Crime Story Daily

We Put Too Many People Behind Bars. This Pandemic Shows Why That’s Not Necessary. Nathalie Baptiste, Mother Jones  Barr says bail decisions should consider virus risks Josh Gerstein, Politico ‘They’re All Really Afraid’: Coronavirus Spreads In Federal Prisons Ryan Lucas, NPR Coronavirus Puts a Prison Under Siege (Louisiana) Sadie Gurman, Zusha Elinson, and Deanna Paul, Wall Street Journal As Coronavirus Looms in Federal Detention, People Inside Are Being Denied Constitutional Right to Speak With Lawyers Nick Pinto, The Intercept Federal Prisons Agency “Put Staff in Harm’s Way” of Coronavirus (Louisiana) Joseph Neff and Keri Blakinger, The Marshall Project California courts leaders approve $0 bail for low-level suspects. Will it be signed? Darrell Smith, Sacramento Bee Parolees Denied Hearings Trapped On...

Even Now, Criminal Defendants Have Rights Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic No mass prison release for now; federal panel says it can’t rule on coronavirus case Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times Crime rates plummet amid the coronavirus pandemic, but not everyone is safer in their home Kenny Jacoby, Mike Stucka, and Kristine Phillips, USA Today Executions Are On Hold, but States Are Still Pushing for Death Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic Liliana Segura and Jordan Smith, The Intercept Probation and Parole Officers Are Rethinking Their Rules As Coronavirus Spreads Beth Schwartzapfel, The Marshall Project Will Police Restraint in Quarantine Enforcement Last? The Crime Report Inside A Coronavirus Quarantine Unit At Rikers Angelina Chapin, Huffington Post Trump’s racist comments are fueling hate crimes...

Amid Coronavirus Crisis, Andrew Cuomo Held New York’s Health Care Hostage to Undo Criminal Justice Reforms Nick Pinto, The Intercept Bail Reform Rollbacks are a Dangerous Failing of Moral Courage Tiffany Cabán, Gotham Gazette Mass release of California prisoners weighed by judges amid coronavirus fears Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times Why Are We Transferring Potentially Sick Inmates Across the Country Without Testing Them First? Samantha Michaels, Mother Jones NYPD’s Aggressive Policing Risks Spreading the Coronavirus Alice Speri, The Intercept Prosecutors In This Virginia County Are Letting People Go To Jail for Low-Level Offenses In The Middle of a Pandemic Kira Lerner, The Appeal Ailing NRA Finds New Rallying Cry: Keep Gun Shops Open Danny Hakim, New...

This is a curated selection of highlights from Crime Story Daily this week. On the criminal justice policy front: A piece from The Intercept looks at the criminal justice reforms – decreasing prison and jail populations, improving conditions, and reducing new prosecutions of low-level nonviolent offenses – that are now being expedited due to the spread of coronavirus. Advocates have pushed for these reforms for decades; now, “swift changes from prosecutorial offices across the country raise the question: Why not earlier? And with those changes in place, can things go back to the way they were?” A piece from the Marshall Project explains why county jails are so important in the...

Innocent Prisoners Are Going to Die of the Coronavirus Barbara Bradley Hagerty, The Atlantic Coronavirus Restrictions Stoke Tensions in Lock-ups Across US Keri Blakinger, The Marshall Project Cuomo’s Bail Reform Reversal Risks Explosive Coronavirus Spread in Jails Jonathan Ben-Menachem, Slate Top doctor at Rikers Island calls the jail a ‘public health disaster unfolding before our eyes’ Meagan Flynn, Washington Post New Orleans police are jailing people for minor offenses even as the city becomes a covid-19 hotspot Richard A. Webster, Emma Brown, and Kimberly Kindy, Washington Post The Coronavirus Has Spread to the US Marshals’ Detention Empire Seth Freed Wessler, Mother Jones Inmates’ attorneys challenge Gov. Greg Abbott’s order banning some jail releases, say it’s unconstitutional Jolie McCullough, Texas Tribune After the...

Why There’s No National Lockdown Lawrence Gostin and Sarah Wetter, The Atlantic Let People Out of Jail Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic To flatten the curve, free some prisoners. Please. Piper Kerman, Washington Post In a Pandemic, Poor Defendants Could Pay With Their Lives Amalia Beckner, Texas Observer The Doubled Fears of the Undocumented During the Coronavirus Shutdown Charles Bethea, The New Yorker Los Angeles Continued Prosecuting Low-Level Offenses Amid Coronavirus Crisis Jessica Schulberg, Huffington Post California to release 3,500 inmates early as coronavirus spreads inside prisons Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times A Rarely Used Power Could Free Prisoners in Pennsylvania. But the Governor Is Not Using It. Joshua Vaugh, The Appeal Domestic Violence 911 Calls Are Increasing. Coronavirus Is Likely to...