A Mass Murderer Is Testing the Limits of Scandinavian Goodwill

Norway’s Most Dangerous Man Is Back in the Spotlight, Leading Many to Wonder How Much Compassion He Deserves

For four days in March, I watched Norway’s national devil return to public view, in another installment of the courtroom drama familiarly titled Breivik v. State. Andres Behring Breivik, now 37, perpetrated the greatest act of political violence any Nordic country has seen since the end of World War II. After exploding a car bomb outside the prime minister’s office in central Oslo in July 2011, he went to a youth camp where he killed 69 boys and girls.

In 2012, in the first Breivik v. State, he was convicted …

By Bruno Kaufmann | March 24, 2016

When a Felony Is No Longer a Felony

How Redefining Nonviolent Crimes Is Changing California’s Justice System

by Sarah Rothbard | February 19, 2015

After decades of building prisons and increasing the number of people behind bars, the pendulum of California’s criminal justice system has swung away from incarceration. Among the policies and laws …

Will the Boston Bomber Be Tried by a Jury of His Peers?

Selecting Fair-Minded Jurors Is Always Complicated. For a Raw, High-Profile Case Like This One, It’s Nearly Impossible.

by Claire Luna | February 18, 2015

With a jury pool the size of a small town, a questionnaire of nearly 100 questions, and an accused mass murderer’s life in the balance, the jury selection in the …

How to Make Every Offender an Ex-Offender

Keeping Parolees Out of Prison Takes Jobs, Housing, and Cold, Hard Cash

February 14, 2015

Immediately after Californians voted in favor of Proposition 47—which redefined nonviolent felonies—last November, lawyers’ phones started ringing. The goal of this legislation—called the “The Safe Neighborhood and Schools Act” by …

The Marshall Project’s Tim Golden

A Lousy Habit-Kicker

November 5, 2014

Tim Golden is managing editor for investigations and news of the nonprofit news organization The Marshall Project, which covers the U.S. criminal justice system. Previously he was an investigative reporter …

Can We Be Optimistic with Millions Behind Bars?

The Way Americans Talk About Prisons Has Shifted. The Nation’s Policies Have Yet to Catch Up.

by Sarah Rothbard | September 17, 2014

Should we be optimistic about the criminal justice and prison systems in America? This was the question Tim Golden, The Marshall Project’s managing editor for investigations and news, posed to …

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