Michele is interviewed on juvenile systems around the country manage their most challenging youth. “They’re just throwing up their hands and saying: ‘We’ve exhausted our options. We just don’t know what to do," Michele comments.

This report reveals the devastating impact of the COVID pandemic on prison workers in Texas. We found that Texas has some of the worst COVID outcomes among prison staff in the country, even when controlling for size. What's more, in Jan 2021, the Texas prison agency stopped reporting deaths from COVID among people who are incarcerated, making it difficult to assess the true toll of the virus behind bars. The report suggests that deaths and infections among staff may be a proverbial “canary in the coal mine,” warning that the true impact of COVID in Texas prisons has yet to be fully revealed.

In this article about the ways agencies are continuing to shield data about the impact of COVID-19 in prisons, Michele responds to TDCJ’s claim that it waits for autopsy results before reporting deaths in custody due to COVID. The article also highlights findings from, “Hidden Figures,” our report detailing a lack of data transparency regarding the impact of COVID-19 in state prisons, local jails and state-run juvenile facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“There’s a sense that COVID is over, that the pandemic is behind us, and that is just not the case,” Deitch said. “We have to remember that prisons and jails were hit so much harder than the outside communities were, and in many jurisdictions, they were late to provide vaccinations to incarcerated people.”

Citing “Dead Man Waiting,” our report on deaths among those who were approved for parole but were still waiting for their release from prison, this article describes the nationwide problem of release delays due to programming requirements--a problem that was exacerbated during the pandemic.

Michele summarizes findings from “Dead Man Waiting,” our report about deaths among people who were approved for parole release but who continued to languish in Texas prisons.

Michele and Alycia, summarize findings from our Dead Man Waiting report and discuss the implications. The article includes a quote from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles responding to delayed releases among people approved for parole due to programming requirements.

Quoting Michele, this article provides a detailed description of findings from “Dead Man Waiting,” and the factors that contribute to keeping people in prison after they’ve been approved for parole.

At least 18 paroled inmates died behind bars last year because the programs they had to complete before they could be released were slowed or stopped cold by the pandemic, a new report says.

In a first-of-its-kind analysis, “Dead Man Waiting,” shows that while deaths among parole-approved people increased during the COVID period, this population was already dying in large numbers from other chronic health issues while awaiting release. The report was the subject of a full-length NBC News NOW story, featuring families of people who died after parole approval, as well as several other prominent news outlets.