Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · 7d

Reupping this. Just looking for a few name lookups!

Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · 9d

Do I have any followers with Lexis Nexis access? 👀

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Piper French @psfrench.bsky.social · 8d

Boston's Michelle Wu has attracted notice for standing up to Trump on ICE raids. But her stance is undermined by the city's fusion center, which civil liberties advocates have warned abt for yrs: "The whole purpose of it is federal & local law enforcement collaboration."
boltsmag.org/boston-polic...

Bid to Renew Federal Grant Sparks Concern Boston May Help Trump’s DHS on Immigration - Bolts

The grant helps fund a law enforcement center that’s drawn criticism over privacy and over data-sharing with ICE. It would also come with new strings to spend money on border control.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · 9d

Do I have any followers with Lexis Nexis access? 👀

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Piper French @psfrench.bsky.social · 23d

"“They thought we were just white trash rednecks & that we would just roll over & take it & not say anything." Remarkable new feature by @laurengill.bsky.social about the doubts & resistance that Sarah Huckabee Sanders' mega prison project has spurred in rural Arkansas: boltsmag.org/arkansas-pri...

The Prison Next Door - Bolts

How Arkansas’ secretive plan for a new state lockup angered residents in a deep red corner of rural America—and changed how some see incarceration.

boltsmag.org

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 27d

NEW: Arkansas announced plans for a mega prison in a rural town. Since then, locals are organizing to stop it.

At first they opposed it in their own town. But some now say they've taken a more critical look at how we incarcerate in the country.

make time for this new feature, you won't regret it

The Prison Next Door - Bolts

How Arkansas’ secretive plan for a new state lockup angered residents in a deep red corner of rural America—and changed how some see incarceration.

boltsmag.org

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 27d

This article also marks the first time that we've commissioned original photography from an independent photographer for a @boltsmag.org article.

You'll see how much it paid off!

Thanks to all our readers who support us for making projects like this possible.

Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 27d

NEW: Arkansas announced plans for a mega prison in a rural town. Since then, locals are organizing to stop it.

At first they opposed it in their own town. But some now say they've taken a more critical look at how we incarcerate in the country.

make time for this new feature, you won't regret it

The Prison Next Door - Bolts

How Arkansas’ secretive plan for a new state lockup angered residents in a deep red corner of rural America—and changed how some see incarceration.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · 27d

For @boltsmag.org & @thenation.com, I went to the farms, livestock sale barns, and roadside bars of Arkansas and the prison towns of Upstate New York to report on how rural communities are changed (or changing) when a prison comes to town.

boltsmag.org/arkansas-pri...

The Prison Next Door - Bolts

How Arkansas’ secretive plan for a new state lockup angered residents in a deep red corner of rural America—and changed how some see incarceration.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · 27d

thanks Jon!

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Sep 4

Lawyers for an Idaho death row prisoner accused state officials of “unjustifiable” and “potentially sanctionable” conduct — and said they “obfuscated key information on lethal injections so as to mislead.”

@dmoritzrabson.bsky.social has the latest in this saga:

theintercept.com/2025/08/30/l...

Death Row Prisoner: Idaho Officials Ran “Misdirection Campaign” to Withhold Info on Lethal Injection

Lawyers for Gerald Pizzuto say Idaho officials defied court orders to hand over information on lethal injection drugs.

theintercept.com

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Dan Moritz-Rabson @dmoritzrabson.bsky.social · Jul 19

I wrote for Truthout about how the masked plainclothes officers arresting people across the country pose a threat to everyone. Undocumented immigrants are afraid of being kidnapped by people posing as ICE as impersonation events continue occurring.

Truthout @truthout.org · Jul 19

The masked, plainclothes ICE agents terrorizing immigrant communities are indistinguishable from racist vigilantes.

By Refusing to Show Faces or Badges, ICE Opens Door to Vigilante Impersonators

The masked, plainclothes ICE agents terrorizing immigrant communities are indistinguishable from racist vigilantes.

buff.ly

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Jun 2

Canadian bars are making it a point to show that they’ve stopped buying bourbon bc of tariffs

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · May 21

Update: The ballot measured passed — Philadelphians voted overwhelmingly (75.5-23.5) in favor of creating the oversight board.

Local advocates hope it will improve conditions in the city's troubled jails.

Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · May 19

Problems with staffing, medical care, and dangerous conditions have plagued Philadelphia’s jails for decades. Tomorrow, voters will decide whether to create an independent oversight board to investigate and monitor them.

More on the ballot measure here:

boltsmag.org/philadelphia...

Philadelphia Measure Would Bolster Oversight for the City’s Deadly Jails - Bolts

On May 20, Philadelphia voters will choose whether to create an independent body to investigate dangerous conditions that have plagued the city’s jails for decades.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · May 19

Problems with staffing, medical care, and dangerous conditions have plagued Philadelphia’s jails for decades. Tomorrow, voters will decide whether to create an independent oversight board to investigate and monitor them.

More on the ballot measure here:

boltsmag.org/philadelphia...

Philadelphia Measure Would Bolster Oversight for the City’s Deadly Jails - Bolts

On May 20, Philadelphia voters will choose whether to create an independent body to investigate dangerous conditions that have plagued the city’s jails for decades.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Apr 24

thanks Liliana! 💞

Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Apr 24

It’s a huge honor to be named a Livingston award finalist for my series on executions in Alabama. Grateful to everyone — especially Keith Gavin and Alan Miller — who trusted me with their stories.

Wallace House Center for Journalists @umwallacehouse.bsky.social · Apr 23

🌟 The 2025 Livingston Award Finalists for National Reporting!

These exceptional journalists under 35 are telling stories that challenge assumptions and deepen our understanding of the nation.

Read their work here: loom.ly/LAVASEQ

#JournalismExcellence

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Apr 15

Today, 16- and 17-year olds will vote in the Newark school board election for the first time thanks to a student-led campaign to give teens more power at the polls.

Newark is the 3rd city in the US, and first in NJ, to allow young people to vote in these elections.

boltsmag.org/newark-teens...

Newark Teens Gear Up for School Board Elections After Voting Age Extended to 16 - Bolts

This month for the first time, 16- and 17-year olds will help decide Newark’s school board members thanks to a measure passed last year, just the third reform of its kind in the nation.

boltsmag.org

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Alex Burness @burness.bsky.social · Apr 9

New: Conservatives are moving quickly to reject more ballots by ending "grace periods" for vote-by-mail. In the last few weeks alone, we've seen movement on this in Kansas, Utah, West Virginia, at the 5th Circuit, and through Trump's EO. boltsmag.org/restrictions...

Trump Wants Mail Votes to Arrive By Election Day. Red States Are Rushing to Toe the Line. - Bolts

Frustrated by slowing mail delivery, particularly in rural areas, the Kansas legislature in 2017 passed a law to let elections officials count mail ballots that arrived after Election Day, for... Read...

boltsmag.org

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Michael Barajas @michaelbarajas.bsky.social · Apr 5

teens in Newark pushed to extend the voting age to 16 in school board elections, and now for the first time young ppl are gearing up to vote and holding candidate forums to talk about their experiences w/ education

very cool new story by @laurengill.bsky.social boltsmag.org/newark-teens...

Newark Teens Gear Up for School Board Elections After Voting Age Extended to 16 - Bolts

This month for the first time, 16- and 17-year olds will help decide Newark’s school board members thanks to a measure passed last year, just the third reform of its kind in the nation.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Mar 28

South Carolina has scheduled another firing squad execution. The state is planning to execute Mikal Mahdi on April 11.

According to his attorney,"Mikal chose the firing squad instead of being burned and mutilated in the electric chair, or suffering a lingering death on the lethal injection gurney"

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Piper French @psfrench.bsky.social · Mar 20

In January 2024 I got a one-line email from a woman I didn't know: "Jimmie Duncan an innocent man on death row is looking to get into contact with you."

I've been working on the story ever since. Here it is, finally - a @motherjones.com / @bolts.bsky.social feature: boltsmag.org/the-human-co...

The Human Cost of Jeff Landry’s Drive to Resume Executions - Bolts

Chris Duncan’s death sentence—built on the testimony of two discredited doctors—illustrates just how faulty the system can be.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Mar 20

“Even though it may have looked peaceful, it was not.”

Jimmy Jenkins @jimmyjenkins.bsky.social · Mar 20

Arizona resumed executions today. Despite all of the claims of increased transparency, there is still so much that we do not see. My witness account of the lethal injection of Aaron Gunches: www.azcentral.com/story/news/l...

Arizona promises transparent resumption of death penalty. For witnesses, much is unseen

Inside a state prison building, witnesses watched Arizona execute Aaron Gunches without the troubles of the past.

www.azcentral.com

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Mar 20

My colleague @psfrench.bsky.social has a stunning feature out today exploring the maddening case of Chris Duncan, sent to Louisiana's death row on junk science bite mark evidence, and Jeff Landry's quest to make it easier to kill him.

boltsmag.org/the-human-co...

The Human Cost of Jeff Landry’s Drive to Resume Executions - Bolts

Chris Duncan’s death sentence—built on the testimony of two discredited doctors—illustrates just how faulty the system can be.

boltsmag.org

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Mar 19

Louisiana has executed Jessie Hoffman with nitrogen gas, becoming the second state to use the experimental method. Still awaiting details but state officials said the gas flowed for 19 minutes.

Hoffman's lawyer released a statement saying "his execution will cause lasting harm to many."

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Reposted by Lauren Gill

Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · Mar 18

BREAKING: On a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court will not stop Louisiana from trying to suffocate Jessie Hoffman to death tonight with nitrogen gas.

Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson would grant a stay of execution. Gorsuch, based on a religion claim, dissents and would also grant a stay.

Cite as: 604 U.S.
- (2025)
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Gorsuch, J., dissenting
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
No. 24A893
JESSIE HOFFMAN v. GARY WESTCOTT, SECRETARY, LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS, ET AL.
ON APPLICATION FOR STAY
[March 18, 2025]
The application for stay of execution of sentence of death presented to JUSTICE ALITO and by him referred to the Court is denied. JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR, JUSTICE KAGAN, and JUSTICE JACKSON would grant the application for stay of execution.
JUSTICE GORSUCH, dissenting.
The State of Louisiana plans to execute Jessie Hoffman tonight. Mr. Hoffman is a Buddhist. And he argues that the State's chosen method of execution-nitrogen hy-poxia-violates his rights under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000, 42 U.S. C.
§2000cc et seq. (RLUIPA). Nitrogen hypoxia will, he says, substantially burden his religious exercise by interfering with his meditative breathing as he dies. See Complaint in No. 25-169 (MD La.), 11235-236. No one has questioned the sincerity of Mr. Hoffman's religious beliefs. Yet the district court rejected his LUIPA claim anyway based on its own "find[ing]" about the kind of breathing Mr. Hoffman's faith requires. App. to Pet. for Cert. 20a.
That finding contravened the fundamental principle that courts have "no license to declare ... whether an adherent has 'correctly perceived' the commands of his religion." Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights

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HOFFMAN v. WESTCOTT
GORSUCH, J., dissenting
Comm'n, 584 U. S. 617, 651 (2018) (GORSUCH, J., concur-ring) (quoting Thomas v. Review Bd. of Ind. Employment Security Div., 450 U. S. 707, 716 (1981)); see, e.g., Holt v.
Hobbs, 574 U. S. 352, 361-362 (2015); Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., 573 U.S. 682, 724-725 (2014). The Court of Appeals failed to confront the district court's apparent legal error-or even to mention the RLUIPA claim Mr. Hoffman pressed on appeal. Perhaps that claim ultimately lacks merit. But the Fifth Circuit's unexplained omission leaves this Court poorly positioned to assess it. I would therefore grant the stay application and petition for writ of certiorari, vacate the judgment of the Fifth Circuit, and remand for that court to address Mr. Hoffman's RLUIPA claim in the first instance.

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Lauren Gill @laurengill.bsky.social · Mar 18

Without intervention from SCOTUS (which seems unlikely), Louisiana will become the second state to execute a prisoner with nitrogen gas tonight. Wondering how we got here? My colleague, @psfrench.bsky.social explains:

Piper French @psfrench.bsky.social · Mar 17

This is Jessie Hoffman. Louisiana plans to execute him tomorrow using nitrogen hypoxia, a profoundly experimental method that has only been used 4x in the US (or anywhere). In plainer language, this means the state will gas him to death.

Photo of Jessie Hoffman at Angola prison in Louisiana

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