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Prisons 
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- Stateline Story
Registry Finds More Exonerations in 2012
Since 1989, at least 1,089 people convicted of crimes have been officially cleared based on new evidence of their innocence, according to the National Registry of Exonerations annual report released Wednesday. more
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- Stateline Story
Oklahoma Looks for Ways to Keep Mentally Ill Ex-offenders Out of Prison
The mentally ill account for an ever-greater portion of prison populations. Oklahoma has had success in preventing former inmates with mental problems from being incarcerated again. more
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- Stateline Story
Pa. Legislature Passes Bill Modifying Juvenile Sentences
The Pennsylvania Legislature has sent a bill to the governor that would dramatically reduce sentences for juveniles convicted of murder, seeking to bring the state in line with a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. more
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- Stateline Story
Could a Recount of Prisoners Affect Elections?
Four states now count prisoners at their last known home address rather than where they’re incarcerated. Could this affect election outcomes? more
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- Stateline Story
California Reconsiders “Three Strikes”
Voters in California will decide whether to revise the state’s “three strikes” law, largely considered to be the nation’s harshest on repeat offenders. Polling is strong for revision, but many police officers, victims’ advocates and district attorneys oppose the change. more
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- Stateline Story
Best of #StateReads: Ex-Parks Official Had Criminal Past
This week’s extraordinary journalism about state government, tagged to #StateReads on Twitter. more
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- Stateline Story
Report: Progress on Juvenile Justice, Problems Remain
A new report sees progress on juvenile justice, but problems remain. more
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- Stateline Story
In Massachusetts, No Signature for ‘3-Strikes’
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick says he won’t sign into law a “3-strikes” bill for criminal sentencing unless judges are granted more flexibility. more
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- Stateline Story
California Prisons Shedding Inmates Fast
TODAY'S TAKE: The state prison system in California has been dropping 900 inmates a week as it seeks to comply with a Supreme Court order to reduce chronic overcrowding. Most of the decline is due to a policy shift requiring low-level offenders to serve their time in county jails instead of state facilities.more -
- Stateline Story
Detention Center Fails to Help Impoverished Rhode Island Town
PUBLIC SAFETY BEAT: A struggling Rhode Island community hoped a facility for federal prisoners would be a boost to local finances. After 18 years, things have only gotten worse.more -
- Stateline Story
L.A. County Jails Are a Costly Resource, Study Says
PUBLIC SAFETY BEAT: The county facilities are not only overcrowded but expensive to operate, according to a new report. The study suggests possible ways to reduce inmate counts and save public money.more -
- Stateline Story
New York Sees Big Drop In Prisoners Since 2000
TODAY'S TAKE: A newspaper analysis finds that New York's prison population has fallen 22 percent since 2000, driven by a 62-percent decline among those incarcerated for drug violations.more -
- Stateline Story
Massive Prison Privatization Voided by Judge in Florida
PUBLIC SAFETY BEAT: Florida lawmakers pushed through legislation to turn all of South Florida's prisons private. But the Police Benevolent Association challenged the law and prevailed in court.more -
- Stateline Story
Good Friday Pardons in Illinois
TODAY'S TAKE: Illinois Governor Pat Quinn used Good Friday (April 2) to grant pardons to 147 people convicted of low-level crimes, breaking with a recent trend among the nation's governors of scarcely using their clemency powers. Former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich granted few pardons during his six years in office, resulting in a backlog of nearly 2,500 requests.more -
- Stateline Story
Smaller Prison Count Breaks 38-Year Trend
State prisons have been a dynamic growth industry over the past four decades, with the number of inmates exploding by more than 700 percent. No longer. A survey released Wednesday (March 17) by the Pew Center on the States, the parent organization of Stateline.org, finds that the total number of prisoners in state custody declined last year for the first time since 1972.more -
- Stateline Story
A Crack in the Prison Door
The recession is forcing lawmakers in some states to search for savings in places that might have been unthinkable a few years ago, including in their prison systems. One of those states is Oregon, where lawmakers last year approved a measure that will result in about 3,500 inmates being released from prison earlier than scheduled.But a recent backlash over the law serves as a reminder of the political sensitivity surrounding "early releases" as a money-saving effort. California, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin are among the other states that have recently accelerated prisoner releases or are considering doing so.more -
- Stateline Story
Illinois Offer Reignites Guantanamo Debate
TODAY'S TAKE: The prospect of creating thousands of jobs in Illinois has led Gov. Pat Quinn (D) and other Democrats to offer up a little-used, maximum-security prison in the state as a potential destination for detainees now housed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. As economic development projects go, however, few are as politically explosive.more -
- Stateline Story
Tracking the Recession: Prison Economics
FALLSBURG, N.Y. -- New York and other financially struggling states are trying to save millions of dollars by closing prisons. But a look at one rural community's anxiety over the closing of a local prison shows why it's a particularly challenging cost-cutting move.more -
- Stateline Story
States Expand Videoconferencing in Prisons
Faced with the high costs of transporting and escorting sick inmates to the doctor, states are expanding their use of videoconferencing to provide health consultations to prisoners without resorting to costly — and sometimes dangerous — off-site trips. more
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- Stateline Story
Govs' Q & A: Rethinking Prison Time
With corrections costs rising and tax revenues falling, governors in a handful of states recently have sought to save millions of dollars by shortening the time some prisoners spend behind bars. Stateline.org asked two governors about their plans.more