Issue

Criminal Justice

It costs $13 million per year to hold each of the 40 prisoners at Guantánamo Bay. Where does the money go? How do police profit from seized property? What is it like to be one of 2.7 million children with a parent in jail or prison? What programs have succeeded in the U.S. and elsewhere to reduce recidivism?

These are a few of the questions Pulitzer Center grantees ask in the stories highlighted in Criminal Justice.

Innovative initiatives include a transformational theater piece based on a three-year investigation into solitary confinement. The play was performed on Alcatrez Island. A photography project features the work of court-involved youth who depict life on the streets of San Francisco. This project provided opportunities for youth to showcase their work while shining light on the criminal justice system in California.

Funding for Carol Rosenberg’s ongoing reporting on Guantánamo Bay comes from the Hewlett Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, and other sources. The Art for Justice Fund, established by philanthropist Agnes Gund, is helping to support our reporting on mass incarceration. Omidyar Network has provided financial support for “Taken”—our project on civil asset forfeiture. The Pulitzer Center extends its heartfelt thanks to our generous donors.

Criminal Justice

Lawyer for the Dead in El Salvador

In El Salvador, home of the bloodiest gang violence in the world, we follow one man’s gruesome struggle to bring dignity and closure to the families of the victims.

Brazil: Taking Arts Behind Bars

Since 1990, University of Michigan students have been facilitating fine arts workshops in local prisons. In 2016, they took to a global stage, exploring prison arts in Brazil.

On Death Row in Pakistan

Pakistan has the highest number of death row inmates in the world, a population believed to embody terrorists and criminals. However, not all of them deserve to be where they are.