Vera Institute of Justice
@vera.org
We’re fighting to secure equal justice for all, end mass incarceration, and strengthen families + communities
Vera works across the U.S. to transform the criminal justice and immigration systems so that wealth doesn’t determine freedom, fewer people are incarcerated, and everyone behind bars is treated with dignity.
Make a 3X gift now to support this vital work: secure.vera.org/a/gw2025-3x?...
Make a 3X gift now to support this vital work: secure.vera.org/a/gw2025-3x?...
November 26, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Vera works across the U.S. to transform the criminal justice and immigration systems so that wealth doesn’t determine freedom, fewer people are incarcerated, and everyone behind bars is treated with dignity.
Make a 3X gift now to support this vital work: secure.vera.org/a/gw2025-3x?...
Make a 3X gift now to support this vital work: secure.vera.org/a/gw2025-3x?...
Vera's Daniela Gilbert and Benjamin Heller have been invited to join New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s transition committees.
These appointments allow them to bring their expertise in safety, equity, and community-centered reform to this moment of civic leadership.
These appointments allow them to bring their expertise in safety, equity, and community-centered reform to this moment of civic leadership.
November 26, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Vera's Daniela Gilbert and Benjamin Heller have been invited to join New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s transition committees.
These appointments allow them to bring their expertise in safety, equity, and community-centered reform to this moment of civic leadership.
These appointments allow them to bring their expertise in safety, equity, and community-centered reform to this moment of civic leadership.
Border Patrol is using a secretive program to track drivers across the U.S. This surveillance has led to searches, interrogations, and arrests of people because their everyday movement was deemed “suspicious”—and it disproportionately targets immigrants.
apnews.com/article/immi...
apnews.com/article/immi...
Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with 'suspicious' travel patterns
The U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide in a secretive program to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious.
apnews.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Border Patrol is using a secretive program to track drivers across the U.S. This surveillance has led to searches, interrogations, and arrests of people because their everyday movement was deemed “suspicious”—and it disproportionately targets immigrants.
apnews.com/article/immi...
apnews.com/article/immi...
Over 16 years, ICE has detained people across 1,397 facilities total—not only private detention facilities and local jails, but also unexpected places that are excluded from public reporting, such as hotels, hospitals, airports, and military bases.
November 25, 2025 at 9:26 PM
Over 16 years, ICE has detained people across 1,397 facilities total—not only private detention facilities and local jails, but also unexpected places that are excluded from public reporting, such as hotels, hospitals, airports, and military bases.
“People are being forced to make incredibly hard choices about their families, about their jobs.” - Vera's Shayna Kessler.
As voluntary departures spike, the root cause is clear: the erosion of due process in our immigration system: documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
As voluntary departures spike, the root cause is clear: the erosion of due process in our immigration system: documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
Voluntary Departures of Detained Immigrants Have Surged 1,373 Percent - Documented
Driven by bond policy changes and harsh detainment conditions, the number of immigrants choosing voluntary departure over fighting deportation has increased 1,373 percent this summer.
documentedny.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:44 PM
“People are being forced to make incredibly hard choices about their families, about their jobs.” - Vera's Shayna Kessler.
As voluntary departures spike, the root cause is clear: the erosion of due process in our immigration system: documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
As voluntary departures spike, the root cause is clear: the erosion of due process in our immigration system: documentedny.com/2025/11/24/d...
Mass incarceration is a public health crisis.
Learn how incarceration impacts the health of people behind bars and beyond. ⬇️
Learn how incarceration impacts the health of people behind bars and beyond. ⬇️
November 25, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Mass incarceration is a public health crisis.
Learn how incarceration impacts the health of people behind bars and beyond. ⬇️
Learn how incarceration impacts the health of people behind bars and beyond. ⬇️
Justice belongs to all of us, and we must defend it together.
Donate today and your gift will go 3X as far to defend the rights of everyone harmed by the criminal justice and immigration systems:
Donate today and your gift will go 3X as far to defend the rights of everyone harmed by the criminal justice and immigration systems:
Donate to the Vera Institute of Justice
With your support, we can transform our justice systems.
secure.vera.org
November 24, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Justice belongs to all of us, and we must defend it together.
Donate today and your gift will go 3X as far to defend the rights of everyone harmed by the criminal justice and immigration systems:
Donate today and your gift will go 3X as far to defend the rights of everyone harmed by the criminal justice and immigration systems:
As Vera and other advocates predicted, Prop 36 is straining budgets in California, without improving community safety or public health.
New reporting from @voiceofsandiego.org breaks down how the policy is straining both San Diego County’s budget and justice system:
New reporting from @voiceofsandiego.org breaks down how the policy is straining both San Diego County’s budget and justice system:
Proposition 36 Hits County Budget Hard
Implementing Proposition 36 is costing county government tens of millions of dollars at a time of major budget uncertainty.
voiceofsandiego.org
November 20, 2025 at 3:55 PM
As Vera and other advocates predicted, Prop 36 is straining budgets in California, without improving community safety or public health.
New reporting from @voiceofsandiego.org breaks down how the policy is straining both San Diego County’s budget and justice system:
New reporting from @voiceofsandiego.org breaks down how the policy is straining both San Diego County’s budget and justice system:
Across the U.S., surging detention populations are creating dangerous conditions: people are being denied adequate beds and clean clothes and even basic health care. Read about the conditions at Pine Prairie, an ICE Processing Center in #Louisiana: lailluminator.com/2025/11/13/i...
Conditions at Louisiana ICE lockup worsen as detainees increase, immigrant rights advocates say • Louisiana Illuminator
Advocates say capacity issues are leading to worsening conditions at the facility that already has a long history of complaints alleging human rights abuses and civil rights violations.
lailluminator.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:49 PM
Across the U.S., surging detention populations are creating dangerous conditions: people are being denied adequate beds and clean clothes and even basic health care. Read about the conditions at Pine Prairie, an ICE Processing Center in #Louisiana: lailluminator.com/2025/11/13/i...
Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity. Yet for more than a century, dehumanizing images of people in the criminal justice and immigration systems have been used in U.S. politics to stoke fear.
Vera's Ed Chung reflects on this unjust history:
Vera's Ed Chung reflects on this unjust history:
Using detainees and prisoners as photo props has a long history in American politics
Photos and video of immigrants in custody have been a hallmark of President Donald Trump’s administration, and illustrate his agenda to crack down on immigration.
apnews.com
November 19, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity. Yet for more than a century, dehumanizing images of people in the criminal justice and immigration systems have been used in U.S. politics to stoke fear.
Vera's Ed Chung reflects on this unjust history:
Vera's Ed Chung reflects on this unjust history:
"Second chances and healing can coexist. They must coexist—for survivors, for those who have caused harm, and for every life touched in between."
@famm.org's Alexia Pitter and other survivors share a vision for justice rooted in healing and change: www.vera.org/news/listen-...
@famm.org's Alexia Pitter and other survivors share a vision for justice rooted in healing and change: www.vera.org/news/listen-...
Listen to Their Stories: These Crime Survivors Don’t Want More Prison
These crime survivors and the leader of a crime survivors organization highlight the need for sentencing that focuses on healing and change, not just…
www.vera.org
November 18, 2025 at 5:16 PM
"Second chances and healing can coexist. They must coexist—for survivors, for those who have caused harm, and for every life touched in between."
@famm.org's Alexia Pitter and other survivors share a vision for justice rooted in healing and change: www.vera.org/news/listen-...
@famm.org's Alexia Pitter and other survivors share a vision for justice rooted in healing and change: www.vera.org/news/listen-...
On October 30, the Vera Institute of Justice announced that Nick Turner, the organization's current President and Director, will conclude his tenure in May 2026 after almost thirteen years of service during which he led efforts to make the criminal justice and immigration systems fairer for all.
November 18, 2025 at 3:45 PM
On October 30, the Vera Institute of Justice announced that Nick Turner, the organization's current President and Director, will conclude his tenure in May 2026 after almost thirteen years of service during which he led efforts to make the criminal justice and immigration systems fairer for all.
Despite claims that electronic monitoring serves as an alternative to incarceration, Vera’s research shows how its increased usage has expanded the reach of the criminal legal and immigration systems, subjecting more people to surveillance and control.
November 17, 2025 at 8:33 PM
Despite claims that electronic monitoring serves as an alternative to incarceration, Vera’s research shows how its increased usage has expanded the reach of the criminal legal and immigration systems, subjecting more people to surveillance and control.
In a letter to the editor of @newyorker.com, Nicole Melaku, executive director of @npnewamericans.bsky.social and co-lead for the Fairness to Freedom campaign, urges for investments in immigrant legal defense programs.
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Letters from Our Readers
Readers respond to E. Tammy Kim’s article about the Trump Administration’s attack on immigration courts, Manvir Singh’s piece about mythologies, and Maggie Doherty’s review of “True Nature: The Pilgri...
www.newyorker.com
November 17, 2025 at 2:59 PM
In a letter to the editor of @newyorker.com, Nicole Melaku, executive director of @npnewamericans.bsky.social and co-lead for the Fairness to Freedom campaign, urges for investments in immigrant legal defense programs.
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...
Thousands of people die in U.S. jails and prisons each year. Too often, families must face financial and logistical barriers to bringing their loved ones home.
Incarcerated people deserve to be treated with dignity in life and death—no matter what.
Incarcerated people deserve to be treated with dignity in life and death—no matter what.
These Families Wanted to Lay Their Loved Ones to Rest. They Had to Bring Them Home From Prison First.
Policies that dictate what happens after a death behind bars often add new layers of pain — and financial and logistical challenges — for those left behind.
www.themarshallproject.org
November 14, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Thousands of people die in U.S. jails and prisons each year. Too often, families must face financial and logistical barriers to bringing their loved ones home.
Incarcerated people deserve to be treated with dignity in life and death—no matter what.
Incarcerated people deserve to be treated with dignity in life and death—no matter what.
The DOJ claims it does not target immigration judges in any personnel decision. Yet so far this year the Executive Office for Immigration Review has fired about 70 immigration judges, nearly half of whom came from an immigrant-defense background. www.npr.org/2025/11/06/g...
www.npr.org
November 14, 2025 at 2:46 PM
The DOJ claims it does not target immigration judges in any personnel decision. Yet so far this year the Executive Office for Immigration Review has fired about 70 immigration judges, nearly half of whom came from an immigrant-defense background. www.npr.org/2025/11/06/g...
ICE obscures the breadth of its detention network by reporting limited, incomplete statistics, and for only a fraction of facilities. In the first 10 days of June 2025, ICE detained people in 436 facilities, but only publicly acknowledged using 163 of them. #ImmigrantRights
November 13, 2025 at 9:02 PM
ICE obscures the breadth of its detention network by reporting limited, incomplete statistics, and for only a fraction of facilities. In the first 10 days of June 2025, ICE detained people in 436 facilities, but only publicly acknowledged using 163 of them. #ImmigrantRights
A New York State corrections officers’ strike disrupted family visitation for almost seven months. Incarcerated writer David Sell underscores why programs that offer crucial rehabilitation and hope must be prioritized even during times like this. Read his full blog:
November 12, 2025 at 7:40 PM
A New York State corrections officers’ strike disrupted family visitation for almost seven months. Incarcerated writer David Sell underscores why programs that offer crucial rehabilitation and hope must be prioritized even during times like this. Read his full blog:
Physical mail is a lifeline to the outside world for people who are incarcerated, yet states are increasingly banning it in favor of digital scans.
The result: censorship, less privacy, and higher costs for incarcerated people and their loved ones.
The result: censorship, less privacy, and higher costs for incarcerated people and their loved ones.
New Prison Mail Policies Threaten Newsletters by and for Incarcerated People
States are adopting surveillance-oriented “paperless” policies that deny incarcerated people access to physical letters.
truthout.org
November 12, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Physical mail is a lifeline to the outside world for people who are incarcerated, yet states are increasingly banning it in favor of digital scans.
The result: censorship, less privacy, and higher costs for incarcerated people and their loved ones.
The result: censorship, less privacy, and higher costs for incarcerated people and their loved ones.
In a letter to the editor of @thenation.com, retired immigration judge, A. Ashley Tabaddor warns that the balance and fairness in the immigration court system are fading.
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
Letters From the December 2025 Issue
First times as tragedy… Worth the price?… The Nation replies… Distrust by design (Web-only)…
www.thenation.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:02 PM
In a letter to the editor of @thenation.com, retired immigration judge, A. Ashley Tabaddor warns that the balance and fairness in the immigration court system are fading.
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
www.thenation.com/article/soci...
"Just because the cost of living is increasing doesn’t mean our livelihoods are of less value.”
LaShawn Lewis reflects on the injustice of low prison wages and the rising costs of basic goods behind bars:
LaShawn Lewis reflects on the injustice of low prison wages and the rising costs of basic goods behind bars:
Prison Pay and Commissary Prices: Too Little for Too Much
It can take an incarcerated person weeks of strenuous work to afford even just a stick of deodorant.
www.vera.org
November 12, 2025 at 5:41 PM
"Just because the cost of living is increasing doesn’t mean our livelihoods are of less value.”
LaShawn Lewis reflects on the injustice of low prison wages and the rising costs of basic goods behind bars:
LaShawn Lewis reflects on the injustice of low prison wages and the rising costs of basic goods behind bars:
A federal judge has ordered urgent reforms at a #Chicago immigration detention center, after finding the deplorable conditions at ICE’s Broadview facility unconstitutional and citing evidence of overcrowding and filthy conditions.
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
www.reuters.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:10 PM
A federal judge has ordered urgent reforms at a #Chicago immigration detention center, after finding the deplorable conditions at ICE’s Broadview facility unconstitutional and citing evidence of overcrowding and filthy conditions.
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
Reposted by Vera Institute of Justice
It can take an incarcerated person weeks of strenuous work to afford even just a stick of deodorant. Story via @vera.org.
Prison Pay and Commissary Prices: Too Little for Too Much
It can take an incarcerated person weeks of strenuous work to afford even just a stick of deodorant.
www.vera.org
November 9, 2025 at 11:33 PM
It can take an incarcerated person weeks of strenuous work to afford even just a stick of deodorant. Story via @vera.org.
Legislators often use crime survivors to justify harsh punishment, like long prison sentences. Yet many people who have been harmed advocate for restorative justice and second chances.
Four crime survivors highlight the need for sentencing reform: https://www.vera.org/news/listen-to-their-stories
Four crime survivors highlight the need for sentencing reform: https://www.vera.org/news/listen-to-their-stories
Listen to Their Stories: These Crime Survivors Don’t Want More Prison
These crime survivors and the leader of a crime survivors organization highlight the need for sentencing that focuses on healing and change, not just…
www.vera.org
November 11, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Legislators often use crime survivors to justify harsh punishment, like long prison sentences. Yet many people who have been harmed advocate for restorative justice and second chances.
Four crime survivors highlight the need for sentencing reform: https://www.vera.org/news/listen-to-their-stories
Four crime survivors highlight the need for sentencing reform: https://www.vera.org/news/listen-to-their-stories