NEW: A California DA was prosecuting Stanford students for felonies over pro-Palestine protests. Bolts reported back in February that he was fundraising off these cases. Learning this, defense attorneys dug more, & filed a motion to force Rosen off the case for bias. A judge just removed him:

NEW: A former Phoenix PD officer whose company trained an ICE paramilitary unit was involved in six shootings while on duty, four of which resulted in death. @awinston.bsky.social has the scoop: www.wired.com/story/an-ice...

see also Piper's own reporting on this: boltsmag.org/chris-duncan...

I tend to agree w people who say innocence cases are the low-hanging fruit of carceral reform, but it's remarkable - & deeply symptomatic - how far Louisiana officials will go to deny that these clear miscarriages of justice occur & even retaliate against their victims apnews.com/article/new-...

NEW: A @wired.com investigation based on DHS records ID’d the paramilitary Border Patrol units involved in high-profile violent confrontations with civilians during Midway Blitz—and much more. @awinston.bsky.social & @regret.bsky.social w/ the scoop www.wired.com/story/border...

"Israel’s defense minister Israel Katz laid out in the starkest terms yet that Israel plans to occupy nearly 10% of the country. ...Katz previously specified that Shiites would not be allowed to return and likened Israel’s strategy in Lebanon to that in Gaza." www.nytimes.com/2026/04/01/w...

www.startribune.com/minnesota-su... Interesting development as DAs and state AGs seeking to hold federal agents accountable for abuse navigate pretty uncharted waters

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026... this is really so outrageous. one of the defendants wasn't even at the protest, was only charged w concealing a document (for "moving leftwing zines" !) and now faces up to 40 years in federal prison.

Based on something I dug up for this piece – that Santa Clara DA Jeff Rosen's campaign website has a "fighting Anti-Semitism" page where he boasts about prosecuting the Stanford students – the students' lawyers have moved to kick Rosen's office off its retrial. boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

Based on something I dug up for this piece – that Santa Clara DA Jeff Rosen's campaign website has a "fighting Anti-Semitism" page where he boasts about prosecuting the Stanford students – the students' lawyers have moved to kick Rosen's office off its retrial. boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

Today is the 1 year anniversary of Jessie Hoffman's execution. In the past yr, Louisiana has kept trying to kill its death row prisoners (thus far failing), restricted post conviction relief to expedite killings–& Chris Duncan's conviction was vacated, yet more proof of a fundamentally flawed system

Five years ago, @elizabethweill.bsky.social and I did a deep dive for @nysfocus.bsky.social on the many irregularities in the case against Anthony Sims. Now, 28 years after his conviction, he's finally getting a new trial! hellgatenyc.com/after-28-yea...

The shadow of a felony conviction and prison time still hang over a lot of exonerees after their release, affecting their lives and circumscribing their opportunities in various ways, but this really takes the cake: www.texasmonthly.com/news-politic...

This is an excellent, deep, deep report into a catastrophically flawed capital punishment case. Long but extremely worth your while.

Chris's conviction was overturned & he's been out of Angola since November, but the state is *still* trying to reinstate his guilty verdict & death sentence. The family of the girl he was accused of killing now believes deeply in his innocence & has filed a remarkable amicus brief:

Here's something I learned in researching this story: Since the death of George Floyd, 2/3rds of the private companies that provided liability insurance to law enforcement agencies pulled out, and those that remained have increased their rates and lowered caps. www.ncrabbithole.com/p/what-to-do...

This should be a front-page scandal.

A record 129 press workers were killed worldwide in 2025, more in one year than in any of the previous three decades. The previous record was set in 2024. For both 2024 and 2025, the Israeli military was responsible for two-thirds of all press killings.

great reporting on the DA's race in Buncombe County. Living here for so long, I'm struck by the fact that there's only been 2 DAs over the last 35 years. Whoever wins will not only have to deal with Iryna's Law, etc. but will have to contend with the problematic legacies of their predecessors

Support Lex and @lataco.bsky.social's invaluable contributions to investigative journalism in LA: givebutter.com/la-taco-inve...

In MA, politicians & groups normally supportive of immigrants make exceptions for prisoners. "People are more willing to talk about banning a hypothetical 287(g) with a hypothetical police department than they are a real 287(g) with the MA Department of Correction." boltsmag.org/massachusett...

Update: the judge in the Stanford case has declared a mistrial, with jurors "hopelessly deadlocked" on both felony counts – a big embarrassment for the Santa Clara DA, who has already said he'll retry the case.

The most serious charges against pro-Palestine student protestors in the country have come from a Democratic DA in a blue state. In San Francisco & San Jose, prosecutors are using *felony conspiracy* charges to go after activists who aren't accused of any violence boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

Rarely used felony vandalism charges against Palestinian protestors.... filed by Calif. Dem prosecutors: boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

As we witness the punishment of protest across the US, a timely lesson from the Palestine US campus movement: at Stanford, student protesters were not only arrested and suspended from school, some were charged with *felonies* by the Santa Clara DA—a chilling escalation. boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

Bay Area prosecutors are continuing to pursue felony charges against pro-Palestine activists who staged sit-ins in 2024 @psfrench.bsky.social reports how the cases represent a notable escalation in punishment against nonviolent demonstrators boltsmag.org/stanford-san...

In the Bay Area, local prosecutors have charged student protesters who participated in pro-Palestine demonstrations with felony-level charges that critics are warning are setting a dangerous template for law enforcement responses. @psfrench.bsky.social reports on what's going on in this new piece:

New: Antifa unmasked a new generation of fascists in the Trump era. Now it's exposing ICE. "Predators don’t get anonymity." My latest for @us.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

Citing fear of ICE, pregnant immigrants in Minnesota are -skipping prenatal care -requesting home births, even when not medically advised -going w/o adequate food Many are experiencing complications providers say can be stress-onset: diabetes, high blood pressure, and even water breaking early

The deputy who murdered Sonya Massey, Sean Grayson, was sentenced to 20 years in prison yesterday.

The federal judge overseeing Rikers has finally chosen someone to run NYC's jails, wresting control from the city - a former CIA officer and former head of Vermont Department of Corrections: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/27/n...

An officer said the dying woman said a black man attacked her - a claim disputed by several witnesses. Walker had an alibi: he was with his girlfriend, who was in labor. The PD homicide captain was a former KKK member; the DA "had overseen 20 wrongful convictions." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/22/u...

Alaska's AG is pursuing felony cases w serious prison time vs. American Samoans who accidentally voted - elderly women with cancer, pregnant moms - despite widespread official confusion about the rules. Please read this beautiful & enraging @burness.bsky.social feature: boltsmag.org/prosecuted-f...

good point here: "By electing prosecutors less willing to confront police misconduct, two cities hit hard by ICE also found themselves with prosecutors less willing to stand up against ICE" slate.com/news-and-pol...

Horrifying story on many levels. Amazing reporting.

A week before Renee Good was killed, an off-duty ICE agent fatally shot Keith Porter in L.A. DHS called Porter an "active shooter," yet no one else was hurt. Porter's family says he was no threat. What really happened? Latest w/ @liborjany & @cbuch03 www.latimes.com/california/s...

extraordinary reporting from @burness.bsky.social please open it, and take some time when you can to read it

Eleven American Samoans in Alaska face serious prison time for voting in the only country they’ve ever known. Theirs is a wild story of colonialism, cops, “voter fraud” panic, small-town beef, and family. I spent months on this + am so glad to now be able to share it: boltsmag.org/prosecuted-f...

"Lia’s father and friends say she was a casualty, in part, of the argument over transgender women competing in women’s sports, and a broader national climate that has been unwelcoming, and often vicious, to all trans people." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/u...

Always read Victoria Law on prisons: truthout.org/articles/ice...

Chris is over halfway there! Sharing again in case anyone is trying to get rid of some $ before the end of the year...

The Massey Commission was established after Sonya Massey was killed by a sheriff's deputy in her own home. I followed along for 9 months as its members tried to enact real policing & mental health reforms – & grappled w/ the limits of these commissions to effect change: boltsmag.org/sonya-massey...

Just in: Florida's supreme court today has UPHELD a recent state law that enables juries to sentence someone to death nonunanimously. Bolts reported on FL's law a few years ago, amid huge concern that nonunanimous convictions have a high error rate, & are likelier to sideline Black jurors.

just what we need: fewer nurses

The Massey Commission was established after Sonya Massey was killed by a sheriff's deputy in her own home. I followed along for 9 months as its members tried to enact real policing & mental health reforms – & grappled w/ the limits of these commissions to effect change: boltsmag.org/sonya-massey...

Chris is over halfway there! Sharing again in case anyone is trying to get rid of some $ before the end of the year...

The police killing of Sonya Massey ignited protests throughout the country. In Illinois, a civilian commission met over the last year to debate changes—holding tense, difficult meetings. This story follows the commission for months—and captures just how agonizing these processes can be. NEW: