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What’s New
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How journalists can push back on prison and jail “gag rules”
Broad policies prohibiting prison and jail staff from talking to reporters are common but likely unconstitutional. Here’s how reporters can push back against these policies.
December 13: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
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Medical Debt Behind Bars
The punishing impact of copays, fees, and other carceral medical debt by National Consumer Law Center
December 13: Research Library: Poverty and wealth
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The 2024 reporting on incarceration that newsrooms should emulate in 2025
We highlight some of the year’s best reporting on incarceration, and offer tips for journalists interested in pursuing similar stories in their states.
December 11: Prison Policy Initiative Blog
Featured report
Reforms Without Results: Why states should stop excluding violent offenses from criminal justice reforms
Too many states are passing criminal justice reforms that ignore the majority of people in prison: people convicted of violent crimes. In Reforms Without Results, we explain why people convicted of violence must be allowed to benefit from laws that expand early release, create alternatives to incarceration, and ease the reentry process. Our report includes a concise, rigorous overview of the existing research on violent crime, as well as an interactive U.S. map showing which states have passed laws that exclude people convicted of violence.
Mass incarceration, state by state
Learn about the national prison crisis and how we can begin to turn the tide on mass incarceration. Then, drill down to your state. Be sure to also check out our pages focused on D.C., and the incarceration of Native people.
If our work is new to you, you might want to check out our 2023-2024 annual report.
Recommended Reading:
The unmet health needs of people in prison
States fall far short of their duty to meet the health needs of incarcerated people.
All profit, no risk
The bail industry exploits cracks and loopholes in the legal system to avoid accountability, while growing its profits.
Compare your state's use of the prison to the world at large
Criminal justice policy in every region of the United States is out of step with the rest of the world.
Prison Gerrymandering Project
We are leading the movement to protect our democracy from the Census Bureau's prison miscount.