The littlest cellmate

In Mexico City, children born to women inmates live with their mothers at the prison until they turn six.
New York Times

FBI wants to know everything about everybody

And keep that information forever. The agency is shelling out $1 billion to build the world's largest database of human physical characteristics. It might also retain the information collected from employee criminal background checks.
Washington Post

The best Christmas ever

After decades in prison, three recently released inmates re-discover life outside.
Village Voice

More dropouts, more crime

According to a recent study, increasing the graduation rate 10 percent would prevent 500 homicides and more than 20,000 aggravated assaults annually in California.
Los Angeles Times
Fight Crime: Invest in Kids California

Drug war rages in Atlanta

Police attribute much of the recent rise in the city's murder rate to one gang.
Creatve Loafing

Sexual Victimization in State and Federal Prisons Reported by Inmates, 2007

About 60,500 inmates (or 4.5% of all state and federal inmates) experienced one or more incidents of sexual victimization involving other inmates or staff. And other fun statistics.
Bureau of Justice Statistics

The only asylums left

The closing of mental hospitals doesn't mean that people have stopped being mentally ill. So they go to prison instead.
Boston Globe

When is hard time too hard?

"When the time came to sentence Michael Perry, state law forced a judge to decide between widely disparate options. He could treat Perry as a juvenile and see him released by 21. Or he could send him away forever."

Juvenile justice officials are rethinking the life sentences given to some kids.
AP/Indystar

Background checks

Here's what comes up with the police run a check on your name.
Slate

Study: Trying kids as adults doesn't help

In fact, it does "more harm than good."
AP