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The US president, Joe Biden, has signed four executive orders aimed at healing the racial divide in America, including one to curb the US government’s use of private prisons and another to bolster anti-discrimination enforcement in housing. They are among several steps Biden is taking to roll back policies of his predecessor, Donald Trump, and to promote racial justice reforms that he pledged to...

About 1,115 prisoners of the the total 1,236 prisoners at the Goose Creek correctional center had tested positiveNearly every inmate in Alaska’s largest prison has contracted Covid-19 as prisons nationwide reached their highest level of positive cases this month.A spokesperson for the state’s department of corrections, Sarah Gallagher, told the Anchorage Daily News that an estimated 1,115 prisoners of the total 1,236 prisoners at...

Use of inmates ‘temporary’ until Texas national guard able to help, said sheriff’s office, as facilities in area overwhelmedIn footage which spread rapidly on social media, nine inmates wearing the striped jumpers of the El Paso county jail helped move bodies into mobile morgues.“Having to use inmates tells the story of how short-handed we must be,” El Paso county judge Ricardo Samaniego told local...

The 1994 crime bill paved the way to mass incarceration of Black Americans. Biden says his support was a ‘mistake’In 1994, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware stood proudly behind Bill Clinton as he signed into law a reform bill that touched nearly every aspect of the US criminal justice system. Related: Trump trails Biden with two weeks to go – but there could yet...

Jalil Muntaqim was one of several black liberation radicals incarcerated for decades in the wake of political and racial turbulence of the 1960s and 70sA former Black Panther who has been in prison for almost half a century has finally won his decades-long battle for freedom after a New York parole board ordered his release.Jalil Muntaqim, AKA Anthony Bottom, has been in unbroken custody...

The state sees us as safe enough to handle emergencies – but it refuses to provide a pathway to work after releaseThe wildfires burning across California have put a national spotlight on the incarcerated firefighters the state depends on to fight these blazes.But while state leaders scramble to backfill vacant positions on the firefighting lines, it’s important to remember the backdrop that helped create...

Jails could act as incubators for disease to be spread widely both inside and in local communities, ACLU saysCoronavirus – latest US updatesCoronavirus – latest global updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageAmerica’s addiction to mass incarceration could almost double its number of deaths from coronavirus, with jails acting as incubators of the disease and spreading a further 100,000 fatalities across the US.The startling warning comes...

Trump’s ex-fixer will remain under quarantine for 14 days before he is released to serve the rest of his sentence in home confinement Coronavirus – live US updatesLive global updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageDonald Trump’s former lawyer and longtime fixer Michael Cohen will reportedly be released from federal prison to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement because of the coronavirus pandemic.Cohen...

Convicted rapist will be evaluated to determine which state prison facility meets his security, medical and other needsHarvey Weinstein was transferred to a state prison in New York on Wednesday as he begins to serve a 23-year sentence for rape and sexual assault in his landmark #MeToo case.The disgraced film mogul, who will turn 68 on Thursday, is locked up at the maximum security...

Draft bill aims to curb rise of pay-per-minute ebooks and costly facetime calls in prisons where visits are banned or restrictedLawmakers in three US states are drafting a bill that they hope will end the growing trend of prisons charging inmates high fees for reading ebooks or making video calls to their families, while paying under a dollar an hour for prison labour.State prisons...

Tova Noel and Michael Thomas were meant to check Epstein every half-hour but they browsed the web and slept, court papers allegeTwo federal corrections officers were indicted on Tuesday for allegedly trying to hide their failure to check on inmates on the night the convicted sex offender and accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein killed himself in his Manhattan cell – a mere 15ft from...

A woman who gave birth alone in her prison cell in Denver is suing the city. Diana Sanchez's legal team allege that jail deputies and nurses ignored her pleas for help during five hours of labourWoman who gave birth alone in Denver jail cell sues city authorities Continue reading...

Lawsuit alleges prison staff and nurses ignored Diana Sanchez’s pleas while she was in labourA woman who gave birth alone in her jail cell in Denver is suing the city after deputies and nurses allegedly ignored her pleas for help during about five hours of labour.Surveillance video released by her lawyer show Diana Sanchez lying down on a narrow bed, crying out in pain,...

A vehicle drove into a line of protesters outside a detention centre in Rhode Island on Wednesday. Dozens of people were protesting against the contract between US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Wyatt detention facility when a correctional officer swerved into the crowd. Officers at the scene then pepper sprayed the demonstrators. At least one person was taken to hospital with a...