Vanguard social justice articles involving criminal justice reform
Orange County was ordered to pay $1.54 million in attorneys’ fees in addition to a $3 million verdict in favor of former Orange County senior assistant district attorney Tracy Miller, who was awarded damages after alleging harassment and retaliation by District Attorney Todd Spitzer and Judge Shawn Nelson.
California’s family court system is under scrutiny for its use of minors counsel, who are appointed to represent children in custody disputes and can wield significant influence with little accountability, often at great financial cost to families and taxpayers.
Texas judges scheduled the fewest executions in at least three decades in 2025, but the state continues to spend millions of taxpayer dollars pursuing capital punishment despite persistent problems involving cost, geography, innocence claims, and racial disparities.
Immigrants in Alabama face harsher punishments for the same crimes as citizens, with sentences that are longer by months or years than nonimmigrants, according to a ProPublica review of over 100 court cases.
The Ella Hill Hutch Community Center hosted Wakanda Winter Wonderland, a cultural event that celebrated education, joy, and community, and was supported by the San Francisco African American Arts and Culture Center, BMAGIC, and Mo’MAGIC.
A coalition of legal and civil rights organizations has filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court urging it to prevent plea agreements from blocking appeals of unconstitutional sentences, arguing that such waivers should not be allowed to insulate unlawful sentences from judicial review.
Elwood Jones was exonerated from Ohio’s death row after Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich dismissed the case against him due to evidence that excluded him as the perpetrator and raised concerns about the integrity of the original prosecution.
Civil rights attorney S. Lee Merritt filed an amicus curiae brief opposing the Alameda County District Attorney’s motion to dismiss the voluntary manslaughter case against former San Leandro police officer Jason Fletcher, arguing that the evidence surrounding Steven Taylor’s killing required evaluation by a jury.
Fair and Just Prosecution is urging prosecutors to support hospital-based violence intervention programs, which have been proven to reduce repeat violent injury and retaliatory violence, and to adopt policies that protect patients’ rights and limit law enforcement practices that can undermine trauma-informed care.
The Sentencing Project has released a report showing that automatic charging of youth in adult courts has had a detrimental impact on youth well-being and community safety, with racial disparities and a lack of access to rehabilitative programs being key concerns.
The family of Steven Taylor, a Black man killed by San Leandro police in 2020, is speaking out after the Alameda County District Attorney filed a motion to dismiss the criminal case against the officer who killed him, which the family says was done in secrecy and without transparency or compassion.
Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (FADP) denounced the execution of Mark Allen Geralds, arguing that his case illustrates deep flaws in Florida’s death penalty system, including unresolved forensic issues and inadequate mental health evaluations.
The Brennan Center for Justice’s president and CEO, Michael Waldman, warned that the 2026 election will take place in a political system warped by Supreme Court decisions that have encouraged partisan gerrymandering and eroded protections for voters of color.
The ACLU and other civil liberties groups are suing the Trump administration to force the release of the legal justification for the U.S. military’s unlawful and deadly strikes against civilian boats in international waters.
On December 5, 2025, community members gathered in San Francisco to protest the selective prosecution of filmmaker Kevin Epps, highlighting the double standards of District Attorney Brooke Jenkins and the need for a justice system that is fair and consistent.
The Department of Justice released a memo under the Trump administration that threatens to roll back key protections for transgender and intersex people under the Prison Rape Elimination Act, potentially putting them at increased risk of sexual assault in federal prisons, jails, and youth facilities.
The Anti Police-Terror Project has relaunched MH First, a community-driven crisis response program, and opened the First Responders: Survivors Line, a hotline for those harmed by law enforcement, to provide trauma-informed support and promote community-based safety.
South Carolina’s execution of Stephen Bryant has reignited debate over the use of the firing squad, which is authorized in five U.S. states, and has been used historically as an instrument of fear and repression.
The Innocence Project released a new short film, “What I Didn’t Know,” which documents the emotional and practical challenges exonerees face as they rebuild their lives after decades of wrongful incarceration.
Pamela Price, former Alameda County District Attorney, is preparing for a return to the ballot in 2026 after being removed from office in a 2024 recall that she claims was fueled by misinformation and outsized spending by wealthy interests.