Derwyn Bunton, the chief public defender in New Orleans, says reduced resources has taken defendants' rights to a public defender "down to a crisis level." Joseph Shapiro/NPR hide caption
Investigations Read the latest from NPR's investigative team. If you have solid tips or documents on stories we should probe, please send them to us.
Investigations
Thursday
Saturday
Tom Barrett returned to the convenience store where he stole a can of beer. He spent time in jail, not for the crime, but because he couldn't afford the fines and fees that went along with wearing an electronic monitoring device. Joseph Shapiro/NPR hide caption
Measures Aimed At Keeping People Out Of Jail Punish The Poor
In this photo from the mid-1960s, Kirk Gable, a co-founder of the electronic monitoring belt, uses war surplus missile-tracking equipment to track young adult offenders who are wearing the first electronic monitoring devices. Courtesy of Robert Gable hide caption
Wednesday
Kyle Dewitt was sentenced to three days in jail after he was unable to pay fees associated with catching a fish out of season. Joseph Shapiro/NPR hide caption
Supreme Court Ruling Not Enough To Prevent Debtors Prisons
Tuesday
Unpaid Court Fees Land The Poor In 21st Century Debtors' Prisons
Monday
The proliferation of court fees has prompted some states, like New Jersey, to use amnesty programs to encourage the thousands of people who owe fines to surrender in exchange for fee reductions. At the Fugitive Safe Surrender program, makeshift courtrooms allow judges to individually handle each case. Nicole Beemsterboer/NPR hide caption
Wednesday
After the University of Michigan increased its efforts to prevent sexual assaults on campus, reports increased by 113 percent. Erin/Flickr hide caption
Campus Rape Reports Are Up, And Assaults Aren't The Only Reason
Wednesday
Onscreen But Out Of Sight, TV Preachers Avoid Tax Scrutiny
Tuesday
Marcus and Joni Lamb, founders of Daystar, also host their own show, as seen in this screenshot from their network. With $233 million in assets, Daystar is the largest religious television network in America that also calls itself a church. Daystar Television Network hide caption
Monday
The Central Identification Laboratory of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Pentagon announced that it will overhaul how the organization finds, identifies and returns the remains of thousands of service members lost in past wars. Elyse Butler for NPR hide caption