A Jailhouse Snitch and the System that Made Him
Pamela Colloff’s debut book is a propulsive study of a fatally flawed tactic beloved by prosecutors in Texas and beyond.
Criminal Justice
The Innocent and the Executed: James Beathard’s Long-Forgotten Story
Beathard was put to death in 1999 for murders that his co-defendant claimed to have committed without him. A new documentary-in-progress seeks to bring his case to light.
Penned Poetry: A Formerly Incarcerated Activist’s Turn to Verse
Longtime advocate Jorge Antonio Renaud lyricizes the grit of prison life in his first published collection of poems, The Restlessness of Bound Wrists.
Abbott’s Bail Agenda Could Swell Texas Jails, Test U.S. Constitution
Republicans want to double down on a system that can keep Texans in jail for years without a trial, while attacking bail funds that try to help.
Moises Mendoza to Be Third Person Killed by State of Texas This Year
“We oppose this execution as we do every execution. Capital punishment is an act of state sanctioned violence that violates the sacred dignity of every human life.”
When a Death Penalty ‘Volunteer’ Changes His Mind
Richard Tabler is scheduled to be executed February 13, making him the second person set to be killed by the state in 2025.
A Houston Storyteller Finds the Humor in Hard Knocks
Bayou City comic Ali Siddiq turns street life and incarceration into laughs, while challenging stereotypes and provoking the occasional tear.
Get the newsletter
The Walls Prison Break–50 Years Later
Questions linger about Fred Gomez Carrasco’s escape attempt and the killings that followed.
Bringing Home the Story of Ben Spencer
An innocent Texan was caught for more than three decades in a web of lies and injustice.
The Wages of Inequality—Behind Bars
Because the state refuses to pay us for our labor, incarcerated women rely on money from the outside to get by.