This section covers the criminal justice system in the United States — courts, sentencing, corrections and the reform efforts that run through all of them. Reporting takes in both the mechanics of the system and the policy debates surrounding it.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor said at a Mount Vernon conference that she hopes the Supreme Court will reverse some of its recent decisions, including its 2024 presidential immunity ruling.
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November 7, 2026
Supreme Court to Hear Prison Medical Care CaseThe justices will weigh an injured inmate's claim that a prison nurse refused requests for medical aid, as suits against federal immigration agents rise.
November 6, 2026
Tort Costs Reach $655.6 Billion, Study FindsA U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform study estimates the nation's tort system costs grew 7.8% annually since 2019.
November 6, 2026
Reding Quiñones Resigns as Miami U.S. AttorneyJason Reding Quiñones stepped down from the Justice Department after overseeing a probe of President Trump's adversaries that has produced no indictments.
November 5, 2026
Dhillon Steps Down as Civil Rights Division HeadHarmeet Dhillon is leaving the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division after Democrats' midterm victories, the first senior department official reported to depart since the election.
November 5, 2026
Five Oklahoma Judges' Disclosures Missing OnlineFinancial reports for five Oklahoma federal judges have not been posted to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts website.
November 5, 2026
Court Asked to Keep Chattah Out as Nevada ProsecutorAttorneys for three indicted men urge the Supreme Court to uphold the disqualification of Sigal Chattah as U.S. Attorney in Nevada.
November 4, 2026
Escaped Inmate Jacob Morley Apprehended in MissouriTennessee prisoner serving a life sentence for murder was caught near Kansas City after a 10-day manhunt that followed his escape from prison.
November 4, 2026
Three States to Execute Inmates on ThursdayIndiana, Florida, and Alabama have scheduled executions for the same day, November 5, 2026, the first such triple-execution date in this period.
November 4, 2026
Appeals Court to Hear Jack Smith Report CaseThe 11th Circuit will hear arguments on whether Volume II of Jack Smith's report should be released, after Judge Aileen Cannon permanently blocked its release.
November 4, 2026
DOJ Honors 183 Employees at Director's AwardsAttorney General Todd Blanche recognized Justice Department staff, including two Arkansas prosecutors, at the 2026 Director's Awards Ceremony in Washington.
The beat runs across court decisions and their reach, sentencing policy changes, prison conditions and litigation, bail reform at the state level, and prosecutorial decisions that become news in their own right. New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Phoenix are home to some of the country's largest court systems and corrections populations, and policy changes in those jurisdictions regularly carry national weight. Wrongful conviction cases and exonerations generate some of the most sustained coverage in this area, since they move through courts over years before resolution. Legislative reform and litigation often proceed on parallel tracks, producing simultaneous coverage of the same underlying policy question from different angles.
