NEW: Elvis Brooks was exonerated after 42 years in prison. Civil rights attorneys called his case an egregious example of a wrongful conviction. But the Louisiana Attorney General maintains he is guilty — and thus doesn’t qualify for any compensation from the state. with @veritenews.org

He’s Eligible for Up to $480,000 After Being Wrongly Imprisoned for 42 Years. The State Says No.

Elvis Brooks’ case was an egregious example of a wrongful conviction, civil rights attorneys said. But Louisiana’s attorney general maintains that Brooks and other exonerees are guilty — and therefore...

propublica.org

www.thecityreporter.nyc/2026/06/25/r... - good

14 People Released From Rikers By New Jail Boss Using Little-Known Power

Mamdani’s jails commissioner, Stanley Richards, approved the release of four people in just a week.

thecityreporter.nyc

Watching the Kennedy Center feed right now 👀 #FDT

I got my Life Membership package yesterday. I gifted myself this bag and am planning to frame the certificate with one or both of these prints. I’m updating my resume too. @aka1908 #xitaumade #aka1908

I appreciated joining a discussion last week on civic engagement and community safety at the National Urban League’s Safe and Just Summit. Advocacy organizers are working to expand the franchise and guarantee ballot access to all residents regardless of conviction status. #votingrights

Today, I’m @naturbanleague.bsky.social Safe & Just Communities Summit to hear about national and local community safety strategies from the Urban League’s Equitable Justice Team

I'm hoping to (virtually) testify on behalf of @sentencingproject.bsky.social. No eligible New York voter should lose their voice in our democracy because they are behind bars. 🗳️ Jails should not be a democracy dead zone. My written testimony 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼 www.sentencingproject.org/testimony/te...

Testimony in Support of Jail-Based Voting in New York – The Sentencing Project

sentencingproject.org

Maryland lawmakers passed House Bill 115/SB 241, to authorize automatic voter registration as part of the reentry process #secondchancemonth #secondchances See the bill here: lnkd.in/ec7xRC2n

"Expanding voting rights is not about partisan politics. It is about belonging, dignity and the fundamental understanding that communities are strongest when everyone has a say," writes @nicoledporter.bsky.social. #UnlockTheVote

Maryland’s missed opportunity on voting rights | COMMENTARY

Opinion: Maryland has made strides in advancing voting rights, but it’s next reform should be to extend the right to vote to people who are incarcerated with felony convictions.

bit.ly

Kareemah is a strong advocate and doing important work from a position of lived experience in Georgia. atlanta.capitalbnews.org/georgia-felo...

Who Can Vote After a Felony Conviction in Georgia - Capital B News - Atlanta

Kareemah Hanifa hopes to be an example to other people who may be afraid to register or don’t know they’ve regained their voter eligibility.

atlanta.capitalbnews.org

Black people don’t organize around hate.

Phil Lewis@phillewis.bsky.social · 5mo ago

The secretary of Miami-Dade County’s GOP started a group chat for conservative students — and within 3 weeks, it was filled with over 400 instances of the N-word, Nazi rhetoric and writings of "dozens of ways of violently killing Black people"

The social infrastructure of protest art in Minnesota, how it wins hearts and minds and mobilizes action, and the public history projects to archive and preserve it. www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...

‘Winning hearts and minds’: How protest signs shaped the anti-ICE movement in Minnesota

Minnesota has seen an explosion of art made in response to ICE’s presence. Perhaps more than any other art form, artists and designers have made protest posters and signs en masse. “There’s never been...

mprnews.org

Had a great visit with @sentencingproject.bsky.social at “Inside Out” exhibition. So appreciate their work in the carceral space. @nicoledporter.bsky.social @ruckmanphoto.bsky.social @empearce.bsky.social

“Inside Out” exhibition visit by @sentencingproject.bsky.social Grateful to partner with them to further reform and advocacy in the carceral space. @nicoledporter.bsky.social @ild1985.bsky.social @empearce.bsky.social @thedcarts.bsky.social

I was joined by a gifted team of CJR experts and formally incarcerated photographers discussing agency behind prison walls for our artist talk, “Inside Out: Dignity and the Art of Seeing.” @sentencingproject.bsky.social

The National Academy Sciences documented in its 2014 report, “The Growth of Incarceration in the United States: Exploring Causes and Consequences 2014” that increased police contact in the 1980s was a driver of mass incarceration 1/2

Top Democratic groups urge party to shed soft-on-crime image, hire police

The Center for American Progress wants Democrats ‘on their front foot’ talking about crime, an issue where Republicans have long held the advantage.

washingtonpost.com

Anti Black racism “One leading member of the Convention said the 1902 Constitution aimed at “the elimination of every negro voter who can be gotten rid of, legally, without materially impairing the numerical strength of the white electorate.” www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/u...

Okay Virginia (via a federal court decision) “I am overjoyed at today’s ruling and what it means for thousands of Virginians,” said Tati King, plaintiff in King v. Youngkin. “After so many years of fighting for my rights, I will finally be able to participate in our democracy ...”

Federal judge restores thousands of Virginians’ voting rights in historic ruling - Protect Democracy

A federal judge found that Virginia’s Constitution broke federal law by stripping the voting rights of every Virginian with a felony.

protectdemocracy.org

Virginia lawmakers voted last week to place a measure on the November ballot this year to automatically restore voting rights to people when they exit prison.

"According to a release, [Kerwin] Pittman is now the first formerly incarcerated person in U.S. history to buy a prison." www.witn.com/2026/01/08/f...

Former inmate buys old state prison in Wayne County to create reentry campus

The state sold the facility that was once Wayne Correctional to Kerwin Pitt of Recidivism Reduction Education Program Services, Inc.

witn.com

Here’s an overview of key trends in justice reforms from 2025. Reforms at least 10 states are summarized on decarceration, collateral consequences, and youth justice. The summary also highlights new prison construction projects and punitive policy changes.

Top Trends in Criminal Legal Reform, 2025 – The Sentencing Project

10 states adopted criminal legal reforms in 2025 that may contribute to decarceration, expand voting rights, and advance youth justice.

sentencingproject.org

“My youngest...was sentenced at just 23 years of age to a 38-year sentence,” ... “He has now served over 10 of those years. I am not here to say he’s innocent. He made mistakes ... His brain was still developing ... the young man who went into prison at 23 is not the same person ... today.”

‘Second Look Act’ could shorten sentences for Kansas prisoners • Kansas Reflector

A Kansas Senate bill would let inmates seek resentencing after a set period of time based on their age during the offense.

kansasreflector.com

In this week’s Rattling the Bars, Nicole Porter (@nicoledporter.bsky.social) brings a sharp worldview to the U.S. debate on prison systems. Named a “new civil rights leader” by Essence, Porter’s insight guides a new generation pushing to stop prison expansion and end extreme sentencing.

The Real News Network@therealnews.com · 8mo ago

“There really isn’t an issue with mass incarceration in other countries,” Nicole Porter of @sentencingproject.bsky.social tells us. “The United States by far is the world’s number one jailer.”

I welcomed the opportunity to connect with Mansa Musa at the Real News Network to discuss efforts to challenge new prison construction in 2025. It's unfortunate that state policymakers from Arkansas to Vermont are looking to build new prisons in this moment. www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKm7...

US is “by far the world’s number one jailer”: Nicole Porter

YouTube video by The Real News Network

youtube.com

There is a movement to stop a prison in Arkansas. “… We can be better served with the money that we're trying to allocate to this prison by putting (it into) educational programs, mental health programs, wraparound services for individuals who (are) coming home (from prison)."

Nonprofit plans campaign against proposed Franklin County prison | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

In a small room at the headquarters of the nonprofit decARcerate on Sunday, a group of almost 20 people, led by Kaleem Nazeem, began planning for a fight to win hearts and minds.

arkansasonline.com

Check out this new brief w/ @sentencingproject.bsky.social on how to get people w/ convictions who can vote out to the polls! W/ @blibal.bsky.social @nicoledporter.bsky.social #RobStewart Summarizes existing and emerging research that partners w/ community orgs already doing the work!

Non Black privilege gets results in this era #SanFrancisco www.sfgate.com/bayarea/arti...

Trump calls off 'surge' of federal deployment to San Francisco

It's unclear whether other Bay Area cities will still see surges of federal agents.

sfgate.com

Assata Shakur has "died in Havana, Cuba, as a result of health conditions and her advanced age." She was 78.

Assata Shakur, political activist and ex-Black Liberation Army member, has died

Assata Shakur “died in Havana, Cuba, as a result of health conditions and her advanced age,” according to Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

whatimreading.net

YT elites were so focused on protecting their demographic majority they are willing to give up living in somewhat free society. YT supremacy at work.