Vanguard social justice articles involving criminal justice reform
Drug diversion programs in the US often function as systems of punishment rather than rehabilitation, disproportionately affecting low-income individuals, people of color, and those with severe illnesses.
Robert Eugene Brashers has been identified as the sole suspect in the 1991 Austin yogurt shop murders, and two men who were previously wrongfully convicted have had their convictions overturned.
Governor Gavin Newsom has signed AB 1213, the Restitution First Act, into law, which prioritizes restitution to victims of crime ahead of fines, fees, or other debts owed by people convicted of crimes.
A mother recounts her traumatic experience of losing custody of her children to an abusive father, due to the false accusations of a court-appointed evaluator, Dr. Mark Kilmer, and the lack of accountability of the judicial system.
Judges in New York City frequently override official pretrial release recommendations, leading to unnecessary pretrial incarceration and widening racial disparities in bail decisions, according to new research from John Jay College’s Data Collaborative for Justice.
Mario Guevara, an Emmy-winning journalist, is set to be deported to El Salvador after being detained by ICE for over 100 days in retaliation for his reporting on law enforcement, despite the charges being dismissed and an immigration judge granting him bond.
Fair and Just Prosecution and the Law Enforcement Action Partnership have filed an amicus brief urging the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to halt ICE arrests near places of worship, arguing that the new DHS policy undermines public safety and trust.
The Trump administration has deployed 300 National Guard troops to Chicago to restore law and order, a move that has been denounced by Illinois leaders and civil rights advocates as an unlawful and politically motivated show of force.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has urged Governor Gavin Newsom to use his executive powers to commute the death sentences of all individuals currently on death row in California, citing racial discrimination, mental illness, and wrongful convictions.
Illinois became the first state to end cash bail in 2021, replacing it with a risk assessment system to determine a person’s potential threat to public safety, which benefits women on multiple levels and helps reduce racial bias in the justice system.
The Marshall Project reports that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has increased the use of solitary confinement in detention centers under the Trump administration, causing severe psychological harm to thousands of immigrants, with one mother of three from Mexico being held in a windowless isolation cell with a broken toilet for almost two months.
The Trump administration is building out a national paramilitary policing force that could be used to intimidate people and consolidate power, but states have tools to resist this dangerous abuse of power and protect communities from intimidation.
The Sentencing Project warns that the overreach of federal criminal law into local offenses disproportionately harms Black and Latino communities, and Congress has introduced legislation to limit federal prosecution of conduct already handled at the state and local levels.
The ACLU is challenging the federal government over what it calls blatant violations of the First Amendment, after two students were detained by ICE in retaliation for their speech supporting Palestinian rights.
The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office criticized District Attorney Brooke Jenkins’ recent announcement that eight of eleven people charged with narcotics trafficking in the Tenderloin had been released, arguing that it is a fear-mongering tactic that threatens judicial independence and would further overcrowd jails.
Vera’s research reveals that ICE is detaining more than 59,000 people across the US, with 17 private facilities holding over 1,000 people per day and 2 facilities exceeding 2,000 people, and the Trump administration has allocated an unprecedented $45 billion for detention and $30 billion for additional enforcement.
Alameda County’s latest audit of Wellpath LLC at Santa Rita Jail has confirmed total failure, with advocates demanding urgent reforms and the replacement of Wellpath by a not-for-profit provider committed to care, not profit.
Immigrant rights leader Magybet Mendez discusses the real-world consequences of ICE raids, racial profiling, and legal fees on immigrant families, as well as the Supreme Court’s shadow docket enabling military-style ICE invasions, and how communities are fighting back through advocacy, education, and small business empowerment.
The ACLU of Louisiana has spoken out against Governor Jeff Landry’s request to deploy up to 1,000 National Guard troops in urban areas, arguing that it is a misuse of power that could endanger residents and divert resources away from natural disaster relief.
A federal civil rights lawsuit between Solano County and Nakia Porter, her father J.B. Powell, and her three children has concluded with a $17 million settlement, representing one of the largest excessive force settlements in California history.