Last summer, Jada Elizabeth Johnson was shot in the back 17 times by a police officer after she was disarmed and pinned down by another officer during a mental health crisis, according to a federal lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed April 7, provides more details about what happened inside her grandfather’s Fayetteville, North Carolina, home on July […]
Christina Carrega
Christina Carrega is the criminal justice reporter at Capital B. Follow her on Bluesky @chriscarrega.bsky.social.
Posted inCriminal Justice, Gun Violence
Sinzae Reed Was Killed Six Months Ago. His Admitted Killer Remains Free.
It has been six months since a Black teenager was shot to death within feet of his home in Columbus, Ohio, and prosecutors are still investigating whether his admitted killer should be charged. Sinzae Reed’s family and the community remain frustrated months after the 13-year-old was gunned down in October at the Wedgewood Village Apartments. […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
‘This Is Not Democracy’: Read Justin J. Pearson’s Comments on His Expulsion in Tennessee
Tennessee state Rep. Justin J. Pearson — one of two Black Tennessee lawmakers who were expelled on Thursday — fit himself into a long history of civil rights activism when he told reporters that he’ll “never shirk back from civil disobedience” because that kind of defiance is “what built this country.” Like his fellow Democrat […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
‘The World Is Watching’: Read Justin Jones’ Comments on His Expulsion in Tennessee
Justin Jones made it clear that “there comes a time when people get sick and tired of being sick and tired.” During an emotional seven-hour session on Thursday, Jones didn’t mince words. He was the first of two Black Tennessee lawmakers, both Democrats, to be expelled from the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Hours later, his […]
Posted inCourts, Criminal Justice
The Courthouse Where Trump Surrendered Conjures an Ugly History
Donald Trump on Tuesday entered the same Manhattan courthouse where five Black and Latino teenage boys were wrongfully convicted of raping a white female jogger more than 30 years ago — a case he attached himself to by taking out a full-page ad in the city’s major newspapers to “bring back” the death penalty in New […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Alvin Bragg Isn’t the Only Black Prosecutor Taking on Trump
A Manhattan grand jury voted to indict Donald Trump on Thursday, according to multiple news sources — the first time a current or former U.S. president has faced criminal charges. Last week, when Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office was poised to issue an indictment against the former president, Trump called for Bragg’s arrest and […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Irvo Otieno’s Death Hits Home For Another Virginia Family
Princess Blanding and her family have endured the pain of losing two relatives experiencing a mental health crisis to police violence within a five-year period. The trauma of watching body camera footage of the minutes before her “brothers” died is acute. And the recent death of Irvo Otieno in Virginia is reigniting her call to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Public Safety
The Criminal Legal System Continues to Fail Pieper Lewis, a Survivor of Sex Trafficking
Pieper Lewis’ harrowing experience as a sex trafficking victim and her entrance into the criminal legal system underscore the ripple effects of sexual violence on Black girls and young women. This week, the 18-year-old is facing up to a year in jail after pleading guilty earlier this month to escaping custody. She also faces additional […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
New York Family Seeks Justice in Their College Student Son’s Death
Roquishia Lewis is still shell-shocked after a grand jury voted to not press charges against the white man who fatally stabbed her 19-year-old son on a college campus — and she’s even more confused by how her son has been portrayed by the Erie County district attorney in New York. “I’m devastated by how they […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Louisville Police Violated Black People’s Civil Rights ‘For Years,’ Says Justice Department
The Louisville Metro Police Department has a pattern of discriminating against Black people and violating their constitutional rights, the Justice Department announced on Wednesday. In 2021, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division launched a nearly two-year investigation of the Louisville department following the March 2020 fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor. Taylor was a 26-year-old […]
