Marijuana Legalization Has a Racial Component
By Charlotte Resing Marijuana has been a key driver of mass criminalization in this country and hundreds…
Will State End Involvement in For-Profit, Private Prisons?
Back in December, Oakland Assemblymember Rob Bonta introduced AB 32, which would prohibit California’s use of for-profit,…
People Are Charged with Crimes that Waste Taxpayers’ Money and Prosecutors’ Time
By Rahsaan Hall America’s growing awareness of mass incarceration and the over-incarceration of people of color has…
Leniency Shown to Paul Manafort Should Be the Norm for Everyone
By Udi Ofer Last week, Americans got a front row seat to the two systems of justice…
William Barr Was an Ardent Champion of Mass Incarceration
By Sagiv Galai In 1992, a little less than a year into his new job, Attorney General…
PPIC Report Finds Arrest Rates Plummet to Historic Lows in California
While Disparities Have Narrowed, Large Gaps Remain Between African Americans and Whites Crime and policing have been…
Guest Commentary: Prop 47 Spares Offenders from Prison, but County Jail May Be Worse
By Kerry Rudd Proposition 47’s forgotten people are in dire need of relief. Low-level offenders, the people…
Probation System Squeezes the Poor and Feeds Mass Incarceration
By Andrea Young Charles “Skip” Eckartz, a 63-year-old disabled veteran, and his wife, Virginia “Ginny” Eckartz, were…
Sunday Commentary: Criminal Justice Reform Advocate Warns of a Coming System of “E-Carceration”
More than anything else, the 2010 book by Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in…
Monday Morning Thoughts: Ending Mass Incarceration and Reinventing the Role of the Modern Prosecutor
The New Yorker this week has a feature article on Larry Krasner, the reform-minded district attorney of…
Man Gets Eight Years in Mississippi For Medical Marijuana Purchased Legally in Another State
By Ezekiel Edwards Patrick Beadle, a 46-year-old father and musician, received an eight-year prison sentence in Mississippi…
Sunday Commentary: The Arrogance of Incumbency
Doesn’t an Elected Official Owe It to the Voters to Participate in Candidate Forums? Dean Johansson tells…
Reisig a No-Show at King Hall Law School Candidates Forum
Students at UC Davis’ Law School invited both DA candidates to participate in a candidates forum. Challenger…
Monday Morning Thoughts: Does a Prosecutor Have to Be Tough on Crime?
I found Matt Rexroad’s letter in support of DA Jeff Reisig interesting. I asked him if he…
Commentary: Should There Be Effective Life Without Parole in Non-Capital Cases?
Last week Judge David Reed sentenced Joseph Hernandez to 93 years in prison. That means the 26-year-old…
Making a Life After Incarceration Shouldn’t Be Impossible
By Laurin Leonard In 2012, I founded an organization called Mission: Launch with my mom. Based out…
Sunday Commentary: Can Johansson Become Yolo’s Larry Krasner?
In November, Larry Krasner, a man who spent his career defending criminals and protecting civil rights and…
Breaking News: Johansson Formally Announces for DA
Flanked by supporters, and pledging to “provide justice for all,” longtime Yolo County Deputy Public Defender Dean…
Ending Mass Incarceration Is a Winner for Politicians
By Inimai Chettiar & Udi Ofer For decades, politicians competed to see who could push the most…
Jared Kushner’s Prison Reform Plan Doesn’t Promise Much
By Marc Mauer On Thursday, senior White House adviser Jared Kushner hosted a listening session for his…
