While the pause comes as a relief to those opposed to the death penalty, Ivey's full-throated defense of the practice makes it clear that she seeks only a temporary pause in executions, not an end to the policy.
The court says a 51-year "life" sentence for a 2015 murder violated the Eighth Amendment.
"People die from hard physical labor and inability to access medical treatment that they need," said one former inmate.
On Tuesday, voters in Alabama, Tennessee, Vermont, and Oregon approved ballot measures that removed exceptions to anti-slavery laws in their state's constitutions, effectively banning forced prison labor.
It’s a little thing, but thousands of people end up in jail over these types of avoidable technical violations.
State prisons around the country ban the roleplaying game, too, because of bizarre concerns about gang behavior and security threats.
While Biden's mass pardons for those with low-level marijuana possession convictions were greeted with cautious optimism, protesters expressed frustration over Biden's lack of action to actually release those imprisoned for nonviolent drug crimes.
Is a federal takeover of the troubled jail pending?
Plus: Federal court dismisses state challenge to student loan debt forgiveness, not all independent contractors want to be employees, and more...
Craig Ridley died after corrections officers paralyzed him in a beating then left him without medical care for days.
Reason first reported last week on the scathing contempt order, which said the Bureau of Prisons should be "deeply ashamed" of its conduct.
A federal judge wrote that the Bureau of Prisons should be "deeply ashamed" of medical delays that resulted in a man dying from treatable cancer.
The war on drugs conspires with the war on guns to make a mockery of justice.
Pardoning possession offenders is nice. Taking his boot off the necks of cannabis sellers would be even better.
The Supreme Court may soon consider if acquitted conduct sentencing is illegal.
The Federal Prison Oversight Act would create an independent ombudsman to investigate complaints about the Bureau of Prisons, something prison advocacy groups have long called for.
High recidivism rates are not surprising when life in prison features the same factors that drive crime.
Libertarians have some common ground with the abolitionists—but if they insist on anti-capitalism as a litmus test, abolitionists will find themselves isolated and marginalized.
The report says the inaccuracies "deprived Congress and the American public of information about who is dying in custody and why."
Brittany Martin, who is pregnant, was sentenced to four years in prison after telling police they'd "better be ready to die for the blue. I'm ready to die for the black."
"This is inhumane," one child told state inspectors.
Criminal justice groups say the numbers vindicate their push to keep those people from being sent back to prison.
More than 900 had been held in isolation for more than a decade.
Former Judges Mark A. Ciavarella and Michael T. Conahan are now serving lengthy prison sentences for what became known as the "kids-for-cash" scandal.
Joe Nathan James appeared to have suffered for hours as prison officials tried to establish an IV for lethal injection.
A court monitor's report found evidence of neglect and abuse of dementia patients, including signing "do not resuscitate" orders that they could not understand.
It is unclear if, or when, she could be freed by a prisoner exchange.
Senators allege Bureau of Prisons officials turned a blind eye to rapidly deteriorating conditions at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atlanta.
The federal prison system is plagued by corruption and civil rights abuses.
Heather Ann Thompson's Blood in the Water might lead to "disobedience," prison officials say.
The felony murder rule continues to criminalize people for killing people they didn't actually kill.
The case of Jose Alba reminds us that progressive prosecutors don't always apply their principles when they're inconvenient.
Climate protesters who blocked an interstate outside D.C. likely cost a man his parole.
"No legitimate humane system would operate in this manner," the judge concluded.
Just a week ago, New York City convinced a federal judge not to seize control of the jail.
The lawsuit says there have been multiple deaths from neglect and poor suicide prevention policies at the Louisiana prison where Javon Kennerson died.
One of Ralph Petty's victims is trying to hold him accountable, but she will have to overcome prosecutorial immunity.
The police officers who allegedly framed William Virgil were denied qualified immunity. But they're still trying to delay a trial.
Bail reforms did not lead to higher crime, and in fact should be applied more uniformly, report finds.
A new report emphasizes that the U.S. would still have a very high incarceration rate even if all drug war prisoners were released.
The record number of reduced sentences still represented a tiny share of the federal prison population.
The bill addresses treatment of women in federal prisons and sexual assault of people in police custody.
Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich said Moses would be a free woman—if she hadn't insisted on exercising her constitutional right to trial.
Louisiana refused to release Sneed for months, despite a judge ruling several times that the state was breaking the law.