As the murder trial of Karmelo Anthony unfolds this week, a controversial law that disproportionately affects Black and brown youth accused of serious crimes remains at the center of the case. Anthony, now 19, is facing first-degree murder charges in the April 2025 fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf. The incident occurred after a seating […]
Criminal Justice
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics & Policy
Cross Burning, Federal Charges, and the State That Still Won’t Call It a Hate Crime
Monica Williams’ phone notifications wouldn’t stop dinging while in class. During her free moment from teaching, she checked her text messages. She learned that her former neighbor, Worden E. Butler had been indicted in April. Williams and her husband, Shawn, have accused Butler, who is white, of burning a cross in his backyard. “You are […]
Posted inGun Violence, Violence Against Women
After 8 Children Die, Survivors Reveal How Louisiana Normalizes Partner Violence
This story contains detailed descriptions of domestic violence, gun violence, child death, and intimate partner abuse. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE) or text START to 88788. SHREVEPORT, Lousiana— When Jekyra Carter woke to the sound of sirens on April […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
What Recent Killings of Black Women Reveal About a Growing Crisis
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Trinece Robinson describes her childhood as a road map of missing years, broken promises, and violence. She can’t vividly describe the emotional weight of growing up in an abusive household. She can, however, recall how old she was when the lights first went out in her home. “I don’t remember most of […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Culture, Juvenile Justice, Policing, Politics & Policy
Black Teens Called ‘Radioactive’ as D.C. Cuts Programs Meant to Help Them
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Youth advocate Kawana Billy nearly jumped out of her chair listening to the way a white D.C. Council member described Black youth in Washington. To him, they were “dangerous” and “radioactive,” and at one point, he alleged young people carry guns and scare residents. “It’s very interesting how folks are using these […]
Posted inClimate Change, Criminal Justice, Economic Development, Environmental Justice, Policing, Politics & Policy
Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ Makes a Black Neighborhood a Testing Lab for AI Policing
This story was published in partnership with Counterstream Media for The AI issue of Peace & Riot. ATLANTA — When he drives through his neighborhood now, Brian Page passes rows of police cars and AI‑powered cameras that track nearly every movement. For most of his life, Page, who goes by “Scapegoat Jones,” felt safest in […]
Posted inGun Violence, Mental Health
Shreveport Mass Shooting of 8 Children Exposes Toll of Domestic Violence
Just over a day after a mass shooting left eight children dead in Shreveport, Louisiana, community members are struggling to process the tragedy. On Sunday morning, Shamar Elkins, a 31-year-old father and military veteran, shot and killed the children and wounded two women, including his wife, in a domestic violence rampage that stretched across multiple […]
Posted inCulture, History, Incarceration
In New Orleans, Black Cowboy Tradition Collides With Prison Rodeo Spectacle
NEW ORLEANS — Outside, along Claiborne Avenue in the Algiers section of New Orleans, Sunday looked familiar. Black children slurped snowballs in the street, adults danced around them, and Black riders eased their horses through the crowds, past corner stores and shotgun houses, hooves clapping against the asphalt. For Black riders like Robert Pollar, who […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics & Policy
Justin Fairfax, Once a Rising Political Star, Kills Wife in Murder-Suicide
ARLINGTON, Virginia — Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, who was the second Black American to hold that office in the state, fatally shot his estranged wife, Cerina Fairfax, and then himself at their home, police said. The couple’s two teenage children were at the Annandale home, just outside of Washington, at the time, and […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Da’Quain Johnson’s Family Disputes Police Account of Fatal Michigan Shooting
Angelica Johnson is forced to recount the images and sounds of her son, Da’Quain Johnson, being attacked by a police K-9 dog and being shot three times by police last month. “As it was livestreaming, my granddaughter was calling me to tell me that the dog was attacking him, and before I could find out […]