told BuzzFeed News’ AM to DM that there are “so many better ways to have better public safety outcomes rather than continuing to criminalize poverty.”

Young People Who Can't Pay Court Fees Are Getting Trapped In The Criminal Justice System
Children across the country aren’t able to leave the juvenile criminal justice system when administrative fines and fees pile up. A new bill in Congress would end this.

Donald Trump Has Changed His Mind On Criminal Justice, But It Might Not Be Enough For Republicans In Congress
Trump is endorsing a plan to soften some criminal sentences, something pushed by Jared Kushner and opposed by former attorney general Jeff Sessions.

A Criminal Justice Activist Just Beat The Lead Prosecutor In Ferguson
Wesley Bell, a Ferguson City Council member and criminal justice advocate, defeated St. Louis County prosecuting attorney Robert McCulloch in a Democratic primary Tuesday.

Advocates Who Want To Change Criminal Justice Are Rallying Around These Republican Governors
Justice Action Network is featuring Iowa's Kim Reynolds and Kentucky's Matt Bevin in new videos meant to promote the nonprofit organization's agenda.

Trump Loves Old School, Tough-On-Crime Policies. So Criminal Justice Liberals Are Going Local.
What do you do when your progressive vision loses its spotlight from the White House?

A Trump Supreme Court Short-Lister Backs Up Sessions’ Latest Criminal Justice Move
Judge William Pryor, a federal appeals judge with longstanding ties to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, told BuzzFeed News that he thought Sessions’ new charging policy could make the system more fair.

White House Sends Jared Kushner To Meet With Top Senators On Improving The Criminal Justice System
President Trump's son-in-law is meeting with Sens. Chuck Grassley and Dick Durbin as part of an effort to revive — and sort out their differences on — a bill designed to reduce mass incarceration and recidivism.