Emily Hoerner, Senior Reporter at Injustice Watch

Even as Illinois court permits detaining pre-teens, across U.S. fewer youth being held

Calling “backward” the United States treatment of juveniles, Cook County Public Defender Amy Campanelli said she plans to ask the Illinois Supreme Court to reverse an Illinois Appellate Court decision last week that permits holding pre-teenagers in custody.

by Emily Hoerner November 4, 2019December 5, 2023

St. Louis top prosecutor ‘not authorized’ to appeal case of man she says was framed, state attorney says

The filing marks the latest clash in an increasingly fraught battle between St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner and the Missouri Attorney General’s office over Gardner’s effort to correct what her office has concluded is the wrongful conviction and ongoing incarceration of Lamar Johnson.

by Emily Hoerner November 1, 2019January 8, 2024

Youth Incarceration

Illinois appellate court rejects ordinance banning detention of 10-12 year olds

A Cook County judge’s decision to buck a county ordinance by ordering the confinement of a 12-year-old child in a juvenile detention facility was upheld by the Illinois Appellate Court this week. Appellate court judges wrote that a conflicting state law makes the ordinance “unenforceable.”

by Emily Hoerner October 29, 2019December 5, 2023

Nationwide prosecutors: St. Louis judge’s ruling in murder case is ‘a symbol of unfairness’

Armed with a chorus of support from outside legal groups, the St. Louis city prosecutor this week appealed a judge’s refusal to consider the prosecution’s conclusion that a local man had been framed for a 1994 murder and that his conviction should be overturned.

by Emily Hoerner October 25, 2019December 5, 2023

In Plain View

Phoenix police chief disciplines 70 officers after review of social media posts

Phoenix Police Chief Jeri Williams announced her intention to fire, suspend, or provide supervisory coaching for 70 department police officers this week after concluding an investigation into those officers’ social media posts.

by Emily Hoerner and Rick Tulsky October 23, 2019January 31, 2024

Illinois Prisons

Lawsuit: Illinois transgender woman says abuse has continued in female lockup facility

An Illinois transgender woman said in a motion this month that mistreatment she experienced at several male prison facilities due to her gender identity has continued, despite her transfer in April to a women’s prison.

by Emily Hoerner October 17, 2019December 5, 2023

Illinois Prisons

Prison guards mocked transgender inmates in two private Facebook groups

At least 25 Illinois Department of Corrections employees have taken part in online conversations that mocked, demeaned, or disclosed personal and medical information about transgender inmates in two private Facebook groups, an Injustice Watch review has found.

by Emily Hoerner October 17, 2019December 5, 2023

In Plain View

Philly cops disciplined; but city vows to do more to address Facebook posts

Philadelphia officials concluded that the Facebook posts of 191 active police officers violated department regulations after an internal affairs investigation, the city’s acting police commissioner told City Council members Tuesday. City officials, residents and activists called on the department to do more to change the culture within the Philadelphia Police Department.

by Rick Tulsky and Emily Hoerner September 10, 2019January 31, 2024

Illinois Prisons

Accused of abuse by transgender inmates, correctional officers mock LGBTQ on Facebook

Two Illinois Department of Corrections officers accused in lawsuit of civil rights violations against a transgender woman publicly shared memes or other posts that mocked members of the L.G.B.T.Q. community. A third officer, not named in the suit, posted a Facebook meme disapproving of homosexuality, among other troubling posts.

by Emily Hoerner September 4, 2019December 5, 2023

Judge faults prosecutors for conflicts as she rejects their claim an innocent man was convicted

A St. Louis judge rejected a motion by the city’s top prosecutor to overturn a murder conviction based on the prosecutors’ conclusion that an innocent man was convicted. The judge’s opinion found several apparent conflicts of interest by the prosecutors’ office; but, the defense noted, said nothing about the facts that the prosecutors’ office said proved the prisoner is innocent.

by Emily Hoerner August 23, 2019December 5, 2023

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