Vera partnered with the District Attorney of New York to examine whether prosecutorial discretion contributes to racially and ethnically disparate outcomes in New York County criminal cases. In this video, Vera Research Director Jim Parsons discusses Race and Prosecution in New York County and its findings.
New York’s recent bail reform law, which was passed in April 2019 and amended on July 2, 2020, was expected to reduce the footprint of jail incarceration by limiting the use of money bail. The new law mandated pretrial release for the vast majority of nonviolent charges and required that judges consider a person’s ability to pay bail. A comprehens ...
For decades, people incarcerated in Los Angeles County’s deadliest jail have feared for their lives. With the death toll mounting, advocates are pushing to finally end the cycle of violence.
Nelson is currently working toward that goal at DPN, connecting with families impacted by MCJ and the terror of the sheriff’s deputies. “You’ve got so many families out here thinking that they had to fight up against this sheriff’s department by themselves. They feel powerless. So, we connect with family members,” Nelson said. Slowly, they are win ...
In the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder in May 2020, nationwide calls for reallocation of law enforcement budgets forced elected leaders to consider the values underlying their budgetary choices. But discussions largely remained limited to policing. Few major U.S. cities took a hard look at the billions invested in their increasingly vacant jails ...