Three deep dives into ugly realities of Alabama’s justice system

One often hears talk of Texas justice being unique, but there are really distinctive stories to tell about criminal justice realities in every state.  To that end, consider three new lengthy recent pieces about crime and punishment in Alabama.  I recommend all of these deep dives:

From AL.com, “Alabama parole rate far short of board’s own recommended guidelines“

From Politico, “‘A humanitarian crisis’: Why Alabama could lose control of its dangerous prisons: Alabama sends so many people to prison that the state can no longer safely house its inmates, consequences of a tough-on-crime mentality among politicians and the public that keeps aggressive sentencing laws on the books.”

From the New York Times, “He Never Touched the Murder Weapon. Alabama Sentenced Him to Die.: Nathaniel Woods was unarmed when three Birmingham police officers were fatally shot by someone else in 2004.  But Woods, a Black man, was convicted of capital murder for his role in the deaths of the three white officers.”