What politicians mean when they support DHS's goal to deport 100 million people. Read and subscribe to Texas On Fire. wrenactiongroup.substack.com

The DA and County Commissioners' work won't undo this wrongful execution, but it mattered to the family and is critical to helping us understand how fallible our criminal justice system is. Hat's off to Dallas and the lawyers at @innocenceproject.bsky.social innocenceproject.org/news/tommy-l...

UPDATE from @stevenzetti.bsky.social: Last week, the Texas Observer revealed that James Rodden, the ICE lawyer with a white supremacist X account, was back trying cases in a Dallas courtroom. Now, a member of Congress wants Rodden to finally face consequences.

My latest investigation: Far from the border, a father and son met Border Patrol tactics. They haven’t seen each other since. www.ms.now/news/border-... Our full @ms.now documentary comes out tonight

In Minneapolis, attorneys report they have been denied access to clients detained at the Whipple Federal Building. The right to counsel is enshrined in the United States Constitution, but we now regularly see elected officials treat constitutional rights as gravel. abcnews.go.com/US/lawyers-a...

This is a transparent attempt to create a pretext for invoking the Insurrection Act. One provision applies when a group of people "opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws." And when it's (allegedly) the state itself...

Last night, Wren's founder @jrbrand07.bsky.social spoke to @jesspish.bsky.social about Minneapolis, the Insurrection Act, and why using it now would be totally unprecedented (and why this was always the plan). defendingwhatmattersmost.substack.com/p/a-wren-con...

We are told Texas is a "freedom state," but every day we see officials trying to regulate what we read, what we believe, who we love, and how we use our bodies. Today, the Wren Action Group is launching a new Substack to fight back: Texas is on Fire. 🔥 🧵 wrenactiongroup.substack.com

CA spends 19x more on incarceration than public defense. It’s a bad investment: if a fraction of those resources were devoted to public defense on the front end, CA could save money and improve public safety on the back end. Tune in as Wren’s Josh Schwartz & Leon Parker chat w/ David Greenwald:

"The idea of extra-judicial, extra-violent, unaccountable beat-down units is not a novel one. Arguably, these special tactical groups are the purest form of American policing." sheriffs.substack.com/p/the-killer...

This weekend, NYTimes columnist Ross Douthat claimed that homicides started spiking in 2020 because of the George Floyd protests. John Roman thoroughly debunks this myth in his substack and it's an important read. open.substack.com/pub/johnkrom...

Violence prevention groups have helped dramatically reduce serious crime, especially in places like Philadelphia. The @PhillyInquirer documents how the DOJ is doing everything it can to make Philly less safe. www.inquirer.com/crime/philad...

Grateful to @vera.org and their partners for this campaign for legal representation in the immigration system. As former public defenders and champions of the right to counsel, we at the Wren Collective know how vital it is for ppl in the immigration system to have lawyers by their sides.

Today, the House Judiciary Comm. will vote on two mass incarceration bills that threaten to impose federal control over local criminal justice systems

Excellent reporting here about Nanon Williams' fight against his wrongful conviction in Texas, his relationship with Rob and Michele Reiner, and the Harris County DA's office's fight to keep him in prison. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

From all of us at The Wren Collective, we wish you a happy New Year. May 2026 bring a little more kindness, empathy, and support for one another.

Today I went to the museum where the Gestapo HQ was and realized some of these guys literally got less time for helping do the holocaust than we now routinely give to nonviolent drug offenders

As we close out 2025, our last newsletter looks back on what has happened to democracy in this country, while celebrating the heroes who have stood up for it. Check it out here: bit.ly/4b6wq7a

Just a devastating investigation by Anat Rubin @calmatters.org on the impact of flat-fee defense contracts, as told through the lens of one firm in the state. One stat: of 2,000 cases resolved, they investigated just 9. calmatters.org/investigatio...

The right to a fair trial is at the heart of our legal system. But in CA, the reality is far from fair: prosecutors have almost triple the support staff of public defenders, who fight back to defend people. It’s time for equal investment in public defense. #PublicDefense #California #EqualJustice

“I think it’s really important for visions of safety, visions of justice, to be crafted by the people who live in those communities and care about those communities, I don’t think it should be based on partisan agendas." Candace Mitchell on Congress's attack on DC washingtonian.com/2025/11/21/w...

Modern criminal cases involve tons of digital evidence. Far too many defense attorneys just don’t have the resources to keep up with it all. CA needs to invest in public defense so that these attorneys have the investigative staff they need and their clients get the defense that they deserve.

California’s public defenders are drowning in cases, and the cost is justice denied. New data confirms it: workloads are beyond what’s ethical or effective. The right to counsel means nothing without time and support to defend. Read more: scholar.smu.edu/cgi/viewcont... #PublicDefense #California

In our latest newsletter, we look at the increased use of the death penalty in the last year and our move toward a more retributive and cruel society-- often at the cost of basic constitutional rights or even a person's innocence. You can read this edition here: bit.ly/49Homch

There is a lot of harm that comes from mandatory pretrial detention. One that is less discussed but critically important: prosecutors upcharge cases to detain people even though they know they will never be able to prove the case at trial. www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/outl...

In 2024, we documented how the Cuyahoga County Jail denied people access to in-person visits, harming their right to counsel and contact with loved ones. All communication was on the phone. Prosecutors were listening. Today, the Sheriff restored in-person visits. www.cleveland.com/news/2025/10...

I would have gone with “illegal” in the headline, here. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Truly hard to imagine how the BOP will be able to recruit new guards, which is terrifying at a time when they are already short-staffed. This is bad for the guards and bad for those who are in their care.

Its hard to remember there are things happening at the local level, but that's where so much cruelty occurs every day- regardless of who is in Washington. This podcast documenting coverups in a county jail is a must listen to for anyone who cares about criminal justice. Also- vote for it!

The misinformation floating around about bail is at an all-time high. Join @vidabjohnson.bsky.social @johnpfaff.bsky.social @jduffyrice.bsky.social @insharahman.bsky.social Kaethe Morris Hoffer to talk DC, IL, NJ, NY, and all things pretrial justice: Register: bit.ly/41wwE1Z

Reminder- today at 6 ET-- register: bit.ly/4n2JIEC

My wife's reaction: "You should ask him to subscribe to your newsletter."

I went on Ezra Klein's podcast to discuss how Trump is building his own paramilitary force. Grim as this discussion is, we recorded it *before* Trump's executive order directing Hegseth to set up rapid deployment units within the National Guard. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/27/o...

Come hear @robertpeters.bsky.social @radleybalko.bsky.social dleybalko.bsky.social & Bethany Young from DC Justice Lab talk about Trump's attempt to take over our cities. RSVP: bit.ly/4n2JIEC

Urgent Call To Action! California’s public defense system is in crisis. “Flat-fee” contracts are a big reason why. Call the Senate now to support AB 690, which would finally ban these unethical agreements. Get involved here: www.justiceforallca.org/getinvolved

On Friday at 12 ET, join us for a briefing on the public health and safety impacts of the Trump cuts. Join @veraaction.bsky.social @ejusa.bsky.social @aclu.org @wrencollective.bsky.social and the Medical Justice Alliance: bit.ly/4nz1ss2

"Across the country, including in places in California, defenders have been expected to triage cases, forced to make decisions about how to allocate their time in ways that are unfair to clients and attorneys."

📣The California Senate Public Safety Committee has advanced AB 690, which will eliminate flat-fee contracts in public defense. Thank you to @jessearreguin.bsky.social, @scottwiener.bsky.social, @senatorsrp.bsky.social, and @senatorgonzalez.bsky.social who voted in favor of this much-needed reform.

📣Good news! The California Assembly recently advanced AB 690, a landmark public defense reform bill. We greatly appreciate the Assembly’s demonstrated support in pushing us closer to a more just public defense system.

Poor people accused of crimes are routinely convicted in California without anyone investigating the charges against them. Part of the problem is flat-fee lawyering: investigation eats into profits. But shortchanging justice costs lives & the integrity of the legal system itself 🧵 @calmatters.org

CA’s public defense system is in crisis. A key culprit is flat-fee contracts, which incentivize rushed, low-quality legal defense. We’ve been ringing the alarm because AB 690 would finally put an end to them. Asm. Nick Schultz lays out why reform can’t wait. www.ocregister.com/2025/05/29/n...

Public defenders face deep systemic issues—grueling caseloads, insufficient resources, and low pay. They aren’t the only ones hurt by a broken system. Clients languish behind bars & justice itself takes a hit. www.governing.com/workforce/st...

With state crackdowns, encampment sweeps, and increased felony charges under laws like Proposition 36, thousands of Californians, especially low-income Black and Brown communities, are left without legal representation. The Fair Representation Act (AB 690) could be a turning point. Read more below.

Couldn’t attend our briefing last week? Our speakers made it clear: Flat-fee contracts hurt not just clients but entire communities here in California. The Fair Representation Act offers a clear path forward in safeguarding liberty and improving public safety. Watch: zoom.us/rec/play/yl9...

🔔TODAY: Our media briefing on California’s crisis in public defense kicks off at 12 PM PST. Join us to learn directly from the experts and the author of AB 690. ✅Register here: zoom.us/webinar/regi...

🔔REMINDER: Join us tomorrow May 7th at 12:00 PM Pacific. Hear directly from legislators and advocates about how they are working to shore up its indigent defense system and ensure everyone receives the representation required under the constitution. Register Here: bit.ly/3Gij3mX

UPDATE: Raj Jayadev, Founder of Silicon Valley De-Bug, joins our expert panel next Wed. 5/7. We’ll break down the failures in CA's indigent defense system, the crisis this presents in our current moment, and explore what CA legislators can do to start solving the problem. Register: bit.ly/3Gij3mX

Fair representation shouldn’t depend on your zip code. Join us May 7 at 12 PM PST for a media briefing on the Fair Representation Act (AB 690) with Asm. Nick Schultz, Brendon Woods, Kate Chatfield, and Professor Sean Kennedy. Register here: zoom.us/webinar/regi...

On Wednesday, April 2, join Rachel Aviv, Emily Bazelon, Cherri Gregg, and Randi Chavez to talk about how they responsibly investigate and report on trauma. These are the best, RSVP here: bit.ly/42774zN