A Harvard Sociologist Breaks Down the Moral Failures Plaguing the U.S. Prison System
Harvard University sociologist Bruce Western weighs in on the role of prisons in perpetuating human vulnerability.
Incarceration
Taking Freedom: Modern-Day Slavery in America's Prison Workforce
On the labor issues connected with using inmates as extremely low-paid workers in state and federal prisons.
The Lede, Issue #4: Racial Trauma, the Death Penalty in America, Marilynne Robinson Essays, and More
An exclusive newsletter that gives premium members greater access to Pacific Standard stories, staff, and contributors in their inbox every Sunday morning
Since We Last Spoke: California Bans Mandatory Life Sentences Without the Possibility of Parole for Juvenile
Updates to stories from the Pacific Standard archive.
Jail Is Corrosive to a Young Man's Mind
But a tailored mindfulness program may negate the negative impact of imprisonment.
The Criminal-Justice Data Behind Meek Mill's Latest Prison Sentence
The rapper's experience with probation is far from unusual for ex-prisoners.
A Damaging New Secure Housing Unit Poses Problems on Rikers Island
A new report from the New York City Board of Correction suggests that inmates have traded one problematic practice for another.
How Black Leaders Embraced the Drug War
James Forman Jr.'s first book chronicles with compassion how the actions of black leaders sometimes hurt the very people they sought to save.
These Four Maps Show Inmates Don't Always Drive Prison Costs
A new report finds that a drop in the prison population doesn't necessarily mean a drop in prison costs.
America's Private-Prison Industry Has Always Been All Right
President Donald Trump has restored consumer confidence in private prisons—but they were never in danger of failing to begin with.
Prison Girlfriends and Wives
The latest entry in a series of interviews about subculture in America.
What DIY Candy Flowers Tell Us About the Prison System
Plus: How to make "magical" roses out of Jolly Ranchers.
Electronic Monitoring Might Be Worse Than Jail Time
Beyond the cyclical criminalization that the device provokes, its rules and circumstances clash with the infrastructure of the teenage mind.
Five Studies: Mental Health Courts Are Finding Their Footing
Can judges work with psychiatrists to help solve mass incarceration?
What Mental Health Courts Are Teaching Us About Rehabilitation
An early look at a Pacific Standard story that's currently only available to subscribers.
The Vicious, Traumatizing Cycle of Parental Incarceration
Parental incarceration can lead to serious health and behavioral problems for children, in both youth and adulthood.
How America's Prison System Punishes Women and Families
A new report counts the costs that women, children, and families bear when a loved one gets incarcerated.
The Criminal Justice Conflict
The current push for bipartisan criminal justice reform is missing the mark with its single-minded focus on non-violent offenders.
A Day in the Life of a Prisoner
Movies and television don't do an adequate job capturing the day-to-day loneliness and the feelings of exclusion and shame.
From Prison to Public Service
Ban the Box initiatives are one step toward breaking the cycle of incarceration.
When Addicts Get Out of Jail
New research suggests that maintaining methadone treatment in jails and prisons would save lives.
The 30 Top Thinkers Under 30: The Activist Attorney Working to Promote Justice for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
We canvassed the world of the social and behavioral sciences, looking for rising stars whose careers promise to make a lasting mark. We'll be profiling the top 30 throughout the month of April.
The Fight to Decriminalize Truancy in Texas Schools
Should kids be led out of class in handcuffs for being late to school?
The Elderly Prisoner Population Is Soaring, and So Are Its Costs
Advocates argue that early release is the most compassionate and cost-effective solution.