Was Trial by Ordeal an Effective Test of Guilt?
By Peter T. Leeson Aeon The quest for criminal justice is fraught with uncertainty. Did the defendant commit the crime, or is he a victim of incriminating circumstances? Is he […]
By Peter T. Leeson Aeon The quest for criminal justice is fraught with uncertainty. Did the defendant commit the crime, or is he a victim of incriminating circumstances? Is he […]
By Stephen J. Morse The Neuroethics Blog The discovery of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 1991, which permits non-invasive imaging of brain function, and the wide availability of scanners for research […]
By Alysia Santo The Marshall Project The nationwide movement for bail reform is advancing, gradually, through legislatures and courts. Just last week the U.S. Department of Justice filed a friend-of-the-court brief […]
By Jessica Pishko Aeon What is ‘I’m sorry’ worth? The idea that apologies heal wounds and restore justice in the community isn’t exactly a new idea. Apologies are an ancient […]
By Amy Wolf Vanderbilt University Juries in criminal cases typically decide if someone is guilty, then a judge determines a suitable level of punishment. New research confirms that these two […]
By Zoltan Istvan Motherboard The death penalty is one of America’s most contentious issues. Critics complain that capital punishment is inhumane, pointing out how some executions have failed to quickly kill […]
By Lauren Kirchner Pacific Standard “First of all, let’s get one thing straight: crack is cheap,” Whitney Houston told Diane Sawyer, defiantly, in a now-infamous 2002 interview. “I make too […]
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester, Ben Casselman, & Dana Goldstein FiveThirtyEight Criminal sentencing has long been based on the present crime and, sometimes, the defendant’s past criminal record. In Pennsylvania, judges […]
By Ana Swanson The Washington Post We like to believe that decisions made in U.S. courts are determined by the wisdom of the Constitution, and guided by fair-minded judges and juries of […]
By Beth Schwartzapfel The Marshall Project America’s prisons hold tens of thousands of people like Rodriguez — people primarily confined not by the verdicts of a judge or a jury […]