I have been reading The Shadow Bargainers, a detailed study on plea bargaining practices in several public defender offices. Ronald Wright, recognized for important research on prosecutors, plea bargaining and other issues, Jenny Roberts, a recognized authority on collateral consequences and public defense, and Wake Forest University Professor of Politics and International Affairs Betina Wilkinson, […]
Thomas Maher
The COVID-19 Crisis Should Not Increase the Crisis in Public Defense
The Center for Science and Justice is committed to improving the reliability and fairness of our criminal justice system through effective and meaningful research. Improving the justice system, however, depends on more than research; a fair and reliable justice system requires effective representation through skilled and well-resourced public defenders. Public defense is all too often […]
Consenting to Relief to Remove Vulnerable People from Prison
Updated May 4, 2020: On April 23, this post discussed the use of consent MAR’s to address the risk from COVID-19 to individuals in North Carolina’s prisons. Since then, the risk from COVID-19 in prisons has increased. Pending litigation challenges the response from the prison system to COVID-19. In response to the litigation, Superior Court […]
Local Jails Need Statewide Protection from COVID-19
COVID-19 presents an unprecedented challenge to the criminal justice system, and in particular to the safe operation of jails and detention centers. The Cook County Jail in Chicago is now the largest source of COVID-19 infections in the United States, and three people held in the jail have now died. This situation should alarm anyone […]