Is jail time for ticket scofflaws best use of taxpayer dollars?
It's called "pay or stay:" jailing people who can't afford to pay a fine. It's a controversial issue nationwide. Critics say pay or stay sentencing has created a 21st-century version of debtors'...
View ArticleFrom the classroom to a prison cell: One teacher's quest to help a promising...
A decision to join Teach for America brought then 22-year-old Michelle Kuo to the Mississippi Delta. Her hope was to teach American history through black literature. It was a very different life than...
View ArticleMichigan still lags in complying with Supreme Court and re-sentencing...
When it comes to re-sentencing inmates who were sentenced to life without parole as juveniles, Michigan is lagging behind just about every other state. Back in December, we brought you a series of...
View ArticleOakland County fights efforts to fix “woefully inadequate” system for those...
Tomorrow morning, the Michigan Court of Claims will hear a lawsuit filed by Oakland County. The county is challenging new criminal defense standards for defendants who are too poor to afford a lawyer....
View ArticleWayne County may have national model for prosecuting crimes against LGBTQ...
The Fair Michigan Justice Project (FMJP), a collaboration between the LGBTQ advocacy group Fair Michigan and the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, began a little over a year ago, in July 2016. It marks...
View ArticleStudy: Minor parole violations put a lot of ex-cons back in prison
Sentencing people to prison instead of probation can have some long-lasting effects, according to a recent study from the University of Michigan. It found that if you're convicted of a felony and...
View ArticlePeople are dying in Macomb County's overcrowded jail. What role do courts play?
The Macomb County Jail has a chronic overcrowding problem. And that can make for dangerous conditions for inmates. Experts say jail overcrowding is linked to higher rates of violence, illness, and...
View ArticleIrredeemable: Prisoner awaits resentencing, knowing he could get life without...
(Editor’s note: we recommend you listen to this story.) Jose Burgos was 16 years old when he shot and killed Omar Kaji. It happened during a bogus drug deal in 1991 in southwest Detroit. “The whole...
View ArticleIrredeemable: For a juvenile lifer, maintaining innocence could mean never...
(Editor’s note: we recommend you listen to the story.) In March 2001, Fred Williams left his friend Tanya Davis’ house to get groceries. He was 17 and living on the west side of Detroit. Fred says he...
View ArticleA Michigan teen got life without parole for killing grandparents. Now he’s up...
He was born April 29th, 1976. His parents named him James Dean Fuson. James’ mom died when he was seven, and his dad left the picture after that. His maternal grandparents, Delores and Wallace Bach,...
View ArticleWayne County makes tentative deal with Gilbert for new criminal justice center
Type the words “fail jail” into a simple search and Google will immediately suggest: “Detroit.” The nickname refers to the downtown site at Gratiot and St. Antoine, where construction of what was...
View ArticleInstead of fines, jail time, offenders pay it forward at this Detroit court
For most misdemeanor offenses in Michigan, the likely punishment is a fine, jail time, or both. But each Wednesday in Detroit’s 36 th District Court, a different vision of justice plays out. That...
View ArticleCourt will decide whether court fees are taxes
The Michigan Supreme Court will decide whether it’s legal for judges to order defendants to pay fees and court costs. One defendant is challenging the practice, which he says violates the state...
View ArticleNow is the time for criminal justice reform, says state lawmaker at town hall
Michigan's criminal justice system feeds on the poor – that’s what a state lawmaker in Grand Rapids says. State Rep. David LaGrand, D-Grand Rapids, talked to community members about criminal justice...
View ArticleNew commission looks for a more fair way to fund criminal courts
What is the most appropriate way to pay for criminal courts in Michigan? That's the essential question before the Michigan Trial Court Funding Commission . The commission is grappling with how much of...
View ArticleMichigan budgets $84 million in legal help for poor defendants. How will it...
The state budget recently signed by Governor Snyder contains an unprecedented amount of money to improve legal defense for poor defendants charged with a crime. Michigan has been rated among the worst...
View ArticleAfter finding “brotherhood” behind bars, ex-offenders help others navigate...
Upon release from prison, ex-offenders often enter a world full of uncertainty. Where do you live? Where do you work? How do you survive? Mario Bueno tries to help people find these answers. He is the...
View ArticleJudges in five Michigan courtrooms are using risk assessments to decide bond
Early this month, judges in five Michigan district courts started using a new tool to make bond decisions. It’s part of a new pilot program spearheaded by the Michigan Supreme Court. The judges will...
View ArticleLongest-serving exoneree still awaiting compensation promised by state...
In late 2016, former Governor Rick Snyder signed the Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act, which went into effect the following March. The law compensates people exonerated of wrongful convictions in...
View ArticleLawsuit seeks to end "unnecessary, unconstitutional, and costly" cash bail in...
Detroit’s 36th District Court finds itself in an unusual position: as the defendant in a new lawsuit. The ACLU has sued the court over its cash bail practices. The federal class action lawsuit contends...
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