Criminal Legal System
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Behind the Headlines: Reparative Justice for Sonya Massey
Tags Share This week, Illinois state police released body camera footage of a sheriff’s deputy murdering Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old Black woman and mother of two, in the kitchen of her home. On July 6, 2024, Sonya called police to report a suspected break-in of her house. Officers from the Sangamon County Sheriff’s Office arrived and,…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Young People Under Arrest Need Legal Protection The interrogation room is cramped and windowless. The police officer sitting across from the teenager and his mother begins to read the teen his Miranda rights. The words flow easily, familiar to anyone who has ever watched a police TV drama: “You have the right to remain silent.” …
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Impartial Justice Needs Global Support More Than Ever The conflicts and crises raging across the globe today in Darfur, Gaza, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ukraine demonstrate how impunity fuels cycles of violence. As the world confronts these emergencies, it is crucial that impartial and independent justice is delivered to victims of grave international crimes, regardless of where…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Michael Brown’s mom pushes for justice for her son in public hearing The mother of Michael Brown — who was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer in 2014 sparking protests around the county — gave testimony to the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) to review the case of her son’s killing in…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Three out five young activists face online harassment globally for posting human rights content Three out of five child and young human rights defenders face online harassment in connection with their activism, according to a new analysis of 400 responses to an Amnesty International questionnaire, distributed to young activists across 59 countries. More than…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Kenya’s President Says He Won’t Sign a Finance Bill That Led Protesters to Storm the Parliament Kenya’s president said Wednesday he won’t sign into law a finance bill proposing new taxes that prompted thousands of protesters to storm the parliament the previous day, leaving several people killed as police opened fire. It was the…
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This Week’s Spotlight on Human Rights
Tags Share Americas: On World Refugee Day, states must prioritize the human rights of those seeking protection in the Americas On the occasion of World Refugee Day, Amnesty International has issued an open letter to the States parties to the Cartagena Declaration on Refugees, who are currently meeting in Bogotá, urging them to put human…
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Statement on Increased Border Prosecutions
Tags Share Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights is profoundly disappointed by the Biden administration’s plans to increase federal criminal prosecutions of migrants accused of nothing more than crossing a border. Decades of data on prosecutions for border crossing make it clear: mass incarceration does not deter people fleeing persecution. Already immigration-related prosecutions account for over one-fourth of the federal criminal…
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Breaking Green: International Petition Filed on Behalf of COP City Protester Killed by Police with Anthony Enriquez
Tags Share On January 18th of last year, Manuel Esteban Páez Terán, also known as Tortuguita, a land defender protesting the construction of the police training complex “COP City” in Atlanta, Georgia, was killed by police gunfire. Authorities claim Tortuguita fired at officers, but forensic evidence suggests they were seated with their hands raised and…
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Does the perception of crime match reality?
Tags Share Speaking with Louisiana’s NBC Local 33, our VP of U.S. Advocacy & Litigation Anthony Enriquez analyzes the perception and politicization of “rising crime” – and advocates for alternatives to pro-prison policies.
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Behind The Headlines: Proposed Rollbacks Of Criminal Legal Reforms Disconnected From Reality
Tags Share In California, the nation’s most populous state, opponents of criminal legal reforms are supporting a ballot initiative that aims to overturn a decade’s worth of previous ballot initiatives that reduced jail time for a number of property and drug crimes. The proposed rollback is the latest pro-prison initiative to gain steam in recent…
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Truthout: Groups Bring Tortuguita’s Killing to International Human Rights Commission
Tags Share This month, several nonprofit organizations, including Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, the Southern Center for Human Rights, and the University of Dayton Human Rights Center, filed a petition with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), requesting an investigation into the police killing of Manuel Terán, an activist known as “Tortuguita.” According to…
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