Crime Story Daily

This is a curated selection of highlights from Crime Story Daily this week. On the criminal justice policy front: Mother Jones and New York Magazine report from Maryland, where, earlier this week, state legislators overrode the veto of Republican Gov. Larry Hogan to pass a sweeping package of police reforms. Measures in the bill include the mandatory use of body cameras, the establishment of a civilian role in police discipline, and a restriction on the use of no-knock warrants. One of its most important aspects involves an increased standard for use of force, requiring officers to first use de-escalation tactics....

PM Stories Trump’s Killing Spree Continues Elizabeth Bruenig, New York Times Prosecutors Should Stop Seeking the Death Penalty Nikki Trautman Baszynski, The Appeal Abolishing the death penalty must be part of reimagining safety Johanna Wald and David J. Harris, Washington Post Court Throws Out Death Sentence for Raymond Riles, Texas’s Longest-Serving Death Row Prisoner Democracy Now! Manhattan DA Candidates Maintains ‘We Can Choose Both’ Public Safety and Decarceration Davis Vanguard Fix parole to fix criminal justice Errol Louis, New York Daily News ‘It Tears Families Apart’: Lawmakers Nationwide Are Moving to End Mandatory Sentencing Elizabeth Weill-Greenberg, The Appeal Colorado tested more prisoners for COVID-19 than most states...

PM Stories COVID is ravaging American jails and prisons – and inmates are rightly rising up Akin Olla, The Guardian Vaccine Delays Keep COVID Deaths High in Alabama Prisons Eddie Burkhalter, Alabama Political Reporter Will COVID-19 vaccinations mean more prison overcrowding deaths? Rahsaan “New York” Thomas, High Country News Cement Head’s last fight: He was denied parole six times – until he was about to become a COVID-19 statistic Eric Boodman, Stat News Federal detainees want judge to order COVID-19 measures at downtown jail Jon Seidel, Chicago Sun-Times Can Michigan Point the Way to Nationwide Jail Reform? The Crime Report Can The Death Penalty Be Fixed?...

PM Stories The Long Shadow of Virginia’s Death Penalty Liliana Segura, The Intercept Arizona’s attorney general wants to finish his term with a rush of executions Editorial Board, Los Angeles Times Revealed: Republican-led states secretly spending huge sums on execution drugs Ed Pilkington, The Guardian Punitive Excess Brennan Center for Justice Biden Poised to Break a Promise on Mandatory Minimum Sentencing Mike Ludwig, Truthout NYC Jail Officers Lash Out at Inmates With Few Consequences, Discipline Records Show George Joseph and Reuven Blau, The City NYC must truly end solitary confinement Melania Brown, New York Daily News States Should Follow New York’s Lead on Restricting Solitary Confinement Nikki...

PM Stories COVID-19: Infections Among US Prisoners Have Been Triple Those of Other Americans New York Times 1 in 3 state prisoners tested positive for COVID-19, report says Luke Barr, ABC News State prisons struggle with COVID safety, vaccination reluctance Ethan Hunt, The Appalachian El Paso County’s Jail Justified $15M In Improvements On COVID. It Didn’t Prevent A Massive Outbreak Allison Sherry, Colorado Public Radio Two Utah cases highlight pandemic’s grip on the criminal justice system Annie Knox, Deseret News Clobbered by COVID-19, Connecticut courts are ramping back up to speed with new virtual hearing technology Zach Murdock, Hartford Courant Zoom Court Is Changing How Justice...

PM Stories Incarcerated and Infected: How the Virus Tore Through the US Prison System New York Times Biden’s COVID vaccine plan still forgets incarcerated population Talia Lavin, MSNBC Just 7% of Wisconsin prisoners have received COVID-19 vaccine, despite outcry over inmates being prioritized Mary Spicuzza, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 55 prisoners who contracted COVID died. Activists say it was preventable. Katelyn Newberg, Las Vegas Review-Journal Justice delayed: COVID-19’s staggering criminal-case backlog Jim Rogers, Seattle Times Coronavirus shutdown of jury trials upends California’s federal courts Michael Finnegan and Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times Thousands of low-level US inmates released in pandemic could be headed back to prison Sarah...